HCL Group and UpLink Launch Fifth Global Aquapreneur Innovation Challenge to Advance Future Water Systems

HCL Group, in partnership with UpLink - the early-stage innovation initiative of the World Economic Forum - has launched the fifth global challenge under the Aquapreneur Innovation Initiative, titled Transforming Water Systems. Applications will be open from 22 April to 4 June 2026. The top 10 winners will receive a total financial award of CHF 1.75 million. For details on eligibility and application criteria, visit: UpLink - Transforming Water Systems.

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The Aquapreneur Innovation Initiative is a five-year, CHF 15 million collaboration between UpLink, HCL Group, and the World Economic Forum’s Food and Water Initiative, focused on building a global innovation ecosystem for freshwater solutions.

As water systems face increasing pressure from climate variability, industrial demand, and infrastructure constraints, the challenge shifts the focus from isolated issues to systemic risks. It seeks innovations that improve reliability, efficiency, and decision-making across water systems, particularly in strengthening supply reliability, redesigning water-intensive processes, and enhancing system intelligence.

The challenge invites solutions across three key focus areas:

1. Ensuring Water Supply Reliability – Innovations that ensure dependable water supply at both the site level and across broader water systems, from individual facilities and campuses to citywide and regional networks. This focus area prioritizes solutions that secure availability, continuity and quality of supply under increasing variability, disruption and operational stress, as climate extremes, energy instability and contamination risks increasingly affect interconnected systems.
2. Redesigning Water-Intensive Industrial and Digital Processes – Innovations that fundamentally re-engineer processes where water use, heat management and production continuity are tightly coupled. This focus area prioritizes solutions that reduce water intensity, improve system stability and decouple performance from freshwater dependence in water-critical operations.
3. Water System Intelligence for Decision Making - Technologies that improve visibility, prediction and decision-making across water systems, from facility operations to basin-scale planning. This focus area prioritizes tools that turn data into actionable decisions, strengthening preparedness and enabling earlier intervention in response to water stress, quality changes, and climate-driven volatility.

During the launch of the challenge, Sundar Mahalingam, President, Strategy at HCL Group, said, “Water is fast emerging as critical infrastructure, shaping economic resilience, industrial continuity, and technological progress. The future of water is no longer just about supply, but about systems strained by climate volatility, industrial dependence, and decision-making gaps. Through this challenge, we aim to drive innovations that secure reliability, re-engineer water-intensive processes, and enable data-driven choices. These efforts have already saved over 14 billion litres of water, treated 1.8 billion litres, and unlocked more than USD 125 million in follow-on funding.”

“Around 20% of global freshwater withdrawals are driven by energy and production systems, with demand rising due to electrification and cooling needs, creating a growing area of pressure and opportunity,” said John Dutton, Head of UpLink at the World Economic Forum. “Early-stage solutions exist, but many lack the partnerships, funding and real-world deployment support needed to scale. Addressing the future of water will require coordinated action across innovators, industry and the public sector. Through this challenge, we aim to support entrepreneurs advancing industrial transformation, climate resilience and data-driven water management, and connect them with the resources needed to scale their impact.”

Evidence from the initiative highlights the catalytic role of funding and partnerships in accelerating early-stage innovation. Around 70% of ventures report that HCL funding was critical, either enabling projects or significantly accelerating delivery, underscoring its role as a de-risking mechanism. Complemented by access to strategic partners, this support has further accelerated the growth of Aquapreneurs, enabling them to enter new markets, launch new products, and strengthen their commercial pathways. As a result, ventures are advancing product development, expanding customer deployments, and building the teams and capabilities needed for sustained growth.

This impact is reflected in venture experiences. One venture noted that the funding allowed it to accelerate key initiatives across hiring, technology development, and market engagement, advancing its roadmap earlier and at greater scale. Another highlighted that the support created the capacity to expand pilot and project delivery capabilities. A third shared that the funding enabled a pilot that would not have been possible otherwise, allowing the venture to move forward immediately rather than continuing to seek external financing.

Selected participants will gain access to funding, mentorship, global visibility, and a network of industry leaders, policymakers, and investors.

About HCL

Founded in 1976 as one of India’s original IT garage start-ups, HCL Group is a pioneer of modern computing with many firsts to its credit, including the introduction of the 8-bit microprocessor-based computer in 1978, well before its global peers. Today, the HCL Group has a presence across varied sectors that include technology, healthcare and talent management solutions and comprises three companies – HCL Infosystems, HCLTech and HCL Healthcare. The conglomerate generates annual revenues of over US $14.7B with 227,000 employees operating across 60 countries. For further information, visit www.hcl.com.

About UpLink

UpLink, the World Economic Forum’s early-stage innovation engine, connects purpose-driven innovators with the partnerships, resources and capital they need to scale solutions for the markets and economies critical to a resilient, sustainable and prosperous world. UpLink envisions a future where profit and purpose go hand in hand — where innovation drives competitiveness, inclusion, and long-term value, where economic growth uplifts people while restoring the planet, and where resilience is the foundation of thriving, future-proof economies. For further information, click here.

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