HUMAN WRONGS WATCH

There are high hopes that artificial intelligence (AI) can help tackle some of the world’s biggest environmental emergencies. Among other things, the technology is already being used to map the destructive dredging of sand and chart emissions of methane, a potent greenhouse gas.

Close-up of an electronic circuit board showing microchips and components. (Photo by TEK IMAGE/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY / ABO / Science Photo Library via AFP)

But when it comes to the environment, there is a negative side to the explosion of AI and its associated infrastructure, according to a growing body of research.