The Innovandi Open Challenge is a global programme which brings together tech start-ups and the world’s leading cement and concrete companies to help accelerate the next wave of innovations to achieve our net zero mission.
The GCCA and its members understand the key role that innovation will play in unlocking a net zero future for concrete, the world’s most used material after water, which is essential to building the sustainable world of tomorrow.
GCCA members – leaders in the sector who operate in almost every country across the globe – are extending their reach beyond their own R&D boundaries to enrich their innovation ecosystems in order to help achieve the vital mission of carbon neutrality. Our Open Challenge seeks to accelerate the technologies that will help us in securing a net zero future.
The Open Challenge 2024 consortium is:
Queens Carbon
In partnership with:
Carbon To Stone aims to be the go-to partner for heavy industry leaders, helping them become more sustainable by turning CO2 and material waste streams into valuable resources.
“Carbon To Stone is pleased to work with GCCA members through the Innovandi Open Challenge. This program provides an excellent platform to explore the scalability of our single-step reactive capture and mineralization technology that uses industrial residues to capture and transform carbon dioxide into sustainable construction material. We look forward to learning from the GCCA members and identifying opportunities to help them achieve their sustainability goals. Establishing such an incredible collaboration with global cement companies is a great example of how GCCA is facilitating the acceleration of innovative solutions that deliver a sustainable future for the built environment.”
– Sravanth Gadikota , CEO & Co-Founder
Applications closed on 15 April 2024, the start-ups that were invited to pitch were:
- AGC Carbon (USA)
- Airbridge Pty Ltd (Australia)
- AJF Group Engineering GmbH (Germany)
- Ardent (USA)
- ASCON ENERGY LTD (UK)
- Caliche Private Limited (India)
- Captivate Technology (New Zealand)
- Carbon America (USA)
- CARBON CAPTURE & STORAGE (CCS) LIMITED (Hong Kong)
- Carbon Limit (USA)
- Carbon To Stone, Inc. (USA)
- Carbonaide (Finland)
- CarbonQuest (USA)
- CO2/Split, Inc. (USA)
- Concrete4Change (UK)
- Cool Planet Technologies Ltd (UK)
- CR2A (China)
- Dotz Nano Ltd. (Israel)
- Exterra Carbon Solutions (Canada)
- Greenore (China)
- HC To Green, spin-off from Kapiteinlabs And Eindhoven University (Netherlands)
- Leaf-Tech Ltd (UK)
- National Institute of Technology Calicut, India (India)
- Omnagen Ltd (UK)
- Remedium Energy (UK)
- TorbCap
- UniSieve (Switzerland)
- UrjanovaC Private Limited (India)
THE 2024 OPEN CHALLENGE
GCCA was challenging the start-ups world on innovations related to our Net Zero GCCA Roadmap main decarbonisation lever with an impact at scale to tackle climate change: Carbon Capture Use and Storage for low carbon concrete (e.g., innovative capture technologies both process integrated and end-of-pipe, CO2 use, etc..)
Selected start-ups will gain unique access to:
Under the Open Challenge, selected start-ups gain unique access to plants and labs through this program, as well as expertise and infrastructure of 40 members across the world to showcase innovation status: move from ideas to prototype, pilot-tests, proofs of concepts, business cases. In other words, the program will provide start-ups with the access they need to grow.
Throughout the program duration, start-ups will receive guidance from the GCCA and its industrials members of nominated lead experts to help them progress in the industrialisation of their technology, develop new technologies and/or define new business cases with one or several industrial members. Members of the GCCA, and its members will internally manage the project (or in partnership with other business partners) with each selected start-up and offer resources, support and coaching to co-develop the business.
Further collaboration for each project will be discussed on a case-by-case basis.
When selected, start-ups will be expected to:
- Sign an NDA with the GCCA on behalf of GCCA members – IP belonging to start-ups.
- Collaborate on defining the program (2-3 meetings over the summer)
- When onboarded on the program, agree the goal upon – together with our industrial partners
- Participate in a final demo day.
Being selected to onboard the GCCA Innovandi Open Challenge program will offer selected startups a high visibility in the cement and concrete sector, as well as equipment’s manufacturers, broader value chain players, investors and wider stakeholders.
You can watch the Innovandi Open Challenge 2024 Launch event here, and view the slides here.
