6 Green Startups to Watch in 2026
Sustainability is no longer a passing buzzword. It is becoming one of the most powerful drivers of innovation, investment, and socio-economic transformation. Learn about six green startups in India that are solving real-world challenges in an environmentally-friendly way.
Green startups today are solving hard, real-world problems with solutions that are environmentally responsible yet commercially competitive with traditional solutions. Clean technologies, climate-smart products, and circular business models are increasingly matching and often outperforming their conventional counterparts in terms of cost, quality, and scalability, at encouraging levels, but are yet to hit mainstream.
Sustainability-led ventures must do more than ‘being green’. They need to demonstrate strong product-market fit, scalable business models, have founders with a vision, and the ability to operate at scale across markets amid unpredictable market dynamics. The most promising climate startups are ones that sit at the intersection of innovation, impact, and growth, addressing urgent environmental challenges while unlocking significant economic opportunity.
We are excited to share six startups from TechnoServe’s Greenr Sustainability Accelerator that operate across high-potential green sectors and are backed by strong founding teams. Each of them is building solutions designed for scale, adoption, and long-term relevance.
Nexus Power is building an alternative battery chemistry using what India has in abundance—agri-waste. Based in Bhubaneswar, Odisha, it was founded by twin sisters, Nishita and Nikita Baliarsingh, who set out to address the challenges of clean mobility and crop waste burning.
Sourcing lithium in India is a significant challenge due to a combination of technical hurdles, environmental concerns, limited processing infrastructure, lengthy development timelines, and reliance on imports.
The company’s patented technology uses bio molecules extracted from crop residue as critical conductive materials, replacing lithium in rechargeable batteries. Carbon derived from the same residue forms the cathode base, with calcium used to enhance ionic conductivity. The result is a bio-organic, biodegradable battery that reduces dependence on mined materials while fitting into existing electric mobility applications.
Beyond mobility, the environmental impact extends upstream. By creating demand for crop waste, Nexus offers farmers an additional income—around $273 per 100 batteries’ worth of residue —while reducing open-field burning.
The process also generates co-products, such as ethanol and biogas, which can replace fossil fuels and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. With over 40 intellectual property applications filed, Nexus Power demonstrates how materials innovation can connect clean energy, air quality, and agri-rural livelihoods in a single system.
Coconuts to cutlery (and more)… that’s Thenga Coco for you!
The company works at the intersection of material reuse, craft, and women’s livelihoods. All by simply upcycling discarded coconut shells into everyday lifestyle and kitchen products. Founded in 2019 by Maria Kuriakose, this Kerala-based, women-led startup was born from a simple observation: while coconuts are central to the state’s economy, their shells are largely treated as waste, often dumped or burnt, releasing carbon emissions.
Thenga rescues these shells from coconut processing units and converts them into beautiful, durable products such as bowls, spoons, planters, candles, home décor, medals, and bird-feeding bowls. Coconut shells are naturally strong and long-lasting, making them a practical alternative to plastic, glass, or metal. The production is carried out through Thenga’s own unit and a network of local women artisans, creating steady incomes in rural Kerala while preserving traditional craft skills.
Since its inception, the company has diverted over 53,000 coconut shells from landfills and open burning, preventing an estimated 30 tonnes of CO₂ emissions. Thenga’s locally sourced, low-waste model strengthens regional economies and reduces the environmental impact of material transport.
The construction sector contributes nearly 37% of global carbon emissions, making it one of the most urgent and high-potential areas for climate innovation. As demand for net-zero infrastructure increases, the need for low-carbon, high-performance building materials is rising rapidly.
Paving+ is emerging as a standout player in this domain. The startup converts low-value plastic and industrial waste into durable, carbon-negative construction materials, including paver blocks, tiles, plastic lumber, and plywood alternatives. By combining circular economy principles with engineering-grade performance, Paving+ proves that sustainable materials can compete with—and often outperform—conventional construction options on cost, durability, and scalability.
To date, Paving+ has recycled 640 metric tons of plastic waste, consumed 3,200 metric tons of industrial waste, installed over 25,000,00 sq. ft. of green materials, and prevented 7,500 metric tons of carbon emissions. Its products are non-toxic, waterproof, heat and load-resistant, lightweight, and easy to install, making them viable for real estate, infrastructure, and public projects alike.
Backed by strong R&D, multiple patents, national and global recognitions, and a $300k investment, Paving+ is well-positioned to scale.
India’s 62 million tons of annual municipal solid waste (MSW) could fill 125,000–200,000 Olympic pools! A single household produces ~700–1000 kg of wet waste annually, most of which ends up in landfills, driving methane emissions, groundwater contamination, and rising municipal costs. While awareness of sustainability is growing, adoption of basic segregation or even advanced composting at the household level remains low due to inconvenience, odor, and manual effort. Mankomb is tackling this gap, and how!
An AI-native home appliance startup, Mankomb is building intelligent solutions across waste, water, and energy management, starting with its flagship product, Chewie. Chewie is a fully automated, odor-free kitchen appliance that converts all types of kitchen wet waste, including meat, bones, and fluids, into nutrient-rich ‘RegenSoil’ within 8–40 hours using proprietary IP and real-time AI controls.
Built for everyday kitchen wet waste, it converts the waste into regenerated soil through controlled temperature, moisture, and airflow – without stirring, pests, and the smell economy that defines “home composting.”
Chewie runs quietly, blends into modern apartments, and stays out of the way. The experience is engineered to be predictable, designed for households that expect premium appliances to behave like infrastructure.
Mankomb combines deep-tech engineering with premium, user-first design. The startup’s strong relevance to urban sustainability challenges represents a new category of AI-driven, consumer-facing climate solutions.
Climate change is rapidly reshaping aquaculture, disrupting water quality, fish health, and farm productivity. With aquaculture playing a critical role in food security and rural livelihoods, the need for climate-resilient, tech-enabled solutions has never been greater. Essential Aquatech is emerging as a key player addressing this gap.
A climate-smart aquaculture enablement company, it supports fish farmers with 24/7, end-to-end aquaculture ecosystem, including advisory, pond health management, and curated aqua inputs. The company helps farmers improve survival, productivity, and income by addressing key challenges such as water quality fluctuations, disease outbreaks, and climate stress. Through their field network, Farmer Producer Organization (FPO) partnerships, and Village Level Entrepreneur (VLE) model, they deliver on-the-ground services such as water testing, disease diagnostics support, and timely access to quality feed and medicines. Their ‘3AI platform’ integrates weather, satellite, and farm data to generate early warnings and action plans, producing bank-ready aquaculture risk intelligence that helps farmers access finance and enables lenders and insurers to reduce defaults and claims.
Their portfolio includes ISO 9001:2015–certified fish medicines, feed supplements, and climate-resilient fingerlings, ensuring quality from hatchery to harvest.
Beyond production, the startup strengthens farmer incomes through direct market linkages, enabling better prices and instant payments. It also promotes advanced systems such as RAS, Biofloc, and Aquaponics, which reduce water use and environmental impact while improving yields.
Single-use plastic remains one of the most persistent environmental challenges globally, with conventional plastic bags taking up to 1,000 years to decompose and posing severe risks to soil, water, and marine ecosystems. Sri Sri Rural Development Program (SSRDP), under the aegis of The Art of Living Foundation, is addressing this crisis through Eco Kranti. This grassroots movement combines environmental action with rural empowerment. At the heart of this initiative lies Eco Thaila—a compostable alternative to single-use plastic.
Eco Thaila bags are made from 100% compostable, plant-based starch material and naturally decompose within 8–10 months, leaving no toxic residue behind. Designed for versatile purposes, they serve multiple sectors including household waste management, food and e-commerce packaging, healthcare and biomedical waste, hospitality, textiles, and agriculture.
Beyond the product, the initiative is deeply rooted in community engagement and rural livelihoods. Eco Kranti aims to eliminate 100,000 tons of single-use plastic, while fostering green jobs and environmental stewardship across communities. Backed by SSRDP’s extensive grassroots network and proven social impact, Eco Thaila brings together sustainability, inclusion, and scalable innovation, making it a powerful catalyst for India’s plastic-free future.
(Watch popular playback singer and lyricist Aditya Gadhvi participate in this initiative by Eco Kranti here.)
As part of the Greenr Sustainability Accelerator, supported by the IKEA Foundation and Visa Foundation, these ventures have shown clear momentum, resilience, and the ability to grow in rapidly evolving markets.
All the startups Greenr supports are incredible in their own ways. We invite you to explore the rest on our Portfolio Page.
