Washington, DC, (November 25, 2024) – Village Capital announced that Airbuild and Pirl Technology were peer-selected to receive investment capital funding as part of the Dream Climate Tech Launchpad 2024 accelerator. This milestone-based, investment-readiness program was launched in partnership with Dream.Org, with support from Salesforce, to uplift Black and Latinx-led climate tech startups that are advancing solutions for environmental justice.
The Dream Climate Tech Launchpad 2024 accelerator supported ten startups focused on building scalable climate solutions across key sectors, including energy, built environment, and electric transportation & infrastructure. These innovations are designed to address systemic environmental injustices faced by historically marginalized communities in the US.
“The Dream Climate Tech Launchpad 2024 has been a testament to the incredible impact that diverse perspectives can bring to climate innovation,” says Martin Alexis, US Program Manager for Village Capital. “These entrepreneurs are not only building solutions; they’re creating pathways for a more sustainable future. It’s inspiring to see how they tackle complex challenges with creativity and resilience, turning bold ideas into impactful, tangible change.
Airbuild and Pirl Technology were selected for investment by a group of peer entrepreneurs on the final day of the Dream Climate Tech Launchpad 2024 accelerator, a five-month startup development program that wrapped up at a four-day in-person summit hosted by Dream.Org in Pittsburgh, PA.
The ten participant startups evaluated each other through an investor lens, using eight specific investment criteria that leverage Village Capital’s venture investment levels. Airbuild and Pirl Technology were the top-ranked by their peers and will receive investment capital of USD 25K each from Dream.Org to support their operations, and all the participant startups will receive USD 5K as a non-dilutive, equity-free grant.
“Something I learned during the Village Capital program is the importance of storytelling, not just as a way to explain our business but as a tool to make people feel invested in our mission,” shared Emiola Banwo, Founder and Executive Director of Monuments.
The peer-selected startups focus on the following:
For more information, reach out to Yireth Villaverde at Village Capital (yireth.villaverde@vilcap.com).
About Village Capital
Village Capital is reinventing the system to back the entrepreneurs of the future. Known for its groundbreaking approaches to supporting founders who are building solutions to emergent social, economic, and environmental challenges, VilCap unlocks critical social and financial capital for early-stage companies to maximize business and impact growth.
Village Capital has operated in the US since 2009 by running close to 50 accelerator programs. VilCap has supported more than 570 startups from over 43 states and 23 entrepreneur support organizations (ESO) working in sectors such as financial health, health equity, justice tech, and sustainability. Learn more at www.vilcap.com and follow @villagecapital.
About Dream.Org
At Dream.Org, we bring people together across racial, social, and partisan lines. Through our Justice, Tech, and Green For All programs we are working towards an America with fewer people behind bars, less pollution, and greater opportunities for underserved communities.
Learn more at Dream.Org.