Abstract:
Purpose: The rapid expansion of e commerce in recent years, despite its economic and operational benefits, has created significant environmental challenges, including higher energy consumption, intensified CO₂ emissions, and growing volumes of various types of waste. Under these conditions, leveraging advanced digital technologies—particularly Artificial Intelligence (AI) and the Internet of Things (IoT)—can play a decisive role in mitigating negative environmental impacts by improving process efficiency and enhancing decision-making quality. This study aims to analyze how the environmental sustainability of e commerce in Iran is influenced by the level of adoption of AI and IoT technologies.
Method: The research employed an exploratory mixed methods design (qualitative–quantitative). In the qualitative phase, key concepts related to the research topic were identified through a systematic review of theoretical and empirical literature. Subsequently, using content analysis and open, axial, and selective coding, the main dimensions, components, and their interrelationships were extracted. In the quantitative phase, a questionnaire was developed to test and validate the relationships among the identified variables and was administered to 56 informed experts. The collected data were analyzed using structural equation modeling techniques with Smart PLS software.
Findings: The results indicate that the adoption of AI and IoT technologies has a positive and statistically significant effect on enhancing the environmental sustainability of e commerce. The findings further reveal that the purposeful use of these technologies—through resource conservation, transport optimization, and reducing packaging related waste—can substantially contribute to achieving environmental sustainability goals in the e commerce sector.