Turkey’s COP31 AI pledge calls for cleaner energy in data centers, greater resource efficiency and wider use of artificial intelligence to tackle climate change.
Turkey’s COP31 AI pledge aims to make artificial intelligence part of the climate solution
Turkey, which is hosting COP31, has published the text of the Antalya Artificial Intelligence Pledge, a voluntary agreement designed to encourage governments to power AI with clean energy and harness the technology to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and strengthen climate adaptation strategies.
Turkey’s AI initiative comes amid repeated warnings from the United Nations that the world is on track to significantly overshoot the Paris Agreement’s central temperature goal of limiting global warming to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels.
Avoiding the worst consequences of climate change will require substantial emissions reductions before the end of this decade. The voluntary pledge acknowledges growing concerns about AI’s environmental impact while highlighting its potential to become an effective tool in the fight against climate change.
The initiative will bring together countries, non-governmental organizations and financial institutions to establish voluntary commitments. These could include requiring AI providers to disclose data on their energy consumption and environmental footprint.
The document signals that artificial intelligence has become an established issue in international climate diplomacy.
However, it remains unclear which countries will sign the pledge. The United States, the world’s largest developer of data centers, is not expected to participate, as it is no longer part of the COP process.
European Commissioner for Climate Action Wopke Hoekstra, meanwhile, has described several aspects of the initiative as interesting, indicating that Brussels is considering whether to join.
Data centers emerge as a major source of greenhouse gas emissions
Data centers have become an increasingly important source of greenhouse gas emissions, particularly in the United States, where major technology companies are building new gas-fired power plants to meet their electricity needs.
According to BloombergNEF, data centers’ share of global energy consumption is expected to more than double by 2030.
The central objective of the Antalya Artificial Intelligence Pledge is to make AI a sustainable, efficiently designed and universally accessible climate solution.
The document, prepared ahead of COP31 in Antalya, which begins in just a few days, highlights the growing demand for electricity, water and raw materials associated with artificial intelligence, alongside the significant increase in data center energy consumption.
It also seeks to encourage more environmentally responsible management of AI hardware and infrastructure.
Last month, Simon Stiell, Executive Secretary of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), warned that AI’s substantial energy requirements were driving an increase in fossil fuel pollution.
“AI leaders are now on thin ice,” Stiell said.
Turkey’s COP31 AI pledge promotes clean energy and climate solutions
Countries and organizations signing the pledge will commit to increasing the proportion of AI infrastructure and data centers powered by zero- and low-emission energy sources.
The agreement promotes the integration of energy and water efficiency standards into data center development and operations, including the adoption of advanced cooling systems.
It also encourages circular approaches to hardware management, covering proper decommissioning, reuse, recycling and responsible electronic waste disposal.
Beyond reducing AI’s environmental footprint, the initiative seeks to mobilize financial, technical and material resources to support the development of AI-based climate solutions.
These resources include equitable access to computing capacity, data and training, particularly for developing economies and small island states that are especially vulnerable to the effects of global warming.
Artificial intelligence applications can support emissions reductions, renewable energy deployment, energy system optimization and efficiency, sustainable transport and industrial decarbonization.
COP32 in Ethiopia will assess progress on AI and climate commitments
The Antalya pledge is also intended to encourage countries to use artificial intelligence to improve the measurement, monitoring, reporting and verification of greenhouse gas emissions.
The agreement outlines potential targets that participating countries and organizations could adopt.
Signatories are expected to reconvene at COP32 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, next year to review progress on their voluntary commitments.
The meeting will provide an opportunity to assess whether the initiative has translated into measurable improvements in AI infrastructure sustainability and the deployment of climate-focused applications.
Antalya AI Pledge must turn climate ambition into accountability
“The Antalya AI Pledge highlights both sides of AI’s climate story. It is clear that we need to change the current trajectory, and this pledge provides a starting point for countries and companies to work together on an urgent issue of global importance,” said Evan Tachovsky, Head of Data and AI at the climate nonprofit World Resources Institute (WRI).
In a statement published by WRI, Tachovsky also identified important shortcomings in the agreement.
“However, the pledge leaves out any commitment to involve communities in decisions about data centers that affect them, as well as safeguards to address concerns about water and air quality.”
“Leading countries and companies could seize this moment to go further by outlining concrete actions. The first review of the pledge at COP32 will provide an opportunity to move beyond intentions towards genuine accountability,” Tachovsky added.
The criticism underscores the importance of translating voluntary commitments into concrete measures, particularly as the environmental demands of artificial intelligence continue to grow.
