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How 433 Investors Unlocked 400X Return Potential

Institutional investors back startups to unlock outsized returns. Regular investors have to wait. But not anymore. Thanks to regulatory updates, some companies are doing things differently.

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The same institutional investors behind Uber, Venmo, and eBay backed Pacaso. And you can join them. But not for long. Pacaso’s investment opportunity ends September 18.

Invest While You Still Can

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AI vs. Climate: When Winning Becomes More Important Than Saving the Planet

The artificial intelligence race has reached a fevered pitch, and it's apparently more important than the planet itself—at least according to some powerful voices in government. Two major stories from this week perfectly capture the strange new reality we're living in, where the rush to AI dominance is outpacing climate concerns at breakneck speed.

America's New Existential Threat: Losing the AI Race

Interior Secretary Doug Burgum dropped a bombshell this week that would make environmentalists' heads spin. Speaking at a natural gas industry conference in Italy, the man responsible for safeguarding America's natural resources declared that losing the AI arms race is a bigger existential threat than climate change.theregister

"The real existential threat right now is not a degree of climate change," Burgum stated matter-of-factly. "It's the fact that we could lose the arms race if we don't have enough power". His solution? Fire up those gas turbines and worry about the planet later.theregister

This isn't just political posturing—it's a fundamental shift in priorities that has massive implications. Burgum, who sold his accounting software company to Microsoft for $1.1 billion before entering politics, is essentially arguing that America needs to prioritize immediate energy needs for AI development over long-term climate commitments.theregister

"What's going to save the planet is winning the AI arms race," he continued, dismissing the $5 trillion global investment in renewable energy as ineffective. The Interior Department's response to criticism was even more blunt, telling reporters that if they "can't understand the importance of America winning the AI arms race," they probably shouldn't be covering the issue.theregister

The irony here is staggering. We're now at a point where government officials are literally saying we need to potentially damage the planet in order to save it through AI dominance.

The Real Numbers Behind AI's Environmental Impact

The data backing up concerns about AI's environmental footprint is genuinely alarming. Recent reports show that four leading AI-focused companies saw their operational emissions increase by an average of 150% from 2020 to 2023. Amazon led with a shocking 182% increase, followed by Microsoft at 155%, Meta at 145%, and Alphabet at 138%.reuters

To put this in perspective: Google alone consumes 25 terawatt-hours annually—enough electricity to power 2.3 million U.S. households. Microsoft follows closely at 23 TWh, which could run 48 Disneyland Paris parks for an entire year. These aren't just abstract numbers—they represent a fundamental shift in global energy consumption patterns.aimagazine+1

AI workloads consumed up to 20% of global data center electricity in 2024, with specialists predicting this could reach nearly 50% by the end of the year. A single ChatGPT query uses approximately 10 times more electricity than a traditional Google search, and with millions of daily users, that energy demand adds up fast.solarimpulse+1

Canada Takes a More Measured Approach

Meanwhile, north of the border, Canada is taking a decidedly different approach to AI adoption. Ottawa's chief data officer Stephen Burt acknowledged this week that AI integration into federal government operations will likely result in "some" job cuts in the public service.ctvnews

But unlike the aggressive, climate-be-damned approach south of the border, Burt emphasized that the goal is to ensure employees receive opportunities to retrain and change jobs. "I think there will be some, but I couldn't tell you specifically right now what the magnitude of that is going to be or where it's going to be felt most acutely," he said.ctvnews

This comes as Canada's public sector faces particular vulnerability to AI disruption. A recent study found that 74% of Canada's public sector workforce are "highly exposed to AI technologies" compared to 56% of the overall Canadian labor force. Federal jobs are especially at risk, with 58% falling into the high-exposure, low-complementarity category compared to just 29% in the national workforce.globalgovernmentforum

The difference in approach is stark. While the Trump administration is pushing full steam ahead with minimal oversight, Canada is emphasizing consultation with unions and transparent communication about AI deployment.ctvnews

The Uncomfortable Math of Our AI Future

Here's where things get really interesting from a trend perspective. The collision between AI ambitions and climate goals represents one of the most significant policy contradictions of our time.

The Trump administration has already waived environmental regulations for data centers and eliminated renewable energy projects that could have supported AI development. They're essentially betting that fossil fuel-powered AI will somehow solve climate change better than renewable energy and emissions reductions.insideclimatenews

This creates a fascinating paradox: we're potentially accelerating climate change in order to develop technology that might help us address climate change. It's like taking out a massive loan to buy lottery tickets, hoping the big win will pay off the debt.

The energy demands are only going to get worse. Data centers consumed 4.4% of U.S. electricity in 2023—a number that could triple by 2028. Globally, data center electricity consumption is expected to approach 1,050 terawatt-hours by 2026, which would make them the fifth-largest electricity consumer globally.news.mit+1

What This Means for the Future

We're witnessing the emergence of two fundamentally different philosophies about technological progress and environmental responsibility. The American approach prioritizes speed and dominance at any environmental cost, while other nations like Canada are trying to balance innovation with worker protection and measured implementation.

The real question is whether this is sustainable—literally. Can the planet handle an AI arms race powered by fossil fuels? The science suggests not. We're already past the 1-degree warming threshold that Burgum casually dismissed, and current policies put us on track for 2.7°C to 3°C of warming by 2100.theregister

The tech giants themselves are starting to acknowledge this reality. Google removed net-zero pledges from parts of its website after reporting a 48% increase in emissions since 2019. Microsoft's emissions grew 29% since 2020 due to AI-optimized data centers.npr+1

What we're seeing is the beginning of a new era where geopolitical competition and technological advancement are explicitly prioritized over environmental protection. It's a bold—some would say reckless—bet that AI will deliver solutions faster than climate change delivers consequences.

The irony is that both stories this week highlight the same fundamental tension: how do we balance innovation with responsibility? Canada seems to be trying to thread that needle carefully, while the U.S. has decided to floor the accelerator and hope for the best.

Time will tell which approach proves more sustainable—both environmentally and politically. But one thing is clear: the AI revolution isn't just changing how we work and live. It's fundamentally reshaping our relationship with the planet itself.