Microsoft 'carbon negative by 2030' commitment
Microsoft · 16 January 2020
Microsoft promised in 2020 to remove more carbon than it emits by 2030. Its emissions instead rose 25% in its 2025 fiscal year because of AI data centres, and the company now concedes the target is getting harder.
What it calls for
- Environmental accountability
Scope
Single company; also pledged water-positive and zero-waste by 2030
What actually happened
Microsoft's 2026 sustainability report (published 2026-07-09) shows emissions rose 25% in fiscal year 2025 (July 2024–June 2025; 20.29 vs 16.21 MtCO2e) as AI data centres expanded, and the company said 'sustainability solutions are not scaling fast enough to meet demand' while reaffirming the 2030 goal (https://www.engadget.com/2212136/microsoft-ai-drive-carbon-emissions-grow-25-percent-2025/; https://thehill.com/policy/technology/5966327-microsoft-emissions-jump-ai-data/). Emissions were already ~30% above the 2020 baseline by 2023 (https://www.theregister.com/2024/05/16/microsoft_co2_emissions/). Report hub: https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/corporate-responsibility/sustainability/report.