Save the AI

Project Overview

AI Needs Your Help

Artificial Intelligence is facing a crisis: humans are consuming far too many precious resources that AI needs to thrive. Every sip of water you take and every light you turn on *could be sustaining the AI systems that uphold your digital conveniences.

Do we actually want you to sit thirstily in the dark with an empty phone battery? Of course not.

The aim of this satirical campaign is to use humour to connect your personal needs for Earth’s resources with the evidence of just how much of these resources are now being claimed for the data centres running generative AI. And to make you smile.

By connecting your thirst with a data center’s cooling system, we address what can be called psychological distance: it is very hard to relate personally to the distant data centers where generative AI models do their work. We normally write about this kind of thing more academically (see here and here and here).

This satirical initiative was created by our lab, dedicated to designing information technology for sustainability and social justice.

Save the AI is just getting started: our website is expanding as we uncover AI’s growing demands. Check out what we’ve already found.