The future of energy is built with collaboration, technology and talent. This was evident at ERIA’s Demo Day, held on December 19 at Aticco Barcelona, which brought together startups, internal teams, investors and strategic partners with a common goal: to transform the challenges of the energy sector into real and scalable solutions.
The event served to close six months of intense work in the second edition of the ERIA acceleration program, a journey designed to validate technologies in real environments, consolidate pilots and generate tangible impact on Estabanell’s business units.
Four startups, four responses to energy challenges
One of the major challenges of the current electricity system is to ensure the stability and flexibility of the grid. In this area, Wattium has developed high-power energy storage batteries, capable of charging in just five minutes and with a useful life up to twenty times longer than that of conventional batteries in high-power applications. During the program, the startup has validated the first prototypes and has begun the industrialization process. Its CEO, Roger Casals, highlighted that the support of ERIA and the mentors has been key to advancing the development of a lithium-free high-power battery aimed at electrical grid applications, as well as in the presentation of the first high-power bipolar cell.
In terms of energy distribution, eRoots, a spin-off of the UPC, has provided a solution based on intelligent software to optimize the planning and operation of the electricity network, and improve the visibility of the system. Its technology, with more than a million downloads and several European patents, has evolved significantly during the acceleration. The CEO of eRoots, Josep Fanals, pointed out that the program has been decisive in pivoting from a model focused on services towards a product of high technological complexity, thanks to the proximity and experience of the mentors in key areas such as sales, product and strategy.
In the field of energy marketing and self-consumption, Clevergy has presented its EaaS (Energy as a Service) platform, designed so that marketers and installers can optimize the energy management of their end customers. The solution facilitates self-consumption, advanced analytics and integration with devices and distributors without the need for additional hardware. Clevergy CEO, Beltrán Aznar, explained that the ERIA program has allowed them to understand the challenges of a marketer like Estabanell, validate its value proposition and launch a joint test of the technology, with the support of experts in sales, product and marketing.
Carbon neutrality in the B2B field has been the focus of 4BlueTech, which uses advanced biotechnology with microalgae and bacteria to capture CO₂ and NOx, generate tokenized carbon credits and offer sustainable solutions to companies. During the acceleration, the startup has consolidated strategic pilots and matured its value proposition in collaboration with a large corporation. 4BlueTech CEO Marc Cortés highlighted that this process has reinforced the scalability of the project and coincided with milestones such as the registration of patents, the creation of new global alliances and the opening of a financing round of 2.5 million euros, which is almost fully committed.
Internal talent also accelerates: Pioners2150
The Demo Day also put the spotlight on Estabanell’s internal talent. The Sil·lis team, winner of the Pioners2150 intrapreneurship program, presented its project aimed at promoting the circular economy within the group. Sil·lis has developed a solution based on artificial intelligence and 3D modeling to optimize the design of electrical installations and reduce waste.
Open innovation with real impact
The Demo Day closed six months of acceleration in which the startups worked with Estabanell teams, with the support of mentors and direct assistance. Josep Solé, director of ERIA, highlighted that corporate venturing connects startups with real business needs, allows testing technologies and transforming ideas into tangible projects. The event showed that collaboration between startups, internal talent and companies is key to a more sustainable and innovative energy future.
