Plug and Play accelerateAZ Announces New Sustainability Accelerator Program

PHOENIX, AZ (December 7, 2023) – Plug and Play accelerateAZ, a program of the Arizona Commerce Authority (ACA), announced today a new Sustainability program that will support the growth of Arizona sustainability-focused startups. The new program, announced at the Plug and Play Silicon Valley Summit in Sunnyvale, California, will launch in Spring 2024.

The accelerateAZ Sustainability program will support startups in the areas of renewable energy, water resiliency, sustainable mining, circular materials and carbon neutrality. The program will accelerate two batches of startups per year, connecting them to leading corporate partners to foster collaborations.

“Over the last decade and more, the ACA has worked closely with our innovation partners to advance our startup ecosystem and create new opportunities for Arizona entrepreneurs,” said Sandra Watson, President and CEO of the Arizona Commerce Authority. “The Plug and Play accelerateAZ Sustainability program represents an exciting new chapter in these efforts. We are grateful to Saeed Amidi and the entire Plug and Play team for their continued partnership and look forward to leveraging this unique program to help more early-stage Arizona businesses scale.”

“Our partnership with the Arizona Commerce Authority has been incredible, and every time I visit Arizona, I am inspired,” said Saeed Amidi, Founder and CEO of Plug and Play. “We’ve made some great progress in a short amount of time and are excited to expand the Plug and Play accelerateAZ initiative to include Sustainability. Working with Sandra and her team has been such a pleasure, and I cannot wait to achieve more great things together.”

The new accelerateAZ Sustainability program will build upon the current accelerateAZ Advanced Manufacturing program to pilot new technologies, build the resilient infrastructure of the future and contribute to solving global challenges. The Advanced Manufacturing Accelerator program, which selected its second batch of Arizona startups following an Advanced Manufacturing Expo in October, supports startups through a three-month program with a curriculum focused on business development, strategic growth, and networking. The Advanced Manufacturing program is supported by founding partners including Intel, Honeywell Aerospace, and Raytheon Missiles & Defense.

In April, Plug and Play accelerateAZ celebrated the launch of its Arizona office. The startups selected for the first batch of the Advanced Manufacturing program focused on creating solutions in workforce training, supply chain visibility, predictive maintenance, robotics, and automation.

Plug and Play accelerateAZ builds on the ACA’s steadfast commitment to grow the state’s startup ecosystem. These efforts include the launch of the Arizona Innovation Challenge, one of the largest business plan competitions in the country. That program has produced 130 awardees from over 2,700 applicants, representing a combined portfolio value of more than $2.5 billion. Read more about Arizona’s innovation efforts HERE.

Plug and Play is a global innovation platform that runs programs in over 50 locations worldwide. This office in Arizona brings together stakeholders around the state who want to bring innovation to the forefront of their business. Plug and Play works with program partners to find the startups most relevant to solving problems in a specific industry.

For startups interested in applying for the Sustainability Batch One cohort, please visit PlugAndPlayTechCenter.com/arizona.

About the Arizona Commerce Authority
The Arizona Commerce Authority (ACA) is the state's leading economic development organization with a streamlined mission to grow and strengthen Arizona's economy. The ACA uses a three-pronged approach to advance the overall economy: attract, expand, create - attract out-of-state companies to establish operations in Arizona; work with existing companies to expand their business in Arizona and beyond; and help entrepreneurs create new Arizona businesses in targeted industries. For more information, please visit azcommerce.com and follow the ACA on Twitter @azcommerce.

About Plug and Play
Plug and Play is the leading innovation platform, connecting startups, corporations, venture capital firms, universities, and government agencies. Headquartered in Silicon Valley, we're present in 50+ locations across five continents. We offer corporate innovation programs and help our corporate partners in every stage of their innovation journey, from education to execution. We also organize startup acceleration programs and have built an in-house VC to drive innovation across multiple industries where we've invested in hundreds of successful companies including Dropbox, Guardant Health, Honey, Lending Club, N26, PayPal, and Rappi. For more information, visit pnptc.com.