A video of a little over 5 seconds at 720p uses about 90 Wh, according to a measurement published in 2025 on the most downloaded open generator. That is nearly 5 phone charges, or 39 gCO2e with world average electricity. The median model in the same study uses 25 Wh, and the 7 models tested range from 0.14 to 415 Wh. We found no measurement published by a commercial service.
Read the source article: AI video generation environmental impact: energy, CO2e, water