Social and environmental impact Working at the intersection of water, cities, food, nature, oceans, circularity, net zero, longevity and sustainable mining, UpLink Ventures are addressing some of the world’s most critical challenges. Many of these ventures are tackling interconnected challenges, and their collaboration across themes highlights the strength of the broader Innovation Ecosystem. Table 1 UpLink's systems, industries and place-based Innovation Ecosystems Sector Overview WaterThe Aquapreneur Innovation Initiative is a pioneering collaboration between global conglomerate HCL Group and UpLink, supported by the Forum’s Food and Water Initiative. This initiative is building a leading water-focused Innovation Ecosystem to accelerate early-stage ventures or “aquapreneurs”. The first cohort of aquapreneurs was announced in 2023, and to date the initiative has sourced 40 aquapreneurs who have collectively raised more than $125 million in funding following their selection. Urban transformation In 2023, UpLink, together with the Forum’s Centre for Urban Transformation as well as Deloitte, Salesforce, the San Francisco Chamber of Commerce and Citi, piloted a place-based ecosystem through the Yes/San Francisco Urban Sustainability Challenge as part of the global Yes/Cities initiative. To date, UpLink has launched two cohorts in San Francisco with 25 ventures, selected another cohort in Bengaluru and expanded the model to launch an additional city through Yes/Boston. These ventures’ innovative solutions are helping to reimagine and transform cities, focusing on urban innovation. LongevityUpLink has partnered with Manulife and the Forum’s Centre for Financial and Monetary Systems to help shape the future of, and investment in, longevity innovation. This partnership is empowering ventures to scale global longevity solutions, focusing on finance, health and well-being. To date, UpLink has sourced 20 ventures that, in line with the longevity economy principles,15 are addressing the demographic and financial challenges of global ageing, supporting people to live more healthy, resilient and fulfilling lives. Nature-based solutionsThe nature and biodiversity ecosystem, the largest collaborative network cultivated by UpLink alongside the Forum’s Forest Future Alliance initiative, focuses on tackling critical environmental challenges such as biodiversity loss, climate change and nature-positive business activities. In 2025, UpLink, in partnership with Mercuria, its investment vehicle Silvania and the Forum’s Nature Positive Transitions initiative, launched the Nature Returns Challenge at the AMNC in Tianjin, China to identify and support high-potential, early-stage investors addressing critical issues in nature and biodiversity. Circular economyIn 2023, UpLink and the Forum’s Centre for Nature and Climate partnered with Accenture to advance circular innovation. This collaboration has since evolved into a new Innovation Ecosystem focused on applying AI to strengthen supply chain resilience. By convening early-stage innovators, corporates, policy-makers and experts, the partnership identifies scalable AI solutions, supports r esponsible adoption and translates innovation into practical guidance that helps organizations anticipate, adapt to and manage growing supply chain disruptions. Uplink Annual Impact Report March 2026 25

UpLink Annual Impact Report 2026