Apple’s Cook Tells China Forum AI’s Crucial For Climate Battle
Cook took part in a discussion at the annual China Development Forum on carbon neutrality and climate change, and how companies could reduce adverse effects on their businesses.
(Bloomberg) -- Tim Cook said artificial intelligence is an essential tool for businesses committed to reducing carbon footprints, as the Apple Inc. chief executive officer joined a climate change dialogue Sunday at a forum in Beijing, continuing a week of public displays of his company’s commitment to China.
Cook took part in a discussion at the annual China Development Forum on carbon neutrality and climate change, and how companies could reduce adverse effects on their businesses. Apple has set some of the most ambitious targets among its peers for reducing its carbon footprint — with the Apple Watch touted as its first carbon neutral product.
“We are making great progress, we are not there yet, and the road ahead requires more innovation,” Cook said on the company’s environmental goal. Artificial intelligence “provides an enormous toolkit for every company that’s wishing to be carbon neutral or to lower their emissions by a substantial amount,” he said.
The Apple CEO returned to the Beijing event after being one of the marquee names on last year’s list of participants, which was the first time the event was held in-person after three years of Covid isolation. Cook spoke with China Premier Li Qiang and other CEOs of international corporations following Li’s opening speech.
Cook told reporters that he had visited China frequently over the past year because “it’s so vibrant and so dynamic here, I just always enjoy coming here.” Last week, Cook’s social team documented on his Weibo profile visits with supply partners and a small coffee-making business using Apple technology.
“To make the best products we need partners who share our commitment to innovation and protecting the planet,” Cook said in one of the posts, lauding suppliers BYD Co., Lens Technology Co. and Shenzhen Everwin Precision Technology Co. He also praised coffeemaker Saturnbird for recycling its coffee grounds and containers.
The environmental theme to Cook’s trip — which included opening an expansive new store in Shanghai on Thursday — may have been chosen to avoid falling afoul of geopolitical sensitivities. Relations between the U.S. and China have continued to deteriorate, with threats to ban ByteDance Ltd.’s TikTok in the U.S. if its Chinese owner doesn’t divest. Apple has been on the receiving end of China’s riposte, as it’s had to navigate an escalated ban on iPhones in Chinese government-run or state-backed businesses.
Apple’s global corporate operations are now carbon neutral and it aims to have net zero climate impact across its entire business by 2030. That would include manufacturing supply chains and the full product life cycle.
The company has also set the goal of eliminating plastic from its product packaging by 2025. When it removed the exterior plastic wrap in its iPhone 13 packaging, Apple avoided 600 metric tons of waste, showing the impact of even small changes when scaled across a vast manufacturing network. It produces hundreds of millions of iPhones, iPads and Macs each year, mostly in China.
More stories like this are available on bloomberg.com
©2024 Bloomberg L.P.
