**5.1 How do big tech companies impact sustainability in the context of globalization?**

Globalization allows multinational corporations, especially the big tech companies such as Google, Amazon, Facebook, Apple, and Microsoft (GAFAM) to have global influence and strongly affect environmental, economic, and social dimensions of global sustainability. From environmental standpoint, the big tech companies provide assistance to mining of fossil fuels through artificial intelligence and cloud technologies as previously reported by the author [56]. Cloud technology can reduce complexity of information collection and control time in the petroleum production processes. Likewise, artificial intelligence can improve the accuracy of identifying oil fields for effective mining. The assistance of big tech companies to fossil fuel industry raises questions about their commitment to renewable energy transition. On the other hand, GAFAM also have a potential to greatly facilitate renewable energy transition by the application of artificial intelligence and cloud computing. For instance, machine learning could improve the predictability of intermittent renewable energy resources. How should the GAFAM support environmental sustainability in a globalized world needs to be investigated thoroughly.

From economic sustainability viewpoint, the GAFAM could monopolize global markets of intangible assets and digital services [57] threatening economic sustainability. Intangible assets such as intellectual properties and services play major role in today's global economy [58]. Another very important intangible asset is personal data of global population that GAFAM possess [59]. The GAFAM have been referred to as data-driven intellectual monopolies [57] as they have huge control over digital services and personal data of the global market. Their monopolization and opaque

### *Rethinking an Approach for Sustainable Globalization DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.105141*

practices could severely harm small and local businesses [60]. On the other hand, the GAFAM have helped the booming of mobile software industry, created avenues for advertisers and ushered in a new generation of entrepreneurs including influencers, podcasters, and marketing experts [61]. Increased globalization will allow GAFAM to penetrate global market more strongly, and the impacts this will have on economic sustainability need to be examined.

Big tech companies also have massive impacts on social dimension of sustainability, particularly on quality of life, freedom, privacy, and equality. Lawsuits have been filed against several big tech companies [59] for possibly maintaining monopoly illegally. There are also testimonials from small and local businesses about how they fear Google more than the Government [60]. For instance, the Government could place limited amount of fine on a small business with minimal impact, but delisting from advertising by Google could mean that the business could go bankrupt, particularly given Google's dominant market share on Internet searches. The arbitrary control of GAFAM over small businesses [60] could therefore lead to unemployment and freedom to independently run business. This could also greatly increase inequality where few people running the GAFAM have control on large population, and globalization could exacerbate this problem by allowing GAFAM to control more people than they already do. On the other hand, the big tech companies can also allow voices of common people to reach global audience and thereby empower people.

Privacy is another major threat to social sustainability posed by the GAFAM. They have contributed to global surveillance for US National Security Agency [57], and loss of privacy is a major concern with GAFAM. Globalization could enable the GAFAM to surveille more people around the world.
