Solar start-up praises Climate KIC’s assistance on clean energy live stream

EU-backed start-up incubation programmes such as Climate KIC’s Accelerator programme are playing a crucial role in helping seed a new generation of cleantech businesses across Europe, according to discussion on what the EU can do to best support start-ups this month (22 February).

The live-streamed panel, hosted by Vice-President of the European Commission for the Energy Union, Maroš Šefčovič, in the lead up to the European Commission’s Clean Energy Industrial Forum, featured Epishine, a start-up developing a photovoltaic solar cell that can harvest energy indoors. Epishine’s work has been supported and accelerated by Climate-KIC.

Epishine co-founder Emma Woxlin was invited to the EU Commission in Brussels by Vice-President Maroš Šefčovič as part of the discussion on what the EU can do to best support start-ups as cleantech entrepreneurs.

“We’re happy that political leaders take our ideas into account and for what the EU is already doing for us, for example, through the EU accelerator Climate KIC,” Woxlin said. “It was interesting to hear what the EU is already planning to do to make it easier for us to reach the European market.”

The Commission wants to connect innovators with the institutions and financiers keen to support them, Šefčovič, told his 350,000 LinkedIn followers.

Woxlin, who has been part of Climate-KIC’s Accelerator programme, for one and a half years, praised its support and went on to urge the European Commission to put funds into Climate-KIC.

Epishine, co-founded by Emma Woxlin at the age of 24, is a Swedish green start-up, spun off from Linköping and Chalmers Universities.

With a core team of three scientists, Epishine is looking to develop the world’s most scalable, resource efficient and affordable solar module in the world.

In February, the start-up was selected as one of the 25 most promising cleantech start-ups from the Nordics, as part of the Nordic Cleantech Open 2018.

Climate-KIC offers structured business and commercial support to European start-ups in the new climate economy through its Accelerator programme, a real-world business school for entrepreneurs, looking to transform their ideas into successful climate-positive businesses.

Visit our Accelerator programme for full details.