The Corporate Climate Responsibility Monitor evaluates the transparency and integrity of companies’ climate strategies, with the objectives of identifying good practices and highlighting areas for improvement in the corporate climate accountability system.
This section focuses on the tech sector and features analysis based on detailed case studies of Amazon, Apple, Google, Meta and Microsoft. These companies were selected as the largest five tech companies by revenue in 2023, excluding predominantly manufacturing companies.
We find that the tech sector is facing a climate strategy crisis. However, revamped target-setting
frameworks and the replication of demonstrated good practices can steer it back on track:
• Tech companies’ GHG emission targets appear to have lost their meaning amid soaring energy
demand and outdated emissions accounting rules, which are currently under revision.
• Promising strategies for renewable electricity in data centres (Google and Microsoft) and the supply chain (Apple) can be further optimised and replicated by others.
• Other key transitions – including renewable energy in the supply chain and for third-party operated data centres – remain neglected by either companies or standard setters.
• Other initiatives continue to validate some companies targets as 1.5 °C-aligned, without reflecting these uncertainties. This may mislead investors, regulators, and the wider public, giving an inaccurate impression of the tech sector’s climate impact Climate strategy for the tech sector needs a rethink, to put the spotlight on the sector’s key transitions, and to incentivise the replication of promising strategies.
• By setting transition-specific alignment targets in addition to GHG emission reduction targets, companies can guide and measure the progress of their climate strategies in a more targeted and transparent way.
• Major standard setters, crucial in guiding corporate climate strategies, have a critical opportunity to establish robust approaches for accounting and target setting for electricity-related emissions, thereby enhancing the integrity of corporate climate action and closing existing loopholes.
• Governments need to take a lead on regulating the unconstrained growth in energy consumption of the sector, recognising that individual companies demonstrating unilateral leadership may risk being left behind without the transition happening at the sector level.
