Shaping Tomorrow Responsible Innovation for a Brighter Future 2025

11 Innovation Ecosystems66 Innovation Challenges517 Top Innovators300 Ecosystem Partners46 Top InvestorsSpotlight on UpLink Innovation Ecosystem UpLink is a World Economic Forum initiative, founded in partnership with Deloitte and Salesforce, focused on impactful early-stage innovation. It builds ecosystems that enable purpose-driven, early-stage entrepreneurs to scale their businesses for the markets and economies that are essential to a net-zero, nature-positive and equitable future. Thanks to these, entrepreneurs are enabled to secure funding, expand their workforce, grow their customer base and scale impactful solutions, thereby driving meaningful progress towards the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). UpLink’s selection process involves a rigorous evaluation of business viability and potential impact. Once selected, these start-ups are recognized as Top Innovators and gain access to a unique engagement programme, which includes participation in events, capacity-building workshops, visibility and brand exposure, and support for business growth through connections with partners, decision-makers, domain-specific experts and investors. In 2024 alone, UpLink Top Innovators raised $633 million in investment capital, an increase of 45% compared to 2023, mainly through equity, debt or grants. In addition, nearly half of the Top Innovators experienced more than 40% growth in their customer count compared to the previous year. Between 2023 and 2024, UpLink Top Innovators’ solutions have resulted in the following impact: –Creation of 19,000 new jobs –Increased income of 20,000 people from underrepresented groups –A total of 28 million tonnes of waste tracked and traced through digital platforms –A total of 142,400 tonnes of CO2 emissions avoided through clean electricity, sustainable agriculture, manufacture and other processes –A total of 2.5 billion litres of wastewater and hazardous wastewater treated –A total of 140 million hectares of aquatic or terrestrial area protected or actively managed for protection Looking ahead, UpLink is focused on strengthening multi- year projects by deepening engagement with partners and ecosystem members. Harnessing their expertise and support, the goal is to elevate key thematic areas in global dialogue on innovation and sustainability. Image credit: it’s electric Shaping Tomorrow: Responsible Innovation for a Brighter Future 8