Apple Will Make All Its Batteries Out of 100 Percent Recycled Cobalt by 2025

Apple has announced that it will use 100 percent recycled cobalt for all Apple-brand batteries by 2025 as it aims to become a carbon-neutral company by 2030.  

“Our ambition to one day use 100 percent recycled and renewable materials in our products works hand in hand with Apple 2030: our goal to achieve carbon neutral products by 2030,” explained Lisa Jackson, Apple’s vice president of Environment, Policy, and Social Initiatives. “We’re working toward both goals with urgency and advancing innovation across our entire industry in the process,” she added. 

In a press release, the company stated that its use of certified recycled cobalt has significantly expanded in the past three years, with a quarter of all cobalt used in Apple products in 2022 being recycled.  

“Apple-designed batteries found in iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, MacBook, and many other products represent a significant majority of the company’s use of cobalt,” the company wrote.  

To achieve its 2030 sustainability goals, the tech giant added that it will use only 100 percent recycled gold plating and tin soldering for all Apple-designed printed circuit boards, recycled rare elements for its magnets and will eliminate plastics from product packaging by 2025.  

“Every day, Apple is innovating to make technology that enriches people’s lives, while protecting the planet we all share,” Apple CEO Tim Cook shared.  

“From the recycled materials in our products to the clean energy that powers our operations, our environmental work is integral to everything we make and to who we are. So, we’ll keep pressing forward in the belief that great technology should be great for our users, and for the environment,” he said.