Graviton: The tech sprint that grew a forest

TL;DR

• AppsFlyer launched Graviton, a global PR&D-led sprint to modernize infrastructure.
• The move will cut our carbon footprint by 60%, marking our largest sustainability leap to date.
• The initiative was sparked by energy restrictions in Ireland, highlighting the urgent need for sustainable infrastructure.
• During the sprint, employees were invited to plant 30,000 trees globally.

A spark from Dublin: When local policy drives global change

Graviton didn’t begin as a sprint — it began as a wake-up call.

In 2023, the Irish government announced new restrictions on electricity usage due to overwhelming energy consumption by data centers, including those operated by major cloud providers like AWS. With significant infrastructure running on servers hosted in Dublin, we faced a clear message: current practices were not sustainable – environmentally or operationally.

This regulatory shift in Dublin sparked a deeper conversation at AppsFlyer. What started as a localized policy issue became the catalyst for a global transformation, prompting us to reevaluate how we scale, optimize, and sustain our infrastructure for the long term.

It was no longer just about tech. It was about responsibility.

A new kind of sprint: Tech meets sustainability

Faced with this challenge, we asked: “what if we could solve it all at once?”

For two weeks in July, our  entire PR&D (Product, Research & Development) organization paused its usual roadmap to focus on one ambitious goal: migrating our core services to a modern infrastructure powered by AWS Graviton technology.

The results exceeded expectations. We unlocked millions in projected annual savings while slashing our carbon footprint by 60%. We now operate a tech stack that performs better, costs less, and leaves a smaller environmental footprint.

One Team. One Mission. One Planet.

Over 400 engineers collaborated across time zones and systems. This was more than a technical upgrade — it was a culture shift.

To keep momentum high and celebrate progress,we ran the entire campaign digitally, reinforcing the core reason behind the move: reducing environmental impact. We shared: 

• Daily milestone updates virtually across our global offices, with a light layer of gamification between teams to encourage friendly competition and showcase progress
• Impact visualizations, including real-time dashboards showing estimated carbon savings and number of trees planted, turning abstract sustainability goals into visible, motivating outcomes
• Virtual happy hour celebrations to mark sprint achievements
• A digital opening event with AWS partners
• And a culminating, symbolic effort: a global tree-planting initiative, coordinated entirely online through trusted sustainability partners.

From sprint to forest: Building a legacy

At every major milestone during the Graviton sprint, AppsFlyer employees were invited to plant trees in one of three global regions: South America, Asia, or Africa. The experience was powered by our partners at dots.eco — a gamified impact platform that turns digital actions into real-world environmental restoration.

dots.eco enabled AppsFlyer team members to virtually plant trees, track their personal and team contributions, and celebrate shared milestones — all while keeping the campaign carbon-light and fully digital.

When it came to choosing a planting partner, we selected ARC Restoration, a nonprofit focused on biodiversity conservation and ecosystem restoration. ARC works directly with local communities to reforest degraded land, enhance native habitats, and create long-term environmental resilience — ensuring that every tree planted contributes not just to carbon offsetting, but to lasting ecological impact.

We virtually planted 30,000 trees  across three continents, and we invited every employee to plant 20 trees to celebrate the end of the sprint.

The result? An AppsFlyer Forest symbolizing growth, responsibility, and global alignment

Why trees? Because they don’t just make us feel good — they do good. Trees are among the most powerful natural tools for carbon absorption, restoring ecosystems silently and persistently, every single day.

Impact beyond infrastructure

• Graviton turned a challenge into an opportunity, and an opportunity into a movement. It started with a local policy shift in Dublin, evolved into a technical transformation across our infrastructure, and became a company-wide sustainability initiative that will be remembered as one of our most impactful, aligned, and proud moments.

This is what it looks like when technology and purpose move in sync.

Key Takeaways

• The Graviton migration will save millions per year and reduce carbon emissions by 60%
• A local electricity regulation in Dublin served as the catalyst for global change
• The sprint aligned 400+ PR&D professionals toward a single mission
• We planted 30,000 trees, building a tangible, lasting environmental legacy

Graviton proves that tech upgrades can serve both performance and the planet