Innovative Tech for Water Security: What we learned from 243 startups tackling the global water crisis
In brief
The Innovative Tech for Water Security is the third call for proposals from Mercy Corps Ventures’ Climate Venture Lab, part of our commitment to invest up to $1M in first-of-a-kind climate resilience solutions across Africa, Asia, and Latin America.
The call focused on funding innovative, tech-based solutions that improve water efficiency, access and conservation, and water infrastructure for vulnerable communities in emerging countries.
This blog shares ecosystem insights from 243 applications we received, highlighting trends in technology, solution types, and startup profiles tackling water security.
Context
Water is one of the most urgent challenges in the climate resilience space. Today, over 4 billion people face water scarcity at least one month a year, and 2 billion live without adequate water supply. By 2030, as many as 700 million people could be displaced due to extreme water stress.
At Mercy Corps Ventures, we believe technology can play a transformative role in solving the crisis. In previous pilots, we’ve explored how innovation can improve access to water to farmers – from automated ice reservoirs in Ladakh to irrigation-as-a-service models in rural Kenya. These early experiments show us there’s real potential to unlock new solutions in this space. That’s why, earlier this year, we launched a global call for proposals seeking innovative tech solutions for water security in emerging markets.
The response was overwhelming: 243 applications from 48 countries, with a strong showing from Africa (55% of the pipeline), Latin America (26%), and Asia (19%). Kenya, India, Colombia, Nigeria, and Uganda led the way in submissions.
We asked startups to focus on three core areas:
Increasing water supply – through innovations around rainwater harvesting, desalination, and wastewater reuse
Optimizing water demand – including smart irrigation and nature-based conservation.
Strengthening infrastructure – such as storage, treatment, and reducing water losses.
What we saw in the pipeline
Most applications fell into three categories:
Water access & purification (34%) – including modular treatment units, solar-powered purification systems, and new distribution models.
Agricultural water innovation (27%) – from precision irrigation to biologicals to help crops thrive with less water.
Water intelligence & monitoring (19%) – using sensors, AI, and digital twins to track water quality, detect leaks, and improve infrastructure performance.
Half of the pilots leveraged data analytics and IoT, and over 90% came from early-stage startups, many building their first product.
Most solutions targeted low-income populations (39% of the pipeline) or smallholder farmers (37%).
These insights give us a clearer picture of where innovation is happening, what problems startups are prioritizing, and how emerging technologies are being applied to water resilience.
