BNEF Announces Winners of Pioneers 2023 Award for Game-Changing Climate Tech
The winners of BloombergNEF’s Pioneers 2023 award were recently announced, highlighting the innovative technologies and solutions that have the potential to accelerate global decarbonization and combat climate change. This prestigious annual competition saw a total of 348 companies from 42 countries vying for recognition.
Since its inception in 2010, the Pioneers competition has identified 141 groundbreaking companies, including this year’s winners. These companies have collectively raised an impressive $14.9 billion, showcasing the immense interest and support for climate-tech innovations.
The winners of this year’s competition were selected in various categories, each addressing a specific challenge related to climate change and decarbonization. Let’s take a closer look at the winners in each category:
Challenge 1 – Accelerating the deployment of clean hydrogen: This challenge focused on electrolyzer technologies for hydrogen production and equipment that can operate on hydrogen. The winners in this category were SunGreenH2, which developed advanced electrode technology for hydrogen production, H2Pro, which pioneered electrochemical and thermally active electrolysis, and Mainspring Energy, whose linear generator is capable of running on hydrogen.
Challenge 2 – Sustainable metals and materials for an electrified future: The winners in this category tackled the extraction, recycling, and processing of metals, which play a crucial role in the global shift towards electrification. Jetti Resources stood out with their catalyst for recovering copper from stranded ore, while Li-Cycle offered a hydrometallurgy process for battery recycling. Nth Cycle’s electroextraction process for metals processing also caught the attention of the judges.
Challenge 3 – Building a net-zero food production system: The winners in the agriculture challenge presented innovative solutions to improve crop farming, produce low-carbon proteins, and reduce emissions from animals. Precision AI impressed with their drones designed for herbicide application in crop farming. MicroHarvest showcased their microbial fermentation technology for low-carbon protein production. FutureFeed stood out for their seaweed feed ingredient, which can significantly reduce emissions from livestock.
Wildcards: The wildcards category showcased climate-tech innovations beyond the predefined challenges. The winners in this category were Sublime Systems, whose lime production process utilized novel electrochemistry in the cement industry, Electra, which developed low-carbon ironmaking for steel production, and Travertine, whose acid and base production process showed promise in carbon removal.
The recognition and support provided by the Pioneers 2023 award will undoubtedly propel these innovative companies to new heights. It is through these groundbreaking technologies that we can pave the way towards a sustainable and decarbonized future.
