Ex-Google CEO Eric Schmidt: Ignore AI's Environmental Impact Because Climate Goals Were Always Unrealistic

Former Google CEO Eric Schmidt has called for a full-scale investment in AI infrastructure, even as the energy-intensive nature of AI development threatens to undermine global climate goals. Saying the quiet part out loud, Schmidt admitted Silicon Valley’s climate goals were always completely unrealistic, stating: “We’re not going to hit the climate goals anyway because we’re not organized to do it.”

Business Insider reports that in a recent AI summit held in Washington DC, Eric Schmidt, the former CEO of Google, made a controversial statement regarding the future of artificial intelligence and its potential impact on the environment.

Schmidt, who served as Google’s CEO from 2001 to 2011 and previously chaired the National Security Commission on Artificial Intelligence while also being a noted Clinton lackey and progressive advocate, urged the audience to fully invest in AI infrastructure, despite the massive energy consumption required by AI data centers.