The Impact of Enterprise Digital–Intelligent Transformation on Green Innovation: Empirical Evidence from Chinese Listed Companies

As the digital economy develops and the green transition advances, digital–intelligent transformation has become a critical pathway for firms to enhance green innovation and achieve high-quality development. However, existing research lacks a systematic analysis of its role in driving green innovation. Based on panel data from Chinese A-share listed companies from 2010 to 2023, in this study, we constructed an internal capability framework from three dimensions: innovation resource allocation, human capital level, and operational management efficiency. We examined the impact of digital–intelligent transformation on green innovation and its underlying mechanisms, while incorporating the moderating role of executive green cognition. The findings indicate the following: (1) Digital–intelligent transformation significantly promotes green innovation, and this effect remains robust across instrumental variable estimation and other robustness tests. (2) The effect is more evident in state-owned enterprises, high-tech firms, and non-heavily polluting firms. (3) Mechanism analysis shows that digital–intelligent transformation promotes green innovation by optimizing resource allocation, upgrading human capital, and enhancing operational efficiency. (4) Executive green cognition strengthens the positive effect of digital–intelligent transformation on green innovation. As executive green cognition increases, the green innovation effect of digital–intelligent transformation becomes stronger. Consequently, we regard digital–intelligent transformation as an important manifestation of firms’ dynamic capability evolution in the digital context. Our study expands research on the ability of digital–intelligent transformation to affect green innovation and provides practical implications for firms promoting green and low-carbon transformation, thereby contributing to broader sustainability objectives through innovation-driven green development.