Seagate Technology has released its Decarbonizing Data report, calling for unified action across the data center ecosystem to address rising energy demands driven by AI workloads. The global survey highlights a disconnect between environmental concerns and purchasing decisions, with nearly all respondents acknowledging sustainability challenges but only a small percentage prioritizing them when selecting infrastructure.
According to the report, 94.5% of respondents cited growing storage needs, while 97% expect AI to further increase demand. Despite this, only 3.3% said environmental impact drives purchasing decisions. Top sustainability challenges include energy consumption (53.5%), raw material requirements (49.5%), and space constraints (45.5%). The report urges organizations to view sustainability and total cost of ownership (TCO) not as trade-offs, but as compatible goals when optimizing data center infrastructure.
Seagate outlines three pillars for change: innovation in energy-efficient technologies, extending equipment life cycles through reuse and refurbishment, and fostering accountability across the data infrastructure value chain. The company’s HAMR-based Mozaic 3+ platform, which triples capacity in the same footprint and reduces embodied carbon by over 70% per terabyte, exemplifies this approach.
- 94.5% of enterprises report increasing storage demand, driven largely by AI adoption.
- Only 3.3% of respondents prioritize sustainability in infrastructure purchasing decisions.
- Top data center sustainability concerns: energy use (53.5%), material requirements (49.5%), space (45.5%).
- Seagate’s Mozaic 3+ platform reduces carbon per terabyte by over 70% and cuts cost per terabyte by 25%.
- Seagate calls for shared responsibility across vendors, suppliers, and cloud providers.
“Sustainability cannot be solved in isolation. A holistic approach spanning infrastructure, life cycle management, and industry-wide accountability could ensure that the growth of AI and data center operations does not come at the expense of the environment,” said Jason Feist, SVP of Cloud Marketing, Seagate.