Google and Microsoft now each consume more power than some fairly big countries

Tech giants Google and Microsoft each consumed 24 TWh each of electricity during 2023, surpassing the consumption of more than 100 countries, new research has claimed.

Analysis by Michael Thomas, shared on X, claims both Google and Microsoft consumed the same amount of energy as Azerbaijan, which has an estimated GDP of $78.7 billion. Google’s 2023 revenue stood at $307.4 billion, and Microsoft’s at $211.9 billion.

The massive energy usage underscores the substantial environmental impact of these companies. But it also serves as a reminder of their sheer scale, and the positive impact they could have an leading more sustainable initiatives.

Tech firms consume more than many countries

Iceland, Ghana, the Dominican Republic and Tunisia each consumed 19 TWh, while Jordan consumed 20 TWh, highlighting the two tech firms’ immense scale. Libya (25 TWh) and Slovakia (26 TWh) consumed slightly more power.

The comparison between entire countries and two single companies highlights the colossal energy requirements of Big Tech. The consumption also alludes to the environmental impacts of data centers, which are used to power cloud services including storage and compute, as well as a new generation of artificial intelligence.

The significant electricity consumption of these companies calls for ongoing discussions around sustainability and renewable energy adoption. Both Google and Microsoft have carbon-free or carbon-negative pledges by the end of the decade, and investments in cleaner energies and energy matching have already scaled up considerably.

With a market cap of $2.294 trillion and $3.372 trillion respectively, Google and Microsoft currently stand as the world’s fourth and second-most valuable companies. With the scale of their operations more akin to an entire nation, all eyes are on them as the world’s economies continue to prevent and reverse environmental damage.

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