AI & Enterprise
AI infrastructure boom fallout: data centre e-waste could pile up to 617 million tonnes by 2050
The spread of artificial intelligence could fuel a new electronic waste problem, with AI-related retirements of servers, GPUs and supporting power, cooling and networking equipment adding up to 395 million to 617 million tonnes by 2050, Basel Action Network estimates. The group says broader infrastructure should be counted, not just servers. It also highlights limited global recycling capacity and risks from informal processing, and notes the United States has not ratified the Basel Convention.
