Apple's AI Growth Stalls Climate Progress, Raises Emissions Concerns

Is the latest iPhone truly more environmentally friendly than its predecessors? While Apple has made strides in incorporating recycled and renewable materials into the iPhone Pro series, now exceeding 25 percent of the device, this progress represents only one facet of its environmental footprint. A deeper look at the full lifecycle carbon emissions reveals a more complex picture, particularly as the escalating artificial intelligence (AI) race compounds the challenge.

Apple’s journey towards its 2030 net-zero climate goal began promisingly. The iPhone 12 Pro generated 82 kilograms of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2E) per device in 2020, dropping to 69 kilograms for the iPhone 13 Pro, a gain attributed to its Supplier Clean Energy Program. However, this momentum has since waned. Per-phone emissions for the iPhone 15 Pro and the more recent iPhone 16 Pro (released in 2024) show virtually no further improvement. Apple’s shift in reporting, now comparing to a 2015 baseline of 92 kilograms rather than year-on-year, means stalled progress can still be presented as a 30 percent reduction. While the current top-tier iPhone is indeed greener than its 2019 counterpart, most of this improvement occurred between 2020 and 2022, leaving Apple largely treading water as it pushes emissions-heavy AI innovations. This contrasts sharply with companies like Fairphone, whose 2023 Fairphone 5 achieved a lifecycle emission footprint of just 42 kilograms.

Apple’s predicament mirrors a broader trend across the tech industry. Google’s total greenhouse gas emissions surged by an alarming 48 percent between 2019 and 2023, partly due to energy-intensive AI data centers. Microsoft’s emissions climbed 23 percent from 2020 to 2024, also attributed to AI and cloud expansion. While Apple claims it is “on track to meet our ambitious goal to be carbon neutral across our entire footprint by 2030,” external observers note a quieter tone on sustainability at recent product launches compared to previous years.

Greenpeace East Asia points to significant challenges within Apple’s sprawling supply chain. Apple’s 2025 Environmental Progress Report indicates a slowdown in the reduction of its “Scope 3” manufacturing emissions—indirect greenhouse gas emissions from operations outside the company’s direct control. The decrease between September 2023 and September 2024 was 13 percent, a notable drop from the 30 percent reduction seen in the prior year. This is partly due to a disconnect between Apple’s ambitious targets and the commitments of its major Asian final assembly suppliers. For instance, only Wistron has pledged 100 percent renewable energy by 2030, aligning with Apple, while Foxconn and Compal don’t expect to reach that goal until 2040 and 2050, respectively. Despite Apple’s $400 million Clean Energy Funds, suppliers reportedly lack sufficient incentive, underscoring the need for stronger enforcement and monitoring.

This challenge extends to Apple’s rapidly expanding manufacturing hubs in India and Vietnam. Among Apple’s 14 Indian suppliers, only three have disclosed their renewable energy share, with figures like Pegatron reporting no renewable energy use in India in 2022 and 2023. Experts argue that given India’s robust domestic renewables industry, Apple should be able to mandate higher renewable energy adoption from its suppliers.

Perhaps the most formidable challenge lies in the “vicious cycle” of AI itself. As Jan Stryjak, a sustainability analyst, explains, AI is immensely costly in terms of energy and water. While Apple Intelligence aims for a more climate-friendly, on-device, privacy-focused approach, leveraging Apple silicon servers in its data centers powered by 100 percent renewable energy, the scalability of this infrastructure is a concern. Apple operates 16 data centers with six more planned, a modest footprint compared to Microsoft’s 120-plus or Amazon’s 200-plus. Moreover, Apple’s reliance on external models like ChatGPT for some Siri requests falls outside its Private Cloud Compute initiative. Ben Lee, a professor at the University of Pennsylvania, suggests Apple may be prioritizing AI capability development over immediate efficiency, especially as its next-gen Siri has faced delays.

The energy demands of manufacturing advanced semiconductor chips, such as those powering Apple Intelligence and its AI servers, present another significant hurdle. Key chip-making regions like Taiwan and South Korea lack rapid deployment of renewable energy. TSMC, a crucial Apple supplier, reported a 19 percent increase in greenhouse gas emissions per product unit in 2024, missing its 10 percent decrease target, and only about 14 percent of its energy was derived from renewables.

Finally, the inherent incompatibility of building AI-capable iPhones designed for a typical upgrade cycle of just two and a half years poses a unique problem. This rapid turnover, potentially accelerated by the demand for new AI-enabled hardware, inflates indirect emissions. While Apple dominates over half of the global secondary smartphone market, trade-in rates are modest, partly due to Apple offering less competitive recovery values for old iPhones. Improving the “afterlife” of iPhones through more robust resale and recycling programs is crucial for mitigating their environmental impact.

As Apple’s Vice President of Environment, Lisa Jackson, noted, the work towards 2030 “gets even harder.” As the world’s third-largest company, Apple faces immense pressure to ensure that the relentless march of AI technology does not compromise the delicate balance required for sustainable development.