Story at a glance
- Musk partnered with XPRIZE to launch a $100 million carbon removal competition.
- Prizes will be awarded in the fall of 2021, at the one-year mark, and at the end of the four years.
- The competition aims to incentivize the creation of technologies that could remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere to combat climate change.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk joined XPRIZE to launch the start of their four-year, $100 million carbon removal competition.
The competition, launched on Earth Day, aims to incentivize the creation of technologies that could remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere to combat climate change.
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Individuals and teams are challenged to find innovative ways to “pull carbon dioxide directly from the atmosphere or oceans, and sequester it durably and sustainably,” according to the XPRIZE website.
The winning project needs to prove that it can lead to “at least 1000 tonnes removed per year; model their costs at a scale of 1 million tonnes per year; and show a pathway to achieving a scale of gigatonnes per year in future.”
In fall 2021, $5 million will be awarded to selected student teams.
After one year, judges will review the projects and grant 15 Milestone Prizes of up to $1 million each.
At the end of the four years, on Earth Day 2025, the judges will choose one grand prize winner, who will receive $50 million. Up to three runners-up will be selected and $30 million will be distributed among them.
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