August 28, 2025
Measuring the environmental impact of AI inference
[W]e estimate the median Gemini Apps text prompt uses 0.24 watt-hours (Wh) of energy, emits 0.03 grams of carbon dioxide equivalent (gCO2e), and consumes 0.26 milliliters (or about five drops) of water1 — figures that are substantially lower than many public estimates. The per-prompt energy impact is equivalent to watching TV for less than nine seconds.
Google releases environmental impact data for Gemini. Much like the Mistral report previously released, the impact is significantly smaller than popular discourse would lead you to believe. This is really encouraging, but unless the discourse catches up, it's hard to see it moving the needle.