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Summary
- Microsoft is not on track to meet its 2030 carbon-negative pledge due to rising Scope 3 emissions from AI data centers.
- AI, cloud services, and unprecedented AI adoption are driving Microsoft’s global data center expansion and emissions.
- Microsoft has announced 80 new measures to reduce Scope 3 emissions, including greener technology breakthroughs and public policy advocacy.
Key quotes:
- On May 15, 2024, Microsoft published its latest Environmental Sustainability Report, the first from Big Tech covering the AI boom.
- Microsoft’s 2023 emissions are up nearly a third from a 2020 baseline. In 2023, Microsoft’s Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions fell by 6%. However, Microsoft’s Scope 3 emissions—which make up almost all of the company’s total emissions—increased by over 30%. The company must halve its Scope 3 emissions from a 2020 baseline if it wants to become carbon-negative by 2030.
Further context:
Microsoft unveils ‘Copilot + PC’ initiative in new bid to revitalize Windows with AI
REDMOND, Wash. — Microsoft showed new integrations between its Copilot artificial intelligence technologies and its Windows PC operating system, and previewed a new class of personal computers designed to further build AI capabilities into its longtime software platform.
Read the full post at Energy Monitor.
