Channel players are bullish on the use of AI to help them hit ESG goals and strengthen strategy, but advise a measured path to adoption, according to the latest ESG Unwrapped report
Wokingham, UK, 22 September 2025 – Artificial Intelligence (AI) is fast becoming the key differentiator for channel businesses looking to boost their sustainability and ESG strategies over the next 12 months.
This is according to the latest ESG Unwrapped report from technology services company, Nebula Global Services. The report, Using the power of AI to drive your sustainability strategy, highlights how partners are already experimenting with AI to speed up reporting, cut emissions and deliver measurable social impact.
The report, which is the third in the ESG Unwrapped series, focuses on the areas in which AI can make a difference when it comes to ESG in the channel. It includes in-depth interviews with multiple AI and sustainability specialists who, while playing down the hype around AI, were confident that the technology is going to be a game-changer.
“There’s no doubt that AI is already being deployed by early-adopters in the channel to help them fast-track their ESG goals,” says Richard Eglon, CMO at Nebula Global Services. “However, it’s a minefield. With this report, we wanted to provide practical expert advice for channel firms on how to use AI strategically to deliver real ESG benefits.”
While the report acknowledges that AI use cases for ESG in the channel are still emerging, it reveals how channel players are already finding practical ways to apply it, from shaping ESG strategy to managing office space to improving staff inclusion and well-being.
It also tackles the thorny issue at the heart of AI and ESG: how can businesses use a technology that consumes so much energy and water to become more sustainable? The report offers useful guidance to help channel leaders strike a balance between using AI responsibly while working towards ESG goals.
Jon Steggles, Sustainability and Social Value Manager at CDW, said AI can make a positive impact when used sensibly. “You can analyse data faster, draw trends and build models that demonstrate, ‘If I move this lever, what’s the impact over here?’ That combination of human and technology will produce some innovative, impactful solutions,” he says. “Most companies will achieve more by using AI to help guide their strategy than they will impact the planet. But of course, there will be a tipping point, and that’s when we need to exercise more caution.”
The report includes profiles of leading channel sustainability leaders from HP, Roc Technologies, CDW, Softcat, Interact DC, PNZ Advisory, and Vitalis Capital, who share their real-world experiences of bringing AI into ESG programmes and other opportunities for optimism, such as greater vendor collaboration to solve environmental challenges.
Nancy Powell, HP’s Sustainability Manager for the UK, Ireland and EMEA, said there are areas where vendors should work together to solve environmental challenges. “There is a growing opportunity for vendors to work together for the good of customers, the tech sector and the planet. There are frameworks out there that help, for example, the UN Sustainable Development Goals, and an expectation that AI can help with current obstacles like data and methodology misalignment.”
Eglon added, “AI is already hyped up enough outside of the ESG environment. Our goal with this report is to bring clarity. By showing where AI is genuinely helping partners and where caution is needed, we can help businesses take the right steps towards their ESG goals.”
The report can be downloaded in full by visiting the following link
