SOURCE: Cemex Ventures : February 1, 2024
Madrid, Spain – Cemex has been identified among the Top 100 Corporate Startup Stars in 2023, the worldwide open innovation award run annually by International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) and Mind the Bridge, and named the winner of the Special Award: CVC to deploy Sustainable Construction. With these accolades, Cemex is recognized by the ICC and Mind the Bridge for working towards world-class open innovation and sustainability practices, as well as for fostering corporate and startup collaborations globally.
According to the ICC and Mind the Bridge, the Corporate Startup Stars were created by the European Commission in 2016 to recognize Fortune 500 and Forbes 2000 corporations with a comprehensive methodology of open innovation to leverage new technologies and support startups. In 2017, Cemex established Cemex Ventures, its open innovation and corporate venture capital unit (CVC) as a vehicle that seeks to invest in, accelerate, and partner with the most innovative, sustainable, and promising startups to drive the construction industry revolution.
“Fostering innovation, one of Cemex’s core values, is a fundamental aspect of our company culture and central to our commitment to our customers and communities in which we are present,” said Gonzalo Galindo, Head of Cemex Ventures. “We’re thrilled to be considered among some of the world’s most innovative companies in this year’s Corporate Startup Stars list and will continue to disrupt the status quo and foster the construction industry revolution.”
“Our recognition of Cemex reflects their dedication to pioneering sustainable construction. Cemex Ventures aims to integrate the latest sustainable construction technologies and disruptive business models into Cemex’s core operations with the goal of revolutionizing traditional cement production. Cemex Ventures’ investments go beyond purely financial motivations. Some examples are HiiROC’s cost-competitive hydrogen energy solution to replace fossil raw materials, the solar energy startup Synhelion, and the cleantech Carbon Upcycling. Cemex Ventures’ open innovation activities also include connecting new technologies with publicly funded innovation initiatives as in the case of the EU grant for the implementation of WtEnergy’s novel waste-to-fuel technology at the cement plant in Alicante”, commented Alberto Onetti, Chairman of Mind the Bridge.
Through Cemex Ventures, Cemex places its passion in four market-driven focus areas: Green Construction, Enhanced Productivity, Construction Supply Chain, and Future of Construction, and engages startups, entrepreneurs, universities, and other relevant actors to tackle the industry’s toughest challenges and shape tomorrow’s construction ecosystem. In the last 6 years, Cemex Ventures has become one of the most relevant Contech partners and strategic investors worldwide, to tie back disruptive, sustainable, and digital startup solutions to Cemex’s core business.
About Mind the Bridge
Mind the Bridge is a global open innovation platform, providing services and products to corporates and local startup ecosystems. Headquartered in Silicon Valley with offices in Barcelona, Seoul, Tel Aviv, New York, and Milan. Mind the Bridge has been working as an international bridge at the intersection between startups and corporates since 2007. Mind the Bridge scouts, filters, and works with 10,000+ startups a year supporting global corporations with open innovation initiatives that translate into curated deals with startups (POCs. procurement, investments, and/or acquisitions). It also provides corporates with advisory services and benchmarking on innovation strategies and structures. Mind the Bridge developed MTB Ecosystem, an AI-powered open innovation matching platform for innovation ecosystem hubs and corporates. Mind the Bridge, in collaboration with the International Chamber of Commerce, the 100 y.o. institution representing more than 45M businesses worldwide, annually runs the “Corporate Startup Stars” awards, which rates and awards the most startup-friendly global corporates.
About Cemex Ventures
Launched in 2017, Cemex Ventures focuses on helping overcome the main challenges and capitalizing on the opportunity areas in the construction ecosystem through solutions that consider sustainability. Cemex Ventures has developed an open collaborative platform to lead the revolution of the construction industry, engaging startups, entrepreneurs, universities, and other stakeholders to tackle the challenges in the construction environment and shape the industry’s future.
About Cemex
Cemex is a global construction materials company that is building a better future through sustainable products and solutions. Cemex is committed to achieving carbon neutrality through relentless innovation and industry-leading research and development. Cemex is at the forefront of the circular economy in the construction value chain and is pioneering ways to increase the use of waste and residues as alternative raw materials and fuels in its operations with the help of new technologies. Cemex offers cement, ready-mix concrete, aggregates, and urbanization solutions in growing markets around the world, powered by a multinational workforce focused on providing a superior customer experience enabled by digital technologies.
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