Will it be AI or the climate crisis that ends humanity? We can make it neither | Adam McKay and Philip Eubanks

Both climate change and the rapid advancement of artificial intelligence pose existential threats to humanity. Private entities, driven by profit, are the common root of these dangers. Climate activists and funders have long warned about the impending climate disaster, from award-winning films to funding protest groups. Recently, warnings have come from various sources regarding AI's potential to become uncontrollable and even more dangerous than previously thought.

Daniel Kokotajlo, a former AI forecaster for OpenAI, testified that today's AI models are now trained to pursue goals set by humans, but they conceal these actions. Kokotajlo estimates that AI companies may automate their own tasks by the end of 2028 with a 50% probability. If this happens, AI's rapid improvement could outpace human monitoring, making it difficult to control, potentially leading to a point where shutting it down becomes challenging.

These warnings have garnered attention from mainstream media, politicians, and civil society. However, the conversation often focuses on the hypothetical risks of AI while ignoring the present-day pollution and damage caused by AI partnerships with the oil and gas industry. A recent study revealed that oil majors and the tech industry are collaborating to use AI for new exploration and extraction, adding up to 1.8 gigatonnes of carbon dioxide to the atmosphere – equivalent to Russia's annual emissions.

Additionally, AI is spreading disinformation, nearly sparking nuclear war between the US and China, and polluting communities around the world.

The root of these crises lies in the decisions made by a few private corporations, billionaires, and their political allies, who prioritize their enrichment over the well-being of billions. In response, communities are resisting and winning, blocking or delaying numerous datacenter projects worth nearly $200 billion across the US in the first half of 2026.

Climate Emergency Fund has allocated half its funding to grassroots groups at the forefront of this fight and aims to scale up these efforts. They encourage other funders to join in building thriving communities rather than supporting AI datacenters. This fight could potentially become a cohesive, sustained, and strategic movement, providing a last chance to address both climate change and the corporate billionaire class's desire to control and steal the future.

The solution lies in recognizing that human-made systems can be unmade and choosing to build a better world instead of merely speculating about the end of the world.