Unlocking ESG Performance Through Intelligent Manufacturing: The Roles of Transparency, Green Innovation, and Supply Chain Collaboration

With the advancement of global sustainable development goals and the introduction of the ‘dual-carbon’ strategy, intelligent manufacturing (IM) has become an important pathway to promote the transformation and upgrading of enterprises. However, the ways in which IM enhances environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) performance, along with its potential mechanisms, remain unexplored. This study employs a two-way fixed-effects model with panel data from 4417 Chinese listed firms spanning the period 2009–2022 to examine these relationships. It is found that IM significantly improves corporate ESG performance. Robustness tests confirm the reliability of these results, and mechanism analysis highlights the mediating effects of information transparency, green technology innovation, and supply chain collaborative innovation. Furthermore, the heterogeneity analysis indicates that IM has a notably stronger effect in high-carbon-emission sectors, state-owned enterprises, and high-tech industries. This suggests that policymakers should design differentiated policies based on industry and firm characteristics to promote the adoption of IM and foster sustainable development strategies. This research contributes to expanding the theoretical understanding of how IM affects ESG while also providing empirical evidence for enterprises and governments to promote green transformation.