UNICEF Venture Fund

UNICEF Venture Fund calls on startups developing frontier tech solutions for children at the intersection of climate and health to join its Climate Ventures cohort.

The UNICEF Venture Fund invests in open-source frontier technology solutions from emerging markets. For this call for applications, we are seeking proposals from climate-focused startups developing open-source frontier technology solutions that have the potential to create radical change for children. We are actively seeking companies that push the boundaries with frontier technologies in innovative and scalable ways with global relevance.

We are offering up to US$100,000 in equity-free funding for early-stage and ready-to-deploy technologies including artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning and blockchain. Companies must be registered in one of UNICEF’s programme countries and have working prototypes and a commitment to open-source licensing and practices. Women-led startups and young founders are especially encouraged to apply.

As climate change accelerates, children and their communities are increasingly exposed to extreme heat, floods, droughts and air pollution that threaten access to health services, safe water, nutrition and education.

About 1 billion children live in countries facing high climate and environmental risk. Meanwhile, 466 million children – roughly one in five worldwide – live in areas experiencing at least twice as many days of extreme heat (measured as more than 35 degrees Celsius or 95 degrees Fahrenheit) compared with the 1960s, highlighting the rapid escalation of heat-related hazards.

Climate shocks are intensifying existing vulnerabilities. Despite being among the most affected, children remain underrepresented in the design of climate technologies intended to address these challenges.

The climate innovation landscape is expanding rapidly, with growing investment in frontier technologies, data-driven solutions and climate-focused ventures aimed at building climate-resilient communities and systems.

However, much of this innovation does not sufficiently prioritize child-specific risks, health outcomes or the realities of climate-affected communities in emerging markets. There is a critical gap between emerging climate technologies and scalable, locally relevant solutions that directly strengthen systems children depend on for survival and development.

This call for applications is the first in our five-year Climate Ventures investment programme dedicated to catalyzing child-centric climate innovation. Climate Ventures will identify and invest in scalable, open-source solutions that protect children’s health, enhance preparedness and anticipatory action, and improve coordination and resilience across health, education and basic services.

By prioritizing innovations that are locally adaptable, data-driven and child-centred, Climate Ventures will help shift climate technology toward equitable impact for this and coming generations. At its core is a commitment to strengthen the resilience of systems that safeguard children’s wellbeing.

The Venture Fund champions diversity, inclusion and frontier tech innovation by backing early- and growth-stage startups leveraging AI, machine learning, blockchain and other frontier technologies, especially those that are ready to deploy in low-resource or emergency settings.

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