New York: A new research has revealed that tech giants Google and Microsoft now consume more electricity than many big countries. Google and Microsoft consumed 24 TWh of electricity in 2023, which is more than the consumption of more than 100 countries. The analysis shared by Michael Thomas on X (Twitter) states that both Google and Microsoft used as much energy as Azerbaijan, which has a GDP of $78.7 billion. According to a Tech Radar report, Google’s revenue in 2023 was $307.4 billion and Microsoft’s was $211.9 billion.
More electricity consumption than many countries
This huge energy use underlines the significant environmental impact of these companies, but also highlights their ability to lead more sustainable initiatives. For comparison, Iceland, Ghana, the Dominican Republic and Tunisia consumed 19 TWh, while Jordan consumed 20 TWh. Libya (25 TWh) and Slovakia (26 TWh) used slightly more electricity.
Increased demand for renewable energy
The significant electricity consumption of these companies demands continued discussions about sustainability and renewable energy adoption. Both Google and Microsoft have pledged to be carbon-free or carbon-negative by the end of the decade and have substantially increased investments in clean energy and energy matching. With market caps of $2.294 trillion and $3.372 trillion, respectively, Google and Microsoft are currently the fourth and second most valuable companies in the world. Given the scale of their operations, equivalent to entire countries, their actions in preventing and reversing environmental damage are closely monitored.
