Amazon emissions surge 16% as AI expansion drives record carbon footprint despite net-zero pledge

The cost of the AI boom: Amazon emissions jump 16% as company stands by net-zero pledge

Amazon's carbon footprint jumped 16% last year after several years of little or no increase. The company emitted nearly 80.9 million metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent in 2025. By comparison, that's slightly higher than the nation of New Zealand's emissions. Amazon disclosed its climate-related data in its most comprehensive sustainability report to date, which includes a breakdown of its carbon sources, water use and other environmental impacts. Not surprisingly, energy use showed the biggest rate of increase in the 2025 carbon tally as Amazon and other tech companies are working to rapidly expand their data center capacity to meet AI computing demand. For the first time since 2019, the company also reported an uptick in its "carbon intensity" -- a measure of how much carbon was emitted relative to each dollar of revenue. Amazon has promoted this metric as a sign that it can decouple its growth from its climate impacts. Despite emissions moving in the wrong direction and ongoing data center-driven challenges, the Seattle-area company remains committed to its pledge of net-zero carbon emissions by 2040. When it comes to that goal, "I remain confident and optimistic in the overarching vision and the long-term progress we continue to make toward it," said Kara Hurst, Amazon's chief sustainability officer, in the foreword to the company's annual report. The report highlights areas of success that include: * Data center efficiency: Amazon's data centers are 9% more efficient than the public cloud average and 30% more efficient than on-premises data centers at directing energy toward computing rather than cooling, lighting or overhead. * Data center water use: Amazon is seven times more efficient in its water use than the industry average thanks to its use of air cooling at most sites, most of the year. * 100% clean energy overall: For the third year running, Amazon matched its company-wide electricity use with an equivalent volume of purchased clean energy, although it technically still draws on fossil fuels for some of its energy. * Electric vehicle fleet: It has the largest corporate EV fleet in North America, with more than 52,700 delivery vans worldwide. It's halfway to meeting its 2030 goal of 100,000 EVs. The company also reported improvements in reducing packaging and plastic use in delivered items; increasing use of low-carbon building materials in data center construction; and progress toward becoming water positive at its data centers, meaning it aims to replenish more water to communities than it uses. The Amazon-backed Climate Pledge -- an effort to get other organizations to commit to net-zero carbon emissions by 2040 -- has grown to 656 signatories after adding 107 companies this year. It marks a notable increase at a time when companies are growing quieter about climate commitments, with some stepping back from earlier goals. But the surge in data center investment shows little sign of slowing, which will keep complicating Amazon's path to lower emissions. CEO Andy Jassy said Amazon expects to spend a record $200 billion in capital expenditures this year, including "AI, chips, robotics, and low-Earth orbit satellites." Not all reactions to that buildout have been positive -- even within the company. Members of Amazon Employees for Climate Justice this month testified before the Seattle City Council in favor of data center requirements for renewable energy and labor protections, though Amazon doesn't operate any data centers within city limits. In the report, Amazon CSO Hurst acknowledged that AI-fueled advances could catalyze sustainability solutions or slow progress toward climate goals. "But what alternative do we have," she said, "but to continue to invest, learn, and move forward to try to solve one of the world's most challenging issues?"

Amazon reveals it used more energy than New Zealand in 2025 as its carbon footprint rises 16%

* Amazon says emissions rose 16% in 2025, purchased electricity emissions up 34% * Projects are using renewable energy matching and lower-carbon materials * Data center PUE continues to improve, but Google does it better In its 2025 Sustainability Report, Amazon revealed its absolute emissions increased 16% to 80.9 million tonnes, meaning that one single company now generates as many emissions as an entire country - New Zealand (77.8 million tonnes in 2024). The company blamed AI for creating unprecedented energy demand, causing emissions to rise significantly in 2025, but it argues long-term investments in renewable energy and data center efficiency keep it on track for its 2040 net zero goal. However, this is Amazon's largest annual emissions increase since it launched its net zero Climate Pledge, and its data center expansion plans continue to develop. Amazon's emissions continue to grow - 2040 net zero goal remains realistic Although AWS revenue grew 20% in 2025, Amazon noted the amount of CO2 per dollar of revenue actually grew 3% year-over-year - though this figure, known as carbon intensity, is still 38% lower than 2019 before aggressive AI-fuelled data center expansions. But while data centers have certainly caused energy consumption and carbon emissions to rise, the company's biggest contributor is actually its supply chain. Around three-quarters (76%) of its total emissions now come from its supply chain, up 20% year-over-year. Despite the 34% increase in emissions from purchased electricity, those emissions only account for around one-twentieth (5%) of Amazon's entire carbon footprint. Amazon also noted that 80 new renewable and carbon-free energy projects in 2025 brought its overall capacity to 42GW across 712 projects, with 61 of its construction projects last year using lower-carbon materials. But with a Power Usage Effectiveness (PUE) score of 1.14, its data centers fall short of Google's 2024 figure of 1.09. Follow TechRadar on Google News and add us as a preferred source to get our expert news, reviews, and opinion in your feeds.

Amazon's AI expansion drives emissions to record high

Why it matters: Amazon's annual environmental report, released a day after Google's report unveiled similar increases, adds to mounting evidence that AI growth is making it harder for tech giants to maintain climate ambition. Driving the news: Just like Google, Amazon's aggregate growth in data center capacity is outpacing its stated efficiency gains. * Amazon said it added more data center capacity globally than any company last year, while insisting it continues to improve efficiency. By the numbers: Amazon's greenhouse gas emissions rose more than 16% last year, a record jump fueled largely by a 34% increase in electricity and a 20% increase from manufacturing supply chains. * In a new disclosure this year, Amazon said its data centers withdrew 2.48 billion gallons of water, meaning at least some of that was returned to the community and not consumed. * It also said a metric used to measure water efficiency at data centers improved 20% since 2024, and more than 50% since 2021. Catch up quick: The AI race is intensifying scrutiny of the growing energy and water demands tied to data centers. Between the lines: Amazon's report is considerably shorter and generally offers less discussion of its environmental metrics than Google's, although the companies emphasize and disclose different measures. * Google's report spans 117 pages versus Amazon's 51. Zoom out: Amazon's environmental footprint extends well beyond data centers because of its global logistics and retail operations, which sets it apart from other tech giants in the AI race. * Amazon also said it has deployed more than 52,700 electric delivery vans, putting it just over halfway toward its goal of 100,000 by 2030. What we're watching: Microsoft's sustainability report -- due out in the coming weeks -- is the next major test revealing how much AI's environmental footprint is growing across the industry.