{"id":492446,"date":"2026-02-22T17:46:18","date_gmt":"2026-02-22T17:46:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/492446\/"},"modified":"2026-02-22T17:46:18","modified_gmt":"2026-02-22T17:46:18","slug":"training-a-human-takes-20-years-of-food-sam-altman-on-how-much-power-ai-consumes-world-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/492446\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018Training A Human Takes 20 Years Of Food\u2019: Sam Altman On How Much Power AI Consumes | World News"},"content":{"rendered":"

Last Updated:February 22, 2026, 01:10 IST<\/p>\n

Altman says debates on AI power use overlook that human intelligence also requires years of life, education and resources to develop.\"font\"\"new\"new<\/a>\"OpenAI<\/p>\n

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman addresses the gathering at the AI Impact Summit, in New Delhi. (IMAGE: REUTERS) <\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman this week compared human development to artificial intelligence training, arguing that discussions around the energy consumed by AI models often overlook the resources required to educate and nurture people.<\/p>\n

Altman said concerns about the power required to train advanced AI systems should be viewed in a broader context of how societies invest energy and resources in building human intelligence.<\/p>\n

\u201cPeople talk about how much energy it takes to train an AI model. But it also takes a lot of energy to train a human. It takes about 20 years of life \u2014 and all the food you consume during that time \u2014 before you become smart,” the OpenAI CEO told The Indian Express this week.<\/p>\n

Altman, who was in India for the AI Impact Summit, said the country is currently leading the world in AI adoption and is poised to become one of the largest markets for the technology. He added that India is not just participating in the artificial intelligence revolution but helping lead it.<\/p>\n

He also said his study of history suggests that concentrating AI power in the hands of a single company or country, even in the name of safety, would be a \u201cdisastrously bad” thing to do.<\/p>\n

\u201cI do share the concern about concentration of AI. Our stance is that the only path forward is to heavily democratise AI and to put these tools in the hands of people, even if it comes with some downsides, even if it means that society has got to wrestle with some big challenges,” he said at a select briefing on the sidelines of the summit.<\/p>\n

OpenAI, he said, pioneered what it calls an \u201citerative deployment” strategy, allowing people to become familiar with AI systems and use them even when they are imperfect or still evolving.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd it doesn\u2019t mean we aren\u2019t responsible in how we do it, doesn\u2019t mean that we don\u2019t start conservatively, but it does mean we empower people to do things with the technology that we ourselves might not like. It means that we try to encourage a robust ecosystem being built around the world,” he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt means that we take the trade-off of empowering people and accepting that society is going to have to wrestle with a new thing, rather than try to hold on to all the power ourselves and say we can guarantee this or that outcome,” he added.<\/p>\n

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First Published:<\/p>\n

February 22, 2026, 01:10 IST<\/p>\n

News<\/a> world<\/a> \u2018Training A Human Takes 20 Years Of Food\u2019: Sam Altman On How Much Power AI ConsumesDisclaimer: Comments reflect users\u2019 views, not News18\u2019s. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use<\/a> and Privacy Policy<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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