This article is part of KrASIA’s partnership with Web Summit. Written by Ciaran Bruder.
We can no longer ignore how our unsustainable global society is impacting the planet. Luckily, world leaders are already considering what we can do to make the world more equitable. The UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)—a roadmap to a more environmentally and socially sustainable future for everyone—offer clear guidance on how we can improve the world around us.
The increasingly popular trend of using tech for good is something we wanted to celebrate at Web Summit this year. Out of the thousands of startups attending our online event in December, we want to highlight the emerging companies in our startup community that are most closely aligned with the SDGs. Meet eight of our incredible tech-for-good startups.
Bios Health
Bios is a medtech startup currently developing a neural interface platform. This system uses AI to decode signals between the brain and the body, effectively translating how we read indicators of poor health. What’s one of the most exciting ways that this platform can be used? With a better understanding of what our body is telling us, Bios can vastly improve our ability to detect and treat chronic health conditions, such as heart disease or cancer.
This potentially world-changing tech has already been recognized with a slew of industry awards. Forbes listed Bios as one of the top 15 machine learning companies to watch in Europe, and included the startup’s founders on its 30 Under 30 list.
Electa
Typically, social or political demonstrations are the product of a large team of dedicated political actors and volunteers using a combination of websites, social media, and apps to coordinate meeting logistics. Electa is a SaaS citizen relationship management platform that helps politicians, community organizations, and activists intuitively manage supporters and staff.
Developed by UK company Electa.co.uk, the startup was only founded last year, but it’s already looking like the ideal tool for an age in which social distancing and limits on mass gatherings are an everyday reality.
Endangered Wildlife OÜ
This groundbreaking platform is the culmination of 16 years of R&D. It will help sustainable investors and concerned global citizens to measure the financial impact of biodiversity and justify biodiversity as a sustainable investment option.
We are starting to wake up to the damage that our developing society is doing. Biodiversity Solutions International, a fintech solution developed by Endangered Wildlife OÜ, helps us realize what we could miss out on if we don’t change how we think about the world. It is the first ever AI-powered financial valuation software for biodiversity, capable of calculating the value of any plant or animal species in any micro region across the globe.
This ground-breaking platform is the culmination of 16 years of R&D, and will help sustainable investors and concerned global citizens to measure the financial impact of biodiversity and justify biodiversity as a sustainable investment option.
Fantine
Coffee is the breakfast and fuel of choice for millions of professionals worldwide. With the demand for coffee so high, growers should be able to thrive. However, many producers sell coffee beans at below production cost, leaving thousands of smallholder farmers at the poverty line. Fantine is here to address that, tilting the coffee value chain back in favor of producers.
Fantine is a blockchain-enabled B2B marketplace that allows coffee roasters and wholesalers to buy sustainable coffee from smallholder growers worldwide. The data from each transaction is recorded and passed down the chain to the consumer, ensuring customers are drinking coffee that has been sustainably harvested and has certified price transparency.
Farmer Charlie
British startup Farmer Charlie claims that there are 500 million smallholder farmers worldwide. These producers often lack the vital information needed to manage their crops, increase yield, and access favorable markets with products at a fair price. Farmer Charlie is an agritech platform connecting remote smallholder farmers around the world to real-time market data.
The platform works off an internet connection by giving farmers advice on what to plant and how to plan for the greatest yield based on data from in-field sensors. Farmer Charlie also gives users updates on up-to-date market information and news that may impact operations.
Lancey Energy Storage
Lancey Energy Storage started with the idea of combining a battery with an electric radiator. That simple idea was all it took to create a new form of self-consumptive and democratic residential heating that can potentially revolutionize the utilities industry.
The Lancey heater works in the same way as any other radiator, with a connected digital thermostat to understand and adapt to your heating needs and your home’s characteristics. However, during off-peak hours, the battery also stores electricity for when you need it. This allows up to 100% energy self-consumption, saving energy costs for users and reducing the impact of the utilities industry on our planet.
Puzzle English International
Puzzle English is a Russian self-study education platform for completing English listening, reading, writing, and speaking practice through engaging puzzles and word association games. The platform also offers more in-depth courses, and a catalogue of educational and fiction books.
The website and its connected apps currently have 9 million users worldwide, and their popularity also extends to the business world. Forbes called Puzzle English “the fastest growing project for learning English on the Russian internet.”
Otarki
Self-sustainability is now more than just a buzz phrase. Increasingly, it’s becoming a legitimate alternative lifestyle. Many people all over the world are looking for like-minded people dedicated to producing what they need with minimum dependency on external sources. Greentech startup Otarki is a social platform that connects people in sustainable communities.
Otarki’s tech creates an economy model that handles all aspects of a sustainable life, including funding, housing, insurance, business, and the production of food and energy. Member families that follow this model are empowered to live in a cleaner and greener way, while also creating business value and real estate value for the greentech firm’s member network and external investors.
These new tech-for-good startups championing sustainable solutions to our everyday challenges are just a small part of Web Summit’s 2,500-strong network of startups.
Want to know what other innovative startups will be joining us in December? Visit our featured startups page.
Main image courtesy of Web Summit.
