Cleantech Open Northeast and Urban Future Lab Announce Partnership to Advance Cleantech Innovation to Address Climate Change in New York

Urban Future Lab at the NYU Tandon School of Engineering and Cleantech Open Northeast share a common goal: to enable cleantech startups to get market traction in order to mitigate climate change and create jobs. After graduating from the Cleantech Open accelerator, 2020 Regional Finalists are invited to apply to the Urban Future Lab incubator so that they can continue their fast growth trajectory. If accepted, one of these startups will be eligible for a 50% discount off of the first six months of their 24-month stay at the site in Brooklyn, NY. While there, they will receive personalized mentoring and support, as well as introductions to business leaders and investors, and many opportunities to build their team and develop necessary skills.

Cleantech Open Northeast is the first step on a cleantech startup’s journey to develop foundational business skills and a professional business network. The accelerator includes programming like a mini MBA, as well as expert mentoring, opportunities to win cash prizes, and introductions to investors. The startups make fast progress during the five-month program and many raise funding during or immediately following completion. It’s a rigorous program that requires entrepreneurs to complete deliverables that will serve them as they grow their ventures. Each year, Cleantech Open graduates 30-40 startups in the Northeast and about 100 across the US. Since its founding in 2005, Cleantech Open has over 400 alumni in the Northeast and over 1,600 across the US. Many Cleantech Open alumni have survived the merciless technology startup "valley of death" and gone on to raise $1.2 billion and create over 3,000 clean economy jobs.

Cleantech Open provides the infrastructure, expertise and strategic relationships that turn clever ideas into successful global cleantech companies. The Northeast region covers nine states in the US: Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, New Hampshire, Vermont, Maine, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, New York, as well as much of Canada.

Pat Sapinsley, Managing Director of Cleantech Initiatives at the Urban Future Lab / ACRE at NYU Tandon School of Engineering, is particularly excited about this partnership. She said, “We have been collaborating with Cleantech Open for several years on an informal basis. Now there is increased urgency to address climate change head-on, it’s critical that we join forces in a deliberate way and augment our potential impact.”

“We are pleased to be able to offer Urban Future Lab as a next step for our startups to get traction in New York State, the largest state in the Northeast," said Beth Zonis, Director, Cleantech Open Northeast. "Together, we’ll help New York achieve its climate and clean energy goals and set an example for the rest of the country."

About Urban Future Lab

Urban Future Lab (UFL) provides unmatched access to strategic advisement, introductions to industry stakeholders, marketing and branding support, investor networks, and access to a community of like-minded founders. UFL is leading the way to a more sustainable world by connecting people, capital, and purpose to advance market-ready solutions to address climate change. Our flagship program is ACRE, New York City's premier business incubator for cleantech and smart city startups and is funded by the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority. It has been supporting market ready solutions to climate change since 2009, boasting an 88% survival rate of incubated startups which have now raised more than $600M from the private markets and employ more than 600 people. The UFL is part of the NYU Tandon School of Engineering and is located in Downtown Brooklyn. For more information, please visit ufl.nyc or find us on Twitter.

About Cleantech Open

Cleantech Open is the world’s oldest and largest cleantech accelerator and business plan competition. Our mission is to find, fund and foster entrepreneurs with big ideas that address today’s most urgent energy, environmental, and economic challenges. A 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization, Cleantech Open provides the infrastructure, expertise, and strategic relationships that turn clever ideas into successful global cleantech companies. Over the past eight years, Cleantech Open has awarded over $5 million in cash and services. During that time, our 1,600 alumni companies have raised more than $1.2 billion in external funding. Fueled by a network of more than 2,000 volunteers, Cleantech Open unites the public and private sectors in a shared vision for making America’s cleantech sector a thriving economic engine. For more information, visit us at cleantechopen.org.

About NECEC

NECEC (Northeast Clean Energy Council & NECEC Institute) is the premier voice of businesses building a world-class clean energy hub in the Northeast, helping clean energy companies start, scale and succeed with our unique business, innovation, and policy leadership. NECEC is the Northeast regional affiliate for Cleantech Open, executing the Northeast accelerator and business plan competition and building the region’s innovation network with NECEC’s successor program for cleantech entrepreneurs, Navigate.