Timber Carbon Launches AI-Powered Platform for Carbon Removal in Buildings

Timber Carbon Solutions AG, a Zurich-based company, has launched an AI-powered infrastructure designed to measure and monetize the carbon removal potential of biobased building materials. This innovative platform connects the building sector directly to carbon markets, offering a new way to decarbonize the industry and turn climate performance into a tradable asset.

The company's infrastructure automates the entire certification process, from data collection for a construction project to the issuance, sale, and ongoing monitoring of carbon credits. This automated workflow not only simplifies the process for developers but also ensures that the credits generated can be used for insetting (counting towards a company's own carbon balance) or offsetting (selling on the voluntary carbon market) purposes.

Timber Carbon has already built a significant portfolio, with more than 90 buildings across German-speaking Europe. These projects have collectively locked in 72,000 tonnes of CO2, while also avoiding 65,000 tonnes of CO2 emissions by replacing concrete and steel. The company's clients and business partners include Swiss Prime Site, PRIMUS, and WIEHAG, and it has received support from the Migros Pioneer Fund.

The company's approach is particularly relevant given that the building sector accounts for around 36 percent of global CO2 emissions, with a third of those emissions coming from building materials.

From 2028, the European Union's new Emissions Trading System (ETS2) will cover operational emissions from buildings for the first time. Additionally, larger new buildings will be required to disclose their life-cycle Global Warming Potential (GWP) under the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD). France has already capped embodied carbon through its RE2020 standard, and the UK's Net Zero Carbon Buildings Standard follows a similar path. International rating systems such as BREEAM and LEED also set benchmarks for the carbon intensity of buildings, making biobased building materials, particularly timber from sustainably managed forests, the obvious choice for reducing emissions.

Timber Carbon Removal Credits are internationally recognized as negative emissions, meeting the requirements of established standards for additionality, permanence, and verification. They offer three key advantages over technological removal methods: quick scalability, no delivery risk, and reduced Scope 3 emissions by replacing concrete and steel. The credits are certified and registered under the international Rainbow Standard, which the ICVCM has approved as CCP-Eligible, and whose recognition under the EU Carbon Removals and Carbon Farming (CRCF) Regulation is expected by the end of 2026.

In three years, Timber Carbon has established itself as a leader in the field, with projects across German-speaking Europe. The company's first funding round is planned for Q4 2026, to finance further growth and international expansion. Timber Carbon's innovative approach is expected to double the share of biobased new builds among investment properties within ten years, with the current share standing at 0.5 to 10 percent, depending on the country.