CDP adds AI to speed emissions disclosures

Environmental disclosure organization CDP has added artificial intelligence to its online reporting system, as part of its effort to streamline the time it takes for companies to complete its annual questionnaire and encourage deeper participation.

The “Suggested Response” tool, developed by German software startup Briink, mines existing documents such as annual reports and sustainability messaging materials, then maps that information to relevant answers in CDP’s questionnaire. 

Approximately 800 corporations who received early access to the resource were able to reduce prep time by an average of 40 percent, according to CDP. The technology also increased survey response rates by approximately 25 percent.

“AI will make CDP reporting more consistent and efficient,” said Matthias Berninger, executive vice president of public affairs and sustainability at Bayer AG. “Team Bayer will be empowered to focus more on where we can improve our performance by eliminating busywork, which makes disclosure an even more powerful tool for advancing the transformation.”

CDP plans to introduce additional capabilities to support simpler data preparation and higher-quality disclosures. 

More than 22,000 corporations shared greenhouse gas emissions data with CDP in 2025, a decrease from the prior year. The organization, founded in 2001 to encourage voluntary corporate disclosures of environmental impact metrics, finds itself at a crossroads as more nations adopt mandatory disclosure regulations.

In early June, CDP sold a majority stake to private equity firm Permira and began the process of splitting into two organizations: a commercial entity that will manage its widely used online disclosure platform and a nonprofit foundation that will continue to evolve CDP’s disclosure methodologies.