Recruiting Technology Inventions for the Planet

_{Thursday 16 November 2023}

To stabilize climate change by 2050, we still need new climate tech solutions on the market, working at scale. Across technical universities, scientific teams are daily inventing and refining technologies that could have a significant impact on climate transformation targets. Here’s the challenge: The vast majority of these inventions never leave university labs, and hence never begin the journey to market and international scale. Europe leads the way in producing highly cited research publications in deep tech science (43%, compared to the US at 38% and China at 20%). However, despite this research output, Europe – including the Nordic universities – lags in the crucial step of bringing these deep tech innovations to the market (1).

To change this, the Technical University of Denmark (DTU) today launches Earthbound: A climate tech catalyst designed to screen, fund and nurture climate-relevant deep tech science across its academic ecosystem and hatch it as early-stage startups. The catalyst program has tested its offerings since spring 2023, and today introduced fellowships for leading scientists and entrepreneurs to collaborate on bringing needed climate solutions into the world.

“At DTU, we wish to make sustainability and climate technologies both a priority and a passion with more scientists, more innovation professionals and a new generation of engineering students. The potential is there with our high-quality deep tech science. Earthbound is our contribution for how to power the lab-to-market process - and “climafy” it!”
Marianne Thellersen, SVP of Innovation and Entrepreneurship at DTU.

The Earthbound Fellowship for Entrepreneurs is now open for applications from proven entrepreneurs with deep tech experience within the EU. Earthbound accepts applications from DTU scientists and research teams, but also welcomes applications from Nordic universities for review. During its first four years, Earthbound’s aim is to extend offerings to more universities.

Both fellowships can be found at www.earthbound.one

Behind the initiative are DTU (Danish Technical University), its innovation units Skylab, DTU Entrepreneurship and DTU Science Park and the early-stage venture house, PreSeed Ventures, that has been spun out of DTU.

Loyal to impact potential from lab to market

In designing its new programs and fellowships, the Earthbound team has identified current obstacles for deep tech science to unleash its full potential. Firstly, researchers may overlook opportunities to align their academic work with the needs of potential adopters of climate-related innovations. Secondly, DTU has world-leading deep tech scientists. Not business professionals. In order to bring their science to market, they should be paired with proven entrepreneurs to lead the commercialization of their inventions. Finally, deep tech has longer R&D timelines and high costs in the early stages of development, where soft funding opportunities are scarce. Approximately 65% of global climate tech investment targets US climate startups, leaving Europe with untapped potential (2).

Committed to changing the status quo, Earthbound  is introducing new offerings to lift the potential for more science-based climate tech startups in a three-pronged model:

1) Mobilize scientists, students and entrepreneurs for the planet:
By inspiring students and researchers to see how their academic field can make a difference in climate change, Earthbound seeks to make the sustainable transition of societies a higher priority in academic research. This work is also carried out by plugging into the university’s tech transfer work, departments and diverse innovation programs, making it possible to calibrate and nudge science for market and impact fit as early as the time of invention and the first research papers.  

2) Maturing deep tech science for the startup journey:

Earthbound selects deep tech inventions with climate-relevance by collaborating with the scientist(s) behind them. A scientist or research team can apply to Earthbound and have their work screened for business and impact potential. Selected cases receive support with: Company building and early commercialisation; implementation of a framework to track their impact; writing grant applications; and other catalytic support depending on the technology case.  


3) Entrepreneurs in the loop:¨
To assemble a team fit for spinning out science, Earthbound offers fellowships for proven entrepreneurs. Selected entrepreneurs will be matched with a scientist to lead the business maturing of his/her deep tech invention. This collaboration is awarded a grant that can fund critical costs and expenses for up to a year, while making the technology ready for its first investments and a classic startup journey. The academic researcher behind the deep tech invention plays a key role in selecting the entrepreneurial fellow and is actively involved in co-driving the development of their science.

4 deep tech cases in action and 17 being vetted

Embedded directly into the academic ecosystem at DTU, the Earthbound team has unprecedented access to notifications of inventions and IP applications. This makes the scouting for deep tech inventions with possible climate stabilizing effects unique and abundant.
Already at launch, Earthbound has 17 cases in the vetting process, seven entrepreneurs matched with deep tech cases, and four active fellowships running.

“With Earthbound, we hope to nurture not just stellar scientists and proven entrepreneurs, who dedicate themselves to impact startups. We also wish to side with climate-relevant technology and stay loyal to its impact potential all the way to market.”
Simon Ulvund, Director of Earthbound

Earthbound operates on a large grant given by PreSeed Ventures for acceleration of science-based innovation in climate tech. PreSeed Ventures and DTU Skylab have helped launch the initiative with their backbone of operational support. In close co-creation with DTU Science Park and DTU Entrepreneurship, they have been the founding fathers and mothers of this initiative.

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1: The European Deep Tech Report 2023, Dealroom.
2: State of Climate Tech 2023, PWC.