Nvidia Climate Emissions in Spotlight After Greenpeace Call
Nvidia climate emissions are under scrutiny. Greenpeace is urging the chipmaker to cut emissions across its manufacturing supply chain after Jensen Huang resigned as chief executive, ProPakistani reported.
The group called on interim chief executive Colette Kress to invest in renewable power and extend Nvidia’s clean electricity commitments to the suppliers that make its chips. The call puts the spotlight on the climate cost of the artificial intelligence boom, which Nvidia’s chips largely power.
Nvidia climate emissions rose 725 percent
Nvidia’s supply-chain emissions rose 725 percent from 2020 levels, according to a September analysis of company disclosures by researcher Ketan Joshi and environmental groups including Greenpeace and Climate Action Against Disinformation. The Verge reported that the increase amounted to about 9.4 million metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent.
Nvidia’s own sustainability report lists 10.7 million metric tons of indirect emissions for fiscal 2026, including 9.3 million tons from purchased goods and services. The company reported 9,822 tons of direct emissions from its own operations. Nvidia designs its chips and relies on suppliers such as TSMC to manufacture them.
The cost of making and running chips
The Verge reported that demand for AI chips has spurred construction of factories that need large amounts of water and chemicals. Running the chips adds to electricity demand on local grids, and rapid hardware upgrades raise concerns about how much discarded equipment data centres will generate.
Joshi and his co-authors separately estimated that running Nvidia’s chips could have generated about 21 million metric tons of emissions in 2025. That estimate is based on chip power consumption. Nvidia’s reported emissions total does not include that category.
What Huang said about energy
In a September interview on The Ezra Klein Show, Huang argued that AI’s demand for electricity would encourage companies to buy more clean power. He also said data centres would rely more on fossil fuels in the near term, comparing the trade-off to a surgeon who has “to cut you open to save you”.
Greenpeace said it had sought talks with Nvidia for two years and that the company had yet to meet with the group. Activists raised the issue during Huang’s keynote at Nvidia’s GTC conference in Berlin in October. Nvidia did not immediately respond to The Verge’s request for comment.
What Greenpeace wants by 2030
Nvidia says it matched 100 percent of its facilities’ electricity use with clean power purchases in 2025. Greenpeace wants Nvidia to extend its 100 percent renewable electricity target to its entire manufacturing supply chain by 2030, including suppliers in East Asia, and to invest in new renewable energy capacity.
The group also called on Kress to address how Nvidia’s chips are used in applications such as automated warfare.
The leadership change gives the campaign a new target. Staff and Elon Musk have urged Nvidia to bring Huang back, while Nvidia approached Arm chief Rene Haas about succeeding Huang. The upheaval has already hit the company’s value: Nvidia’s market value fell by $1 trillion after Huang’s exit, and Nasdaq plunged as AI stocks lost value on the same fears.
Frequently asked questions
Why is Greenpeace targeting Nvidia?
Greenpeace says Nvidia’s supply-chain emissions rose 725 percent from 2020 levels, and it wants the company to extend its 100 percent renewable electricity target to the suppliers that make its chips.
How large are Nvidia’s emissions?
Nvidia’s sustainability report lists 10.7 million metric tons of indirect emissions for fiscal 2026, including 9.3 million tons from purchased goods and services. Direct emissions from its own operations were 9,822 tons.
What about the emissions from running Nvidia’s chips?
Researcher Ketan Joshi and his co-authors estimated that running Nvidia’s chips could have generated about 21 million metric tons of emissions in 2025. Nvidia’s reported total does not include that category.
What does Greenpeace want by 2030?
It wants Nvidia to run its entire manufacturing supply chain, including suppliers in East Asia, on 100 percent renewable electricity by 2030, and to invest in new renewable energy capacity.
Who is running Nvidia now?
Colette Kress is interim chief executive after Jensen Huang resigned. Greenpeace has addressed its demands to her, and has also asked her to address how Nvidia’s chips are used in automated warfare.
