Ascend Elements is company focused on large-scale EV battery recycling, providing solutions that help recover valuable materials from used batteries and e-waste, which are repurposed into new battery components through their proprietary Hydro-to-Cathode® technology. This closed-loop system results in up to 90% lower GHG emissions compared to than traditional methods, by reducing batteries going to the landfill, reducing reliance on virgin materials, enabling a cleaner manufacturing process, and lowering the environmental impact of battery production-- essential for driving the broader energy transition.
- batteries
- circularity
- electric vehicles
Flourish Science is a well-being and AI startup co-founded by psychologists from Stanford University and a designer and serial entrepreneur previously at Google and C3 AI. Utilizing a B2B2C model, Flourish Science offers a science-based app and organizational programs that helps employees and students develop and implement small habits for happiness and well-being. Flourish's proactive, personalized, and social approach seeks to provide an effective method to improve users' daily mood, social connectedness, and overall life satisfaction.
- artificial intelligence
- data
- digital platforms
- health tech
- marketplaces
- welltech
The Indigenous Artificial Intelligence (A.I.) Working Group is a program focused on the intersection of artificial intelligence and Indigenous knowledge systems. The project’s interdisciplinary team of experts includes 37 co-investigators and collaborators who come from eight universities and 12 Indigenous community-based organizations in Canada, the United States and New Zealand. Most of the team members are Indigenous. They are motivated to expand the definition of intelligence by collaborating with Indigenous communities to integrate their knowledge systems with the AI research and development ecosystem to develop more integrated and practical approaches to building the next generation of A.I. systems.
- artificial intelligence
- indigenous peoples
- traditional ecological knowledge
The Ocean Cleanup is a non-profit environmental engineering organization dedicated to developing and implementing technologies to extract plastic pollution from the oceans and rivers. For over ten years, The Ocean Cleanup has been researching, extracting, and monitoring plastic pollution in oceans and rivers globally – with millions of kilograms removed to date. Its technologies supporting ocean cleanup act as large-scale floating barriers, designed to concentrate plastic debris within a specific area for collection. They utilize ocean currents and wind to move through the water, gathering plastic along their path. The systems are also equipped with solar panels and wind turbines to power their operations. It also deploys floating barriers in rivers to intercenpt and prevent plastic from entering the oceans. The Ocean Cleanup also closely monitors and analyzes impacts, provides a dashboard and data insights, and is engaged in research on improving envrionmental impact analyses. The Ocean Cleanup aims to tackle plastic pollution in order to protect and restore marine and riverine environments and the wildlife they contain – as well as benefit the human communities living alongside these areas, and reliant on these ecosystems for their livelihoods.
- bioremediation
- conservation
- data
- nature tech
- oceans
- rivers
Giveth is a community focused on Building the Future of Giving using blockchain technology. Our intention is to support and reward the funding of public goods by creating open, transparent and free access to the revolutionary funding opportunities available within the Ethereum ecosystem.
- blockchain
- charity
- crowdfunding
- daos
- digital assets
- digital ledgers
- governance platforms
- philanthropy
- web3
Relier is a company tackling plastic waste in the produce industry through the upcycling of grapevine shoots. Relier's unique approach transforms discarded grapevine shoots into a sustainable biomaterial for packaging. This innovative material offers several benefits, including delaying fruit ripening, inhibiting microbial growth, and protecting produce during transport. Relier uses AI to analyze different recipe mixtures and percentages to obtain thermal, mechanical, and rheological behavioral to model the behavior of the clamshell, resulting in thousands of possibilities depending on the “how much” and “how” the components are mixed. Relier's biomaterial aims to be a more eco-friendly alternative to traditional plastic clamshell containers.
- agricultural tech
- artificial intelligence
- bioplastics
- bioremediation
- composting recycling
- data
- reduced food waste
Notpla is a biotech company focused on fully biodegradable packaging solutions derived from seaweed and other plant-based materials. Notpla’s product portfolio includes a range of solutions, from a completely edible seaweed-based capsule for water consumption, as well as alternatives for single-use containers and shipping materials, and plant-based coatings that can replace plastic film and extend the shelf life of perishable items.
- biodegradation
- biotech
- circular economy
- material science
- packaging
- plastics
Kumu is a digital social mapping tool for visualizing and understanding complex relationships by creating visualizations of data sets of people, systems and networks. Kumu allows users to create interactive maps that represent systems, stakeholders, networks, and nodes between relationships. Kumu's intuitive interface and drag-and-drop functionality provides a platform for users and groups to build and customize visually appealing maps that can be used to tackle real world problems. By visualizing data in a clear and concise manner, Kumu helps users identify patterns, connections, and potential areas for development.
- artificial intelligence
- data
- digital platforms
- social media / community
Fairphone is an electronics manufacturer that produces smartphones and headphones, focusing on social and environmental improvments across the entire mobile device value chain: mining, design, manufacturer, and lifecycle. They are focused on circumventing the use of conflict minerals and mining practices by prioritizing ethical sourcing of materials and fair labor practices and using recycled materials wherever possible; on designing for modularity, circularity, longevity and easy repair; and on reducing electronic waste. They also prioritize transparency, openly sharing information about suppliers and working conditions, enabling new relationships between people and their products, and prioritizing user data controls.
- circular economy
- electronics
- mobile devices
- modularity
Olio a free app to reduce household and food waste by fostering a hyper-local sharing economy. People can list unwanted but usable items, including surplus food, as well as clothes, books, and furniture. Neighbors can browse listings and arrange free pickup, giving unwanted items a second life and saving it from landfills. This approach combats waste, promotes sustainability, and fosters a sense of community by encouraging people to share and connect with those around them. Because it diverts far more greenhouse gasses across the 49 countries it operates in than it produces, Olio is a carbon-negative company.
- circular economy
- digital platforms
- marketplaces
- reduced food waste
- sharing economy
- social media / community
BackMarket’s digital marketplace for refurbished electronics helps coordinate stakeholders to close the loop on e-waste and open up access to reliable tech for all. The platform connects buyers and sellers of smartphones, laptops, TVs, wearables, gaming, e-mobility, and countless other devices from all the leading manufacturers. Promising “better than new,” it partners with certified refurbishers to repair electronics for resale, at a ~70% lower price than new. The digital platform helps coordinate discovery, customer service, payment, logistics, tracking, a 25+ point quality assurance verification of authenticity, functionality, security, data erasure, battery, testing, cleaning, and more; and manages partners to refurbish products. Refurbished devices reduce an average of ~90% raw material extraction, emissions, water use, and waste relative to new devices.
- circular economy
- digital platforms
- e-waste
- electronics
- mobile devices
- refurbishment
Tent Partnership for Refugees, or Tent.org, is a global network of over 400 major companies working together to integrate refugees into new communities. Businesses from various sectors like consumer goods, hospitality, and technology join Tent.org to hire refugees, support refugee entrepreneurs, and provide essential services through job prep & employment. Their goal is to empower refugees economically and create a more welcoming and inclusive world for those displaced by war or persecution.
- digital platforms
- human resources
- marketplaces
- social media / community
