Informed by new research from PwC UK that shows AI can boost
global GDP by up to 4.4% and reduce emissions by 4% by 2030,
Microsoft commits to a tech-first approach to drive progress across
operations, products, customers and data science
REDMOND, Wash., April 15, 2019 /CNW/ -- On Monday, Microsoft
President Brad Smith shared the
company's vision of a doubling down on sustainability, with a road
map that will put sustainability at the core of every part of the
business and technology to work for sustainable outcomes.
"The magnitude and speed of the world's environmental changes
have made it increasingly clear that we must do more, and today
Microsoft is taking steps to do just that," Smith said. "We're
taking action to put our own house in order, while increasingly
addressing sustainability challenges around the globe by engaging
our strongest assets as a company — our employees and our
technologies."
Leading this commitment is a substantial increase of the
company's internal carbon fee to $15
per metric ton on all carbon emissions. The internal Microsoft tax
was established seven years ago to hold all business divisions
financially responsible for reducing carbon emissions. The funds
from this increased fee will maintain Microsoft's carbon
neutrality, as well as help Microsoft take a tech-first approach
that will put sustainability at the core of every part of its
business.
Other key commitments include:
- Building sustainable campuses and datacenters, including
a "zero-carbon" campus in Puget Sound and innovating to reduce
carbon at campuses around the world.
- Accelerating research through data science in its AI for
Earth program with new datasets and open source APIs for
environmental applications.
- Partnering with existing and new customers to drive
sustainable transformations with a low-carbon cloud, devices
and solutions.
- Advocating for environmental policy changes,
including joining the Carbon Leadership Council in support of a
framework for a national price on carbon.
In addition, Microsoft announced with PricewaterhouseCoopers UK
(PwC UK) new research that shows the potential of AI to enable
economic growth while reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Looking at
four key sectors — agriculture, energy, water and transport — the
report finds that AI-enabled advances could yield as much as a 4.4%
increase in global GDP and a 4% decrease in global greenhouse gas
emissions while creating as many as 38 million new jobs
globally.
The announcement builds on more than a decade of work on this
issue, including reducing carbon emissions and purchasing more than
1.5 GW of renewable energy, as well as partnering with customers to
drive sustainable transformation and a $50
million commitment to AI for Earth.
The blog post with additional details can be found here. The
full PwC report can be found here.
Microsoft (Nasdaq "MSFT" @microsoft) enables digital
transformation for the era of an intelligent cloud and an
intelligent edge. Its mission is to empower every person and every
organization on the planet to achieve more.
View original content to download
multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/microsoft-increases-carbon-fee-while-announcing-commitment-to-double-down-on-sustainability-300832526.html
SOURCE Microsoft Corp.