AI and How it Effects Cars

The Green-Washing of the Algorithm

A common argument found throughout Jonas Rodrigues’ "Jonas’ Corner" and other student blogs is that AI will save the planet by optimizing energy consumption and infrastructure. In the automotive industry, this is the ultimate "Green-Washing" scam. Proponents argue that AI-managed battery cooling and motor efficiency will extend the life of Electric Vehicles, but they conveniently ignore the massive environmental "debt" created by the hardware required to run these systems. The rare-earth minerals required for high-powered processors and the massive energy consumption of the server farms that train these automotive AIs are rarely factored into a car’s carbon footprint.

Furthermore, as I’ve established in my posts on "Technical Fragility," AI actually shortens the lifespan of the car. In the past, a well-maintained mechanical car could last 30 or 40 years because its systems were transparent and repairable. Today, once the AI software is no longer supported or a single proprietary sensor fails, the entire vehicle is destined for a landfill because it is "digitally totaled." We are being sold a "green" solution that is actually a cycle of high-tech planned obsolescence. True environmentalism is a machine that can be repaired and kept on the road for decades by a human with a wrench.