IIT Madras announces the top 25 teams for Carbon Zero Challenge 4.0

Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IIT Madras) has announced the top 25 teams that form the fourth cohort of the annual Carbon Zero Challenge, a pan-India pioneering competition to encourage startups in the sustainability sector. The teams were announced at the ‘Embarkment’ event at the IIT Madras campus on Thursday.

The Carbon Zero Challenge (CZC) is a pan-India eco-innovation and entrepreneurship competition aimed at accelerating the transition from laboratory-scale models to prototypes. It has completed three cohorts and supported 75 prototypes. CZC 4.0 has introduced an additional 25 teams, supporting a total of 100 teams, according to a release.

The CZC 4.0 launched its fourth cohort in January 2024 and has provided funding to 100 teams totaling over ₹5 crore. It has served as a breeding ground for 13 startups and transformed 42 students/researchers and eight faculty members into entrepreneurs.

The selected top 25 teams consist of students, early-stage startups, faculty and researchers who presented their sustainable and circular economy solutions in the areas of water and wastewater, renewable energy, sustainable packaging and building materials, eco-friendly cold storage and transportation and waste management . These teams will be given six months and up to ₹5 lakh to develop their prototype, a press release from the institute said.

The Challenge is supported by Thales, a French multinational, and Aquamap Center for Water Management – IIT Madras. The latest edition of CZC4.0 received 850 applications with validated proof of concept from 25 states, of which 25 teams were shortlisted after two rounds of rigorous evaluations by 50 experts.

Some of the teams include CarbonAir, affiliated with IIT Madras and which proposed the idea of ​​integrated conversion of industrial waste gases into ethanol, ammonia and other useful products for zero-carbon emissions; Yotuh Energy Pvt Ltd, an early-stage startup, which proposed electrifying cooling for cold logistics vehicles, and Pravahan, an idea by students of IIT Madras for an advanced zero-emission high-speed ferry/ship, the release said.