Analysis and perspectives on electronics life cycle data
The state of the field
In-depth, source-documentedA sourcing map for the embodied emissions of AI data-center hardware: where the published emission-factor data is strong, where it is thin, and where REEL fills the gap, across compute, networking and optics, racks and in-rack power, the power chain, and cooling.
Short-form analysis
September 10, 2026
Per stack, High Bandwidth Flash carries about 17x the embodied carbon of an HBM3 stack. Per gigabyte of capacity, it is roughly 1.9x more efficient. That inversion is what makes it interesting.
Read moreSeptember 10, 2026
An HBM3 8-Hi stack carries roughly 25x the embodied carbon of a standard DRAM IC. About 85% of that sits in wafer fabrication for the stacked dies and the base logic die; TSV stacking is about 15%.
Read moreSeptember 10, 2026
In REEL LCI v1.0, a CoWoS 2.5D package carries about 85 times the carbon of a wire-bond package, and still accounts for under a quarter of a 3nm IC. The die keeps growing faster than the package.
Read moreSeptember 10, 2026
In REEL LCI v1.0, the package's absolute burden climbs steeply with advanced packaging, but the die climbs faster, so packaging's share of an IC falls from 46.8% at 14nm to 24.5% at 3nm.
Read moreMay 5, 2026
A 3nm chip can have lower direct process gas emissions than a 7nm chip. The reason isn't technology – it's the operating scenario, and it can swing direct emissions by roughly a factor of two at the same node.
Read moreApril 23, 2026
Spend-based emission factors estimate a data center GPU at roughly 7,500 kg CO₂e. The published product carbon footprint is closer to 160. A 45x gap baked into a lot of Scope 3 inventories right now.
Read moreApril 21, 2026
A 40-layer backplane PCB has more than 11 times the carbon footprint of a standard 4-layer board. Not 10 times the layers – 11 times the carbon.
Read moreApril 16, 2026
The GHG Protocol is revising its Scope 3 Standard for the first time since 2011. Draft standards are expected for public consultation soon, with final publication targeted for late 2027.
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