Guide urges Australians to declutter digital data to cut carbon
Using AI tools adds “orders of magnitude” more energy than traditional computing. The article cites an IDC study of 840 information workers that found each employee wastes more than two hours each week hunting for lost files and online documents.
Key points
- IDC study of 840 workers finds >2 hours weekly lost searching for files.
- Dropbox earned $2.5 bn in 2025 from 18 million users paying $138 average.
Libby Sadler, associate professor at Bond University, and Andrew Cullen, senior research fellow at the University of Melbourne, recommend simple steps: empty online trash, unsubscribe from unread newsletters, delete unused apps, keep enough device memory, and consolidate cloud storage with a single provider. They also suggest regularly deleting old emails and photos, using cloud tools that flag blurry images, and limiting unnecessary AI use such as text‑to‑video prompts.
The piece notes that Dropbox reported $2.5 bn earnings in 2025 from 18 million customers paying an average $138, while Google Photos stores over 9 trillion photos. Reducing digital clutter can lower environmental impact, improve mental health, and limit the data that AI companies harvest.
Decluttering your online life: how to get your digital house in order and protect your data from AI
The Guardian AI · 16 October 2026
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