Kōan leads workshop on AI-driven double materiality at ESMT Berlin

Kōan was pleased to participate in the ESMT Berlin’s 30th Sustainable Business Roundtable which was focused on how AI is reshaping sustainability. 

How leading companies deploy AI in sustainability

During this event, we had a front-row seat to see how leading companies – including Volkswagen, Deutsche Telekom, Microsoft and Mast-Jägermeister – are actively deploying AI across their sustainability reporting. The applications are both broad and impactful, ranging from policy development and stakeholder engagement to developing climate models, forecasting and carbon reporting.

Beyond simply achieving ESRS-compliant data, AI is proving to be a powerful tool for complex analysis, such as identifying biodiversity patterns. This allows companies to not only protect the ecosystems where they operate but also effectively mitigate associated risks.

How Kōan uses AI to optimise the double materiality process

A highlight of the roundtable was the opportunity for Kōan to lead a hands-on workshop focused on conducting a smarter double materiality assessment (DMA) using AI.

Our core belief is simple: AI, when blended with human expertise can help provide accurate and immediate insights needed to optimise and accelerate the entire DMA process.

In the workshop, we demonstrated how AI can be used to quickly map a company’s business model, value chain and stakeholders, allowing for rapid identification of impacts linked to operations. While AI dramatically saves time by processing large amounts of information, the crucial steering remains with the human experts. It is up to people to guide AI with the right prompts and ensure it explores the most relevant paths. We were thrilled to showcase methods that are already inspiring adoption across the industry.

As we champion the adoption of AI in sustainability reporting, we must not overlook the technology's own environmental footprint. At Kōan, our commitment remains dual: we are focused on using AI to make our clients' services greener, while actively ensuring the sustainable and responsible use of the technology itself.

Want to learn more about how we use AI? Find out here.