Eight Global Climate Tech Start-Ups to Vie for S$4M in Funding at The Liveability Challenge 2026

Why It Matters

The funding accelerates commercialization of scalable climate solutions for tropical cities, addressing urgent emissions and heat‑stress challenges while signaling renewed investor confidence in climate tech.

Key Takeaways

• Eight startups shortlisted from 1,500+ global submissions
• Prize pool exceeds S$4 million across two tracks
• Decarbonisation and Cool Earth themes target emissions, heat stress
• Funding includes S$1 million grants from Temasek Foundation
• VC climate‑tech funding up 8% to US$40.5 bn in 2025

Pulse Analysis

The Liveability Challenge, launched by Temasek Foundation and Eco‑Business in 2018, has become Asia’s premier accelerator for climate‑tech innovations targeting dense, tropical urban environments. Over nine years the programme has incubated 54 startups and deployed more than S$16 million in capital, positioning itself as a bridge between laboratory breakthroughs and market adoption. This year’s record‑high shortlist—eight companies drawn from a pool of 1,500 submissions across 100 nations—underscores the growing depth of the global climate‑tech pipeline and the appetite for solutions that can be scaled quickly in heat‑prone cities.

The finalists span two strategic tracks: Decarbonisation and Cool Earth. UK‑based Endo Enterprises offers a closed‑loop hydronic additive that can cut building cooling demand by up to 15 percent, while Singapore’s FlueVault and Metha8 target low‑cost carbon capture and methanol‑to‑power conversion. US entrants MacroCycle Technologies and Power To Hydrogen push textile recycling and hydrogen production efficiencies, and Japan’s Spacecool deploys passive radiative cooling to mitigate urban heat islands. Estonia’s UP Catalyst transforms flue‑gas emissions into battery‑grade carbon, and France’s Yama delivers electrified capture for dilute gas streams, together representing a cross‑section of high‑impact, commercially viable technologies.

The S$4 million prize pool, split between grant awards and A*STAR development funding, provides critical runway for these ventures at a time when geopolitical tensions are reshaping capital flows. Global climate‑tech venture investment rebounded in 2025, reaching US$40.5 billion—a modest 8 percent increase and the first growth since the 2021‑22 boom—signalling renewed confidence in mature, scalable solutions. As the market is projected to hit US$115 billion by 2030, the Liveability Challenge not only spotlights emerging talent but also aligns with broader investor trends favoring technologies that can deliver measurable emissions reductions and heat‑stress mitigation in rapidly urbanising regions.