Sustainable Aviation Challenge unveiled by Salesforce, Airbus, Breakthrough Energy, Boom Supersonic, Deloitte, Eni, JetBlue Ventures, Qantas, World Energy, First Movers Coalition, UpLink, others
In Switzerland, Salesforce and partner companies, including Airbus, Breakthrough Energy, Boom Supersonic, Deloitte, Eni, JetBlue Ventures, Qantas Airways Limited, and World Energy, alongside the First Movers Coalition and UpLink, today unveiled the Sustainable Aviation Challenge sixteen most innovative start-ups that are accelerating the decarbonization of the aviation industry.
The challenge calls for solutions that can help decarbonize air travel, including advancements in battery-powered flight and sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), a type of fuel produced from renewable resources, organic materials, or waste feedstocks that is designed to significantly reduce emissions. Selected from over 130 applicants, the winners are champions of innovative approaches to SAF, battery-powered and hydrogen-powered flight.
The challenge is supported by the First Movers Coalition (FMC), a joint initiative between the World Economic Forum (WEF) and the U.S. Department of State, launched in 2021. FMC’s goal is to scale emerging technologies for hard-to-decarbonize industries representing more than one-third of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions. These include aviation, aluminum, chemicals, concrete, shipping, steel, trucking, and direct air capture.
Proposals were gathered from August 24 through October 2, 2023. Selected ventures will receive support for their commercialization and deployment efforts, in addition to assistance with brand building, visibility, and peer-to-peer learning opportunities.
FMC said. “Air travel is crucial for global connectivity and economic growth, but its environmental impact cannot be ignored. This is why initiatives like the UpLink-First Movers Coalition Sustainable Aviation Challenge are paramount to accelerating climate action. We are proud to support these ecopreneurs who are at the forefront of pioneering innovative climate solutions,” said Suzanne DiBianca, Executive Vice-President and Chief Impact Officer of Salesforce.
“Decarbonizing aviation heavily relies on sustainable aviation fuel (SAF); however, the production process is extremely energy intensive,” added Astrid Poupart-Lafarge, President of Energies and Chemicals Segment at Schneider Electric. “We are proud to support emerging technology companies looking to address this challenge through innovation as part of the World Economic Forum’s UpLink challenge. We are ready to collaborate with these top innovators to use our industry-leading energy management and automation technology to enable the necessary design and operational efficiency required to achieve SAF manufacturing at scale.”
Category: SAF
