Staying Human
Staying human in the age of acceleration
A project exploring what really matters as the world becomes harder to see clearly.
We live in a moment where our tools feel weightless and intelligence appears on demand. But behind the surfaces of our lives sit powerful forces - cultural, biological, technological - that shape us.The Staying Human Project is dedicated to seeing those forces clearly. Through books, essays, and interactive tools, it explores how ancient wisdom and modern understanding can help us stay grounded as the world accelerates.
The Book
The Human Thread
40 frameworks for what really matters. 500+ sources across philosophy, psychology and culture - distilled into clear insights to navigate modern life.
The Essays
Latest writing
Regular writing on attention, identity, meaning and the invisible systems shaping modern life. Deep dives into the frameworks from the book.
The Tools
The invisible factories
AI Impact calculators revealing the hidden infrastructure of AI - the energy, water, materials and power concentration we never usually see.
What is the Staying Human Project?
The Staying Human Project explores what truly matters in an age of accelerating technology. Through books, essays and tools, it reveals the visible and invisible forces shaping human life - from ancient wisdom to biological intelligence to the hidden infrastructure of our digital world.The project is not technology-first. It is human-first.
The central questions are:
How do humans make sense of accelerating systems?
What does it mean to live wisely when the world becomes harder to see clearly?
Which forms of wisdom endure regardless of technological cycles?
The Invisible Spectrum
At the heart of this project is a simple observation: much of what shapes our lives now happens beyond our perception.The Invisible Spectrum is the range of forces, consequences and meanings that fall outside our immediate awareness - yet determine so much of what we become.
This range includes:
Unseen cultural forces we inherit without choosing
Hidden consequences of our technological choices
Biological systems we depend on but rarely notice
Digital and algorithmic layers that shape behavior invisibly
The cognitive blind spots that shape our perception
About the author
Paul Iliffe
Paul spent two decades as a strategist for international advertising agencies, finding clarity within complexity and distilling insights into memorable ideas.When AI began reshaping everything, he asked: what human wisdom must we preserve? The Human Thread is his answer - a synthesis of enduring frameworks and for navigating change.Paul is also the founder of The Exotic Teapot, a specialty tea and teaware company. He lives in Bournemouth, UK.
Stay connected
Join the newsletter for insights on staying human in the age of AI, new essays and reflections on what really matters.
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime. Typically 1-2 emails per month.
The Human Thread
What Really Matters in the Age of AI
Timeless Wisdom. 40 frameworks for what really matters.
A clear roadmap for staying human as technology accelerates.
About the book
We are living through the biggest shift in human capability since the Industrial Revolution, yet what makes human judgement valuable has not changed. As artificial intelligence reshapes work, relationships and knowledge, we need to identify the core values worth retaining.The Human Thread presents 40 enduring frameworks that have guided humanity across centuries and cultures, showing how to apply them to the choices we face today. This synthesis draws on 500+ sources across over 175 disciplines, connecting ancient philosophy, culture, science and psychology with contemporary research.The book moves from self-understanding through relationships and context to the threshold where human and artificial intelligence meet. It shows what is possible when human judgement stays at the centre and examines what threatens that possibility.
Who this book is for
Readers who love big-ideas nonfiction grounded in evidence, clarity and human meaning
People curious about what truly matters when technology accelerates
Anyone navigating questions of identity, meaning, work and relationships in changing times
Thinkers who appreciate clear frameworks drawn from philosophy, psychology, culture and science
Those seeking timeless wisdom rather than trends or self-help
Inside the book
Part 1:
The Self
Part 2:
Relationships
Part 3:
World & Beyond
Parts 4-6:
The AI Age
Identity, habits, attention, emotional intelligence, health, meaning, learning, recognition, resilience and creativity. Building the foundation from within.
Love, friendship, family, communication, trust, conflict, community, ethics, justice and cultural navigation. How we connect, cooperate and thrive together.
Nature, food, sustainability, technology, economics, story, art, conflict, mortality and legacy. Our relationship with the planet, systems and time itself.
Being human when intelligence expands beyond us. Partnership principles for Human and AI collaboration. What lies beyond partnership.
Features
Beautifully Illustrated
Each of the 40 frameworks is anchored by a custom pen-and-ink illustration. Visual metaphors that illuminate complex concepts and create memorable touchpoints for reflection. This isn't decoration - it's designed clarity that helps ideas stick.
Thoroughly Researched
Every framework draws on verified sources across philosophy, psychology, science, culture and more. 500+ sources across 175+ academic disciplines synthesised into clear, accessible insights. Rigorous thinking without jargon or pretension.
Timeless frameworks for navigating what really matters
Kindle £6.99 | Paperback £9.99 | Hardcover £16.99
(Christmas promotional prices)
Also available on Amazon US, CA, AU, DE, FR, ES, IT
Latest writing
Timeless wisdom and frameworks for staying human. Essays on the invisible infrastructure behind AI, attention, identity, meaning and connection.
Identity in the Age of Intelligent Mirrors
Attention: The First Human Discipline
Where this work began?
The Vanishing Places Where We Meet
Stay connected
Join the newsletter for insights on staying human in the age of AI, new essays and reflections on what really matters.
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime. Typically 1-2 emails per month.
Why these AI impact calculators exist
AI feels weightless. It isn't.
Technology accelerates faster than our intuition can follow. These calculators slow the world down just enough for the mind to grasp its scale. You type a question, wait a moment and words appear.There is no engine noise, no heat, no movement. But behind that silence sits an infrastructure closer to heavy industry than software. Vast energy demand. Constant cooling. Thousands of tonnes of physical equipment. And a concentration of resources that rivals nation-states.
Calculators for what really matters
Three lenses on the same truth: AI has costs that can't be waved away. Physical. Material. Economic. Each calculator reveals a different dimension of the invisible infrastructure shaping our future.
AI Energy Calculator
The Physics
Calculate the energy, water and carbon footprint of AI - from a single prompt to a billion daily users. Start with your personal impact, then widen the lens to see the impact on a planetary scale.
Discover your daily AI use vs powering entire countries.
AI Materials Calculator
The Geology
Explore the physical reality behind AI hardware - from refined metals to the ore, rock and tailings that must be excavated. A GPU weighs kilograms; its extraction footprint weighs tonnes.
See the mountains moved to train a single AI model.
Scale of Power Calculator
The Economics
See where the power actually sits. Individual fortunes that rival national GDPs. Corporate treasuries that exceed most countries. When wealth reaches this scale, incentives shape the future more than institutions.
Widen the lens to see the Billionaire Battery
Some key insights from the calculators
Three dimensions. One truth.
The Billionaire Battery
10 tech billionaires could fund global AI for over a decade
Ten tech billionaires - eight actively shaping AI - control $2.2 trillion. That's more than Canada's entire economy. They could personally fund the $200 billion annual cost of global AI infrastructure for 11+ years. The future of AI isn't just shaped by innovation - it's shaped by who controls the capital.
London Underwater
London's water for a month. Every year. From AI.
If 1 billion people use AI daily by 2027, the water needed for cooling would supply London for 37 days annually. That's 19,200 Olympic pools. Water isn't infinite and AI's thirst is accelerating. Every billion litres diverted to data centres is a billion litres not available for homes, farms or ecosystems.
The Transatlantic Tunnel
Training AI moves enough earth to dig from London to Chicago
By 2027, the global AI industry could conduct 40-50 major training runs annually. The rare earth metals and materials required would move earth equivalent to 130+ Channel Tunnels - enough to dig 6,500 km underwater from London to Chicago. AI is heavy industry disguised as software.
Why do these calculators stop at 2027?
Because that's the last moment we can still picture the scale.
At 1 billion users, we can say "London's water for a month" and
you can picture it. Beyond that, you can't.
AI Energy footprint calculator
The Physics
Every query we make, every interaction with AI, draws power from somewhere.
This calculator reveals the energy, water, and carbon footprint of artificial
intelligence - from your personal daily usage to planetary scale.Start with your own habits. Then click 'widen the lens' below to see what a billion daily users means for national grids, water basins, and carbon budgets.
Explore the Calculators
Stay connected
Join the newsletter for insights on staying human in the age of AI, new essays and reflections on what really matters.
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime. Typically 1-2 emails per month.
AI materials footprint calculator
The Geology
AI is heavy industry disguised as software. Behind every data centre
sits a supply chain that moved mountains - literally.This calculator shows the physical reality of AI hardware: the rare earth
metals, copper, and materials required, and the earth that must be
excavated to obtain them.For every kilogram of refined material, hundreds of kilograms of earth
were moved. This is the extraction footprint we never see.
Explore the Calculators
Stay connected
Join the newsletter for insights on staying human in the age of AI, new essays and reflections on what really matters.
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime. Typically 1-2 emails per month.
The scale of power calculator
The Economics
When individual wealth reaches nation-state scale, it shapes infrastructure independent of markets, governments or democratic oversight.This calculator reveals the concentration of wealth and power shaping AI's future - from individual billionaires to corporate treasuries.Start by exploring individual billionaires, then select 'Billionaire Battery' below to see something remarkable: how long this concentrated wealth could personally fund global AI infrastructure. The answer reframes everything.
Explore the Calculators
Stay connected
Join the newsletter for insights on staying human in the age of AI, new essays and reflections on what really matters.
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime. Typically 1-2 emails per month.
Why 2027?
The last intuitive point
At 1 billion daily users (projected 2027), we can still grasp AI's scale through human reference points:
At 1 billion daily users, we can still say:
- London's drinking water for a month
- Powering Belgium for two months
- Earth moved equal to 130 Channel TunnelsBeyond 2027, the numbers escape intuition.
At 5 billion users (early 2030s), comparisons fail. Your mind has no handles for that scale.
The math that matters
AI adoption grows exponentially: 70-100% yearly
Efficiency improvements grow linearly: 15-30% yearlyEfficiency cannot keep pace with adoption.
The 2030s will be the decade when invisible costs surface as visible constraints in energy grids, water basins, and mineral supply chains.
Why this matters
2027 isn't the endpoint. It's the inflection point.
The last moment when we can still see clearly enough to make informed choices.Not whether to use AI. But how to use it within planetary boundaries.
Not whether to grow. But how to grow sustainably.Beyond 2027, we're navigating by instruments, not intuition.
We're managing systems too large to feel, making trade-offs too abstract to grasp instinctively.This is why these calculators exist. To show us the scale while we can still see it.
Explore the Calculators
Stay connected
Join the newsletter for insights on staying human in the age of AI, new essays and reflections on what really matters.
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime. Typically 1-2 emails per month.
KEY INSIGHTS
Three dimensions. One truth.
The Billionaire Battery
10 tech billionaires could fund global AI for over a decade
Ten tech billionaires - eight actively shaping AI - control $2.2 trillion. That's more than Canada's entire economy. They could personally fund the $200 billion annual cost of global AI infrastructure for 11+ years. The future of AI isn't just shaped by innovation - it's shaped by who controls the capital.
London Underwater
London's water for a month. Every year. From AI.
If 1 billion people use AI daily by 2027, the water needed for cooling would supply London for 37 days annually. That's 19,200 Olympic pools. Water isn't infinite and AI's thirst is accelerating. Every billion litres diverted to data centres is a billion litres not available for homes, farms or ecosystems.
The Transatlantic Tunnel
Training AI moves enough earth to dig from London to Chicago
By 2027, the global AI industry could conduct 40-50 major training runs annually. The rare earth metals and materials required would move earth equivalent to 130+ Channel Tunnels - enough to dig 6,500 km underwater from London to Chicago. AI is heavy industry disguised as software.
The England Power Grid
By 2027, AI could power England for 5+ months annually
If 1 billion people use AI daily as projected, annual energy consumption would reach approximately 280 TWh - enough to power every light, hospital, home, and factory in England (population 56 million) for 150+ days. Nearly half a year.
The Olympic Pool Flood
52 Olympic pools of water evaporated daily - forever
Global AI at 2027 scale requires filling 19,200 Olympic swimming pools annually with fresh water, then evaporating it as waste heat. That's 52 pools per day, every day, year-round. The invisible cost of "ask AI."
The 350 Times Multiplier
Every kilogram of AI hardware requires 350kg of earth moved
For every kilogram of rare earth metals in a data centre, 150-350 kilograms of earth were excavated. Building AI infrastructure requires extracting raw material hundreds of times heavier than the final product. The digital is built from dirt.
Power the UK Car Fleet
Training a model uses electricity for all UK cars for 32 days
A single frontier AI training run (GPT-4 scale) consumes enough electricity to power all 34 million cars in the UK for 32 days. Every commute, every delivery, every journey in Britain - for over a month - from just one model.
The Three Country Choke Point
China, Congo, Chile control the materials that make AI possible
Three countries control AI's material foundation: China (70% of rare earths), DRC (70% of cobalt), Chile (major copper). The supply chain is a single point of failure.
The Ullswater Drain
AI's water needs would consume 10% of 2nd largest UK lake
The lake that inspired Wordsworth's 'Daffodils' would need refilling from AI infrastructure alone every decade. AI's water consumption by 2027 would drain nearly 10% of Ullswater annually
Explore the Calculators
Stay connected
Join the newsletter for insights on staying human in the age of AI, new essays and reflections on what really matters.
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime. Typically 1-2 emails per month.
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about AI, the calculators and what these numbers mean.
Understanding AI
What is a LLM?
Large Language Model - AI systems like ChatGPT, Claude or Gemini that generate human-like text. Unlike traditional software that follows rules, LLMs recognize patterns across billions of examples to predict helpful responses.
What is a prompt?
Every message you send to an AI that produces a response. A 10-message conversation = 10 prompts, each requiring energy to generate.
What's the difference between a search query and an LLM prompt?
Search: Retrieves pre-indexed results. Like looking up an address in a phone book. Energy: ~0.0003 kWh.
LLM: Generates new text from scratch. Like writing a personalised letter based on everything you've read. Energy: ~0.002-0.005 kWh.
One LLM prompt uses 10-100× more energy than a search query. The question isn't "is AI bad?" - it's "are we using the right tool for the task?"
What's the difference between training and inference?
Training: Teaching the model (one-time, massive cost). Happens once when built, then amortised across billions of uses.
Inference: Using the trained model (ongoing cost). Happens every time someone asks a question. Scales with usage.
Our calculators focus on inference - the continuous, growing footprint as AI embeds into daily life.
Why AI Uses Resources
Why does AI use so much energy?
Three reasons:
(1) Thousands of GPUs consuming 300-700 watts each,
(2) Inference happens billions of times daily,
(3) Scale compounds - individual use is small, but × billions of users × continuous operation = infrastructure-scale.
Why does AI need water?
Data centers generate intense heat. Water cools them through evaporation (~2 litres per kWh). Additionally, electricity generation requires water for thermal power plants. Every litre for AI is a litre not available for crops, drinking, or ecosystems.
What are rare earth metals and why does AI need them?
17 metallic elements essential for GPUs and data center infrastructure. For every 1 kg of refined rare earth, 150-350 kg of earth must be excavated. ~70% of production is concentrated in China. The digital is built from dirt.
About the Calculators
Why do the calculators stop at 2027?
2027 is the last moment where human intuition can grasp AI's planetary scale. At 1 billion users, we can picture "London's water for a month." Beyond that, comparisons fail.
How accurate are these calculations?
Conservative and transparent - not worst-case, not best-case. We use peer-reviewed research, government data (UK DESNZ, IEA, USGS) and mid-range estimates. Full methodology in each calculator's Assumptions section. All calculations performed client-side - inspect the code yourself.
Are these worst-case scenarios?
No - they're representative of current conditions. We don't include training energy, embodied carbon, or network transmission. We don't assume universal renewable energy or maximum-intensity models. We aim for "what's actually happening at scale right now."
Current reality: Adoption growing 70-100% yearly. Efficiency improving 15-30% yearly. Efficiency isn't keeping pace.
Can I trust the data sources?
Yes. Primary sources: UK DESNZ (government energy data), IEA (global energy authority), USGS (minerals data), Forbes (verified wealth data), peer-reviewed academic research. All sources cited in calculator Assumptions sections.
Taking Action
Should I stop using AI?
No - but use it intentionally. The question is: "Is this the right tool?"
Use AI when you need synthesis, analysis or creative generation. Use search when you need quick facts (10-100× more efficient). It's about calibration, not elimination.
What can individuals do?
(1) Use the right tool (search when search works)
(2) One comprehensive prompt beats dozens of fragments
(3) Choose smaller models when sufficient (2-3× less energy)
(4) Support transparency (ask companies about their footprint)Individual choices compound. But the biggest impact: advocacy for policy that makes AI infrastructure visible and accountable.
What should policymakers consider?
Three areas:
(1) Transparency - require public reporting of energy, water, material footprints.
(2) Infrastructure planning - assess data center impacts on grids, water basins, supply chains before approval.
(3) Resource allocation - incentivize efficiency, ensure growth happens within planetary boundaries.These calculators exist to make the invisible visible. Policy follows visibility.
Explore the Calculators
Stay connected
Join the newsletter for insights on staying human in the age of AI, new essays and reflections on what really matters.
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime. Typically 1-2 emails per month.