Eyes on the prize

The Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) has been the go-to arbiter of corporate climate action for almost a decade. Setup in the aftermath of the 2015 Paris COP, SBTi is the most widely recognised global standard for setting corporate emissions reduction targets in line with the Paris Agreement. By enforcing rigorous criteria, SBTi ensures companies shift from mere carbon reduction ambitions to credible, science-based climate action.

By mid-2025, almost 11,000 companies (representing over 40% of global market capitalisation and 25% of global revenue) had either set an SBTi approved target, or committed to doing so over the next couple of years. The number of companies with SBTi targets has almost doubled since the end of 2023 with Asia, and China in particular seeing the highest proportional growth (up 134%). The industrials, consumer goods, and materials sectors are leading the charge, accounting for nearly one-third of the global total. Over 1,400 corporates had set net zero targets, representing 38% of all corporates with SBTi targets, an increase from 17% in 2023 as corporations signal rising ambition despite the negative political backdrop.

Analysis by MSCI found that companies which had set SBTi targets during the period 2018 to 2023, decarbonised faster on average than firms without targets, irrespective of the region in which they were based. The scale of global corporate activity covered by SBTi commitments and the strength of the ambition shown by signatories illustrates its potential for positive change.

In February last year though, SBTi announced it would be revising its Corporate Net Zero Standard (CNZS), the set of criteria that companies have had to follow when setting targets. The aim being to ensure the standard is more accessible to a wider range of companies, to improve the clarity of its value chain emission requirements, and to make it more transparent and accountable.

SBTi is not without its critics. Many have been concerned that the organisation has not been sufficiently transparent in its decision making process, are worried about potential conflicts of interest, and often exasperated at the time necessary to assess and approve individual companies net zero plans. Whole climate industries can flourish, or flounder, on SBTi's signal, and in the meantime, as it deliberates the next version of its CNZS, there's a risk that corporates take a backseat amid the uncertainty.

Lets take a look at what the latest CNZS draft reveals.