Palo Alto, Calif., July 21, 2008 — The Clean Tech Open (CTO) tonight announced that its judges have selected 44 finalists in the 2008 California competition, from among more than 100 contestants. The Clean Tech Open is America's richest clean tech business plan contest, having awarded over $1.2 million in prizes in just two years.
Finalists compete in one of six categories, vying for the winning prize of "$100,000 Start-Up in a Box" prize package that includes all of the business essentials necessary to help take clean technology ideas from a concept to a business.
"Every year I am pleasantly surprised with the increased overall quality of the teams entering the competition relative to the previous year," said Rebeca Hwang, judging chair for Clean Tech Open. "Our judges are really looking forward to learning more about our entrants and had a tough time making their final decision, We are excited to see how finalists and non-finalists bring their ideas to market."
All 44 finalists may take part in a series of comprehensive entrepreneur summer workshops sponsored by the Cleantech Circle and the the U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, and additionally receive mentoring services from a group of volunteers including successful technology entrepreneurs and other business experts.
Following formal pitches by the finalists to the judging panels, CTO will select six winners and present them with their prizes at the grand final event on November 6, 2008.
"This is my third year as judge and our panel is very impressed at this year's entrants," said Chris Vargas, partner for Cleantech Circle LLC and judging panel chair for the Energy Efficiency category. "There is a strong focus on solving real needs, developing sound businesses and creating a meaningful impact on the environment. Selecting just 5 to 10 finalists in each category becomes more difficult each year."
Finalist profiles are available at www.CleanTechOpen.com. The finalists are:
Air, Water & Waste category — Prize Co-Sponsor Grundfos- Clean Coal Inc.: Removes contaminants from coal
- Over the Moon Diapers: High performance reusable diapers and service network
- Porifera: Carbon nanotube membrane for reverse osmosis desalination
- PURE-T: Salt free water softener using nanobeads
- Purite: Zero-energy chemical-free whole house water filtration
- SequesCO: Microbial CO2 capture and conversion to biofuel
- Waste Water Works (WWW): Microbial wastewater treatment also generates electricity
Energy Efficiency category — Prize Sponsors PG&E, SCE and SDG&E:
- Atomic Precision Systems Inc.: New semiconductor process for ultra-cheap LED lighting
- Enovative Group: Smart pump for hot water circulation
- NexChem: Energy-saving process improvement for zinc galvanizing
- Transoptic: Solar energy assistance for conventional water heaters
- Viridis Earth: Domestic HVAC retrofit to improve efficiency
- WicKool: Energy efficient water recovery for existing rooftop air conditioning
Green Building category:
- BottleStone: Ceramic stone countertops include 80% recycled glass
- en-vis-age: Green, modular and customizable buildings
- Green Design Systems: Straw wall building panels
- GreenHomeAnswers.com: Home improvement website for green products and services
- GroundSource: Residential geothermal system with installation services
- ISTN: Eco-friendly building insulation
- Parco Homes: Manufactured green (zero net energy) home kits
- Solar Red: Low cost rooftop PV installation system and components
- Team Wawa: Water-conserving shower system
Renewables category — Prize Sponsors Google, PG&E, and SCE:
- Covalent Solar: Organic thin film solar concentrators
- Focal Point Energy: Solar thermal water heater for industrial processes
- IEM Applications: Landfill methane accelerated recovery
- Renewable Fuel Technologies: Agricultural waste biomass converted to Green Coal
- Solar Ice: Solar powered ice maker
- Solindis: Optical solar concentrator for thin film PV
Smart Power category — Prize Sponsors AMD and Siemens TTB:
- 1ARC Energy: Higher capacity lithium-ion batteries
- Cooler: Carbon calculator to allow B2B targeted advertising in LOHAS
- Energy Empowered: Home display and control to reduce standby power usage
- Enverity Corporation: Greenhouse gas tracking and compliance
- Power Assure: Data center energy management software service
- Renewable Voltage: Treats organic waste to provide hydrogen and energy storage
- Tangerine Network Devices: Home energy display and control
Transportation category — Prize Sponsor Lexus:
- AAA Fleets: Turnkey electric vehicles and solar charging systems for fleets
- E-Chargers: Plug-in hybrid charging station
- ElectraDrive: Gas to electric drivetrain auto conversion
- Electric Drive Research: Plug-in/gas hybrid 2 person, 3 wheel sports car
- ElectronVault, Inc.: More efficient traction battery for hybrids
- Enhanced Vehicle Acoustics: Flexible engine sound generator for quiet cars
- FuelMotion: Series hybrid conversions for the developing world
- Goose Networks: Hosted dynamic scheduler for carpools/vanpools
- Philo Fuel: GPS-based audiovisual cues to help drivers optimize fuel efficiency
Past CTO finalists have gone on to raise more than $70 million of VC funding in two years, not including the revenue gained from substantial customer contracts. Plus, of the 95 alumni companies, more than 84 percent are still viable businesses. For more information on the current finalists and alumni companies, visit www.CleanTechOpen.com
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