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China has introduced an advanced artificial intelligence-powered system for tracking carbon emissions, covering everything from manufacturing and consumer activities to natural sources like forests. The aim is to support the country’s goals of peaking emissions by 2030 and attaining carbon neutrality by 2060.
The new carbon accounting model is designed to align with China’s strategic climate objectives, shifting from traditional manual calculations to a smarter, more systematic, and real-time process. According to Wei Wei, deputy director of the project’s leading institute at the Shanghai Advanced Research Institute, this transition represents a significant upgrade in how emissions are monitored and managed.
Manual emission calculations face numerous hurdles. Different industries have complex procedures, data is often stored in various formats and difficult to process, and traditional methods are time-consuming and prone to inaccuracies. High labor costs and limited resolution in temporal and spatial data further complicate the task.
To overcome these challenges, the team developed a specialized AI agent based on the CAS’ ScienceOne Scientific Foundation Model. This AI significantly enhances the accuracy and comprehensiveness of carbon accounting by facilitating frequent data updates and seamless integration across multiple sectors and agencies.
With this system, it is possible to accurately assess how China’s eco-friendly products contribute to global emission reductions. For instance, the model can estimate that renewable energy equipment like wind turbines and solar panels exported in 2024 generated about two million tons of greenhouse gases during manufacturing, but are expected to save around 350 million tons during their operational lifespan.
On a practical level, the system provides more precise data for national greenhouse gas inventories, supports the development of carbon trading markets, evaluates industry-specific carbon footprints, and guides green transformation efforts across key supply chains.
International organizations will also benefit from access to Chinese carbon data and standards, strengthening China’s role in global carbon markets and negotiations on carbon tariffs.
Looking forward, the research team intends to expand its development efforts across production, consumption, natural sources, and carbon tracing, with the goal of creating proprietary algorithms, datasets, and carbon accounting results to further enhance capabilities.
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