Dear Editor: Artificial intelligence (AI) is everywhere, from recipes to perfectly worded emails. But every query comes with an environmental and public health cost we can’t ignore.

Large data centers powering AI consume massive energy, much of it from fossil fuels, and require huge volumes of water to cool. Microsoft’s proposed data center in Wisconsin will use as much energy as 300,000 homes. In response, We Energies is proposing new gas plants, increasing pollution and worsening climate change.

As a medical student, I can’t ignore the health consequences of our reliance on AI. Climate change is not just an environmental issue; it’s a public health crisis. The 2023 summer floods, which killed 77 people, are just one example of climate-related disasters becoming more frequent and deadly.

Though AI may one day help solve climate issues, its current emissions pose serious health risks: higher asthma rates, heart disease, and ER visits, especially in low-income communities.

Proposed fossil fuel plants, like those in Paris and Oak Creek, Wisconsin, could cost up to $192.2 million annually in health impacts.

We need sustainable solutions now. Developers must reduce AI’s energy footprint, and users must act intentionally. Let’s use AI wisely. Our health and planet depend on it.

Caidon Iwuagwu

West Allis