Elon Musk-funded XPRIZE Decarbonization Contest reveals 15 winners of ‘Achievement Round’
Fifteen early stage winners of the “Achievement Round” of the $100 million Elon Musk-funded XPRIZE decarbonization competition were announced Friday. Each of the winning teams will receive $1 million, which should provide the teams with a boost to expanding their work.
The XPRIZE Carbon Removal Competition was launched to encourage the development of innovative technologies that can help reduce carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. The $100 million carbon sequestration award, provided by Elon Musk through the Musk Foundation, will be managed by XPRIZE, a non-profit organization.
The Global Decarbonization Competition was launched last year, and is expected to last four years. The grand prize winner is expected to be announced in April 2025. It should be noted that recently announced grand prize winners are not necessarily preferred to win the final prize of the competition. Interested groups may also join the competition until December 2023.
The winners of the $1 million “Achievement Round” have proposed a number of new innovations that could help remove carbon from the air. Planetary Technologies from Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, for example, has suggested using antacids from mineral mining residues to make the ocean better able to absorb greenhouse gases.
Planetary Technologies CEO Mike Keeland expressed his appreciation for his team’s accomplishments. “What we said is you didn’t give us a million dollars; what you did is a catalytic investment in this technology.”
Calcite from 8 Rivers Capital of Durham, North Carolina, aims to trap atmospheric carbon dioxide in calcium carbonate crystals, a process not unlike the way gas dissolves in the ocean that helps form nacre and limestone. On the other hand, California-based Global Algae is seeking to grow algae to help restore rainforests.
The winning XPRIZE team or teams must achieve a number of goals to earn the final prize for the competition. First, they must demonstrate that their innovation is capable of removing 1,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere annually. They must also show the cost of removing up to one million metric tons of carbon annually. Finally, they must show a path toward removing billions of tons of carbon dioxide annually.
The following teams are the 15 winners of the “Achievement Round” of the XPRIZE decarbonization competition.
* Quotes provided by ABC News.
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