Net Zero Challenge 2026 Awards $770,000 to Climate Startups

Vietnam's Net Zero Challenge 2026 has awarded $770,000 in catalytic grants and investment prizes to climate startups from four countries. The winners will pilot their solutions in Vietnam.

Touchstone Partners, a co-organizer, announced the results in a statement on Thursday. The challenge is in its fourth year. It received more than 1,100 applications from 80 countries and territories, making the 2026 edition the most competitive since the competition was founded in 2023.

Touchstone Partners co-hosted the event with Singapore's Temasek Foundation and the Vietnam International Financial Center in Ho Chi Minh City (VIFC-HCMC).

Who won the three grand prizes?

Nine finalists presented at the Grand Finale across three tracks: renewables and carbon removal; food systems and sustainable agriculture; and circular economy and waste management. The organizers named one grand-prize winner per track.

• Renewables and carbon removal: Recoal (Switzerland). The startup turns wet biomass residues into hydrochar, which is stored permanently underground without any pre-drying.
• Food systems: STRING BIO (India). Its product, CleanRise, is a biological input that helps rice farmers grow more with less fertilizer. It can cut crop methane and nitrous oxide emissions by up to 50 percent.
• Circular economy: Phuc Sang Minh Gas (Vietnam). The company upgrades waste-derived biogas into BioCNG, a substitute for fossil fuels in industrial heating.

What are the investment prizes?

Four investment prizes of $50,000 each went to finalists, with corporate and venture investors writing the checks.

• TRINANO Technologies (India) received a cash prize from Sembcorp Industries.
• Zenwood (Vietnam) received an investment from LOTTE Ventures.
• Living Roots (Thailand) received an investment from Monsoon Ventures.
• Phuc Sang Minh Gas (Vietnam) received an investment from Touchstone Partners.

Phuc Sang Minh Gas leaves the competition with two wins: the circular-economy grand prize and a separate investment from a co-organizer.

Which partners backed the challenge?

Strategic partner GS Engineering & Construction returned for a second year. Key investor partners included LOTTE Ventures, Monsoon Ventures and Sembcorp Industries.

Six catalyst partners joined for the first time: Breakthrough Energy, Schneider Electric Energy Access Asia, Gateway of Asia, Riverstage Thu Thiem, the Ho Chi Minh City Venture Capital Fund, and UrBox.

The expanding partner roster points to growing investor interest in Vietnamese climate deployment, not just Vietnamese climate ideas. Corporate venture arms and regional funds now sit directly in the selection process, which shortens the path from pitch to pilot for winners such as Recoal and Zenwood.

The challenge also fits a broader financing push by its co-hosts. VIFC-HCMC and Touchstone Partners previously launched a $100 million 1:1 co-investment program for startups, giving prize winners a potential follow-on channel once their Vietnam pilots mature.