Generative AI not only consumes a lot of energy, it's also likely to produce a lot of electronic trash.

According to researchers, the total amount of global e-waste could grow by the alarming factor of 1.000 in only 5 years.

There are solutions to reducing e-waste – e.g. by prolonging, reusing, and recycling hardware. Their implementation needs global strategies, of course.

An article by DW's Fred Schwaller explains the issue in more detail:

https://www.dw.com/en/e-waste-from-ai-computers-could-escalate-beyond-control/a-70619724