How Hitachi Cuts Carbon Amid AI Sustainability Demands

One of the AI industry’s biggest challenges is sustainability.

For AI to increase across the world, more energy is required, meaning more data centres are needed, alongside ways to cool them as the AI workloads heat up.

Proving that sustainability goals can be reached, Hitachi has reported a 74% reduction in carbon dioxide emissions at its factories and offices since 2010, according to its 2024 Sustainability Report.

The sustainability report documents 153 million tonnes of avoided carbon emissions across Hitachi's operations alongside many other achievements.

Lorena Dellagiovanna, Senior Vice President and Chief Sustainability Officer at Hitachi, says the company has “successfully met most of our sustainability goals and KPIs” for fiscal 2023. 

“Some of the notable progress we made in the area of environment relates to decarbonisation and circular economy,” she adds, attributing progress to internal initiatives including the emissions reduction at business sites.

Gen AI creating sustainability challenges

Hitachi faces mounting pressure to balance AI adoption with environmental commitments as Gen AI continues to transform business operations. 

The technology promises productivity improvements by automating routine tasks and enabling focus on creative work. However, AI systems require substantial computing resources housed in energy-intensive data centres.

Lorena acknowledges this tension: “Gen AI can significantly improve work efficiency, allowing people to focus on more value-added and creative tasks.”

However, she warns that expanded AI usage will increase “demand for data centres, leading to increased power consumption and CO2 emissions.”

Hitachi’s approach to tackling the Gen AI problem

As a result, Hitachi plans to evaluate AI deployment through sustainability metrics. 

Lorena explains Hitachi aims “to analyse both the positive and negative impacts of Gen AI from multiple perspectives, including environmental impacts and ethical implications.”

This assessment approach considers planetary boundaries, a scientific framework defining safe operating limits for human activities across nine environmental systems including climate change, biodiversity loss and chemical pollution.

Former President and CEO of Hitachi, Keiji Kojima, says: “With the advent of generative AI, the demand for digitalisation is rapidly increasing.”

He identifies the need to “identify new growth opportunities that are unlocked by the impact of Gen AI on society and the social issues that emerge from shifts such as climate change and demographics.”

The company also plans to strengthen problem-solving capabilities using Lumada, its customer co-creation framework for developing digital solutions.

This platform combines data analytics, IoT connectivity and AI to address specific industry challenges.

Hitachi must also comply with evolving sustainability reporting requirements across multiple jurisdictions.

The European Union's Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) mandates detailed environmental and social disclosures for large companies operating in EU markets.

The International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) also develops global baseline standards for sustainability reporting, creating consistency across different regulatory frameworks.

Hitachi Energy’s clean technology growth through the grid

Hitachi targets business carbon neutrality by 2030 and value chain carbon neutrality by 2050.

Hitachi Energy, the company's power transmission and distribution specialist, has contributed to the carbon reduction achievements through high-voltage direct current (HVDC) technology deployment. 

HVDC systems enable efficient long-distance electricity transmission with lower losses compared to alternating current systems.

The division's grid-connected HVDC capacity now totals 150 gigawatts, equivalent to Japan's peak electricity demand.

This technology supports renewable energy integration by connecting distant wind and solar farms to urban consumption centres.

Hitachi Energy has recruited over 8,000 employees worldwide and invested US$3bn in manufacturing, engineering and research and development since 2020.

The expansion supports growing demand for grid infrastructure as countries transition to renewable energy sources.

Lorena explains the company is “shifting toward using fewer raw materials, water and other resources more efficiently and sustainably.”

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