CA-XPRIZE
22.6.2021 18:26:04 CEST | Business Wire | Press release
XPRIZE , the global leader in designing and operating incentive competitions to solve humanity’s grand challenges, officially announced today the teams moving forward in the $10M XPRIZE Rainforest aimed at improving our understanding of the rainforest ecosystem.
Sponsored by Alana Foundation , the five-year XPRIZE Rainforest is a call-to-action to help save rainforests through the development of transformative, scalable, and affordable technology to autonomously survey and monitor biodiversity in real-time, leading to insights that communicate the health, well-being, and value of standing tropical rainforests. XPRIZE Rainforest is co-developing an inclusive framework throughout all stages of the competition that ensures competing teams co-design and co-create solutions with Indigenous Peoples and local communities as key stakeholders and not just beneficiaries.
These 33 teams will now leverage existing and emerging technologies, such as robotics, remote sensing, data analysis, artificial intelligence, and machine learning, to develop new rainforest biodiversity survey tools that deliver information more quickly and affordably, and in unprecedented detail.
“There has never been a more urgent time for our planet,” Peter Houlihan, Vice President of Biodiversity & Conservation at XPRIZE said. “These teams show great promise for developing exciting new approaches to enhance shared understandings of the planet’s most complex and biodiverse terrestrial ecosystems.”
All registered teams submitted a qualifying submission detailing their approach and proposed technologies. The judging panel selected 33 teams, which hail from more than 16 countries and bring a collection of diverse backgrounds and industry experience.
The XPRIZE Rainforest qualified teams are:
- ACT NOW - Amazonas Action Alliance, Ecuador
- AirWrx, Canada
- Alouatta, Mexico
- AraceEye, Canada
- BiodivExplorer, Switzerland
- BioSTREAM, United Kingdom
- Bioverse, Brazil
- Blue Devil Rainforest Divers, United States
- Brazilian Team, Brazil
- Dinizia Excelsa, Brazil
- FLOATING FAB, Peru
- GainForest, Switzerland
- Inspire Robotics, United States
- KAA Initiative, Brazil
- Kreativno pero, Serbia
- Lorax, United States
- Map of Life, United States
- Mimicry Maniacs, United States
- Mowgli, India
- Nga Kaitiaki o te Ngaherehere, New Zealand
- PROVIDENCE PLUS, Spain
- Rainforest Quest, United States
- Reforester, Netherlands
- Selvascope, Netherlands
- Short-Eared Dogs, United States
- Team Morpho, United States
- Team Robotics, Japan
- Team Waponi!, United States
- Tengo Research Foundation, Panama
- Treeswift (Trefos Inc), United States
- Welcome to the Jungle, United States
- XiniX AI, Belgium
- Zissou, Brazil
Additional details about all competing teams can be found here . Additionally, watch Peter Houlihan speak about XPRIZE Rainforest, performanced-based design and goal setting for impact on a World Rainforest Day event as part of the Rainforest Ambitions series. Register here .
In order to win the competition, the winning team will survey the most biodiversity contained in 100 hectares of tropical rainforest in 24 hours and produce the most impactful real time insights within 48 hours.
“Nature Based Solutions are key to confronting the climate crises. We are celebrating teams from the Americas, Europe, Oceania, and Asia all united on the same goal: protecting our standing forests that provide water, biodiversity, livelihood, and our prosperity with an inclusive bioeconomy. The joining of these teams shows the urgency we have to change the scenario we are living. The world needs intelligent, possible, powerful solutions, but above all, made by people in communion. We hope that Alana Rainforest XPRIZE will inspire activism, science, and innovation for the benefit of the environment and people all over the world,” said Ana Lúcia Villela, president of Alana Foundation.
Successful technologies developed in the competition will demonstrate scalable and affordable capabilities that measurably improve biodiversity monitoring, including through better autonomous operations, innovative detection methodologies, and rapid data integration to provide new Insights in real time and at unprecedented levels of detail.
The XPRIZE Rainforest Judging Panel consists of an experienced and talented group of experts working at the highest levels of academia, leading conservation organizations, prestigious research institutions and grantmaking organizations. The 9 judges include:
- Dr. Jorge Ahumada –– Senior Wildlife Conservation Scientist, Conservation International
- Dr. Luisa Arnedo –– Primatologist, Conservationist, and Senior Program Officer, National Geographic Society
- Dr. Stuart Davies –– Director, Center for Tropical Forest Science-Forest Global Earth Observatory at the Smithsonian Institution
- Dr. Lian Pin Koh –– Professor of Conservation, Science, Technology & Policy, Founder, Conservation Drones
- Dr. Lucia Lohmann –– Executive Director, Association for Tropical Biology and Conservation
- Dr. Kevin Njabo –– Associate Director & Africa Director, UCLA Center for Tropical Research and the Congo Basin Institute
- Dr. Vojtech Novotny –– Head, Dep. of Ecology, Biology Centre, Czech Academy of Sciences Director, New Guinea Binatang Research Center, Professor of Ecology, Zoology Dep., University of South Bohemia
- Atossa Soltani –– Founder & President of the Board, Amazon Watch; Director of Global Strategy for Amazon Sacred Headwaters Initiative
- Dr. Dave Thau –– Lead Scientist, World Wildlife Fund Global Data and Tech
The next step for the competition is the semifinal round and then a final round of testing before the grand prize decision in 2024. A total prize purse of $10 Million US dollars (USD) will be awarded throughout the lifespan of the prize, including a $250,0000 Bonus Prize that may be awarded at the Judging Panel’s discretion to one or more Finalist Teams whose Solutions demonstrate groundbreaking achievements. Milestone prizes will also be awarded equally for up to 25 teams that advance to Semifinals and up to 10 teams that advance to finals testing.
ABOUT XPRIZE
XPRIZE, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, is the global leader in designing and implementing innovative competition models to solve the world’s grandest challenges. Active competitions include the $100M XPRIZE Carbon Removal, $15M XPRIZE Feed the Next Billion, $10 Million ANA Avatar XPRIZE and $5 Million XPRIZE Rapid Reskilling. For more information, visit xprize.org.
ABOUT ALANA FOUNDATION
Alana Foundation is an independent philanthropic organisation founded in 2012 in the United States. The Foundation supports initiatives in the areas of environment, inclusive education and health science research through grants and co-funding partnerships. It also engages with networks and global movements in those areas.
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210622005926/en/
Link:
About Business Wire
Subscribe to releases from Business Wire
Subscribe to all the latest releases from Business Wire by registering your e-mail address below. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Latest releases from Business Wire
Suzano Reports 36% Increase in Third Quarter Net Revenue Following Consolidation of Arbex6.11.2026 00:23:00 CET | Press release
Suzano (B3: SUZB3 / NYSE: SUZ) , the world’s largest pulp producer, announces its results for the third quarter of 2026 (3Q26), which for the first time include Arbex, the joint venture between Suzano and Kimberly-Clark established in July this year. Driven primarily by the consolidation of Arbex’s contribution, Suzano reported net revenue of BRL16.5 billion, an increase of 36% on the same period last year and a new quarterly record in the company’s 102-year history. Adjusted EBITDA totaled R$5.7 billion in 3Q26, up 9% on the same basis of comparison. Operating cash generation reached R$3.8 billion, an increase of 12%. Net income totaled R$2.1 billion. As announced following the completion of the transaction with Kimberly-Clark, Suzano holds a 51% equity interest in Arbex and will therefore fully consolidate the joint venture’s financial statements from this quarter onwards.1 “This quarter marks the beginning of a new phase for Suzano. With Arbex, we are now a broader business, both ge
Andersen Consulting styrker sine transformationskompetencer med Bakia Consulting5.11.2026 23:12:00 CET | Pressemeddelelse
Andersen Consulting udvider sine kompetencer inden for forretningstransformation gennem en samarbejdsaftale med Bakia Consulting, et firma, der har specialiseret sig i transformation af økonomifunktionen. Bakia Consulting har hovedkontor i Paris og kapacitet i Singapore og Hongkong og har hjulpet store virksomheder og finansielle institutioner med at gentænke deres økonomifunktioner, herunder driftsmodeller, organisationsstrukturer, processer og digitale systemer. Bakia Consulting kombinerer projektledelse og forandringsledelse og arbejder tæt sammen med kunderne om at udvikle løsninger og fastholde forandringer. Virksomheden rådgiver også om modeller for økonomisk og ikke-økonomisk styring, procesoptimering og digitale værktøjer. "Økonomifunktioner forventes at levere bedre indsigt, arbejde mere effektivt og tilpasse sig skiftende forretningsbehov – ofte samtidig," udtalte Romain Dubuisson, partner hos Bakia Consulting. "Vi arbejder tæt sammen med vores kunder om at udvikle løsninger,
iQmetrix Unveils Built-In Intelligence for Every Role in Telecom Commerce at Its 2026 Telecom Industry Address5.11.2026 22:39:00 CET | Press release
An all-new AI inventory agent, iQ Hub and iQ Pay for Back Office bring intelligence to every role. iQmetrix, the global provider of Intelligent Commerce Operating Systems for telecom, last week shared highlights from its 2026 Telecom Industry Address and Product Announcements, held virtually on Oct. 28 in two sessions, one for North American audiences and one for European audiences. The address was built around one theme: intelligence. Telecom commerce is moving from systems that record the business to systems that act on it, and the announcements put that intelligence in the hands of every role, from the sales associate at the counter, to the finance manager in the back office, to the corporate view leading the channel experience. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20261105003162/en/ "Right now telecom providers are competing in a race to the bottom on price that no one wins. The way out is intelligence. Not AI bo
Compass Pathways Announces New Employee Inducement Grants Under Nasdaq Listing Rule 5635(c)(4)5.11.2026 22:30:00 CET | Press release
Compass Pathways plc (Nasdaq: CMPS), a biotechnology company dedicated to unlocking urgently needed new treatment options in mental health care, announced today that Compass granted equity awards under the Compass Pathways plc 2026 Inducement Plan to nine newly hired non-executive employees. The equity awards were granted on November 2, 2026, and consisted of options to purchase an aggregate of 59,275 shares and restricted share units or, in the case of employees in the United Kingdom nominal cost options, covering an aggregate of 28,200 shares. These options have an exercise price per share equal to $8.41, the closing price of the Company’s American Depositary Shares on the Nasdaq Global Select Market on the grant date, and will vest over a four-year period with 25% vesting on the first anniversary of the date of the grant and the remaining 75% vesting in equal monthly installments over the three-year period thereafter, subject to each employee’s continued employment. The restricted s
Graco QUANTM i230 Brings Electrification to High-Flow Fluid-Transfer Applications5.11.2026 22:16:00 CET | Press release
New electric 3-inch double-diaphragm pump helps paint, coatings and ceramics manufacturers increase throughput while reducing energy consumption by up to 80%. Graco Inc. is helping manufacturers electrify high-flow fluid-transfer applications with the global launch of the 3-inch QUANTM® i230, bringing efficient electric drive technology to demanding processes that have traditionally relied on pneumatic pumps. Paint, coatings and ceramics manufacturers depend on diaphragm pumps for their flexibility, reliability and ability to handle challenging materials. But pneumatic pumps also depend on compressed air — an energy-intensive plant resource whose available capacity can fluctuate as demand changes across a facility. The QUANTM i230 gives manufacturers another option for qualified high-flow applications. By combining familiar diaphragm pump capabilities with electric operation, the pump helps manufacturers move more material, reduce transfer bottlenecks and lower energy consumption by up
In our pressroom you can read all our latest releases, find our press contacts, images, documents and other relevant information about us.
Visit our pressroom