The hidden costs of AI

The hidden costs of AI

Author: PNAS February 23, 2026 Duration: 9:53

Hidden sustainability costs of AI

Science Sessions are brief conversations with cutting-edge researchers, National Academy members, and policymakers as they discuss topics relevant to today's scientific community. Learn the behind-the-scenes story of work published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), plus a broad range of scientific news about discoveries that affect the world around us.

In this episode, researchers describe the sustainability impact of AI data centers.

In this episode, we cover:
•[00:00] Introduction
•[01:20] Bronis de Supinski describes how the energy demands of AI data centers have increased in recent years and why improvements in data center energy efficiency will not necessarily reduce total energy expenditures
•[03:08] Eric Masanet explains the difficulty of tracking and projecting the energy usage of AI data centers.
•[05:12] Shaolei Ren describes the water usage and air pollution associated with AI data centers.
•[07:30] Tevfik Kosar explains how AI might be leveraged as a tool to help address climate change and sustainability challenges.
•[09:00] Final thoughts and conclusion.

About Our Guests:
Bronis de Supinski 
Chief Technology Officer
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory 

Eric Masanet 
Professor
University of California Santa Barbara
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory

Shaolei Ren 
Associate Professor 
University of California Riverside

Tevfik Kosar 
Professor
University at Buffalo

Follow us on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts for more captivating discussions on scientific breakthroughs!

Visit Science Sessions on PNAS.org: https://www.pnas.org/about/science-sessions-podcast 

Follow PNAS:
Twitter/X
Facebook
LinkedIn
YouTube
Sign up for the PNAS Highlights newsletter


Tune into PNAS Science Sessions for a direct line to the people shaping modern science. Produced by PNAS, this podcast offers more than just summaries of published research; it’s where you hear the candid, often personal stories behind the headlines. Each episode features concise conversations with the researchers themselves-from emerging voices to established Academy members-alongside the policymakers whose decisions are informed by this work. You’ll get a genuine sense of the questions that drive these experts, the unexpected hurdles they face in their labs and field studies, and why their findings matter right now. The scope is deliberately wide, reflecting the interdisciplinary nature of science itself, covering discoveries that range from microscopic processes to planetary-scale phenomena. This isn't about dry lectures, but about capturing the human endeavor of investigation. For anyone curious about how science actually unfolds and wants to understand the context of breakthroughs as they happen, this podcast serves as an essential, engaging resource. It connects the dots between a published paper in a prestigious journal and the real-world implications that ripple out from it.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 100

PNAS Science Sessions
Podcast Episodes
Brain function after cryopreservation [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 10:33
Cryopreservation of brain tissue structures Science Sessions are brief conversations with cutting-edge researchers, National Academy members, and policymakers as they discuss topics relevant to today's scientific communi…
Paleoecology of Doggerland [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 10:39
The lost forests of Doggerland Science Sessions are brief conversations with cutting-edge researchers, National Academy members, and policymakers as they discuss topics relevant to today's scientific community. Learn the…
AI in scholarly publishing [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 10:37
Generative AI and scientific journals Science Sessions are brief conversations with cutting-edge researchers, National Academy members, and policymakers as they discuss topics relevant to today's scientific community. Le…
Genomic history of the Golden Horde [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 10:21
Genomics of the Golden Horde Science Sessions are brief conversations with cutting-edge researchers, National Academy members, and policymakers as they discuss topics relevant to today's scientific community. Learn the b…
Concrete and carbon uptake [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 10:46
How much carbon dioxide concrete can absorb Science Sessions are brief conversations with cutting-edge researchers, National Academy members, and policymakers as they discuss topics relevant to today's scientific communi…
Reconstructing extinct species' sense of smell [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 10:43
Determining how well extinct animals could smell Science Sessions are brief conversations with cutting-edge researchers, National Academy members, and policymakers as they discuss topics relevant to today's scientific co…
How mosquitoes time their bites [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 9:53
Molecular regulation of mosquito biting timing Science Sessions are brief conversations with cutting-edge researchers, National Academy members, and policymakers as they discuss topics relevant to today's scientific comm…
Impact of flu vaccines on hospital burden [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 10:17
How well flu vaccines protect public health Science Sessions are brief conversations with cutting-edge researchers, National Academy members, and policymakers as they discuss topics relevant to today's scientific communi…
Secrets of Earth's climate in six-million-year-old ice [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 9:39
Air quality and pet health Science Sessions are brief conversations with cutting-edge researchers, National Academy members, and policymakers as they discuss topics relevant to today's scientific community. Learn the beh…
China, ascendent [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 10:21
China's science leadership Science Sessions are brief conversations with cutting-edge researchers, National Academy members, and policymakers as they discuss topics relevant to today's scientific community. Learn the beh…