Artificial intelligence augmenting human intelligence for manufacturing firms to create green value: Towards a technology adoption perspective

Abstract

Artificial intelligence (AI) profoundly influences value creation by boosting efficiency, fostering innovation and driving new business models and technological advancements, all while nurturing human intelligence (HI). However, the collaboration between AI and HI, crucial for augmenting the creation of green value and achieving sustainable development in manufacturing firms, remains ambiguous. We employed panel data from 935 A-share listed manufacturing firms in China (2010−2022) to reveal the potential influence mechanism of AI and HI collaboration on green value creation. Our findings revealed that AI technology adoption facilitated manufacturing firms in harnessing their HI for green value creation. Under the influence of AI technology adoption, HI, as with manufacturing firms' human and structural capital, contributed positively to green value creation. It is noteworthy that while higher-quality relational capital served as a potential driving force for manufacturing firms in creating green value, heightened AI technology adoption significantly impeded enthusiasm for this mechanism. The conclusions elucidate the intricate relationship between AI and HI collaboration and green value creation, expanding the application of technology adoption within the green innovation ecosystem. Furthermore, they offer practical insights for manufacturing firms in their pursuit of green value creation.