Artificial intelligence, inspection drones and smart wearable sensors are some of the innovations that mark the projects of the nine startups selected in the "Grids of the Future" module of the 8th edition of Energy Starter, EDP's collaborative innovation programme. The selected companies, from eight countries - Germany, Australia, Belgium, Spain, the United States, Finland, Portugal and the United Kingdom - will now participate in a bootcamp in Santander (Spain), between 28 and 30 November, with the aim of accelerating the development of pilot projects and potential businesses.

To this end, for three days, the startups - chosen based on an evaluation that included an online pitch - will have the opportunity to present their most innovative ideas and discuss them with EDP specialists from different business units and geographies. The meeting will also facilitate contact with a large group of mentors and experts who, in addition to supporting the development of the tests together with EDP, will provide relevant feedback to improve the products and services. In addition, the startups will have access to potential financial support and the experience and network of EDP Ventures.

Created to discover fast-growing startups and scaleups from around the world with the most disruptive solutions to accelerate the energy transition, Energy Starter thus closes the first of the three modules of this edition dedicated to the "Grids of the Future". The following modules will also be dedicated to strategic areas of the EDP Group, such as 'Renewable energies and green hydrogen' and 'Mobility and customer solutions'. The programme closes with a global event ('open day') in which the solutions developed in the different modules and the multiple challenges generated will be shared with the innovation ecosystem.

In this first track, EDP is looking for companies and solutions that contribute to renewing energy networks and distribution, from generation to the end consumer.

Electricity grids are a strategic growth area for EDP, which foresees a global investment of around 4 billion euros (representing 15% of the total gross investment of 25 billion euros) between 2023-2026.

Through partnerships with startups and scaleups in this area, the aim is not only to introduce innovation into existing infrastructures, but also to explore new avenues for growth.

Accelerating the transition

Over the last seven editions of Energy Starter, EDP has selected 183 startups from 27 countries, jointly developing 70 pilot projects and 27 rollouts (integration of a new product or service in the market) that have already started to reshape the energy landscape, with a total investment of EUR 23 million. This record underlines EDP's success in promoting innovation through this strategic partnership and reaffirms its commitment to the development of sustainable technologies that promote a more sustainable and efficient energy future.

Read more about the nine selected startups and what makes them potential accelerators of the energy transition.

• Alteria Automation (Spain)

Customised smart sensors for condition monitoring and predictive maintenance of substation transformers.

• Bamboo Energy Platform ((Spain)

Customised AI-based software platform to efficiently manage and monetise distributed flexibility resources.

• Beyond Vision (Portugal)

Drone manufacturer developing aircraft with AI-based communication systems capable of automating asset inspection.

• Cellgrid (Germany)

AI-based platform that enables more efficient grid planning by forecasting urban population and energy demand with building-level resolution.

• Infravision (Australia)

Aerial robotics and software solutions to increase grid capacity and automate power line construction.

• Rombit (Belgium)

Plug-and-play IoT solutions to improve worker safety compliance.

• Safegrid Oy (Finland)

Instant-on wireless sensors and cloud-based analytics for locating, predicting and preventing network failures.

• Synaptec (United Kingdom)

Passive electrical sensor networks for monitoring high voltage electrical systems.

• Safeguard Equipment (United States)

Intelligent safety devices for field workers and their equipment.