Carbon optimizer recommendations

Overview

The Cost intelligence view in Cost Analyzer includes a built-in AI capability, Carbon optimizer recommendations, available under AI Agents, that analyzes Azure resources and provides actionable recommendations to reduce their carbon footprint.

The agent evaluates workload behavior, cost patterns, region characteristics, and resource configuration to identify opportunities that balance sustainability, cost efficiency, and performance.

What the AI Agent provides

For each Azure resource, the AI Agent generates a structured sustainability summary containing the following sections:

1. Current carbon footprint

Provides an overview of:

• Resource configuration and region
• Usage and cost patterns
• Estimated annual carbon emissions (CO₂e)

2. Key carbon drivers

Identifies the primary factors influencing carbon emissions, such as:

• Resource sizing and utilization
• Region energy efficiency
• Runtime behavior
• Configuration factors

3. Optimization opportunities

Actionable, resource-specific suggestions to lower carbon impact, including:

• Rightsizing or configuration changes
• Scheduling and automation improvements
• Region optimization
• Reserved capacity or savings model adoption
• Efficiency improvements based on service type

4. Carbon vs Cost trade-off

An explanation of whether the recommendation:

• Reduces both carbon and cost
• Improves sustainability with minimal cost trade-offs
• Requires operational consideration

5. Estimated impact

Projected emission reduction ranges to support decision-making and prioritization.

6. Risks and constraints

Highlights operational risks such as performance impact, availability concerns, compliance limitations, or reduced flexibility.

Sample illustration

The image below highlights the insights provided by the AI Agent, that discovers opportunities to reduce the carbon footprint of an Azure resource: