Sting and RISE Forge Strategic Collaboration to Accelerate ClimateTech Solutions to Market

Recognizing the pivotal role of startups in addressing pressing climate challenges, Sting and RISE have united to fortify the startup ecosystem. Against heightened urgency, underscored by reports released during COP28, the collaboration aims to provide unprecedented support to ClimateTechcompanies, propelling them toward success.

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"This partnership is a transformative synergy, giving Sting's ClimateTech companies access to RISE's robust support mechanisms. Together, we aspire to elevate the capabilities and competitiveness of these startups through strategic financing and leveraging RISE's cutting-edge technical skills and state-of-the-art test facilities", explains Karin Ruiz, Business Coach and ClimateTech Lead at Sting.  

Through Sting, trailblazing ClimateTech startups will seamlessly access RISE's support, strategically aligning their development milestones with soft financing, tailored expertise, and essential infrastructure. The collective mission is to streamline time-to-market, mitigate risks, and bolster the competitive advantage of these startups. The leading scope for the collaboration is ClimateTechcompanies, extending across areas such as sustainable energy, food and agriculture, new materials, circular solutions, and bioeconomy, but also encompassing DeepTech companies.

Henrik Bagewitz, VP of Research and Business Development at RISE, emphasizes, "This collaboration is a harmonious convergence of financial backing, technical acumen, and visionary leadership. Sweden, at the forefront of global innovation, is poised to make substantial strides in tackling climate challenges through the accelerated development of these startups."

Since the collaboration's inception in March 2023, as part of Sting’s Climate Action initiative, RISE has engaged with 16 Sting companies. Notable success stories include:

• CelluXtreme –Introducing innovative technology for biobased circular composites, backed by 2.0 MSEK from the Swedish Energy Agency and an additional 1 MSEK from Vinnova. Teaming up with an industrial partner, CelluXtreme explores applications replacing current fiber-reinforced composites, with RISE providing valuable support in securing funding and refining applications.

• Enerpoly – Pioneering rechargeable zinc-ion batteries for stationary energy storage, securing 6.8 MSEK from Vinnova and an additional 88.5 MSEK from the Swedish Energy Agency. This substantial funding empowers Enerpoly to overcome scalability barriers, with RISE contributing technical expertise and testbed capacity, laying the groundwork for large-scale production in Sweden.

Anna Winberg, CEO of CelluXtreme, emphasizes the significance of Sting and RISE collaborationwithin the advancement in ClimateTech companies, “For us as a DeepTech company, soft funds are crucial. Celluxtreme has been selected to receive funding within Vinnova's new program for accelerating DeepTech companies. The funding will significantly contribute to our efforts to reduce risk and take the step towards pilot scale.”

Eloisa de Castro, CEO of Enerpoly adds “Enerpoly’s recent secured investments are an exciting milestone for our company as we rapidly scale production of our proprietary zinc-ion batteries right here in Sweden. With our most recent grant from the Swedish Energy Agency, we plan to build a zinc-ion battery manufacturing plant, 'Enerpoly Production Innovation Center (EPIC)’, in the next three years. ”

This strategic collaboration not only underscores the commitment to nurturing startups but also exemplifies a concerted effort to propel Sweden's innovation prowess onto the global stage, making tangible strides in combating climate challenges.

About

Sting holds the largest platform of innovative tech companies in the Nordics, with an excellent track record of accelerating change that matters. In 20 years, Sting has been a driving force in the start-up scene, building an ecosystem of companies valued at 2,42 billion EUR. Sting supports and works alongside all start-ups but focuses extra on ClimateTech, HealthTech, and DeepTech.

RISE Research Institutes of Sweden is Sweden’s research institute, with over 3000 scientists, researchers, and experts offering more than 130 testbeds and demo facilities. RISE is a dedicated innovation partner from idea to commercial launch, bridging academia and industry in applied R&D. With a mission from the government to strengthen business and society in sustainability and competitiveness; RISE is at the forefront of solving the most challenging issues of our time.