Staying ahead of the technology curve means strengthening your competitive advantage. That is why we give you data-driven innovation insights. This time, you get to discover 5 hand-picked startups working towards the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goal #6 – Clean Water & Sanitation.
Global Startup Heat Map highlights 5 Top Startups working towards Clean Water & Sanitation out of 362
The insights of this data-driven analysis are derived from the Big Data & Artificial Intelligence-powered StartUs Insights Discovery Platform, covering 2.093.000+ startups & scaleups globally. The platform gives you an exhaustive overview of emerging technologies & relevant startups within a specific field in just a few clicks.
The Global Startup Heat Map below reveals the distribution of the 362 exemplary startups & scaleups we analyzed for this research. Further, it highlights 5 startups that we hand-picked based on criteria such as founding year, location, funding raised, and more. You get to explore the solutions of these 5 startups & scaleups in this report. For insights on the other 257 clean water & sanitation solutions, get in touch.
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4Life Solutions provides Safe & Affordable Drinking Water
Millions of people globally lack access to clean and safe drinking water. This is a particular worry for people living in overcrowded cities with polluted water resources. The lack of safe drinking water is also a public health concern as well as furthers income inequality. This is why CleanTech startups are developing new solutions to provide safe and affordable drinking water.
Danish startup 4Life Solutions provides safe & affordable drinking water for low-income communities. SaWa, the startup’s product, is a bag that holds up to 4 liters of water and uses ultraviolet (UV) rays and heat from the sun to kill microorganisms in water. After being exposed to the sun for 4 hours, the water is safe to drink. This solution is significantly cheaper than using charcoal and reduces carbon emissions as well.
SEMiLLA Sanitation develops Sanitary Wastewater Treatment Methods
Sewage water from households or large events often contains high levels of toxic chemicals and pollutants. Wastewater treatment helps recover water for reuse, as well as recovers precious metals and other chemicals. Moreover, it lowers the pollutants in lakes, seas or the oceans where effluent water generally ends up. This is why CleanTech startups are working on wastewater treatment solutions to improve ambient water quality.
SEMiLLA Sanitation is a Dutch startup developing sanitary wastewater treatment units. It uses biological or physical treatment to channel wastewater streams into safe drinking water, irrigation water, and compost. The plug-and-play units find applications in real estate and public toilets, and are used by nonprofits and event organizers as well. The startup’s solutions enable the reuse and recovery of water as well as reduce the overall water consumption.
Hilico works on Rainwater Harvesting
Surprisingly, many people who lack access to clean water reside in countries that receive moderate to high precipitation. However, a large portion of rainwater, a free and sustainable water source, goes to waste. Rainwater harvesting is a solution, but generally requires large spaces. To address this challenge, startups develop smaller, easy-to-install rain harvesting solutions.
Israeli startup Hilico offers a portable and lightweight rainwater harvesting system. The startup’s system takes just a couple of minutes to install and fits into the smallest spaces. It uses an advanced filtration unit that prevents any debris from contaminating the water. Further, the system enables water self-sufficiency and reduces pollution as it does not require any electricity to operate.
Aqulytics creates a Water Data Management System
Water management is critical to ensure sustainable distribution and use of water resources. That is why startups leverage technologies ranging from space data to the Internet of Things (IoT) to continuously monitor freshwater resources. This allows cities to plan water use in an efficient manner, as well as take actions to mitigate water loss.
US-based startup Aqulytics provides a water data management system. The startup’s platform provides information and strategic insights into freshwater resources around the world. Moreover, it monitors the quality of wastewater and discharges, ensuring that the levels of heavy metals, toxic sludges, and other wastes are within stipulated environmental standards. Aqulytics’ platform serves the water management needs of businesses, governments, and other organizations.
Aquahara enables Industrial Air Dehumidification
While restoring natural water resources is critical, acquiring new sources of water is also essential to meet the increasing water demand. Seawater desalination, for example, is an attractive and effective water source. However, it is not a viable solution for inland regions. Therefore, startups are working on a range of technologies to absorb or extract water from the atmosphere.
Aquahara is a German startup developing an industrial air dehumidification technology. The startup’s technology uses salt to absorb water. It then uses solar energy to heat the salt solution in a distillation unit, thus recovering the water. Aquahara’s solution reduces costs as compared to atmospheric water generation, producing 100 liters of water per day with 400 square meters of solar panels.
Discover more startups
Startups such as the examples highlighted in this report focus on zero poverty and hunger as well as climate action. While all of these technologies play a major role in advancing the UN’s SDGs, they only represent the tip of the iceberg. To explore more technologies, simply get in touch to let us look into your areas of interest. For a more general overview, you can download our free Innovation Report to save your time and improve strategic decision-making.
