On Wednesday, Nvidia Corporation’s (NASDAQ:NVDA) head of sustainability said that the artificial intelligence boom is straining the energy grid, but he believes cleaner power and smarter applications could make the long-term impact positive.
Nvidia Exec Highlights AI’s Soaring Appetite For Power
Speaking at Semafor’s The Next 3 Billion summit, Josh Parker, Nvidia’s head of sustainability, acknowledged that the rapid growth of AI is driving up electricity demand at an unprecedented pace.
He said the industry faces a “supply constraint on energy” as data centers expand to handle AI workloads.
“We need more energy to power AI, and sometimes the only energy available is natural gas,” Parker admitted.
He pointed to the short-term rise in emissions but stressed that the sector is actively looking for cleaner alternatives.
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Parker Says Nuclear As A ‘Fantastic Option’
Parker singled out nuclear power as an essential part of the future energy mix.
“Nuclear is a really fantastic option to have on the table if we can do it safely and reliably,” he said, adding that renewables will also be crucial in powering AI infrastructure in the decades ahead.
The remarks come as major tech firms — including Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN), Alphabet Inc.’s (NASDAQ:GOOG) (NASDAQ:GOOGL) Google and Oracle Corp (NYSE:ORCL) — explore small modular reactors to secure reliable 24/7 energy for massive server farms.
Despite the strain, Parker argued that the bigger picture remains encouraging. “The long-term benefits of AI, I think, are pretty clearly going to be net positive,” he said.
He explained that if deployed properly, AI could reduce energy consumption in industries much larger than the tech sector itself — from manufacturing to transportation.
The Bigger Energy Crisis
The comments highlight one of the most pressing challenges in the AI race. Training advanced models like OpenAI’s GPT-4 can require up to 30 megawatts of continuous power — enough to supply tens of thousands of homes.
Industry forecasts show U.S. data center demand could more than double by 2030, raising urgent questions about how to keep the grid stable.
U.S. tech giants are increasingly relying on natural gas for faster power access, driving shares of producers higher, with Expand Energy up 24%, EQT up 40%, and Range Resources up 13%.
Price Action: Nvidia shares fell 0.82% on Wednesday and declined another 0.25% in after-hours trading, according to Benzinga Pro.
Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings indicate that NVDA continues to trend higher over short, medium and long-term periods, with additional performance details available here.
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Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
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