The Guardian announced on Sep. 15 that they reviewed emissions reports from Google, Microsoft, Meta, and Apple and found that actual emissions could be up to 662% higher than the companies’ official statements.
The Guardian attributed the discrepancy to the difference between direct emissions at company facilities and the purchase of renewable energy credits. The use of generative AI is also increasing the energy demands of big tech companies.
In the renewable energy certification system, organizations buy renewable-generated electricity to offset their energy consumption elsewhere. Critics argue that factoring credits into emissions calculations obscures the pollution created directly by company-owned infrastructure.
The Guardian combined location-based emissions with reported market-based emissions, revealing that actual emissions could be 662% higher compared to official reports.
There is a lobbying battle over the Greenhouse Gas Protocol, which allows market-based emissions to be factored into official calculations. Meta, Google, and Microsoft are taking steps to separate credit-based metrics from their climate reporting.
Recommendations for CISOs and CTOs include considering the financial and environmental costs of resource-depleting technologies, staying informed about emission calculation standards, and using AI efficiently to reduce emissions.
Google, Microsoft, Meta, and Apple were contacted for comment by TechRepublic.
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