AI’s Rising Energy Costs

OpenAI has disclosed that its annual electricity expenses have surged by about “tens of millions of dollars” as a result of user interactions with ChatGPT characterized by politeness. This surprising financial impact has arisen amid widespread conversations about the social dynamics of communicating with artificial intelligence.

Insights from Social Media

This revelation gained traction when a user on X, formerly Twitter, questioned how much OpenAI may have incurred in costs from users expressing gratitude towards the AI. The user’s post has garnered over 5.7 million views, highlighting a curious public interest in the relationship between human behavior and technology.

“Tens of millions of dollars well spent—you never know,” replied Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, the day after the post went viral.

Politeness Online: A Survey Perspective

A survey conducted by Future in February found that a significant majority—67%—of AI users in the U.S. practice politeness when interacting with chatbots. Interestingly, 18% of these individuals believe that demonstrating good manners might safeguard them against a potential uprising by AI systems. Meanwhile, 82% opt for politeness simply as a reflection of their character.

Kurtis Beavers, a design director at Microsoft, remarked that using courteous language can enhance the quality of responses from AI systems, indicating that politeness is more than just nicety; it can influence functionality.

Energy and Resource Expenditures

However, being courteous comes with a steep energy price. According to a detailed report by the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI), interacting with AI like ChatGPT requires ten times more energy than performing a traditional Google search. Research by BestBrokers reveals that ChatGPT on average consumes 1.059 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity annually, translating to an estimated annual energy bill of $139.7 million for OpenAI.

In addition to energy consumption, deploying AI technologies also demands a considerable amount of water for cooling the servers. A study from the University of California, Riverside, illustrates that generating a 100-word email with ChatGPT uses approximately 1,408 milliliters of water—equivalent to three typical water bottles—while a simple three-word response such as “You are welcome” requires between 40 to 50 milliliters of water.

Financial Stability of OpenAI

Despite these rising costs associated with politeness, OpenAI’s financial stability appears secure. The company recently achieved a record valuation of $300 billion following a $40 billion fundraising round earlier this month. This funding will support operations as the user base reportedly expanded to 500 million weekly users, a notable increase from 400 million reported in February.