New Study From Saoradh Enterprise Partners Ranks Top 40 US Cleantech Hubs
First Nationwide Ranking Reveals Unexpected Sources for Cleantech Solutions, Urgent Resource Gap
BOULDER, Colo. – October 20, 2021 – With the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) calling for “immediate, rapid, and large-scale” changes to limit warming, the search for climate solutions is more urgent than ever. Fortunately, a new report shows that cleantech is gaining momentum in the United States.
The 2021 Cleantech Innovation Hubs Survey, from Colorado-based venture capital and research firm Saoradh Enterprise Partners (SEP), is the first ranking of cleantech innovation hubs in the US. SEP defines innovation hubs as functioning geographic ecosystems based on research funding, technology development, venture formation, and other metrics. The report ranks the 40 strongest cleantech ecosystems in the nation and characterizes their strengths and weaknesses.
Ahead of the milestone COP26 later this month, SEP aims to provide investors, corporations, policymakers, and other stakeholders with a mission-critical roadmap for where to develop cleantech in the US.
Key insights from the report include:
Climate solutions are emerging in unexpected places: Silicon Valley, Boston, and NYC, although crucial areas for innovation, are far from the only cleantech hubs. Places like Pittsburgh (#18), Salt Lake City (#27), Atlanta (#10), Detroit (#15), Houston (#19), the New Mexico Corridor (#23), and Phoenix (#22) have growing ecosystems.
Emerging hubs are being overlooked: Investors still have a narrow focus on California, Massachusetts, and New York. In the US, 75% of cleantech venture capital funding is invested in those three states. At the same time, 74% of innovation funding goes to the other 47.
This resource gap is putting cleantech in jeopardy: When it comes to climate change, potential solutions can’t go ignored. The split between innovation funding (for research and tech development) and invested resources means cleantech innovation is happening in emerging hubs without the crucial investment stage that brings this tech to market.
“Our goal is to illuminate innovation happening across the country,” said Paul Nelson, Managing Partner of SEP. “Over the years, we’ve seen cleantech flourish in our own backyard – what we call the Colorado Clean Range – but it’s been under the radar for much of the cleantech community. That experience has motivated us to shed light on other places where innovation is being overlooked.”
SEP’s data shows that there’s a resource gap leaving cleantech innovations with a limited runway to succeed. “With something as urgent as climate change, that’s a stunning oversight. We must optimize where resources are going,” said Nelson. “If investors and other stakeholders pay attention, we’ll be positioned to identify and commercialize untapped tech and direct the resources needed to build a sustainable future.”
The Top 10 Cleantech Innovation Hubs
The Bay Area
Boston
New York
Los Angeles
The Colorado Clean Range
D.C.
Chicagoland
Seattle
San Diego
Atlanta
What the Cleantech Community is Saying
“I appreciate SEP's inaugural Cleantech Innovation Hubs survey and its unique insights into tomorrow's clean energy technologies in development today, especially the depth of their systematic study of regions too often overlooked and commercial technologies frequently unconsidered.” - Eric J. Vettel, PhD, President of the American Energy Society
“SEP's Innovation Hubs Survey highlights the proven results of regional collaboration to promote cleantech development. Colorado's unique culture of cooperation and partnership from multiple stakeholders has led to its strength as a cleantech hub and we hope this model is helpful to other regions.” - Maury Dobbie, Executive Director at the Colorado Energy Research Collaboratory
“Heartland Forward is pleased Saoradh Enterprise Partners incorporated our Metropolitan Young Firms Index in its analysis of Cleantech Innovation Hubs. SEP's Survey fills in part of the picture of the great (and often overlooked) innovation engine in America's Heartland, specifically when it comes to cleantech.” - Ross DeVol, President and CEO of Heartland Forward
“The Innovation Hub Survey serves as a valuable tool to enable the tracking of innovation and entrepreneurship across the United States. Understanding our current landscape and its gaps will help us inclusively expand and engage with new innovators, which will aid in sustaining our clean energy future.” - Kimberlee Ott, Network Innovation Manager at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory
“Ever since China’s climate tech investment wave peaked in 2017, the US venture market has been accelerating. Understanding the dynamics within climate tech’s fragmented investment landscape is essential. The Cleantech Innovation Hub Survey provides crucial data and insight as to where, exactly, innovation takes place. I cannot stress enough how important it is for investors, entrepreneurs, and policymakers to understand the geography of cleantech innovations.” - Svenja Telle, Analyst, Cleantech & Climate-Tech, at PitchBook Data, Inc.
“Investing in cleantech innovation, ideas, products, and technologies to help us live sustainably, is an essential part of addressing climate change. The SEP 2021 Cleantech Innovation Hubs Survey is a great tool to help map the potential for stronger cleantech ecosystems across the U.S. and highlights regions where today's investments can build the industries of tomorrow.” - Elena Crete, Head of the Climate & Energy Program at the United Nations Sustainable Development Solutions Network
“SEP's Cleantech Innovation Hubs Survey is a good compass for industry to know where cleantech innovation is happening and to better understand the character of different regional ecosystems in the US. The Hubs Survey is an example of how Wellspring's data can be leveraged to shed light on centers of innovation.” - Robert Lowe, CEO of Wellspring
The whitepaper summary of the Hubs Survey, with the complete list of the top 40 hubs, can be found at www.saoradh.com/hubs.
About SEP
Saoradh Enterprise Partners (SEP) is a venture capital and research firm focused on technologies for disruptive sustainability across the nine sectors that comprise the cleantech ecosystem. SEP leverages its innovative market and technology research platform to identify cleantech commercialization opportunities in emerging US innovation hubs for its corporate clients and investment funds. The SEP team partners with entrepreneurs, innovators, and leading corporations to develop technology and build companies for a sustainable future.
Media contact: John Metzger, (303) 641-1062, john@metzger.com