Que: Can you give us a brief overview of Climate Collective and its core mission?

Ans: Climate Collective Foundation (CCF) is India’s largest non-profit climate tech ecosystem orchestrator, dedicated to empowering entrepreneurs tackling climate change and the circular economy across the Global South. Since 2016, CCF has executed over 90 market accelerator programs and supported more than 1,270 startups, which have collectively raised USD 235 million post-program.

Our core mission is to address the fragmented and scattered support landscape for climate tech startups by orchestrating the ecosystem, bringing together entrepreneurs, investors, governments, corporates, and development partners to reduce friction and accelerate impact. Through initiatives like the Climate Accelerator, Climate Startup School, Women in Climate Entrepreneurship, Climate Startup Week, and South Asia’s largest pre-Series A climate tech investment platform, we provide end-to-end support from entrepreneurship development to capital access.

At its heart, CCF believes that solving the climate crisis requires entrepreneurial innovation alongside policy and investment, and we are committed to building vibrant, inclusive ecosystems that help climate solutions scale.

Que: Climate Collective focuses on empowering startups. Can you elaborate on the specific resources, mentorship, and networks you provide?

Ans: At Climate Collective, we empower climate innovation through an integrated set of platforms and programs across acceleration, industrial decarbonisation pilot support, funding, and community support. As a result, we support founders at every stage of development, guiding them through a complex and rapidly evolving ecosystem. At the start of the funnel, we have the Climate Startup School, which provides aspiring entrepreneurs with the essential knowledge and skills they need to start and thrive in this dynamic sector. Then, our early-stage Climate Accelerator is designed to help MVP-stage climate tech startups enter the market, grow, and succeed. After this, our deployment and piloting programs ElectronVibe for utilities and Climate Challenges for the industry enable market access for mature startups. We complement these by our funding platforms, the pre-seed grant-making platform (Climate Pitch), and equity syndication platforms like Climate Seeders Club as the seed-stage angel network, and the pre-Series, Climate Tech Investment Network as the institutional investors network. Finally, to round off our role as an ecosystem enabler, we regularly convene ecosystem stakeholders via external events, and our internal flagship event Climate Startup Week, a founder-centric event since 2020, Climate Tech Investment Summit, an investor-centric event since 2020, Mosambi Climate Conference, an enablers-centric event since 2025, and our newly announced Delhi Climate Innovation Week 2026. This sustained engagement has led to significant impact, we have supported 1,067 startups through market acceleration, and 106 of our startups have raised USD 235 million in follow-on capital after graduating from our programs. An additional 124 of our startups have also participated in our flagship events, further expanding their network.

Que: Can you share a few examples of clean energy startups that have thrived under Climate Collective’s support?

Ans: Since its launch, Climate Collective has supported 1270 climate tech startups, mobilising a cumulative sum of USD 235 million. As renewable energy surges and overall demand grows, India’s grid must adapt to handle fluctuating supply and growing demand. Solutions here include micro-grids, battery innovation, and retrofits for energy efficiency. IoT and smart grid technologies are vital enablers for this. TekUncorked, a part of our ElectronVibe cohort, exemplifies this by deploying intelligent sensors and analytics that allow utilities to detect grid faults early, reduce power losses, and integrate renewable energy more reliably. Electrifying India’s vast transport network requires accessible charging infrastructure and user-friendly solutions, which include EV infrastructure, shared mobility, and logistics optimisation. Kazam, a part of our ElectronVibe cohort, is tackling this gap by creating a widespread, affordable EV charging network that serves both large urban centres and smaller Tier-2 cities, accelerating adoption of clean mobility.

Heavy industries like steel, cement, and chemicals are some of the hardest to decarbonise. To tackle this, we require tools for carbon capture, alternative fuels, and energy efficiency in hard-to-abate sectors. Digitalisation and AI can unlock new efficiencies and emissions reductions in these sectors. LivNSense, a part of the ACT4Green II cohort, is a standout, building AI-driven digital twin platforms that help factories monitor energy consumption and improve efficiency, and cut emissions in real time.

Que: From your perspective, what emerging trends or technologies will shape the next wave of growth in India’s clean energy sector?

Ans: Poised for significant growth, I observe a confluence of emerging trends that will drive India's clean energy sector. The integration of AI and Big Data into areas like energy efficiency will bring transformative results in predictive maintenance, demand forecasting, and grid flexibility. In contrast, the conventional methods often rely on repeated use of reactive and preventive measures that produce inefficient energy usage along with increased operational expenses. To address this, AI and machine learning for predictive maintenance convert real-time sensor data into predictions, helping maintainers schedule optimal maintenance times. In recognition of this, we have launched the Climate Launch AI Accelerators, to be held at the AI for Climate Tech Summit in October 2025.

Further, we are leading a global working group on AI for Energy Grand Challenges convened by GRAIL. Another trend is the rise of decentralised renewable energy, which creates localised power sources that directly benefit households and enterprises. This approach avoids the high costs of large solar farms and extensive grids, empowering individuals and communities by making them self-reliant in energy production. Advancements in energy storage technologies are accelerating, with systems like batteries beginning to cross critical cost-performance thresholds. This innovation extends beyond conventional segments like BESS, PSP, and green hydrogen, as entirely new storage technologies are also emerging.

These include gravity energy storage, thermal energy storage, flywheel energy storage, and compressed air energy storage (CAES). Each trend will play a significant role, forming a systematic condition for India’s next chapter in climate-tech innovation.

Que: How do you plan to enhance partnerships with corporates, investors, and government stakeholders?

Ans: Our ambition is to deepen relationships across three pivotal stakeholder groups: corporates, investors, and government. We partner with corporations to help them achieve their net-zero and climate goals by helping them engage with startup-led solutions through structured piloting and deployment programs. Specifically, we programmatically engage with 31 Electric Utilities through ElectronVibe, the only program in Asia that connects utilities and startups, and running since 2020; and 119 India-based corporations through Climate Challenges, whereby we support the piloting-deployment of innovative solutions by startups. A select list of our past industrial decarbonisation showcases include: Business & Philanthropy Climate Forum @ COP28; World Economic Forum India Industry 4.0 Roundtable; with Mahindra / Waaree / GUVNL etc; co-leading the India Startup Mahakumbh Climate Tech Pavilion 2025; running the Indian Electrical & Electronics Manufacturers Association/IEEMA's startup showcase ElectraVerse Sparks in Feb.

For investors, we run platforms to connect them with startups, facilitating pre-seed grant funding and syndicated equity funding at seed and pre-Series A stages. A key part of this strategy is the Climate Tech Investment Summit, an investor-focused event that brings the climate tech community across the Global South together. Recognising investors' growing interest in creating a tangible climate impact, we also developed the Climate Impact Certificates service, which provides both startups and their investors with comprehensive impact assessments, validating their climate contributions with a measurable stamp of approval. These certificates also allow startups to effectively communicate their real-world impact to potential investors, who, in turn, can make more informed and impactful investment decisions. With government stakeholders, we collaborate across our various programs through joint outreach to startups, two-way consultative discussions, as well as joint programs. One illustrative research program we are implementing is to support sub-national policymakers to understand the contribution of climate tech startups to their state-level economies, and ultimately better sync their startup policies and green-sector policies better.

Que: What is Climate Collective’s long-term vision for the clean energy innovation ecosystem in India?

Ans: At Climate Collective we believe that supporting the climate tech startup ecosystem isn't just about business success, but about building the infrastructure for national transformation. Startups serve as crucial bridges between laboratory innovations and market-ready solutions, turning breakthrough technologies into affordable, scalable tools for decarbonisation. They are also employment engines. Research shows young companies, not just small ones, generate the fastest job growth in India, which is essential for a country where millions enter the workforce annually.

Perhaps most importantly, they create positive spillovers that benefit society far beyond their immediate commercial impact. Our vision is anchored in forward thinking and institutional experience, creating an ecosystem where climate-tech startups are not exceptions but an integral part of India’s development trajectory. This means creating conditions where venture, policy, enterprise, and research converge into a seamless framework that supports early-stage ideation, nurtures experimentation, and enables successful scalability of startups. At Climate Collective, we aspire to be the catalyst of this transformation, ensuring that tech founders are supported with resources, stakeholders are convened around shared priorities, and climate solutions have societal and environmental impact. Ultimately, India's climate-tech startups represent the building blocks of the country's net-zero journey. With 800+ active ventures, billions in funding momentum, and a new generation of globally minded entrepreneurs, the ecosystem is reaching critical mass.

Crucially, India stands apart in the Global South for both the quality and volume of climate-tech innovation emerging from its entrepreneurial ecosystem. This represents a generational opportunity: to lead global decarbonisation not through resource extraction or manufacturing alone, but through technological innovation that solves local challenges while addressing planetary ones.