Midjourney Founder Estimates AI and Brain Thinking Energy on Par

Midjourney founder David Holz estimated that a 10T-parameter MoE on GB300 NVL72 would consume 5 joules per token, roughly matching the human brain's power at thinking speed. Critics argued the figure could reach kilojoules per token, and Naveen Rao noted animals do real-time motor control on milliwatts, leaving tokens far behind the brain's efficiency.

2026-10-12 ~ 2026-10-12 · 3 related posts

• Midjourney founder: human brain and frontier models cost about the same energy per thought — DavidSHolz · 2026-10-12
• Ex-Meta AI exec: a 10T MoE likely burns ~1000 J/token, not the 5 J claimed in human-brain energy comparison — NaveenGRao · 2026-10-12
• Naveen Rao: animals do real-time motor control on milliwatts, tokens aren't comparable to thought — NaveenGRao · 2026-10-12