HOUSTON – (June 20, 2023) – Fifteen new energy ventures that are building technologies to accelerate the energy transition will work with the Rice Alliance Clean Energy Accelerator as part of the third cohort of the program.
The annual 10-week program kicks off on July 25 and will conclude with a Demo Day alongside the 20th Annual Rice Alliance Energy Tech Venture Forum on Sept. 21. As Houston’s preeminent energy startup accelerator, the program provides an open door to the region’s energy ecosystem for ventures from around the world and puts them through a rigorous curriculum to bolster their fundraising efforts, prepare them for accelerated adoption into the marketplace and expand their connections for potential pilots, partnerships and sales.
Since its launch, the Clean Energy Accelerator has supported 29 ventures across two cohorts that have raised more than $75 million in funding, identified and launched pilots, met investors, created jobs and many relocated to Houston.
Class 3 participants were selected from a competitive application process and were accepted based on the scalability of the companies, ability to leverage the Houston market and the promise of their technology. Applications were analyzed by a screening committee consisting of more than 50 industry experts, investors, energy leaders and entrepreneurs.
These ventures have already raised $23.3 million in funding and will join the hybrid program from four countries and seven states.
The 15 ventures in Class 3 are driving innovation in advanced materials, biomass energy, carbon management/capture, digital technology for energy, energy efficiency, energy storage, hydrogen, solar energy, wind energy and water purification.
- Ayrton Energy provides hydrogen storage technology that improves hydrogen transport logistics for distributed energy applications.
- Carbix transforms atmospheric carbon dioxide emissions into building materials using proprietary reactor technology.
- CryoDesalination lowers the carbon footprint and cost of removing salts and heavy metals from water and industrial effluents.
- Digital Carbon Bank provides a carbon solution tailored for the energy industry.
- EarthEn provides compressed carbon dioxide-based energy storage and artificial intelligence solutions allowing grid owners/operators to be completely renewable.
- H Quest Vanguard provides green hydrogen at a five to 10 times lower cost to users of natural gas to decarbonize industrial heat.
- Highwood Emissions Management's SaaS platform allows oil and gas companies to understand their emissions and develop robust plans to reduce them.
- Icarus RT improves photovoltaic efficiency while enabling useful heat energy storage.
- Khepra has developed a chemical manufacturing platform for the low-cost, sustainable production of agrochemicals.
- Natrion’s electrolyte is a drop-in solid-state battery component that can be rapidly implemented into existing batteries.
- Oceanways provides low-cost, flexible and scalable zero-emission underwater "virtual pipelines" to energy producers.
- Relyion Energy is developing battery usage and intelligence solutions with deeper data and insights for retired electric vehicle batteries.
- Triton Anchor provides a more cost-effective anchoring solution for offshore clean energy with minimal environmental impact.
- TROES provides a 4-in-1 microgrid solution with integrated hardware and software for a streamlined energy storage experience.
- Tycho Solutions supports clean energy project developers by saving time and money during the critical project-siting process.
The 2023 cohort will be led by Rice Alliance for Technology and Entrepreneurship’s Kerri Smith and Matt Peña, as well as six returning XiRs. These “executives in residence” mentor ventures through key milestones in their development and enable access across the network of advisers and service providers. This year’s XiRs are Nathan Ball, Fatimah Bello, Michael Egan, Michael Evans, Stephen Sims and Deanna Zhang. The group brings unique industry expertise to the program and facilitates customized mentor connections, individualized strategy and growth plans, and targeted introductions to corporate partners and investors.
The Rice Alliance, the host of the Clean Energy Accelerator, has a 20-year history of supporting startups, tech and the innovation ecosystem. Since its inception, more than 1,000 energy tech ventures have participated in its forums and raised more than $7.8 billion in funding.
The accelerator is made possible through the founding sponsor Wells Fargo and supporters bp, Baker Botts, Chevron, ExxonMobil, Halliburton Labs, Equinor, Microsoft, NRG, Aramco Ventures, Shell Ventures, Sunnova, TotalEnergies, TC Energy, Phillips 66, Latham and Watkins, ENI Next, Ara Partners, Riverbend Energy Group, Technip Energies and Woodside Energy.
Learn more about the Rice Alliance Clean Energy Accelerator at ricecleanenergy.org and follow the Rice Alliance on Twitter and LinkedIn to stay connected with the companies’ progress.