How artificial intelligence can help the energy sector
Jan 14, 2022
Innovative
Artificial intelligence is one of the most fascinating and promising technologies of our time. From automating processes to personalising experiences, AI is transforming the way we live, work and interact with the world around us.
However, like any disruptive technology, it presents a number of challenges that need to be addressed if we are to realise its full potential.
ChatGPT is a generative artificial intelligence that was launched with an open source model by the company OpenAI. This means that the ChatGPT developers make their code publicly accessible and usable, making learning much faster.
AI is transforming the way we live, work and interact with the world around us
Microsoft recently invested in OpenAI, so the new version of ChatGPT will be integrated with the usual Microsoft toolset, which will maximise the usefulness for users of Dynamics, PowerPlatform or Microsoft 365 programs (Excel, Word, PowerPoint…).
Although much is being said about this technology, the important thing is what it brings to the user, and in the case of companies, to the processes that are carried out and to the people who work at the company.
As users, we are perhaps more accustomed to conversational artificial intelligence, the kind used by voice assistants such as Alexa or Siri, which we often have in our homes. These devices handle natural language, process it and thus perform the corresponding actions in an automated flow.
Generative AI, such as that used in ChatGPT, takes automated systems further. It not only automates tasks, but also generates content derived from interaction with humans and interprets that content. This generated content may or may not already exist, i.e. the artificial intelligence creates content from a set of data it has been fed, and can sometimes reproduce it exactly.
It not only automates tasks, but also generates content derived from interaction with humans and interprets that content
There are numerous examples where such tools are being used to, for example, summarise documents, assist operators with certain tasks by voice, generate texts based on specific commands, make lists of tasks or explain complex procedures in a simpler way.
Examples of what ChatGPT can do are multiplying on social media. Thus, we have seen how some users have created original books or codes for programming an application. Although this type of artificial intelligence is the most popular, it is not the only generative artificial intelligence, as there are others aimed at generating images, videos or even sounds and voice-overs.
The career and evolution of the various forms of artificial intelligence is meteoric. Media interest has focused on ChatGPT, which has reached record numbers of users in a very short time and has attracted the attention of a giant such as Microsoft to incorporate it into its solutions.
Recently, however, a group of more than 1,000 technologists, academics and other specialists have drafted a letter calling for the development of artificial intelligence to be halted for a period of time to assess the risks.
We must follow these changes with social dialogue to help us understand what the implications are and how we use them to meet the challenges of business and society
In any case, as with any disruption, every benefit comes with a certain degree of risk. For this reason, it is important to talk less about technology and focus more on the uses and applications that it can have for people. We must follow these changes with social dialogue to help us understand what the implications are and how we use them to meet the challenges of business and society.
One of the big problems with all artificial intelligences, not just generative artificial intelligence, is the high energy consumption involved. Data processing has consequences for energy consumption, water consumption and, of course, greenhouse gas emissions. For this reason, it is important to scale these technologies with an accompanying energy plan.
One of the big problems with all artificial intelligences is the high energy consumption involved
It is therefore imperative that technology companies, which require more and more energy for the development of these new solutions, use clean energy in order to make their operations sustainable and viable in the long term. But on the other side of the scale there are also numerous benefits that artificial intelligence can bring in the fight against climate change, such as:
It is a fact that the proliferation of artificial intelligence tools could be good news for the environment. However, these technologies are energy-intensive and directly affect the sustainability of the planet.
It is therefore urgent that the companies that have created and those that use these solutions take steps to reduce their carbon footprint by using renewable energy sources and by designing more efficient systems.