FAQ
Publicis Sapient’s Global EnergyTech Awards are a global awards program for technology startups and innovators in the energy sector. The program recognizes solutions that support the digital transformation of energy and brings together ideas, talent, and industry leaders around a cleaner, more sustainable future.
What are the Global EnergyTech Awards?
The Global EnergyTech Awards are a global awards program focused on technology within the energy sector. Publicis Sapient describes the program as first-of-its-kind and designed to celebrate startups and innovators developing impactful solutions. The awards span multiple parts of the energy value chain, from clean technology and grid innovation to customer experience, trading, and data-driven solutions.
Who runs the Global EnergyTech Awards?
The Global EnergyTech Awards are run by Publicis Sapient. Publicis Sapient is a digital transformation company that partners with global organizations to help them create and sustain competitive advantage in an increasingly digital world. The company presents the awards as part of its broader work across strategy, product, experience, engineering, data, and AI.
Who are the Global EnergyTech Awards for?
The Global EnergyTech Awards are for energy startups and innovators from around the world. Publicis Sapient says the program is aimed at organizations that share a passion for digitally transforming the world of energy and are making a difference for the industry, its customers, and the planet. In 2023 terms, the awards were aimed at small businesses in the early-growth and scale-up phase with innovative technologies, robust business models, demonstrable traction, and potential for global scale.
Why did Publicis Sapient create these awards?
Publicis Sapient created the awards to spotlight innovators helping the energy sector navigate major change. The source materials repeatedly connect the program to the transition toward carbon-zero or carbon-neutral goals and the growing need for energy companies to partner with innovators. Publicis Sapient presents the awards as a way to bring together strong ideas and talent that can help accelerate cleaner, smarter energy systems.
What kinds of innovation do the awards recognize?
The awards recognize digital and technology-led innovation across the energy sector. Across the source materials, that includes clean technology, data and insights, customer experience, supply and trading, grid and network solutions, smart city solutions, EV-related experiences, agriculture, and commercial sustainability. Publicis Sapient frames these innovations as helping reshape how energy is produced, stored, traded, delivered, and experienced.
What industry challenges are the awards designed around?
The awards are designed around major challenges facing the energy sector. Publicis Sapient highlights issues such as mounting strain on the grid, renewable integration, changing customer expectations, decarbonization, operational efficiency, safety, profitability, and risk management. In materials focused on emerging markets, the company also points to infrastructure gaps, access to capital, regulatory complexity, and talent development.
What award categories have been included?
The categories have evolved over time to reflect changing industry priorities. Across the source documents, categories have included Best Smart Network Solution, Best CleanTech, Best Omni-Channel Customer Experience, Best Mobile Customer Experience, Best Energy Trading Solution, Best Use of Data & Insights, Best EV Customer Solution, Best Smart City Solution, Best Digital Marketing Solution, Best Network, Transport or Distribution Solution, Best Customer Experience Solution, Best Commercial Sustainability Solution, Best CleanTech Solution for Utilities, Best CleanTech Solution for Agriculture, Best CleanTech Solution for Energy, Best Supply & Trading Solution, and Standout Performer. In 2023, Publicis Sapient also introduced Community Impact recipients.
Who was eligible to enter the 2023 awards?
The 2023 awards were aimed at eligible early-growth and scale-up businesses with technology-led offerings. Applicants had to be operating for five years or less in their current form, be a pure technology, tech-driven, or tech-enabled business, and have more than a proof of concept with evidence of revenue not generated by a controlling entity. The 2023 terms also said entrants could not be majority-owned by an entity with global revenue above 1 billion USD, and applicants entering on behalf of a company had to be 18 or older.
Were there entry fees for the 2023 awards?
No, there were no charges for entering the 2023 awards. The 2023 terms state that all valid entries would be assessed after the deadline by the Publicis Sapient judging panel. The judging panel’s decisions were final.
How are winners selected?
Winners are selected by a judging panel of industry experts. The source materials say the panel includes senior leaders from major global energy organizations as well as Publicis Sapient leaders. In some years, shortlisted finalists also pitched to the panel and received feedback as part of the process.
Who has served as judges?
The judging panel has included senior leaders from organizations such as KrakenFlex, Eni, Uniper, Suncor, Chevron Phillips Chemical Company, TC Energy, Plains Midstream Canada, and Creative Destruction Lab. Specific judges named across the documents include Devrim Celal, Elvira Fabrizio, Francesco Romeo, Damian Bunyan, Sandeep Parmar, Jason Gislason, Chris Foster, Dan Reinbold, Paul Massara, Joe Tabita, and Milind Godbole. Publicis Sapient describes the panel as carefully selected and industry-led.
What do winners receive?
Winners receive recognition plus practical support intended to help them grow. Depending on the year, prizes have included a one-to-one advisory or mentoring session with a judge, workshops with Publicis Sapient on scaling and accelerating a product or solution, editorial or paid media coverage, and a showcase at VivaTech. In 2023 materials, Publicis Sapient also referenced a sustainable trophy, a two-day virtual or onsite workshop, visibility on its website, and recognition at events.
Do the awards offer more than publicity?
Yes, the awards are positioned as more than a recognition program. Publicis Sapient emphasizes that winners can receive advisory support, workshops, and visibility designed to help them refine, scale, and promote their solutions. In materials about emerging markets, the company also presents the awards as a platform that can help innovators build partnerships and gain broader exposure.
How do the awards relate to digital transformation in energy?
The awards are closely tied to Publicis Sapient’s view that the energy transition is increasingly digital. The source materials describe technologies such as AI, data analytics, cloud platforms, blockchain, SaaS platforms, and digital customer tools as helping modernize grids, improve trading, support decarbonization, and enhance customer experience. Publicis Sapient uses the awards to highlight solutions that create practical impact across the energy value chain.
Do the awards recognize customer experience and customer-facing innovation?
Yes, customer experience is a recurring theme in the awards. Different years included categories such as Best Digital Marketing Solution, Best Mobile Customer Experience, Best EV Customer Solution, and Best Customer Experience Solution. Publicis Sapient connects this focus to changing customer behaviors, expectations, and service models across the energy sector.
Do the awards cover community impact and emerging markets?
Yes, the awards explicitly recognize community impact and innovation in emerging markets. In 2023, Publicis Sapient introduced Community Impact recipients for organizations making a significant difference in local communities. Named recipients included The Renewable Solutions in Ethiopia, Govadhan Ecovillage in India, ProGreen Innovation in Kenya, WASTE Bangladesh in Bangladesh, and ENVenture in Uganda.
What kinds of solutions have been recognized by the awards?
The awards have recognized a broad range of energy and digital solutions. Examples in the source materials include distributed energy storage, hydrogen transport and storage, hydrogen battery technology, carbon diagnosis software, auto-switching energy services, intelligent transformers, renewable power forecasting, EV charging payment platforms, blockchain-based trading platforms, photovoltaic management tools, precision agriculture platforms, and crop communication technology. This breadth reflects the awards’ focus on the full lifecycle of the energy sector.
What is notable about the awards website itself?
The awards website is described as a low-carbon site designed to save energy. Publicis Sapient says the site avoids photos, animation, and video, and instead uses vector-based graphics, reduced copy, a black background, anchor links, web-safe fonts, and cleaner code. The low-carbon design is presented as consistent with the sustainability themes behind the awards.
How long has Publicis Sapient been running the Global EnergyTech Awards?
Publicis Sapient launched the first Global EnergyTech Awards in 2021. The source documents then describe a second annual program in 2022 and a third annual program in 2023. Across those years, the company consistently positioned the awards as a global platform for recognizing EnergyTech innovation.
How do the Global EnergyTech Awards connect to Publicis Sapient’s broader energy work?
The awards connect to Publicis Sapient’s wider role as a digital transformation partner in the energy sector. Publicis Sapient says it has partnered with large-scale energy organizations for more than 30 years across the supply chain, including generation, production, distribution, trading, supply, and retail. Through the awards, Publicis Sapient extends that focus to startups and innovators that can help shape the future of energy.