Answers to common questions from founders, investors, and researchers using Climate Innovation Compass India.
Deep-tech climate startups often require longer gestation periods, specialised technical expertise, and strong connections with research institutions. We recommend starting by identifying a validated problem statement on the platform and gaining a deeper understanding of the opportunity area.
If the problem calls to you, or you have a solution in mind, the next step is to validate the problem further with customer discovery. Next, you might want to find like-minded individuals working in the same area. For both of these, you can register interest on our platform, and through a double opt-in process, we would be happy to connect you.
Start by exploring the sectors and understanding how they work, including the key stakeholders and value chains involved.
Next, dive into the opportunities (problem statements). Each opportunity represents a challenge that our team has validated based on its climate impact, economic viability, and market readiness in the Indian context.
You can filter opportunities by sector or technology area, explore the problem statements, understand the solutions that exist today, and identify the gaps that still need to be addressed.
If a problem resonates with you and you are building a solution in that space, let us know through the contact form. We would love to learn more about your work.
Use the contact form on the platform to express your interest area and the type of co-founder you are looking for. We will connect you with others in the network who are working on similar problems. You can also participate in events run by Pragati Earth where founders actively meet and collaborate.
India has made great strides on renewable energy and electric 2W and 3W adoption. However, we have a vast set of opportunities across industrial heating, building materials, food & agriculture, long-haul trucking, water, adaptation & resilience which remain unsolved. To give you a few examples:
It does not mean your solution is unimportant. Our methodology prioritises problems based on current market readiness and the potential for commercial adoption in the near term. As a result, some important problem areas may not be featured yet, especially if they are still at an early stage or require longer development timelines.
If you believe we have overlooked a problem area, please reach out through the form. We are continuously updating the Climate Innovation Compass, and your input can help us improve future iterations.
In the majority of cases, fundability depends on three factors: problem scale, market readiness, and differentiation. Our framework already filters for the first two. To assess differentiation, look at the 'What has been tried' section for your problem area on the Compass. If you are solving a gap that existing approaches miss, and there is a customer willing to pay, that is the strongest signal for investors.
Yes. If your startup is working on one of the documented opportunity areas, use the contact form to reach out. Pragati Earth is actively looking to connect with founders working on high-priority climate problems in India.
Climate Innovation Compass lists a wide range of problem statements validated for customer demand. We have mapped the current innovation pathways, have highlighted some of the current innovations in India and identified the gaps with scope for innovation. These gaps represent areas where new ventures are likely to emerge. You can use the compass to explore these opportunities in depth.
You can also use the platform to connect with early-stage founders working in these spaces- before they show up in traditional deal flow.
We use a problem-led methodology that evaluates each opportunity across three dimensions: scale of impact, economic value of the problem, and current readiness for adoption. This helps investors understand not just where the need is greatest, but where solutions are most likely to reach commercial viability in the near to medium term. To know more, we strongly recommend reading the Methodology here.
The p-ARL score is a 12-point market-pull index used by the Climate Innovation Compass, adapted from the US Department of Energy's Adoption Readiness Level framework. It scores a problem 0-3 on four parameters (economic switching cost, regulatory force, infrastructure readiness, and value-chain consensus) to measure how ready the market is for a solution.
ARI = Hazard x Exposure x (Sensitivity ÷ Adaptive Capacity), with each driver scored 1-3. Scores range from 0.33 to 27; higher scores indicate greater adaptation need.
The opportunities are selected from a long list of customer paint points and needs collated via a series of expert interviews. Post that, each opportunity passed three tests: market pull and economic potential, mitigation or adaptation impact potential, and a white-space for innovation, where only a few players are present and it can be solved by scientific, engineering, business-model, or financial innovation rather than policy or capital alone.
The compass is a live database that will be refreshed periodically and new opportunities are added on an ongoing basis. Every problem page shows its author and last-updated date. You can subscribe to our newsletter to stay updated about our latest developments.