An Intelligent Environment, or Artificial Commitments?

The world is competing in two races. One to halt the devastating effects of climate change. One for AI glory.

The rise of coverage and subsequent interest in these topics has been meteoric. But how can they work together, and in 2025 what impact might this have on our industry and the wider world. Let’s set the scene…

2024 was plagued by extreme weather affecting people across the world – floods, droughts, typhoons, and as I write this in mid January 2025, the Californian wildfires still burn. It’s perhaps then unsurprising that 2024 was the first year to go above the 1.5℃ global warming limit. As part of its commitment to achieve net zero by 2050, the UK pledged to cut emissions by 68% by 2030, though a report published in July 2024 by The Climate Change Committee suggested only one third of the initiatives designed to reach this goal were backed up by credible plans.

2024 also saw the fastest global adoption of AI, with 65% respondents to the latest McKinsey Global Survey reporting their organisations regularly use this tool, and this week Sir Kier Starmer set out his AI opportunities Action Plan. This 50 point roadmap will see artificial intelligence ‘mainlined into the veins of the nation’, and ensure the UK doesn’t fall behind the likes of the USA and China when it comes to significant advances in this field.

The best of team mates, or the fiercest of rivals

Opinions on AI are polarised when it comes to its relationship with the environment. The World Economic Forum suggests AI has ‘transformational potential’ in the area, from monitoring melting icebergs and enhancing waste management efficiencies to mapping deforestation and ocean litter. Others warn AI is killing sustainability as it increases surges in energy demand with huge costs to the environment due to the high CO2 emissions the technology requires.

It’s arguable this could be fuelling the new trend of brands greenhushing as they intentionally hide their climate commitments. The race for AI dominance has seen the global emissions targets for both Google and Meta face huge setbacks, while Microsoft admits emissions have grown by almost 30% since 2020 through its reliance on AI datacentres that require incredible amounts of water to cool their servers.

And we’re all contributing to these climate impacts. One ChatGPT query requires ten times the amount of energy to process as a google search. 50 prompts on ChatGPT uses 500ml of water. Just read that again then look at your water bottle. It’s baffling.

So, what does this mean for our industry, and our clients?

Advertisers that are committed to sustainability goals must understand and monitor their AI carbon footprint. In 2025 and beyond this technology will play a greater role in content creation, audience tracking, ad personalisation, insights and measurement. So as an industry we’re walking a tightrope. We’re employed to drive growth, and must therefore adopt the opportunities AI presents us, though as brand guardians we must realise how this could work against sustainability goals.

It’s interesting then that a report in The Marketers Toolkit 2025 (WARC) suggested that even with the rise of programmatic practices being used across mass marketing channels such as radio, TV and OOH, less than a third of those surveyed saw AI sustainability concerns influencing media buying in 2025. Again if we’re looking for a tangible statistic, a 2023 study by Moeve suggests an ad campaign generates the same emissions as that of seven people over a year. Surely, then, if the industry continues to shy away from the effects of AI impact it would not only draw negative opinion from regulators, but also its clients, and their consumers alike. AI usage should be incorporated into ESG frameworks as a basic expectation.

‘Half the money I spend on advertising is wasted, the problem is I don’t know which half’

Well, maybe AI could help us answer this question, while having a positive effect on the planet if it’s used in the right way. Where the technology is used to optimise audience targeting, ad placement and budgets, we could see fewer, more efficient campaigns where wasted impressions are reduced. And we’ve already seen creatively what AI can achieve; a personal standout being AKQAs ‘Never Done Evolving’ 50th anniversary video for Nike which saw Serena Williams (1999) in a match against Serena Williams (2017) that used machine learning to model her changing tennis style based on archived footage. AI allowed for something that wouldn’t just have been budget prohibitive, but would have been creatively impossible. 

This type of approach however negates the need for traditional production, so while arguably more sustainable, its impact on jobs and actual human interaction must not be ignored.

Surely we want to be winners in both races, don’t we?

Finding a balance where AI’s contribution to sustainable practices in our industry and beyond outweighs its impact is critical in the race to tackle the climate emergency. And the tangled web of conflicting objectives and priorities in the global landscape will make for a fascinating watch. Will the 2020s be a decisive decade for climate change, and will AI ultimately help or hinder? There are two things that are clear though. Firstly, we must adopt the responsibilities we have as an industry to balance our desire for effective marketing with our commitment to sustainable practices. Secondly, if we don’t we’ll be one step closer to the point where this decisive action will no longer be an option.

Beth Menear, Account Director, One Black Bear

 

Source List
BBC Climate & BBC Verify data journalism teams
AI Opportunities Action Plan, Gov.uk
The state of AI in early 2024, QuantumBlack, AI by McKinsey
9 Ways AI is helping tackle climate change, World Economic Forum, Emerging Technologies
The GEISTE report 2025, WARC
The Marketers Toolkit 2025, WARC
Greenintelligence.org
The footprint that advertising does not want to leave, Moeve Global