The Catalytic Role of Artificial Intelligence in Enabling Corporate Sustainable Development: A Systematic Review

WANG Zilong, FENG Chengxiao

Abstract

The rapid advancement of digital economic forces, especially Artificial Intelligence(AI) technologies, is driving structural changes in modern business ecosystems, making the AI-sustainability connection a key research area in management science and technological economics. This study uses the SALSAFS method to conduct a systematic literature review, aiming to clarify how AI applications influence corporate decision-making, performance development, resource allocation, and structural innovation. The research focuses on databases like Scopus, EBSCO, and Science Direct, retrieving articles published between 2020 and 2025. After strict screening, 32 articles were included, categorized into four themes: Human Resource Management, Performance Development, Business Transformation, and ESG. The findings show that AI adoption impacts ESG performance by influencing these aspects, driving corporate sustainable development. This study not only constructs a conceptual framework for AI-driven corporate sustainability but also points out future research directions, advocating a shift from an instrumentalist to a constructivist approach in AI applications. The research has both theoretical and practical implications, while acknowledging limitations such as potential literature inclusion biases.

Keywords

Artificial intelligenceEnterprise sustainabilitySALSAFS MethodSustainability performanceSystematic review

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