The Royal Society of Chemistry’s Emerging Technologies Competition 2020 welcomes entries

--- Competition to bring cutting-edge science to the real world seeks projects to tackle the world’s most pressing issues in extraordinary year ---

The Royal Society of Chemistry has officially opened its Emerging Technologies Competition 2020 for entries.

Now in its eighth year, the competition is a European programme identifying some of the most novel, innovative and promising chemistry. It awards a share of £160,000 no-strings funding and support to accelerate tech innovators, start-ups and spin outs – across the core categories of Health, Energy & Environment, Food & Drink and Enabling Technologies.

The programme is designed to provide a unique platform for these innovators to engage directly with and learn from large multinational partners and judges - including AstraZeneca, Boots, Croda, Johnson Matthey, Pepsico, Pfizer, Reckitt Benckiser, RSSL, and Unilever - to build exposure and unrivalled industry validation for their projects.

Jo Reynolds, Director of Science & Communities at the Royal Society of Chemistry, said: “In this incredibly challenging year, we are proud to begin inviting applications to our Emerging Technologies Competition.

“Chemistry has a prominent role to play in developing solutions to COVID-19 and a wide range of pressing societal challenges. Through this competition, agile tech innovators, start-ups and spin-outs have a huge opportunity to show how they can contribute to tackling some of the critical issues facing the world today.

“Many of our highly experienced judges have been closely involved in the competition since its inception in 2013, and we are very much looking forward to seeing the creative ideas and innovations that are going to help shape the world of tomorrow.”

This year, each winner stands to gain £20,000 prize money – up from £10,000 last year – as well as 12 months’ one-on-one support from a specially assigned Royal Society of Chemistry mentor, and a further £20,000 available as a business acceleration grant.

Previous winners have tackled issues from the diagnosis and treatment of chronic diseases to wound healing, food waste and sustainable energy. In this unparalleled year, the competition is once again calling on entrants to demonstrate the leading challenges they could help to overcome for the benefit of the scientific community, industry and society as a whole.

Emerging Technologies Competition winners from previous years have gone on to raise a combined total of over £46m in equity investment and grant funding, with one company subsequently being sold for £28m.

Winners and participants have significantly raised their profiles, expanded overseas, entered commercial contracts, conducted clinical and industrial scale trials, and collectively doubled their staff.

The competition is free to apply to and welcomes applicants from the UK and Europe whose technology has a strong component of chemistry, in one of the following categories:

·         Health

·         Energy & environment

·         Food & drink

·         Enabling technologies