Three-quarters of large companies support startup investments that further their strategic goals. What differentiates Amazon’s new “deep tech” initiative is how the company involves line-of-business teams in finding new technologies or materials that could reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
The Amazon Sustainability Deep Tech Accelerator started life in 2025 as an initiative funded by the company’s Devices business unit, which is responsible for Kindle and Alexa devices. The program was updated Nov. 3 to include participation from Amazon Private Brands, which represents more than 100 product lines across home goods, apparel and electronics, and Amazon Web Services, the company’s cloud computing operation.
The initiative is separate from the $2 billion Climate Pledge Fund, which invests in early-stage entrepreneurs.
For one thing, the Amazon sustainability accelerator doesn’t take equity stakes in the participating startups. Rather, its task is to identify technologies, materials and processes that can be scaled and put to use in Amazon’s products or manufacturing processes.
“The outcome we want is a commercial one,” said Maiken Moeller-Hansen, director of energy and sustainability for Amazon Devices & Services.
In that sense, Amazon’s initiative is similar to the approach taken by the 100+ Accelerator, started in 2018 by Anheuser-Busch InBev and now funded by Coca-Cola Co., Colgate-Palmolive, Danone, Mondelēz International and Unilever. The focus is on supporting direct emissions reductions related to products within the companies’ portfolios.
“We just got to a point where we felt like we could be more rigorous and really put more structure around evaluating these opportunities with the goal of really accelerating that process to the benefit of both,” Moeller-Hansen said.
Three areas of focus
Amazon will accept applications for the next startup cohort starting in January, focused on innovation in these areas:
- Lower-carbon materials and manufacturing approaches that reduce the impact of semiconductors, displays, batteries or packaging.
- Energy-efficiency and thermal-management breakthroughs
- Processes that support material recovery, recycling and reuse
All three business units will contribute funding to support six-month engagements with chosen startups, aimed at helping entrepreneurs prototype their ideas, find potential manufacturing resources and create feasible pricing and licensing models.
“We pick what we think are the most likely applications of this technology and then we go super deep with the companies over the next 16 weeks,” Moeller-Hansen said.
Amazon’s accelerator is run by sustainability technical experts who can help the startups quantify the decarbonization impact of their technology, but it’s also supported by broader subject matter experts from within the business units, including product managers, materials scientists and quality engineers.
After six months, the startups in the new cohort will be encouraged to pitch their ideas to senior Amazon business leaders within the participating Amazon divisions.
Close to 30 companies participated in the first two cohorts, and a number have closed funding since, including Elephantech, which is working on more sustainable approaches to producing printed circuit boards; and Amprius Technologies, which is developing high-density battery cells.
Amazon hasn’t yet disclosed which accelerator participants have negotiated commercial contracts with the company, Moeller-Hansen said.