Our mission is to make the air that we breathe cleaner,
healthier and safer. We believe that ambitious startups, if
given the right opportunities to collaborate with startup
growth experts, investors, industry and air quality
professionals, can build the most effective solutions we
need, and scale them quicker.
So if this sounds like you, and you are UK-based Seed to
Series A startups, register your interest for our next
programme today.
Solutions that reduce emissions and pollution attributed to freight.
Innovations that prevent, reduce or eliminate emissions from personal, public and private transport.
Technologies and materials that create cleaner, safer construction in cities.
Helping create safer, cleaner and less toxic indoor environments.
Supporting industry across all sectors to reduce air pollution at source.
We’ll be announcing full details about the programme very soon.
Register your interest today and you’ll be the first to hear when we publish all the details.
Benefit from the expertise of award-winning mentors who engage deeply with your business. Our active mentorship approach ensure practical, hands-on support that drives real results.
It’s hard to grow and scale a startup tackling air pollution. It’s why we’ve tailor-built our programme to address the specific challenges you face.
You’ll meet with AQ experts from the public and private sector, academia, government, entrepreneurship, each aiming helping you craft a scalable solution.
You’ll leave the programme a confident and persuasive storyteller, sales master, pitcher and presenter, built up from multiple 121s, workshops and pitch sessions.
Meet investors throughout the programme, and learn how to fundraising, how to source the right investors, and how to become more investible than the competition.
Get pilot-ready; you’ll develop a compelling proposition to take to industry, skills on how to engage potential clients, and increase your chances of landing leads, pilots and deals.
Paul Finch is the Programme Lead and Designer for the Breathable Cities accelerator programme. As one of the UK’s leading disrupters, innovators and activists in the UK air quality scene, he has built up a reputation for making innovation a key tenet of the fight to make our air cleaner, safer and fresher to breathe.
Paul Finch is an expert in startup investment, growth and innovation. As co-founder of Growth Studio with Rayan Jawad, the organisation leads and operates global accelerator programmes designed to support businesses of all sizes, committed to protecting and improving planet health.
"We designed Breathable Cities with a sharp sense of urgency in mind; we want to catapult solutions that resolve the catastrophic result of polluted air - both in and outdoors. Transforming the human impact of poor air quality is fundamental to our Breathable Cities mission and eventually, we hope to be able to provide this type of support to startups and cities worldwide."
As a dedicated Chartered Environmentalist, Sustainability Advisor, and Air Quality Specialist, I am passionate about using my expertise to drive meaningful change for the planet and society. With an academic foundation comprising an MSc in Environmental Technology and a BSc in Environmental Physics, my journey includes co-founding an impact-driven start-up and serving as a governance board member for the Institute of Air Quality Management.
"This extensive experience has allowed me to collaborate with various organisations, harnessing my insights to advise on crucial environmental strategies."
"I'll be leading our commercial partnerships for Breathable Cities 2.0 while driving our PR and marketing initiatives for the programme too. I love connecting through communication. And exclusively focus on planet positive organisations. It's the best job in the world!"
Gaby has 25 years in PR and marketing experience working across global brands and startups from Nike, Nokia and Tate Modern to an array of tech startups and innovation hubs. Gaby's expertise covers a variety of sectors from technology and health to sustainability, AI and SaaS.
The Breathable Cities programme was extremely unique and helpful for our startup with its focus on air quality and the hands-on mentorship from the great people at Growth Studio! They also cultivated a great environment of camaraderie and within our cohort. :)
The Breathable Cities programme has been a game-changer for ZEV City. The pitch training, guided by Growth Studio, sharpened our communication skills and made our vision more engaging. Beyond pitch training, we also gained access to valuable legal advice, fundraising connections, and essential business-building sessions. Since Breathable Cities 1 Demo Day, we have raised £1million.
From where we were, to where we are now, is just night and day. Growth Studio has pushed us forward and made us so much more confident. We know exactly what we need to do and how we need to do it. Since Breathable Cities, we have been awarded by Santander as one of the UK’s top ten startups.
I would encourage startup founders to go through the programme to dramatically improve their pitch content and delivery. It helped us more than we could imagine.
Top marks all round! The team at Growth Studio managed to create one of the most open and collaborative environments that I have ever been a part of. We learnt so much not just from the Growth Studio team and their experts but also from the cohort as a whole. It was an extremely beneficial and fun programme to be a part of and I am truly thankful for the opportunity.
Growth Studio helped us redevelop and articulate our business and pushed me to become a more confident entrepreneur.
Growth Studio provides a great balance of personal experience, expert speakers and programme modules. They are also pretty damn funny and make the whole thing a fantastic experience. You guys rock.
"All Londoners should be able to breathe clean air, which is why the Mayor is delivering an ambitious package of measures to tackle the capital’s air pollution. Local communities and businesses also have a vital role to play, and I am delighted to congratulate all the clean air startups on their efforts in tackling the effects of toxic air, alongside Growth Studio for creating this exciting programme."
"What’s really impressed me about Breathable Cities is the range of startups and number of environmental solutions that are here. It’s wonderful to hear about their incredible inventions."
"You did a tremendous job bringing together a really energised group of folks, all passionate about Clean Air. This really made me double down on my aspiration to try and catalyse a the Clean Air Tech Sector as a more cohesive and collaborative community.
Breathable Cities showed all the hallmarks of excellent coaching and guidance. I’m pleased that I will be able to introduce a funding opportunity at the end of the year that could help some of them move closer to commercialisation. Great job all involved. Inspirational stuff!"
"Opportunities like this are so important. Growth Studio gave us the opportunity to see solutions we would never have thought of."
"Air pollution is the single greatest environmental threat to health. It causes tens of thousands of deaths every year in the UK and costs the economy billions of pounds. But it’s also a social justice issue. Time and time again, research shows that while everyone is affected, it’s those on lower incomes, from minoritised ethnicities, children, or older people, who suffer the biggest burden from air pollution.
We’re excited to support the first Breathable Cities accelerator programme. We want to help businesses stay efficient while reducing air pollution in our cities. And what better place to look for innovative and creative solutions for air pollution than start-up businesses?"
No, The Breathable Cities accelerator is free for startups to apply for and participate in; all costs for participating in the programme are covered by Growth Studio and our sponsors.
We are looking for between 8 and 12 teams to join the cohort.
We are looking for solutions that can reduce air pollution in urban environments. Ideally, something that can apply to freight, transport, construction, and indoor air pollution – but if your startup doesn’t cover those four areas, please do still apply, as we’re open to hearing from any business that can tackle air pollution.
We are looking for companies with a minimum viable product (MVP), so you’ll be beyond the idea stage. You’ll need to be a UK-registered company, and as the programme’s focus is helping you get investment-ready, you’ll be looking to raise money now or soon after the programme.
Finally, we look for enthusiastic, ambitious, investible founders who will commit to the programme.
The programme will last between 10 to 12 weeks and is designed to be non-invasive, allowing you to work on your business while attending. Although the programme team is London-based, we want ideas from all over the UK. We’ll ask you to participate in key days and workshops in London during the programme, but we will run a hybrid programme.
We will launch the application phase shortly, but until then, please register your interest so we can let you know when we do.
When we launch the application phase, we’ll ask you to answer a few questions about your company, team, and solution. One of our team will likely arrange a quick chat to learn more about the programme, answer your questions, and check your eligibility. We will then shortlist all applicants and invite the shortlisted applicants to a face-to-face Selection Day in London. You’ll meet the wider team, learn more about the programme, and meet other startups. We’ll invite a few startups to officially join the programme, send you all the paperwork, and get busy helping you build your business.
Sign up to get updates on new programmes, see how our startups are changing the world, and discover clever ways companies can innovate to protect our planet.