2025 Application Details | Energy Venture Day and Pitch Competition at CERAWeek

Pitch Preview: Energy Venture Day and Pitch Competition:

• Tuesday, March 11, 2025 | 9:30 am - 2:30 pm
• Ion Houston
• 3.5-minute pitches from 40+ energy ventures 

Energy Venture Day and Pitch Competition:

• Wednesday, March 12, 2025 | 1:00 pm - 4:00 pm
• Agora at CERAWeek; George R Brown Convention Center, 3rd Floor
• Hosted by Rice Alliance, HETI and TEX-E
• Agora pass needed 
• 3.5-minute pitches from up to 40 energy ventures 
• 4 tracks for energy transition ventures
  • 3 tracks for early to late-stage ventures 
  • 1 track for student-led ventures: the TEX-E Prize

Invite-Only, Office Hours Between Investors and Energy Ventures: 

• Tuesday, March 11, 2025 | 2:30 pm - Registration, 3:00 to 5:00 pm - Meetings
• Ion Houston 
• Invite-Only; For selected energy ventures and investors 

Before applying, please review your eligibility below. 

Eligibility: 

All energy ventures and entrepreneurs with businesses in the Energy Transition, such as (but not limited to) those addressing challenges and opportunities in CCUS, Hydrogen, Energy Storage, and the Circular Economy, are invited to apply. Energy ventures from early-stage to growth stage that have a technology solution are eligible to participate. Five pitch slots will be reserved for early-stage student-led energy startups from universities in Texas for the TEX-E Prize. 

Selection and Judging: 

The hosts of Energy Venture Day, The Rice Alliance, HETI and TEX-E, along with a pool of investors and industry experts, will select the final ventures to participate. During the competition,  a panel of investor and corporate judges will select the top three companies from each of the first three tracks to be awarded bragging rights. The TEX-E judges will select the top three startups from the TEX-E Prize to be awarded cash prizes. 

Cost:

There is no cost to apply! Once selected, participating energy venture registration is $395. (Access to Agora will be provided to 1 member of each presenting team). Student startups selected for the TEX-E Prize have no-cost registration. 

Pitch Format: 

Energy Ventures will be grouped into four tracks. Three for seed-stage to growth-stage ventures and one track for student ventures.

• Seed-Stage to Growth Stage:
  The three tracks will be based on technology or industry-focus (i.e. materials). These tracks will be announced at a later time. Companies will give a 3.5-minute pitch in each track to a panel of industry judges, as well as a room full of CERAWeek attendees. 
   
• University Early Stage: 
  Five student-led companies will give a 3.5-minute pitch in the TEX-E pitch competition, with Q&A from a panel of experts following each pitch. The top three companies in this track will be awarded cash prizes from TEX-E.. 

Office Hours Format: 

All ventures invited to pitch at Energy Venture Day and Pitch Competition will be included in Office Hours: one-on-one meetings with investors. More than 40 investor groups are expected to participate. Investors review applications in advance and provide organizers with their priority meetings. This investor-led matching ensures meetings will be productive—with investors who are interested in learning more about your solutions. Office hours will be held on Tuesday, March 11, 2025 at the Ion. Participating ventures should expect between 3-7, 10-minute meetings.