Increasing numbers of Pacific Northwest entrepreneurs are turning their significant talents to addressing serious environmental and climate problems impacting planet Earth.
The 2024 finalists for Sustainable Innovation of the Year at the GeekWire Awards are blasting both pollutants and weeds. They’re pulling carbon dioxide from the water and putting electrons into car batteries. And they’re turning trashed crab shells into eco-friendly industrial chemicals.
Last year’s Sustainable Innovation of the Year winner was Pure Watercraft, the maker of electric powerboats.
The GeekWire Awards recognize the top innovators and companies in Pacific Northwest technology. Finalists in this category and others were selected based on community nominations, along with input from GeekWire Awards judges. Community voting across all categories will continue until April 12, combined with feedback from judges to determine the winner in each category.
We’ll announce the winners live on stage at Showbox SoDo in Seattle on May 9. There are a limited number of table sponsorships available to attend the event. Learn more and sign up to attend on the GeekWire Awards event site.
If interested in sponsoring a category or purchasing a table sponsorship for the event, contact us at events@geekwire.com.
Special thanks to Astound Business Solutions, the presenting sponsor of the 2024 GeekWire Awards.
Continue reading for details on each finalist. Vote here or below in this GeekWire Awards category, which is sponsored by Alaska Airlines.
Aquagga
The tech: This startup from Tacoma, Wash., has developed technology that destroys PFAS “forever chemicals,” eliminating 99% of the PFAS present in contaminated water.
The big picture: For decades companies have added PFAS to firefighting foams, food packaging, carpets and fabrics, water-repellent clothing and non-stick pans. The long-lived chemicals escape from products and contaminate drinking water nationwide. On Wednesday, the federal government issued drinking water standards limiting PFAS to parts per trillion levels.
Compared to other solutions, Aquagga’s technology is relatively compact; runs at lower temperatures and pressures; can operate continuously; and treats the trickier to destroy small PFAS compounds.
Aquagga has landed $9 million in grants and contracts with eight federal agencies. It has raised $1.1 million in private funding.
Related coverage: ‘Forever chemicals’ are eternal no more thanks to a pollution destroying device from Tacoma startup
Banyu Carbon
The tech: Banyu Carbon, a startup founded by two University of Washington oceanography professors, is developing a technology for removing carbon dioxide from seawater.
The big picture: As the world hurtles toward dangerously warmer temperatures, experts advise that carbon removal will be essential to avoiding the worst climate outcomes. While many startups are pulling carbon dioxide from the air, it’s more concentrated in the ocean, which can make it easier to extract.
Banyu’s technology employs a reusable acid to get the carbon dioxide to bubble out of seawater in a controlled settling where the gas is captured and can be disposed of.
The startup launched in 2022 and has raised $8.5 million from investors, plus a $500,000 deal with Frontier to remove 350 tons of carbon dioxide by 2026.
Related coverage: Oceanography professors transform a research tool into a startup that’s sucking CO2 from seawater
Carbon Robotics
The tech: The Seattle startup is selling machines that use artificial intelligence and computer vision technology to zap weeds without damaging crops or disturbing soil.
The big picture: Launched in 2018, Carbon Robotics’ LaserWeeder machine attaches to tractors and uses thermal energy lasers to kill weeds or thin crops.
The devices have destroyed an estimated 5.5 billion weeds across 100 different crops. The startup has customers across North America, Western Europe and Australia. Carbon Robotics has raised $80 million from investors.
The company is led by Isilon Systems co-founder Paul Mikesell.
Related coverage: Carbon Robotics lands $30M to sell more weed-destroying machines powered by AI
Electric Era
The tech: Seattle’s Electric Era makes the PowerNode EV fast-charging station, which pairs charging devices with onsite batteries. That combination allows the businesses providing charging to draw power from the batteries in order to avoid higher electricity prices during times of peak energy use.
The big picture: Under the Biden administration, the U.S. has set ambitious targets for electrifying transportation — and that requires deployment of electric vehicle charging sites nationwide.
CEO Quincy Lee co-founded Electric Era in 2020. The startup has raised a total of $20.5 million in investments and recently landed a trio of state grants to bring charging stations to rural and tribal communities.
The company installed its first commercial station last year at a Plaid Pantry in Portland, Ore. By the end of this year, it expects to have 35 stations installed or near completion.
Related coverage: EV charging startup Electric Era lands $11.5M to deploy AI- and battery-supported stations
Tidal Vision
The tech: Tidal Vision uses an environmentally friendly, “green chemistry” process to turn discarded crab shells into a valuable industrial chemical called chitosan.
The big picture: Chitosan is a versatile chemical with wide-ranging applications, including water purification, boosting plant growth and preserving fresh produce. It can replace toxic chemicals, metals, petroleum products and pesticides used in industry.
Tidal Vision, which has its headquarters in Bellingham, Wash., last year acquired Clear Water Services, a business providing water cleaning devices and services.
Craig Kasberg, a former Alaskan fisherman, launched Tidal Vision in 2015. The company has raised nearly $50 million, according to PitchBook.
Related coverage: How an Alaskan fisherman saw potential for a sustainability startup in a mountain of crab shells
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