GE has launched the Low Carbon ecomagination Challenge in Australia and New Zealand.
This is a $10 million innovation experiment where businesses, entrepreneurs, innovators and students share their best ideas on how to reduce carbon emissions – and just might get funded.
GE has teamed up with some venture capital firms in Australia and New Zealand, including Cleantech Ventures, CVC, Greenhouse Cleantech, MH Carnegie & Co and Southern Cross Venture Partners to help back the most promising ideas.
GE's ecomagination Challenge complements the Federal Government's $200 million Clean Technology Innovation Program, which provides grant funding for innovation in clean energy technologies on a matching basis.
Recipients of Clean Technology Innovation grants will be able to use support from GE's ecomagination Challenge as part of the private sector contribution to their project.
Selected ecomagination Challenge entrants will be offered the opportunity to develop a commercial relationship with GE through:
- Investment: the $200 million capital pledge of GE and its partners will be invested globally into promising start-ups and ideas
- Validation: evaluation of entrant’s business strategy through in-depth discussions with GE‘s technical and commercial teams
- Distribution: exploration of partnership opportunities with GE to scale a business and create global reach
- Development: leveraging of GE‘s technical infrastructure and GE Global Research Centers to accelerate technology and product development
- Growth: exploration of opportunities for utilizing existing GE customer relationships for your go-to-market strategy