Key points
- Startups and SMEs are often behind some of the most transformative climate-tech innovations, but frequently lack the resources, capacity and connections to scale their solutions.
- The RISE Accelerator helps startups expand by providing mentoring and local market insights, along with structured opportunities to pilot, refine and adapt their solutions.
- From market discovery visits to strategic partnerships, participating companies gain real-world traction and credibility in high-impact ecosystems such as India.
When it comes to tackling climate and environment challenges, innovative technology isn't always enough. Startups and small-to-medium enterprises (SMEs) – often the drivers of some of the most transformative ideas – face another critical challenge: how to scale their solutions, especially into complex, high-impact markets such as India.
The leap into new markets isn't just about geography. It requires local insight, trusted networks and the ability to adapt – something many high-potential startups lack the time or resources to do on their own.
That's where the India Australia RISE Accelerator program comes in. Delivered by CSIRO in partnership with the Government of India's Atal Innovation Mission, RISE helps startups take their climate-tech solutions global, using Australia-India expansion as a launchpad into wider markets.
In the program's Climate Smart Agriculture round , a cohort of agritech innovators spent nine months testing ideas, validating product-market fit and learning what it takes to go global in their effort to address pressing agricultural challenges.
YieldX: Rethinking urban agriculture in India
YieldX (formerly GAIA Project Australia) was founded to help growers worldwide boost yields, cut resource use and improve food security through scalable, efficient technology.
Unlike traditional hydroponic solutions that use fixed plant spacing, which often results in wasted space as plants develop, their Omni-Yield channel features a dynamic, expandable design. This allows young plants to grow closely together at first, then automatically spaces them out as they mature into full-sized crops, maximising growing space and boosting crop density by up to 100 per cent.
Initially focused on supporting smallholder farmers in India, YieldX discovered an additional direction through their participation in RISE.
With guidance from program mentors and direct exposure to India's market dynamics through RISE immersion weeks, YieldX identified the country's fast-growing quick-commerce sector as a perfect fit for their technology. These services rely on ultra-fresh produce delivered rapidly to urban consumers.
Lead project manager Michael Bridges explained that YieldX's high-density, pesticide-free leafy greens were exactly what the market needed.
"RISE shifted our strategy completely, from rural farmers to urban freshness at scale," Michael said.
Identification of this new market opportunity led to discussions with a major Indian quick-commerce platform, paving the way for scaled deployment stages and a potential long-term commercial partnership.
With over half their manufacturing already based in India, YieldX is now better positioned to serve dense, fast-moving markets across Asia and beyond.
Novolo: Unlocking coffee's potential at the source
Novolo is tackling a hidden challenge in the global coffee industry: post-roast shelf life. Their proprietary technology extends the freshness of roasted coffee, value adding at the source, a game-changer for producers in origin countries.
By allowing roasting to happen closer to the farm, Novolo's solution helps to extend shelf life by up to six months, which mitigates wastage and results in greater profitability for growers.
At the heart of this innovation is Novolo's SNAPLOCK technology, which uses a scientifically formulated molecular stabilisation process to dramatically slow down degradation. This extends shelf life from days to months while preserving the coffee's flavour profile and nutritional integrity.
In Australia, despite a strong coffee culture, there has been limited demand and infrastructure for origin-based roasting. Through RISE, co-founder Hugh Nguyen said they found the right fit – India, one of the world's top coffee producers.
"When we went over to India and spoke with people in the ecosystem, they immediately understood what we were tackling," said Hugh.
RISE connected Novolo with a wide range of stakeholders, from organic and women-led estates to distributors and the Coffee Board of India. Through the program, they also engaged with AIC-CCRI-CED, India's first sector-focused incubator for coffee and agritech startups, supported by the Coffee Board and the Atal Innovation Mission to foster innovation in traceability, sustainability and market access. These relationships provided crucial insights and helped Novolo build trust quickly with multiple stakeholders within the value chain.
"One of our key learnings from the program is the importance of local partnerships," Hugh said.
"Face-to-face collaboration – doing the work there and building relationships – is faster and fosters greater trust."
Novolo has since signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Coffee Board of India, validating their approach and opening doors to in-country pilots and partnerships they say would have been nearly impossible to access remotely.
VIA: Simplifying soil science with smart, visual tools
The Virtual Irrigation Academy (VIA) is turning the science of irrigation into a language farmers can see – literally. VIA's Chameleon soil moisture sensors mimic the action of a plant root and flash blue, green or red to help farmers make more sustainable decisions about water use.
Developed by CSIRO, VIA's tools simplify complex soil and water dynamics, making it easier for farmers to understand when and how to irrigate. Overwatering can leach nutrients, reduce yields and contribute to salinity and waterlogging. VIA helps avoid these pitfalls by translating scientific insights into practical, visual cues.
Now a CSIRO spinout, VIA Ltd has sold more than 100,000 sensors in 20 countries and earned global recognition, including the Water Changemaker Award at COP28 and accolades from the World Economic Forum and World Food Program. Its colour-based approach has proven especially effective in smallholder contexts, where farmers use the visual feedback to improve yields, conserve water and reduce conflict over shared water resources.
Founder Dr Richard Stirzaker said India emerged as a particularly promising market, with its vast scale offering significant potential to amplify the impact of VIA's innovations.
"India irrigates over 40 per cent of its cultivated land and faces ongoing water scarcity issues, with smallholder farmers playing a vital role in food security and income for a significant portion of the population," Richard said.
Through RISE, VIA is expanding its reach into India via a pilot project and MoU with a local partner who has access to large networks of smallholder farmers. Together, they're also laying the groundwork for a future sensor assembly line, ensuring the technology is locally accessible and scalable.
This global engagement is a two-way street. Insights from smallholder farmers abroad feed back into Australian agriculture, reinforcing the idea that innovation doesn't just flow outward, it returns home stronger and more refined. 
From insight to action
RISE is more than an accelerator; it's a launchpad for Australian climate-tech innovation.
Through one-to-one coaching, immersive in-market visits and practical pathways such as pilot trials and strategic partnerships, RISE equips startups with the insight, networks and experience they need to ensure their solutions are not only viable, but also strategically positioned for successful overseas expansion.
James Robinson, CSIRO's RISE Accelerator Program Director, said participants gain clarity and confidence through tailored business support and deep domain expertise.
"By unlocking access to new innovation ecosystems, supply chains and scalable opportunities, RISE better positions our local innovators to lead in solving some of the world's most pressing sustainability challenges," James said.
