Western Digital outlines sustainability progress as AI storage demand grows
Western Digital details sustainability progress as AI storage demand rises, focusing on efficiency, emissions, and material recovery.
Western Digital has released its FY2025 Annual Sustainability Report, outlining how it is adapting storage infrastructure to meet rising data demands from AI systems while reducing environmental impact.
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As AI workloads scale, the volume of data generated and retained continues to increase, placing greater pressure on storage infrastructure. The company positions storage efficiency as a key constraint in AI deployment, focusing on improving energy use per unit of data and increasing storage density to support large-scale systems.
The report frames sustainability as part of infrastructure design rather than a separate initiative. Western Digital states that its approach centres on improving efficiency at scale, alongside reducing emissions, energy consumption, and material waste across the lifecycle of storage systems.
Efficiency and density drive infrastructure changes
Western Digital is focusing on high-density hard disk drive development to reduce the physical and energy footprint of data centres. By increasing storage capacity per device and improving energy efficiency per terabyte, the company aims to lower both operating costs and environmental impact for cloud providers and enterprise users.
The report positions these improvements as relevant to hyperscalers and enterprises building AI infrastructure, where storage capacity and energy use scale together. The company also notes efforts to optimise water usage, reduce waste, and recover materials as part of broader operational changes.
Progress across energy, materials, and emissions
The FY2025 report outlines several measurable developments across operations and product use. Five sites are now operating on 100% carbon-free energy, contributing to an overall 66% renewable energy mix across global operations. The company maintains a target of reaching carbon-free energy across its sites by FY2030.
Western Digital reports a 31% reduction in emissions intensity, measured per petabyte of storage used by customers, compared with FY2020 levels. This metric reflects improvements in product efficiency rather than direct operational emissions alone.
Material use is another focus. The company has set targets of 43% recycled content in enterprise HDD products and 72% in packaging by FY2030. In FY2025, it achieved between 36% and 38% recycled content in products and 74% in packaging, exceeding its packaging target ahead of schedule.
Scope 3 emissions remain a key area of focus, with a new goal to reduce direct materials emissions by 20% by FY2030 from a FY2024 baseline. The company states that this will involve deeper supplier engagement and capacity-building efforts across its supply chain.
Rare earth recovery and industry recognition
Western Digital also highlighted progress in recovering rare earth materials from decommissioned hard drives. Through a programme developed with Microsoft, Critical Materials Recycling, and PedalPoint, the company reported a 90% recovery rate for rare earth materials during its pilot phase. The initiative addresses materials that would otherwise be lost to landfill or e-waste streams.
The programme received an Environment + Energy Leader Award in the Environmental Impact category. The company also reported receiving an “A-” rating from CDP for climate performance and was named one of America’s Greenest Companies by Newsweek in 2026.
In parallel, Western Digital published its FY2025 Climate Risk Report, detailing its approach to identifying and managing climate-related risks within its enterprise risk framework.
Framing sustainability within AI infrastructure
Jackie Jung, Chief Sustainability Officer at Western Digital, said the company’s focus is on enabling data growth while reducing environmental impact. She stated that efficiency at scale remains the core challenge as AI systems continue to expand.
The report treats sustainability as a constraint tied to infrastructure scaling, rather than a standalone compliance effort. As storage demand rises alongside AI deployment, the company is aligning product design, operations, and supply chain practices to address both performance and environmental requirements.
