ClimateLaunchpad

What ClimateLaunchpad does

ClimateLaunchpad operates the world's largest green business ideas competition, founded in 2014 and headquartered in Delft, Netherlands. The organization runs an annual, multi-stage competition that accepts open entries from early-stage climate entrepreneurs globally, routes them through national and regional finals, and culminates in a single Global Grand Final held in a different international city each year (Vienna in 2025, Singapore scheduled for 2026). The 2025 cycle attracted entries from over 40 countries. Its core product is the competition programme itself, structured around an online competition platform that manages applications, judging, and event coordination, with value delivered through access to expert mentorship, university research, and specialist facilities.

The business model centres on the competition programme: revenue is generated through programme entry fees, corporate and institutional sponsorship, and associated accelerator/support services for participants. ClimateLaunchpad operates as an initiative within the Climate-KIC ecosystem under the European Institute of Innovation and Technology, and its funding flows primarily from Climate-KIC's public funding supplemented by regional hub partnerships. Customer segments are two-sided: primary participants are early-stage climate entrepreneurs seeking to commercialize green business ideas, while secondary stakeholders are university research institutions and climate centres (e.g., Nexus at the University of Leeds, Priestley Centre for Climate Futures) that act as regional hubs.

The organization is small (1–10 employees) and does not disclose revenue, ARR, or funding rounds. Distribution is event-driven and community-led: open public calls for entries drive inbound applicant flow, while university and institutional partnerships provide on-the-ground activation in participating countries. The go-to-market relies on the prestige of the global brand, the recurring annual cycle, and the geographic rotation of the Grand Final to maintain relevance and visibility across markets.

Name

ClimateLaunchpad

Legal name

ClimateLaunchpad

Website

https://climatelaunchpad.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2014

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

ClimateLaunchpad operates the world's largest green business ideas competition, running annual national, regional, and global finals across 40+ countries to help early-stage climate entrepreneurs commercialize green innovations through mentorship and university partnerships.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Cleantech Accelerator

NAICS

Environmental Consulting Services (54162)

SIC

Services-Management Consulting Services (8742)

akta.pro primary industry

Environment, Climate & Sustainability Congresses (THAHAJAH)

akta.pro secondary industry

Environmental & Climate Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAM)

Keywords

• Green business competition
• Cleantech accelerator program
• Climate innovation competition
• Sustainability entrepreneurship platform
• Green startup competition

Headquarters

HQ city

Delft

HQ country

Netherlands

HQ region

Europe

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Competition Programme Revenue: ClimateLaunchpad operates as a competition organiser, generating revenue through programme entry fees, sponsorship from corporate and institutional partners, and associated accelerator or support services for participants.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels1 record

Core offering

ClimateLaunchpad operates the world's largest green business ideas competition, running annually through national and regional stages culminating in a Global Grand Final. The programme connects early-stage climate entrepreneurs with university research, specialist facilities, and expert mentorship to help translate climate innovations into viable, scalable businesses across 40+ countries.

Product overview

ClimateLaunchpad operates as a single unified offering: the world's largest green business ideas competition. It is not a multi-module platform but rather a structured competition programme that accepts entries from early-stage climate innovators globally, runs them through national and regional selection stages, and culminates in an annual Global Grand Final. The competition provides participants with access to university research, specialist facilities, and expert mentorship to help translate climate innovations into scalable businesses. The programme is organized annually with different host cities for the Grand Final (Vienna 2025, Singapore 2026).

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• ClimateLaunchpad Competition Annual global green business ideas competition with national, regional, and global stages that helps early-stage climate entrepreneurs access university research, specialist facilities, and expert mentorship to build viable, scalable climate-focused businesses.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 40 countries represented in the 2025 competition

Named customers1 record

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Nexus at the University of LeedscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 2 April 2026Nexus at the University of Leeds has partnered as the UK hub for ClimateLaunchpad, connecting UK entrepreneurs with university research, specialist facilities, and expert talent to help early-stage climate innovations become viable, scalable businesses. The partnership is part of the 2026 programme cycle.
• Priestley Centre for Climate FuturescoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 2 April 2026The Priestley Centre for Climate Futures has partnered as the UK hub for ClimateLaunchpad alongside Nexus at the University of Leeds, providing climate expertise and specialist resources to support early-stage innovators in developing scalable green business solutions.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves4 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Direct peers

• New Energy Nexus: Global cleantech accelerator network operating in multiple countries (including the Netherlands) with cohort-based programmes for climate entrepreneurs. Comparable international footprint and accelerator-plus-competition format targeting early-stage climate founders.
• Hult Prize: Annual global social entrepreneurship competition culminating in a high-profile Global Final, often themed around climate and sustainability. Closely comparable format: open entries, regional stages, international Grand Final with cash prizes.
• Elemental Excelerator: US-based non-profit cleantech accelerator funding and scaling startups addressing climate, energy, and water. Comparable mission of catalysing early-stage climate ventures with structured cohort programmes and partner-driven scaling pathways.
• Climate-KIC Accelerator: The accelerator arm of the same Climate-KIC ecosystem that houses ClimateLaunchpad, focused on scaling later-stage climate ventures. Direct structural sibling targeting the same entrepreneur pool with a follow-on funding pathway ClimateLaunchpad currently lacks.
• Imagine H2O: Water-focused accelerator and competition that runs an annual cohort of early-stage water and climate startups. Comparable competition-plus-accelerator model targeting a specific climate vertical with structured cohort selection.
• Hello Tomorrow: Global deep-tech competition and conference with a strong sustainability and climate track. Directly comparable as an international competition framework that culminates in a high-profile Grand Final showcasing science-based startups.
• Greentown Labs: Largest cleantech incubator in North America, hosting and accelerating hardware and software climate startups. Comparable as an established climate-startup hub with corporate partner network, though more focused on physical incubation than competition.
• MassChallenge: Global zero-equity startup accelerator running industry-vertical programmes including cleantech and sustainability. Directly comparable competition-plus-accelerator format with a similar mission of supporting early-stage innovators and a multinational cohort model.

Broad incumbents

• Imagine Cup (Microsoft): Global student technology competition run by Microsoft with annual Grand Finals. Comparable competition-and-Grand-Final framework but broader technology focus rather than exclusively climate and sustainability.
• Shell GameChanger: Corporate accelerator within Shell funding early-stage climate and energy startups. Comparable focus on sourcing and validating early-stage climate innovations, but sits within a much larger energy incumbent rather than as an independent competition.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/climatelaunch
• Facebookfacebook.com/climatelaunchpad
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/climatelaunchpad

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about ClimateLaunchpad