KDDI - 1792 Exchange

Rating Overview

KDDI is Medium Risk.

KDDI Corporation is Medium Risk. The company often yields to political activism in shaping corporate governance, potentially alienating consumers, dividing employees, and harming shareholders. The company implements race and identity-based policies that replace merit, excellence, and integrity with preferential treatment and outcomes. The company occasionally embraces corporate initiatives that redirect its central focus from business goals to partisan policies and divisive issues at times. This approach fails to safeguard free exercise, free speech, and free enterprise.

Rating Criteria

Corporate Weaponization Risk Levels
Criteria	Risk Level
Cancellations	Medium Risk
Discriminatory Philanthropy	Lower Risk
Employment Protection	High Risk

Corporate Weaponization ⓘ

Corporate Governance and Public Policy Risk Levels
Criteria	Risk Level
Advocacy Bias	High Risk
Funding	Lower Risk
Political Actions	No Data

Corporate Governance and Public Policy ⓘ

Rating Criteria Detail

Criteria Risk Level Rationale

Corporate Weaponization

Criteria:

Has canceled customers, suppliers, or vendors due to their political views or religious beliefs OR corporately boycotts, divests, or sanctions regions, people groups, or industries.

Risk Level:

Medium

Rationale:

KDDI is part of the Joint Alliance for Corporate Social Responsibility (JAC), which seeks to “Driv[e] the sustainable transformation of the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) supply chain” through implementing corporate social responsibility while “sharing resources and best practice” with other members. JAC members are encouraged to “take all reasonable endeavours to promote and secure compliance” to its Supply Chain Sustainability Guidelines to their suppliers, subcontractors, and employees. These guidelines ask suppliers to incorporate sexual orientation and gender identity into their nondiscrimination policies, adopt products and services that offer “environmental and social benefits”, and minimize Greenhouse Gas emissions by establishing emissions reduction targets, publicly reporting GHG emissions metrics, and engaging sub-suppliers and their sub-suppliers to drive GHG emission reduction (1)(2). The company integrates ESG into its business practices. From its Sustainability webpage: “Improvements in sustainability are incorporated into company-wide KPIs and are linked to executive remuneration and bonuses for all employees” (3). KDDI integrates ESG into its business practices. From its Decarbonized Society webpage: “The KDDI Group aims to achieve carbon neutrality CO2 emissions for Scope 1 and 2 of the entire KDDI Group by fiscal 2030 and net zero including Scope 3 by fiscal 2040” (4). However, the company has not canceled customers, suppliers, or vendors based on political views or religious beliefs (5).

Criteria:

Charitable giving (including employee matching programs) policies or practices discriminate against charitable organizations based on views or religious beliefs.

Risk Level:

Lower

Rationale:

KDDI does not appear to discriminate against charitable organizations based on views or beliefs (1).

Criteria:

Employment policies fail to protect against viewpoint or other discrimination and/or are ideological in nature.

Risk Level:

High

Rationale:

KDDI requires its employees to take unconscious bias training (1). The company appears to prioritize diversity over merit in its leadership composition. From its 2025 Sustainability Integrated Report: ” We have therefore set an aspirational target to raise the ratio of females in managerial positions across the KDDI Group to match the overall proportion of female employees by 2040, and will accelerate related initiatives” (2). KDDI does not provide viewpoint protections for its employees (3).

Corporate Governance and Public Policy

Criteria:

Uses corporate reputation to support causes, organizations, or policies hostile to freedom of expression.

Risk Level:

High

Rationale:

KDDI is committed to net-zero carbon emissions by 2040 (1). The company supports DEI within its business practices. From its 2025 Integrated Sustainability and Financial Report: “To maximize the potential of each employee and accelerate organizational growth, we
are advancing three interconnected initiatives: the Job Style System, diversity, equity &
inclusion (DE&I), and workstyle reform” (2). KDDI supports ESG within its business practices. From its 2024 Integrated Sustainability and Financial Report: “KDDI places “Sustainability Management” at its core and actively addresses ESG-related issues” (3).

Criteria:

Uses corporate funds to advance ideological causes, organizations, or policies hostile to freedom of expression.

Risk Level:

Lower

Rationale:

KDDI has not used corporate funds to advance ideological causes, organizations, or policies (1).

Criteria:

Uses corporate political actions and/or financial contributions for ideological, non-business purposes.

Risk Level:

N/A

Rationale:

KDDI does not operate a PAC or engage in lobbying at this time (1)(2)(3).