Article 1 - Eligibility criteria for Start Up Challenge

Eligible companies must fulfill the following criteria:

• number of permanent staff below 50
• confirmed economic viability
• sizable impact on Using Materials Smarter, Less and Longer
• demonstrated breakthrough - whether technical or organizational - in one of the following topics:

- New materials offering higher functionality (better surface aspects, no toxicity, product usage rate), lower costs, and/or fully recyclability
- New processes whether digital (AI, IoT, sensors...) or non-digital process (3D, CO2-free electrolysis, spintronics...)
- all types of application such as

1. Advanced computing
2. Biomaterials
3. Product light weighting,
4. Data storage and processing,
5. Reduction of water usage,
6. Reduction of energy usage,
7. Storage of renewable energies - EV or Stationary
8. Reduction of wastes throughout the supply chain
9. Reduction of CO2 footprint
10. Recycling or reuse

Each applicant will be entitled to apply for one single project.

Article 2 – Requested documents for application Start Up Challenge

Participants will provide a presentation of their company in the form of a PDF document of max 5 pages including a description of their breakthrough innovation, a simplified 3 years business plan, the profiles of top team members and some basic information relative to their company structure (capital and shareholding).
 

Article 3 – Eligibility criteria for WMF Scale Up Challenge

Any company that has been nominated at one of our previous WMF Start Up Challenges (from 2017 to 2024) is eligible to participate

Article 4 – Requested documents for application Scale Up Challenge

Participants will provide a presentation of their company in the form of a PDF document of max 3 pages including a description of their scale Up project (capacity, capital expenditure, project team), a simplified 3 years business plan, the profiles of top team members and the updated basic information relative to their company structure (capital and shareholding).

Article 5 – Submission rules for both challenges

Applicants to both Start Up and Scale Up Challenges will send their files to Victoire de Margerie - victoire36@icloud.com - and Matt Price - matt.price15@gmail.com.
 

Article 6 - Composition of jury for both Challenges

• Armand Ajdari (CTO Arkema, France)
• Godefroy Beauvallet (CEO Paris School of Mines, France)
• Reinhold Dauskardt (Prof. Stanford University, USA)
• Laurent Frescaline (Founder & Head of Technology I-Pulse, France)
• Bronwyn Fox (Vice Dean UNSW, Australia)
• Tom Gentile (CEO Hexcel, USA)
• Brett Helms (Prof. Berkeley University, WMF Grand Prix 2022, USA)
• Barbara Humpton (CEO USA Rare Earth, USA) 
• Vivas Kumar (CEO MitraChem, WMF Grand Prix 2023, USA)
• Adrien de Langeron (Alumni WMF Below 25 - France)
• Francesca Lo Iacono (Alumni WMF Below 25, Italy)
• Victoire de Margerie (Founder WMF & CEO Rondol, France), Jury Chair
• Shirley Meng (Prof. University of Chicago, USA)
• Bernard Pinatel (President TotalEnergies, France)
• Matt Price (Founder Hayzel, USA), Jury Vice Chair

Article 7 - Nominees Start Up Challenge

10 nominees will be designated by the jury in May 2026 and each nominated company will receive a package including a free booth at the World Materials Forum 2026 in Paris, as well as free transportation, accommodation and WMF registration for the company CEO.

Article 8 - Nominees Scale Up Challenge

3 nominees will be designated by the jury in May 2026 and each nominated company will receive a package including a free booth at the World Materials Forum 2026 in Paris, as well as free transportation, accommodation and WMF registration for the company CEO.

The package also includes the organization of 3 one to one meetings with Partner CEOs of WMF as per the nominee’s choice.

Article 9 - Awards Start Up Challenge

Among the nominees, a winner will be designated by the jury during WMF in July and the 50.000 euros Start Up Grand Prix will be handed out to the winning company CEO by the Jury Vice Chairman, Matt Price and additional Jury members.

Additional awards in kind or in cash might be awarded by other jury members.

Article 10 - Award Scale Up Challenge

Among the nominees, a winner will be designated by the jury during WMF in July and the 100.000 euros Scale Up Grand Prix will be handed out to the winning company CEO by the Jury Chairman, Victoire de Margerie and additional Jury members.

Additional awards in kind or in cash might be awarded by other jury members.

Article 11 - Nominees commitments

Nominated companies of both Challenges commit to have their CEO attending World Materials Forum in Paris on September 4th thanks to the packages granted and described in articles 7 & 8.
 

Article 12 - Competition schedule 

• Opening: February 9th
• Deadline to apply: May 22nd 2026 midnight PT
• Selection of nominees: Jury meeting to be held in the 1st half of June 2026
• Announcement of nominees: to be made during the 4th week of June 2026
• Presentation of nominees and announcement of Awards: just before the WMF Gala Dinner on September 4th

Article 13 - Information and communication

Participants and nominees allow World Materials Forum and their partners to use their names, e-mail addresses, full company contact details and a non confidential presentation of their company as included in the company application, and this for the purpose of information and communication actions related to the competition, included all website publications, without any possibility to claim any right whatsoever.
 

Article 14 - Confidentiality

Jury members as well as WMF or partners experts and staff who will have access to files submitted within the course of the competition commit to keep confidential all such information related to projects submitted.

Article 15 - Acceptance of rules

Every participant acknowledges the reading and acceptance of all competition rules by way of participating.
 

Article 16 - Applicable Law

French Law will apply to all matters arising from this competition - and this includes "Loi informatique et liberté" dated 06/01/78 modified by "Loi relative à la protection des personnes physiques à l'égard des traitements de données à caractère personnel" dated 06/08/2004.