Ireland’s 2050 Accelerator: A Launchpad for Global Green Tech

Building on its commitment to tackling pressing sustainability challenges, the 2050 Accelerator is entering its second year, run by Dogpatch Labs with support from the Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications (DECC) and in partnership with industry leaders Kerry Dairy Ireland, ESB, and Coillte.

This programme, with the ambition of advancing global green tech, brings together seven sustainability-focused startups from Ireland, the UK, Europe, and the US to develop pilots for their new technology alongside corporate partners, leveraging Ireland’s sustainability assets in energy, agriculture, and forestry to drive real-world impact.

Tamara Leigh, a leader in agricultural technology, steps in as the new 2050 Accelerator Director. Leigh is not your typical executive; she is a sought-after speaker on AI applications in agriculture and women in deep tech and previously led EIO Diagnostics, a startup that revolutionised the detection of mastitis in dairy cows using computer vision and machine learning. She was also a participant in the 2050 Accelerator’s first cohort.

Leigh shares her vision: “The 2050 Accelerator helps bridge the gap between breakthrough technologies and real-world implementation. By providing startups with access to strategic partner resources and Dogpatch Lab’s network of mentors and scale-up experts, we enable these ventures to accelerate their progress, overcome challenges, refine their solutions and contribute to a more sustainable future for all.”

The Accelerator boasts a legacy of nurturing high-impact companies such as Yale spin-out CREW Carbon, who went on to raise a $5.3M seed round to capture carbon at wastewater treatment facilities and Silicate Carbon, a finalist in the international XPRIZE Carbon Removal Competition. Other notable alumni include Irish-based Micron Agritech, who later raised €2.7M to minimise unnecessary anti-parasite treatments in agriculture, and Germany’s Nerit’e who partnered with Kerry Dairy Ireland to provide farmers with sensors that can detect different nutrient levels in the soil, helping them make more informed decisions about fertiliser usage.

The 2050 Accelerator will conclude in a showcase day in the CHQ building, Dublin 1, on Thursday, June 19, 2025, to an audience of international investors, corporate partners, industry stakeholders, and the wider sustainability community.

For additional information on the 2050 Accelerator, the showcase day and its ambitious 2025 cohort, visit https://www.2050accelerator.com/.

Each strategic partner within the collaboration contributes distinct strengths and has set specific challenge areas which are vital to the Accelerator’s mission.

Kerry Dairy Ireland is driving growth in sustainability from farm to factory, focusing on carbon reduction, regenerative agriculture, advancements in cow productivity, innovation in dairy nutrition and improving transparency in the dairy supply chain.

Zita McCarthy, Senior Sustainability Manager at Kerry Dairy Ireland, expressed excitement about the ongoing partnership: “At Kerry Dairy Ireland, we recognise that staying at the forefront of sustainable innovation is not just an ambition—it’s a necessity. The 2025 launch of the 2050 Sustainability Accelerator with Dogpatch Labs is a powerful step forward in our commitment to delivering real, measurable progress against both our near- and long-term sustainability targets.

“By actively engaging with pioneering startups from across the world, we are fostering the next generation of solutions that will drive a more sustainable food system. Collaboration and innovation go hand in hand, and through this initiative, we are accelerating the future of sustainable dairy.”

As set out in its Driven to Make a Difference: Achieving Net Zero by 2040 strategy, ESB has set out a clear pathway to achieve net zero emissions in a way that supports its customers and ensures continued growth. ESB is undertaking transformational changes right across its group to support national climate action plans and address multiple, interlinking sustainability challenges.

Speaking about the significance of participating in the programme, Geraldine Moloney, New Ventures at ESB, remarked, “Collaboration is key to achieving a net-zero energy future, and through this programme, we are excited to work alongside forward-thinking entrepreneurs to develop and scale solutions that will help drive Ireland’s energy transition. Demonstrating the real-world impact of the 2050 Accelerator programme, we partnered with the Cork-based startup Bladebridge to support our resource use and circular economy commitment by using repurposed wind turbines for our new e-mobility initiative.”

Coillte’s purpose is to manage the state forests on behalf of the people of Ireland and its strategic vision for its future forest estate sets out its ambitions to 2050 to bring more focus to climate action, biodiversity and recreation, while continuing to deliver for the forest and wood products industry.

Kenneth Joyce, Head of Strategic Business Development at Coillte remarked, “Coillte is delighted to collaborate again with the 2050 Accelerator after successfully partnering with two startups from the 2023 programme, Carbonstack and Hiiker. Our pilot with Hiiker offered a new and innovative way for local and visiting outdoor enthusiasts to experience Coillte forests by offering walkers and hikers real-time forest and walking trail insights before and during their visits.

“This year we are looking forward to exploring innovative solutions in key areas such as carbon and biodiversity as well as looking at new ways to enhance forestry operations and logistics.”

This year’s 2050 Accelerator cohort includes:

TurtleTree: Uses precision fermentation to produce bioactive milk proteins like LF+, a sustainable, animal-free lactoferrin, aiming to nourish the planet with better nutrition for all.

Wholechain: A blockchain-enabled traceability solution that enhances trust and transparency in supply chains, allowing certainty of product origins by registering each supply chain event.

PES Technologies: Creates handheld devices that analyse soil health via VOCs from microbes, providing real-time data to help farmers make informed, sustainable farming decisions.

Tern: AI-based navigation software that doesn’t require GPS, GNSS (GPS alternative), or any external signalling, allowing for global, offline navigation for all vehicle types.

Terra Motion: Uses satellite imagery and data analytics to monitor peatland, safeguarding communities and infrastructure from subsidence and ground instability risks.

Soilytix: A Hamburg-based biotech company, uses DNA sequencing and machine learning to decode soil DNA, offering insights to optimise crop yields and promote sustainable agriculture globally

Iona Drones: Developing the white label drone delivery solution for logistics operators who are losing hundreds of millions every year trying to amortise small volumes and remote deliveries.(– ENDS –)

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