AI may nearly treble power demand by 2030: WEF

The world has invested nearly $600 bullion on artificial intelligence (AI) since 2010, and the US and China account for nearly two-thirds (65%) of it, according to Cathy Li, Head of AI, Data and Metaverse

and Member of the Executive Committee at the World Economic Forum (WEF).

Addressing the scale of the AI build-out ahead of the WEF’s Annual Meeting in Davos, Li said global AI investment growing at an annual rate of around 33%.

The rapid expansion is also expected to have significant implications for energy demand, with global electricity consumption projected to rise sharply from about 420 terawatt hours currently to nearly 1,200 terawatt hours by 2030.

Read more: Meta signs multi-gigawatt nuclear deals for AI data centers

How many jobs vanish because of AI and how many new jobs will be created?

The AI-driven transformation is set to reshape labour markets worldwide. Citing findings from the WEF’s Future of Jobs Survey, Li said that between 2025 and 2030, job creation and displacement linked to structural changes in the labour market could affect 22% of today’s total jobs.

While new roles equivalent to 14% of current employment—around 170 million jobs—are expected to be created, about 8% of existing jobs, or 92 million roles, could be displaced. This would result in a net employment gain of roughly 7%, or 78 million jobs globally.

These themes are expected to dominate discussions at the 56th Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum, commonly known as Davos 2026, scheduled to take place from January 19 to 23 in Davos-Klosters, Switzerland. The forum is set against a backdrop of heightened geopolitical tensions, rapid technological change and major societal shifts.

The WEF has said this year’s meeting will see record government participation, with around 400 political leaders expected to attend, alongside nearly 850 chief executives from leading global companies. The political delegation includes 65 heads of state and government, as well as six leaders from the G7 group of advanced economies.

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