Three Democrats are seeking information from tech firms about the growing energy use of data centers and the utility bills of individuals and other businesses.
The energy needs of data centers used for artificial intelligence are forcing utility companies to spend billions of dollars to upgrade the power grid, the lawmakers said.
The data centers used for work on artificial intelligence can cost tens of billions to build. Tech giants are finding ways to avoid being on the hook for some of those costs.
Ben Horowitz, a major A.I. venture capitalist, in 2019. “The clearest sign that we are not actually in a bubble is the fact that everyone is talking about a bubble,” he said.
Despite Meta’s efforts to reach A.I. “superintelligence,” Yann LeCun has said that large language models will never be smart enough to be considered superintelligent.
Mark Zuckerberg, Meta’s chief executive, in September. On Tuesday, a federal judge found Meta had not violated antitrust law by buying Instagram and WhatsApp when they were tiny start-ups.
Meta’s acquisitions of Instagram and WhatsApp did not illegally stifle competition in social networking, a judge found, a major win for the tech giant.
Meta has defended itself by saying that it faces plenty of competition from rivals, including TikTok and YouTube, and that it benefited the nascent apps with bountiful resources.
European policymakers are crafting changes to scale back and simplify landmark rules for A.I. and data privacy, in a shift from an aggressive regulatory period.
Wolf River Electric sued Google when A.I.-generated search results fabricated a lawsuit against the company. Its executives include, from left, Luka Bozek, Vladimir Marchenko and Justin Nielsen.
The Silicon Valley company projected more spending this year and said it would continue in 2026 as it hires A.I. researchers and builds data centers to power the technology.
Meta’s chief executive, Mark Zuckerberg, at an event in September showcasing new products. Meta’s core business of online advertising has provided the fuel for its spending on artificial intelligence.
While the company announced job cuts in artificial intelligence, it also expanded plans to replace privacy and risk auditors with more automated systems.
The layoffs do not affect Meta’s newest A.I. hires, who are in some cases being paid up to hundreds of millions of dollars. The cuts were focused on correcting an earlier hiring spree.
Mark Zuckerberg, Meta’s chief executive, at the company campus in Menlo Park, Calif., last month. Meta has hired aggressively to build A.I. in recent years.
As tech companies build data centers worldwide to advance artificial intelligence, vulnerable communities have been hit by blackouts and water shortages.
When Microsoft opened a data center in central Mexico last year, nearby residents said power cuts became more frequent. Water outages, which once lasted days, stretched for weeks.
Instagram is introducing parental controls and limits to conversations on topics like self-harm as concerns grow over how A.I. chatbots affect mental health.
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