India, Sept. 12 -- AI-generated image trends have repeatedly taken the internet by storm, and the latest craze involves recreating photographs in a 1980s-inspired style. Users are embracing the trend to transform themselves into retro avatars, imagining how they might have looked decades ago.

From ordinary users to politicians, these AI-generated "80s" avatars have swept across social media.

While the trend may appear harmless, creating an instant AI-generated image comes with a hidden environmental cost. Behind every such image are data centres, specialised chips, electricity, cooling systems and water-intensive infrastructure working to process the request.

Although it remains unclear how many AI-generated 1980s-style images have bee...