Potential Links Between Gaming Hardware Companies and Armed Conflict in 2025

For over a decade, I’ve been collaborating with my former editor to shed light on the issue of conflict minerals in the gaming industry. “Conflict minerals” refers to a group of minerals—primarily tin, tantalum, tungsten, and gold, collectively known as 3TG—that are often sourced from conflict zones like the Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwanda, South Sudan, and Uganda. The extraction and trade of these minerals can be linked to serious issues such as corruption, armed conflict, violence, slave labor, and various human rights violations.

These minerals are essential for most gaming and computer hardware, including your Xbox, PlayStation, Switch, smartphone, or gaming PC.

Companies can ethically source these minerals by obtaining them from regions free of conflict or through recycled materials. They can also source from conflict zones if there is a commitment to transparency and monitoring to ensure that their acquisition isn’t tied to corrupt practices. However, achieving this is challenging due to the complex nature of supply chains, which involve numerous parties—from miners to manufacturers. For years, many companies have turned a blind eye to the issues occurring upstream in their supply chains.

Since 2013, the Dodd-Frank Act has mandated that publicly traded companies in the U.S. submit annual reports to the SEC detailing their efforts to trace the origins of any conflict minerals they use, including which manufacturers have undergone third-party audits to ensure a clean supply chain. Although parts of the Dodd-Frank Act were repealed in 2018, the conflict minerals disclosure requirements remain intact, despite attempts by some manufacturing groups to eliminate them.

As long as these regulations are in place, we can gain insight into how well major gaming hardware and accessory manufacturers are ensuring that our purchases—be it an Xbox, PlayStation, Switch, PC, or accessories—aren’t inadvertently supporting conflict and human rights abuses. The Responsible Mineral Initiative (RMI) has been instrumental in helping companies investigate these issues by providing tools and standards for audits and reporting templates, and many companies utilize these resources. However, the actual requirements for SEC filings aren’t particularly stringent, allowing some companies to meet only the bare minimum.

In this report, I aimed to track down the filings of every U.S. publicly traded company that uses conflict minerals in gaming technology and summarize their often-confusing reports in a more digestible format. Unfortunately, several major gaming hardware and accessory manufacturers are not included here, either because they aren’t publicly traded in the U.S. or because they have never responded to inquiries on this topic. Nintendo is a notable exception; while not publicly traded in the U.S., it does provide a public corporate social responsibility report detailing its mineral sourcing.

So, let’s dive into which gaming hardware and accessory companies are unable to clarify whether they are funding or perpetuating human rights abuses in 2025.

Microsoft’s use of conflict minerals in gaming is straightforward: Xbox consoles, Windows PCs, controllers, tablets, and a wide range of other gaming hardware. Over the past decade, the company’s track record for auditing its mineral suppliers has been inconsistent, but recent improvements are evident. Its reports provide significantly more detail on requirements, processes, and due diligence compared to many other companies.

Microsoft’s network includes 266 smelters and refiners, with 85 percent having passed a third-party audit confirming no armed conflict in the supply chain, or are in the process of undergoing one. Of the remaining 15 percent, 14 smelters and refiners either failed an audit, haven’t been audited yet, or are inactive. However, Microsoft states that these entities sourced their minerals from countries without active conflict.

This leads to a promising statement in Microsoft’s report: “Microsoft found no reasonable basis for concluding that any 3TG Smelter or Refiner (‘SOR’) identified in the Microsoft Devices supply chain for the 2025 Reporting Year sourced 3TGs in a manner that directly or indirectly financed or benefitted armed groups in a Covered Country.” In simpler terms, Microsoft is confident that none of the minerals used in its gaming devices funded armed conflict. While this statement may seem vague, it represents one of the closest assurances any company can legally provide regarding the ethical sourcing of minerals.

On the other hand, Sony’s situation is less favorable. The company uses 3TG in various consumer electronics, including PlayStations and their accessories. Unfortunately, Sony has struggled to track the origins of these minerals, with compliance rates for its smelters and refiners declining over the years. In 2024, only 68 percent of its smelters and refiners passed an audit, a drop from previous years.

This year, Sony again reported 68 percent compliance. Alarmingly, it couldn’t even determine the locations of 45 non-compliant smelters and refiners. While Sony claims to be taking steps to address these issues, such as sending warning letters or threatening to cut ties with non-compliant suppliers, it has made similar promises in the past without effective follow-through.

Nintendo, while not publicly traded in the U.S., has consistently published a Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) report that includes information on its mineral sourcing. Its latest report shows a compliance rate of 99.6 percent, with 265 out of 266 smelters and refiners passing third-party audits. However, it does not clarify the status of the one remaining smelter, leaving some uncertainty.

Apple has historically been diligent in ensuring a clean supply chain, achieving a 100-percent participation rate in third-party audit programs from 2015 to 2023. However, this year, its SEC filing is missing the usual exhibit detailing the number of smelters and refiners in its supply chain, citing cybersecurity concerns as the reason for the omission.

Despite this, Apple’s filing includes a reassuring statement: “Based on our due diligence… we found no reasonable basis for concluding that any smelters or refiners of 3TG identified in our supply chain… directly or indirectly financed or benefited armed groups in the Democratic Republic of the Congo or an adjoining country.” This statement is significant, as it indicates that Apple is confident its minerals are not funding armed conflict.

Alphabet, known for Google, produces Android phones and various accessories. Its report is detailed and includes information about initiatives supporting individuals in conflict-affected regions. While only 72 percent of its smelters and refiners met industry standards, 7 were undergoing audits, and 74 were not sourcing from conflicted countries.

Meta, which uses 3TG in its VR headsets and other products, reported that 93 percent of its smelters and refiners were compliant with a reputable minerals certification program. However, 13 remain either inactive or non-compliant, raising concerns about potential links to armed conflict.

Turtle Beach, known for gaming accessories, has shown significant improvement, with 96 percent of its smelters and refiners compliant in 2025. The company has provided details about the remaining non-compliant facilities, all of which are located outside conflict-affected regions.

Logitech, which produces similar gaming accessories, reported that 212 out of 215 smelters passed their audits. The company is working with suppliers to ensure compliance or remove non-compliant facilities from its supply chain.

Nvidia, a key player in computer parts, reported that 84 percent of its smelters and refiners passed audits, with efforts underway to address the remaining non-compliant entities.

Amazon, while not a console maker, uses conflict minerals in its gaming accessories. However, its report indicates uncertainty about the origins of these minerals, making it the most questionable company regarding conflict minerals ethics.

GameStop, despite its unconventional inclusion, has been filing SEC reports for years. Its 2025 report shows that 173 smelters and refiners were identified, with only 35 sourcing from countries of concern, all certified as conflict-free.

Overall, while the situation isn’t perfect, many gaming hardware companies appear to be making genuine efforts to improve their supply chain transparency. However, issues remain, particularly with companies like Amazon and Sony, which continue to struggle with compliance and transparency. The challenges of sourcing conflict minerals are just one aspect of broader human rights concerns, and many companies on this list are implicated in various other ethical issues. Despite the complexities, it’s encouraging to see some progress in accountability, even as the landscape remains fraught with challenges.