Although the carbon impact of digital technology in France remains moderate, it is not negligible. With the arrival of new technologies, notably generative AI, digital-related greenhouse gas emissions are set to increase rather than decrease.
Far behind the transport, construction, industry or agriculture sectors, digital technology only represents 2.5% of greenhouse gas emissions in France. However, by 2050, this figure could triple. The carbon impact of digital technology is mainly linked to the creation of terminals. According to Greenpeace, for example, a television requires the extraction of 2.5 tonnes of raw materials, and generates 350 kg of CO₂. Even before being used, a television emits as much CO₂ as‘a one-way ticket to Marrakech by plane.
Refurbished: in an ideal world
According to a new barometer just published by L’Arcep and Arcom, the French have on average ten screens per household. A quarter of them are no longer even used. In total, around 70 million devices could therefore be reconditioned or recycled. However, if we refer to this study, only 13% of those questioned consider it useful to favor the purchase of reconditioned devices. At the same time, in 2023, 21% of respondents said they would have a smartphone purchased refurbished or used. The youngest are the most likely to have them: up to a third of those aged 18-24 years.
Towards a leap in the carbon impact of digital technology with AI
Running generative AI requires powerful hardware. Although precisely calculating the impact of these is not easy, some studies reveal that the formation of ChatGPT would have emitted at least as much greenhouse gas as 205 round-trip flights from Paris to New York. A query on the Google browser consumes on average 0.3 Wh of electricity. For ChatGPT this would be 2.9 Wh per request. We must also add storage and electricity to these calculations. According to its own report, Microsoft’s carbon emissions increased by almost 30% in 2023 compared to 2020, notably due to the growing demands for AI of course. Even though digital technology has and will always have an impact, its use can also help reduce carbon emissions from business activities. It is up to them alone – and to politicians – to make decisions in this direction.
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