ChatGPT's Daily Power Consumption Exceeds 500,000 kWh, Over 17,000 Times That of an Average U.S. Household
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According to media reports, OpenAI's popular chatbot ChatGPT may consume over 500,000 kilowatt-hours of electricity daily.
As a reference, the average daily electricity consumption of a U.S. household is only 29 kWh, meaning ChatGPT's energy consumption is nearly 17,000 times that of an average household. If generative AI is further adopted, electricity consumption could increase significantly. Alex de Vries, a data scientist at the Dutch Central Bank, estimates in a paper that by 2027, the entire artificial intelligence industry could consume 85 to 134 terawatt-hours (1 TWh = 1 billion kWh) of electricity annually. This amount is comparable to the combined annual electricity generation of Kenya, Guatemala, and Croatia.
However, accurately assessing the actual electricity consumption of the rapidly growing AI industry is not easy. Despite leading tech companies being at the forefront of AI, they remain tight-lipped about their energy usage. Moreover, the operational methods of different artificial intelligence models vary significantly, making the estimation of power consumption even more complex.
According to data from New Street Research, Nvidia holds approximately 95% of the market share in graphics processors. De Vries estimates that by 2027, the entire AI industry's power consumption will range between 85 and 134 terawatt-hours. This is a considerable figure, potentially accounting for about half of the global electricity consumption.