Its greenhouse gas emissions were actually around 30 per cent higher in the fiscal year 2023, showing how hard it could be for the company to meet climate goals as it simultaneously races to be a leader in AI.

Training and running AI models is an increasingly energy-hungry endeavour, and the impact that's having on the climate is just starting to come into view.

Microsoft's latest sustainability report is a good case study in the conundrum facing big tech companies that made many climate pledges in recent years but could pollute more as they focus on AI.

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