With the advancement of technology, data centres have been on the rise, representing a significant share of global power consumption and emissions. On average, cooling systems and servers account for the largest shares of direct electricity usage in a data centre. 

The total power demand of data centres in the UK is said to lie between 2-3 Terawatt Hours (TWh) annually with the average large data centre consuming 0.03 TWh per year. To put this into perspective, the total domestic consumption of energy in the City of London borough added up to only 0.0275 TWh — from approximately 7, 200 households — in 2020; it takes nearly as much energy to run one data centre in comparison to all domestic households in the City of London. 

Sustainability in Cloud Computing

The technology sector is set to consume 20% of the world’s total electricity by 2025, holding responsibility for 5.5% of global carbon footprint. According to Greenpeace, this increase from 7% in 2019 is due to the rapid expansion of cloud computing and development of new technology including artificial intelligence and cryptography all of which require significant amounts of computing power. 

Furthermore, evidence provided by the MIT Press shows that cloud computing has a greater carbon footprint than the airline industry. 

If we take a closer look, the latest report by Statista states that the total number of current smartphone users in the world today is roughly 6.648 billion…this translates to approximately 83.40% of the world’s population owning a smartphone. It is also estimated that by 2025, 72% of internet users across the globe will solely rely on smartphones to access the web.

When you look at the numbers, consider the total number of devices used in today’s world and the projected consumption of smartphones, that is an excessive amount of usage that can be not only detrimental to the environment but also a heavy carbon price to pay.

Opis Cloud

Evidently, one of the primary impacts of cloud computing is the amount of electricity required to power servers and keep them cool. Thus, this is why Opis Cloud is committed to being the first zero-carbon peer-to-peer cloud computing network. 

Opis Cloud facilitates connecting people’s Android smartphones and using a percentage of each device’s central processing unit (CPU) to form a theoretical supercomputer. For example, a traditional server consumes 20 kWh each day, while the same processing capacity can be achieved for 7 kWh using Opis Cloud. By utilising smart devices, there is no reason to rely upon server farms and it will lessen the carbon footprint of cloud computing. 

Through Opis Cloud’s mobile solution as well as the application’s built-in ability to monitor the device’s temperature to stop any significant wear and tear on the device, the application doesn’t affect the life expectancy of a mobile device or require any external cooling maintenance. 

Moreover, any individual with an Android smartphone will be able to contribute to scientific research, Tech For Good and build a better tomorrow from the comfort of their bedside table by simply plugging in their smartphone every night. Users will not only be rewarded with points for allowing projects to use their computer resources but also to encourage them to continue to be a part of the network and help projects solve problems such as the environment, generating new drugs and solving other medical crises.

Opis Acre

On September 30th 2022, our team at Opis Cloud made their way down to the hills of Abergevanny, Wales on a mission to plant 40 Sequoia Trees in partnership with The Great Reserve, a reforestation company. 

Keeping our promise to provide a sustainable solution and better tomorrow, our team made their way down to Abergevanny, Wales on 30th September 2022 to plant 40 Sequoia Trees in partnership with The Great Reserve, a reforestation company. Everyone rolled up their sleeves, got down to business with guidance from the staff at The Great Reserve and successfully launched the ‘Opis Acre,’ our very own mini-grove of Sequoias.

The Opis Acre is forecasted to pull approximately 5 million KGS of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere over the first 150 years of their lifespan which can be as long as 3500 years. This is the equivalent of emissions capture of 100,000 Opis Cloud users every year for 150 years or a million users for just over 16 years. 

Verification

To further emphasise the importance of transparency, Founder of The Great Reserve, Mr. Henry Emson explained the verification process of the Opis Acre: 

“The way we verify is by taking GPS coordinates of every tree after planting and creating a register of all the trees so we can go back to each one of them. We guarantee each tree that is planted. If a tree doesn’t survive, we come back and replant them with new Sequoias. This way, it is nearly impossible to experience yield loss or any failure rate with The Great Reserve. We use drones and satellite data to calculate carbon storage of each tree. Our verification process is thorough, it is also done by an independent third party which in this case is going to be the Sherwood Platform operated by Tree Economy. We are also in the process of getting all our forests approved and certified by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC).”

Final Thoughts

Conclusively, Opis Acre is a testimony to our commitment to creating a sustainable cloud computing ecosystem.

We recognise the environmental ramifications of cloud computing and thus, pledge to adhere to the highest environmental standards alongside future plans to help combat climate change through our carbon-zero, mobile cloud computing solution.