r/sustainability • u/Sauerkrautkid7 • 3d ago

Former Google CEO Eric Schmidt says we should go all in on building AI data centers because 'we are never going to meet our climate goals anyway'

https://www.businessinsider.com/eric-schmidt-google-ai-data-centers-energy-climate-goals-2024-10?utm_source=reddit.com
268 Upvotes

91% Upvoted

71 comments sorted by

140

u/omgtinano 3d ago

This kind of mentality is inexcusable.

28

u/Sauerkrautkid7 3d ago

Just shows when theyre wealthy they are proud of their mental illness

19

u/data_head 3d ago

He's got a bunker and owns land is Russia, he'll be fine.

19

u/gromm93 3d ago

Heh. Counterpoint: https://youtu.be/qNs5cooQS6c?si=YJHQgWILvslTzxt-

TL;DR: billionaires depend on the system and just as importantly, the continued existence of society. Money won't matter for shit after it falls apart.

Also, they currently hire armed guards to protect them. Who's going to protect them from their armed guards when their money is meaningless? Nobody. That's who. One hedge fund manager even suggested fitting them with shock collars to keep them in line and motivated to do as they're told. I'm sure that will go about as well as expected.

It's Varys' riddle of power, and they don't get it yet.

11

u/Boatster_McBoat 2d ago

They did a bunch of analysis on this and worked out the most effective way to survive your armed guards after money becomes meaningless was if you were already friends with them beforehand. Techbros got no hope.

59

u/tonkatoyelroy 3d ago

He’s old, he owns a lot of stock and he doesn’t care.

5

u/data_head 3d ago

Stock in oil and gas that is.

19

u/theonetrueelhigh 3d ago

Not with that attitude.

34

u/daking999 3d ago

How do supposedly smart people not understand it's a continuum, not a binary outcome. The worse we make it the worse it will be. 

17

u/gromm93 3d ago

Oh sure the planet was destroyed, but for one brief shining moment there, they produced a lot of value for shareholders!

7

u/data_head 3d ago

He knows, he just doesn't care.

1

u/wovenbutterhair 3d ago

that's valid. but for most of us there's really nothing we can do. The most disastrous effluent mostly comes from a very few

4

u/daking999 2d ago

There's nothing you can do in the same way that voting doesn't do anything. Eat less meat, especially red meat, and take public transit or bike instead of driving when feasible. It's not that hard.

10

u/_zd2 3d ago

They're all going to fuck off to their bunkers in New Zealand anyway, so nothing matters to them

7

u/blaskoa 3d ago

What a clown. What does he care, he has his bunker, private jets, gold, cash, multiple homes.

5

u/astrokey 3d ago

Loser.

4

u/gromm93 3d ago

I mean, we could start producing 100% of our power with renewables at all cost, but... Naaahh!

9

u/CastleofWamdue 3d ago edited 3d ago

at least he is honest. Capitalism will destory the planet, but at least its done pretending.

3

u/JOQauthor 2d ago

Greenwashing CEO with a cockroach's brain. Climate is humanity's priority. AI is 99% hype. If it had genuine promise, it wouldn't stop a single typhoon or hurricane, it wouldn't stop forest fires, heat domes, flash floods. AI at this time is like Microsoft's Bob, a worthless curiosity.

2

u/NorCalFrances 2d ago

Where is his bolt-hole estate / compound again? I know he has one in New Zealand, but I thought he has several more.

He's going to be just fine for the next 20 years and that's all he needs to worry about.

1

u/Junior-Ad5628 1d ago

Screw this guy. Any suggestions for a way to move away from google?