At present, emission reduction has been incorporated into the national strategy, and the government's determination to develop a low-carbon economy cannot be shaken. As an emerging asset under the system, the concept and connotation of carbon assets have changed with the development of low-carbon research. Accurately understanding the above issues has important theoretical guiding significance for enterprises to meet the future low-carbon competition. In this paper, the concept of "carbon assets" is defined by the literature research method and the genus-species difference definition method, and a reference that is different from previous carbon assets, that is, carbon emission rights is proposed. According to the time series and the human understanding of the greenhouse effect, it sorted it out, divided the emergence of "carbon assets" into four stages, and explained the evolution of carbon assets. In addition, this article analyzes the low-carbon activities of companies such as Chongqing Iron & Steel Co., Ltd. based on the relevant theory of the value chain. Finally, the carbon assets are classified according to different classification standards. <<