Start-ups to take on energy sector

A new class of portable wind turbines is among 11 global energy start-ups selected for Startupbootcamp’s three month program.

Startupbootcamp Melbourne’s team.

A blockchain application for green energy trading and a new class of portable wind turbines are among the 11 global energy start-ups selected for Startupbootcamp’s three month Smart Energy program next year.

The Melbourne-based program, backed by EnergyAustralia and Spotless Group as well as the Australian and state governments, was on the hunt for world-class start-ups working on energy efficiency, energy independence and digitisation and analytics.

The team received 450 applications and whittled the list down to 11 teams, which will each receive $25,000 in funding, three months of office space, in-kind services from corporate sponsors and alumni worth $750,000, and access to SBC’s global network of mentors, angel investors, and venture capitalists.

Startupbootcamp Melbourne Managing Director, Trevor Townsend, said Melbourne was well-placed to be Australia’s breeding ground of successful energy start-ups.

“The 11 companies we have selected for our Smart Energy program are on the forefront of energy innovation,” he said.

“In Australia we’ve seen a huge focus on FinTech, EduTech and other industries facing disruption and we are well-placed to be a global leader when it comes to innovative energy products and services. As an economy, we’ve always been on the forefront of energy production, especially with the ongoing political and corporate discourse with South Australia’s energy crisis.

“Through SBC’s global network of more than 140 corporate partners as well as the key players we have on board here in Melbourne, we’re confident the start-ups we’ve selected have the ability to not only change energy in Australia, but all over the world.”

The 11 teams selected for the three month Smart Energy program were:

• 1ANSAH (AUSTRALIA) — An intelligent platform that uses NLP and machine learning for efficient maintenance of complex equipment to maximise output and minimise downtime.
• COGNITUM (POLAND) — Cognitum present a product that in real time amplifies human intelligence in cognitively demanding tasks for better decision making industry, government and health sectors.
• ENERGYTECH VENTURES (INDIA) — EnergyTech Ventures helps clients extract value out of their data by analysing and managing energy performance to reduce operational costs and enhance productivity.
• INTELLPOWER (AUSTRALIA) — IntellPower is an intelligent sensor network and analytics for IIot that monitors the health and diagnostics of industrial assets, helping reduce O & M and capital expenditure.
• OXTO (UNITED KINGDOM) — OXTO Energy is a flywheel energy storage start-up developing storage solution aimed at supporting the addition of intermittent renewable energy to the electrical network, and the increasing balancing needs of utility grid operators.
• SAVVYTECH (AUSTRALIA) — SavvyTech, a local team from Melbourne, provide an energy business intelligence platform for large enterprises to help manage energy usage and reduce costs.
• SENSORFACT (NETHERLANDS) — Sensorfact have created a smart sensor and software for the SME manufacturing industry; delivering insights into energy consumption and providing solutions for energy savings.
• SIRIUS (NEW ZEALAND) — Sirius is a platform which presents household energy data in a meaningful way and provides consumers with real-time triggers to change usage behaviour.
• STRIX (SOUTH KOREA) — Strix is a big data driven smart energy management system that helps users to efficiently manage their demand response, benefiting both energy retailers and consumers.
• UPRISE ENERGY (UNITED STATES) — UpriseEnergy is developing a new class of portable, powerful and affordable wind turbines for distributed power generation.
• WEPOWER (GIBRALTAR) — WePower uses blockchain technology to deploy smart contracts within the green energy trading network, enabling everyone to invest and finance green energy projects.