How Much Energy Does Artificial Intelligence Consume?

Metaverse Planet October 14, 2025Last Updated: October 14, 2025

2 minutes read

How much energy does the Artificial Intelligence (AI) we use every day consume? Here is the unknown face of the technology that is changing the world.

It would not be wrong to say that Artificial Intelligence (AI) has been the most popular topic in the technology world for the past few years. We chat with ChatGPT, create realistic videos with Google VEO 3, and use this technology to make our lives easier. However, while this may seem like magic, a massive operation is running behind the curtain. Naturally, this operation entails incredible energy consumption.

So, how much electricity does AI consume? In this article, we will examine this topic and look at the data. It is not possible for us to say directly, “AI consumes this much energy,” because such a precise data point does not exist. There are only some studies and estimations available. Let’s look at the energy consumption according to these.

Contents show

How Much Energy Does Artificial Intelligence Consume?

The energy consumption of AI currently accounts for over 20% of all data centers worldwide. A study published in the journal Joule in May even predicted that this expenditure could double by the end of the year.

According to a recent study shared in MIT Technology Review, creating a 5-second video with an average AI tool was found to consume energy equivalent to running a microwave for over an hour. However, it was also underlined that this could vary depending on the AI model, its power, and capacity. For example, a small Meta model like Llama consumes 114 joules of energy for a single answer, while a larger version can increase energy consumption by up to 60 times.

So, as you can see, the energy spent can change with every AI. However, we can make a generalization. According to estimates by the International Energy Agency (IEA), the electricity consumption of the data centers powering AI could rise to 300 terawatt-hours (TWh) in the coming years. This is truly an incredible level.

Consuming Energy Like Entire Countries

To put it more clearly, AI models can consume as much energy as medium-sized countries. The United States‘ total electricity consumption in 2024 was around 4,000 TWh. If the IEA’s estimates are correct, AI has the potential to consume an amount of electricity that is a significant fraction of the annual consumption of the US within a few years. We can estimate that it already consumes as much energy as smaller countries. It may soon approach the consumption levels of major countries.

Is a Green Future Possible?

It is fair to say that these data are genuinely alarming. It brings up the question in everyone’s mind: “Can the high energy consumption of AI cause serious harm?” Necessary precautions must be taken for this. Companies and governments need to adopt a “Green AI” approach regarding issues like data centers and focus on clean energy. The use of renewable energy sources can help solve this problem.

We have examined how much energy AI consumes annually. We can already see that the amount of energy consumed is close to the levels of some countries. Despite this, AI companies still state that they do not have enough processing power and need more. This is an indicator that consumption will rapidly increase.