Google launches climate change accelerator for EU

December 08, 2022

Google has announced it is to launch a new accelerator programme specifically focused on start-ups working on climate solutions, which will see it extend the service to Europe for the first time.

Writing in a blog post, Kate Brandt, chief sustainability officer at Google said the Google for Startups Accelerator: Climate Change had supported 22 start-ups across North America over the past two years, providing a range of services to promising early stage climate technology providers.

Now in its third year, the programme is to be offered to start-ups in North America and Europe with firms having until January 19 necxt year to apply ahead of the scheme kicking off in March 2023.

"This programme brings the best of Google to early-stage startups using cloud technology, artificial intelligence and machine learning to advance sustainability efforts," said Brandt. "In addition to mentorship and technical project support, the 10-week programs provide support for product design, customer acquisition, and leadership development for founders."

She added that all the company's accelerators programmes are equity-free, so selected companies do not have to offer anything to participate. The programme runs alongside Google's Circular Economy Accelerator, which supports start-ups in North America and Asia.

The programme has supported a number of high profile North American start-ups in recent years, including BlocPower, which retrofits old residential buildings to be all-electric with clean energy systems, Exenor Bioenergy, which ​​converts plastic and organic waste into clean energy, and Carbon Limit, which creates a nature-based cement replacement that transforms concrete into an impactful and permanent solution to CO2 pollution.

Donnel Baird, founder of BlocPower, said the accelerator programme was "incredibly valuable, helping us refine our software solutions to reduce city onboarding for clean energy projects from four months to four weeks". "This enabled our business to grow faster while accelerating our climate technology," he added.