INDIA MONITOR EXCLUSIVE : ‘Innovate to cut new tech’s green impact’

Rob May, one of the UK’s leading voices on artificial intelligence and cybersecurity, and author of bestselling books Greener Intelligence, Harnessing AI, and Prompt Smart spoke to our Associate Editor Ravi Visvesvaraya Sharada Prasad, an alumnus of  Carnegie Mellon University and IIT Kanpur, about the environmental impact of emergent technologies and how India might harness Artificial Intelligence (AI) to tackle its pressing challenges.

You’ve written Greener Intelligence, which received acclaim for its analysis of the environmental cost of emerging technologies. Can you walk us through the actual energy impact of things like Deep Learning, AI, Data Mining, Crypto and Blockchain?

Absolutely, and thank you for inviting me to take part in this interview and highlighting Greener Intelligence. That book was born out of a real need to look past the excitement of AI and start measuring the cost of intelligence at scale. And the truth is, that cost is high. Take deep learning. Training a large AI model today isn’t a weekend project. It can take weeks, using hundreds of GPUs running around the clock. Some estimates have put the carbon emissions of a single training cycle for a large model at the same level as five petrol cars over their full lifetime. That is not a trivial footprint.

Data mining and high-frequency analytics add to this, particularly when data is processed continuously in real time. It all adds up to a staggering load on our data centres, many of which still run on fossil-heavy grids. Then we have crypto.

Bitcoin mining alone consumes more electricity each year than many countries. And unlike AI, where the emissions can be offset by useful social outcomes, much of crypto’s energy burn isn’t producing real-world value. That disconnect worries me.

With blockchain, the picture is more nuanced. Not all chains are created equal. Proof-of-stake models are far more efficient than the old proof-of-work systems. But there is still a general trend of over-promising and under-delivering, especially when it comes to sustainability claims.

At the heart of it, these technologies are like high-performance sports cars. They do incredible things, but they guzzle energy unless you retrofit the engine and fuel system. That is our responsibility now to innovate sustainably, not just innovating quickly.

India is facing significant environmental challenges like polluted air and water, mounting plastic waste, and accelerating climate impacts. How can we realistically use AI to address these issues?

It’s a big question, and an important one. I’ve often said that AI isn’t just a tech solution, it’s a national opportunity. And nowhere is that truer than in India, where the challenges are immense but so is the potential for impact.

Let’s take air quality. Cities like Delhi and Kanpur are dealing with dangerous pollution levels. AI can be used to create hyper-local pollution maps, updated in real time, giving authorities the insight they need to take pre-emptive action. The same tech can even predict smog events days before they happen, allowing hospitals and schools to prepare.

Water is another area where AI can make a difference. Smart leak detection in urban pipelines, AI-powered irrigation advice for farmers, early flood warnings, these are all real use cases already being trialled. In fact, there’s a brilliant example in Telangana, where AI is helping identify the optimal time to release water from reservoirs, preventing both drought and overflow.

Waste management is a quieter but equally important area. AI systems can sort waste more effectively, track collection performance and help planners design better routes and collection strategies. It’s not glamorous work, but it makes a huge difference when done well.

AI vision systems can identify plastic contamination in rivers or shorelines using satellite data. It allows clean-up crews to be deployed with precision rather than guesswork.

So yes, the environmental crises are serious. But AI is more than capable of becoming a powerful partner in fighting them. What’s needed is a shared commitment from policymakers, technologists, and citizens to use these tools wisely and equitably.

India’s coastline opens up potential for undersea data centres. Given how energy-hungry data centres are, what could India do to attract international players to set up offshore infrastructure?

This is one of the most under-discussed opportunities in India right now. The coastline is long, strategically located and increasingly well-connected to global internet infrastructure. It’s tailor-made for undersea or nearshore data centres that use seawater cooling to save energy and reduce emissions.

But this is not just a technology play. It needs forward-thinking policy and infrastructure development.

First, India needs a national offshore data strategy. It should include a clear regulatory pathway, tax incentives for green infrastructure, and perhaps even dedicated maritime tech zones. Singapore and Norway have shown what is possible with smart incentives and collaborative governance.

Second, you need to boost cable landing stations and low-latency connectivity from coast to core cities. No investor will commit serious capital to an offshore centre if the data has to crawl its way to Bengaluru or Delhi.

On the legal side, data localisation is a critical issue. If you want foreign firms to invest in Indian infrastructure, clear rules are needed about cross-border data flows, what can be stored locally, and under what circumstances data must be shared with the government. No one can afford regulatory grey zones.

And finally, we need to consider resilience. Offshore data centres sound futuristic, but they are vulnerable to climate impacts rising sea levels, storms and maritime disputes. So, your legal frameworks, as well as your technology, must be designed to anticipate those risks.

The opportunity is real. But as with AI adoption more broadly, success here is not about technology alone. It is about leadership, regulation, and execution.

That leads us straight to your second book, Harnessing AI, where you argue that AI adoption is fundamentally a leadership issue. What advice would you give Indian policymakers and business leaders?

I’m glad you brought that up. I’ve sat in far too many meetings where someone says, “We just need the right tech stack,” as if AI success depends on the software. It doesn’t. It depends on leadership.

So, my first message to Indian leaders in government or in industry is: Start with the problem, not the algorithm. AI works best when it is aimed at a well-defined challenge. Whether it’s crop insurance, traffic flow, or groundwater loss, clarity on the mission is everything.

Second, build cross-functional teams. You cannot leave AI to the IT department. You need domain experts, policy thinkers, legal minds and data scientists working side by side. Culture matters more than code.

Third, be transparent and inclusive. Explain what the AI is doing, what data it is using, and what it is not allowed to do. If people feel locked out or misinformed, they will resist the system, even if it’s well-designed.

Fourth, invest in capability building. This isn’t just about coders. It’s about upskilling civil servants, training mid-level managers, and educating the public. India’s talent is enormous, but we need to channel it wisely.

And finally, and this is personal for me, leaders must be comfortable with iteration. AI projects rarely succeed on the first attempt. Pilot, learn, refine, scale. If your culture doesn’t support that loop, your AI programme will stall.

Your latest book Prompt Smart has become a reference point for effective use of AI tools. Could you share a few specific prompts that government and business leaders can use right now?

I’d love to. Prompt Smart came from a place of real curiosity watching how leaders interact with tools like ChatGPT and realising most of them weren’t using even 10 percent of the power on offer. The book is a series of 100 lessons that readers try, reflect, make notes in the book and ultimately build their own prompt library. So here are a few prompts for you that I’ve modified from the book which I think would work well:

1.    “Write a two-paragraph summary of the top environmental risks facing [City/State], including current data and actionable recommendations.”

2.    “List five global case studies of successful AI use in agriculture, focusing on smallholder farms and low-resource settings.”

3.    “Draft a stakeholder briefing on how we are using AI to improve water management, with bullet points for policymakers and a short summary for the press.”

4.    “What are the top three ethical risks in using AI for facial recognition in urban public safety, and how can we mitigate them?”

5.    “Write a plain-English explanation of how an offshore data centre works and its benefits to the environment, suitable for community outreach.”

6.    “Create a 30-day learning plan for a government team looking to understand AI and its applications in rural healthcare.”

7.    “Simulate a boardroom discussion between a CTO, CFO and COO about investing in AI for energy optimisation, include concerns and opportunities raised by each role.”

8.    “Design a pilot programme using AI for waste segregation in a Tier 2 Indian city, outline budget, partners, timelines and KPIs.”

9.    “Summarise India’s current data localisation rules in under 300 words and identify three areas where they might change in the next 12 months.”

10. “Write a one-page strategy brief comparing India’s AI policy to that of Singapore and the UK, highlighting gaps and opportunities.”

11. “Generate a checklist for evaluating the ethical readiness of a government-run AI project covering data, consent, transparency and auditability.”

12. “Turn the above list of prompts into a 12-week executive training plan, with one prompt used each week for group discussion.”

These prompts are meant to create momentum, not just output. They help leaders think clearly, act faster and communicate more effectively.

Thank you so much for your time and for sharing such practical insight. Final thoughts?

Thank you. My only final thought is this: AI is not something we implement; it is something we live with. It reflects our priorities, our values, and our courage. If India can steer AI with humility, ambition, and care, then I truly believe it can lead the world not just in technology, but in what technology is for.