MIT Technology Review will publish its 2026 list of Climate Tech Companies to Watch on October 6, the outlet announced this week. The annual ranking identifies ten companies that editors believe are making the biggest practical dent in emissions or improving public safety and health amid a worsening climate outlook.
Context is grim: the UN recently said the planet will likely pass 1.5°C of warming within a few years, the US president continues to dismantle climate policies, and major tech firms are scaling back climate pledges to build AI data centers. Yet the list's editors argue that progress in renewables, batteries, EVs, industrial decarbonization, and climate adaptation continues and will accelerate as costs fall.
The 2026 edition includes companies working in energy storage, nuclear power, transportation, and other areas, including some that have managed to advance despite hostile politics. MIT Technology Review frames the list as an antidote to climate doom, emphasizing that real-world solutions are being deployed even as emissions targets slip.