Maryland Energy Innovation Accelerator
05/01/2026 | Press release | Archived content
MEIA Concludes Winter 2026 Pre-accelerator
The Maryland Energy Innovation Accelerator (MEIA) recently concluded its Winter 2026 Climate Tech Pre-Accelerator, celebrating 16 startups-our largest cohort to date. Over nine weeks, founders worked to transform early ideas and research into actionable commercialization plans through expert-led workshops, mentoring, and peer collaboration.
Throughout the program, teams participated in sessions covering the realities of building a climate tech startup, customer discovery, and market validation. Founders also heard directly from experienced entrepreneurs and industry leaders while developing their commercialization strategies.
The program began with sessions laying the foundation for the startup journey, including remarks from Kobby Osei-Kusi and I-Corps instructor Edmund Pendleton. Founders also heard directly from experienced entrepreneurs Helen Manich, Shannon Sentman, and Michael Dreben during a panel on "The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly of Entrepreneurship." These conversations offered an honest look at what it takes to navigate early-stage startups-from fundraising challenges to achieving product-market fit.
At the midway point of the program, founders gathered in person for a Speed Mentoring session, where experienced mentors rotated through rapid-fire conversations with each company. The format allowed teams to receive real-time feedback on their technologies, markets, and commercialization strategies while building new connections across the climate tech ecosystem.
Another key session focused on prototyping and operations, helping founders think beyond the concept stage and toward real-world deployment. Industry leaders Ed Gibson (Director of Emerging Technology, Pillar Innovations), Cyrus Etemad-Moghadam (President, RPM Tech), and Josh Barnes (COO, Harbor Designs) shared insights on manufacturing readiness, prototyping, and operational planning for scaling climate technologies.
The program concluded with final commercialization plan presentations, where each team outlined their next six months of milestones, partnerships, and funding strategies while receiving feedback from MEIA staff and industry mentors.
MEIA would also like to thank the incredible facilitators, panelists, and mentors who helped make this program possible, including those who participated in the Speed Mentoring session and shared invaluable guidance with our founders throughout the program.
More on the cohort:
TerraSol , led by Matt Duffy, is a marketplace that connects landowners to developers in order to speed up the development of solar projects. Their main invention is that we can infer the infrastructure viability from geospatial data.
Dirtbag Goods, led by Ariana Parrish, is developing a line of compostable Tooth paste packaging designed to fully decompose in natural conditions-no industrial composting required.
Melastone, led by Darnell Shaffer, is developing a bidirectional software and advanced energy storage platform that enables two-way power flow, resilience, and new revenue opportunities for commercial and municipal users.
Hybrium Energy, led by Ryan Macauley, develops modular aluminum-water hydrogen systems that generate clean, on-demand power for defense, critical infrastructure, and remote operations-eliminating the logistics burden and emissions of diesel.
AgroVision, led by David Nyarko, is a smart agriculture system that integrates artificial intelligence, renewable energy, and automated sensing to optimize crop production in resource-constrained environments.
Calyx, led by Christopher Ikpefua, has developed a plasmonic metamaterial layer (Calyx Layer™) made of multi-metal nanoparticles arranged in graded, functional layers within a photovoltaic device to enhance light absorption and increase photocurrent generation.
Explicit Tech, led by Meshack, is creating a web of energy using Blockchain of distributed energy resources and integrating Simultaneous Information and Power Transfer (SWIPT) using power digitization circuitry design.
Radical Energetics, led by Conrad Cole, is a technical consulting startup that helps data centers and AI, HPC, and enterprise IT organizations reduce energy, water, and operating costs through software-, server-, and system-level efficiency optimization and renewable energy integration.
KAI-Netics, led by Kevin Smith, is a Maryland-based technology company that uses an AI-driven autonomous flight system, proprietary simulation-to-real training, and regulatory technology to decarbonize logistics, emergency response, and critical infrastructure through ultra-efficient, zero-emission aerial operations.
NeoQuortex Inc., led by Edward Baker, is a deep-tech startup developing AI-powered, quantum-native software to optimize noisy intermediate-scale quantum hardware, with a focus on quantum chemistry algorithms that enable practical simulations for next-generation materials, energy, and biotechnology applications.
Vibrational Energy Harvesting Machine, led by Siddharth Surana, has developed a bladeless vibrational energy harvesting machine that oscillates with wind flow to generate clean electricity, offering longer operating hours than solar and a compact design that requires less than 60% of the space of conventional solar PV systems.
CarbonTurner, led by Sofia Salvador-Turner, is a climate-tech platform that uses data analytics and IoT monitoring to help buildings improve resilience, reduce resource use, and meet sustainability and carbon reduction goals while lowering operating costs.
Workflow Control, led by Samad Saifudin is a unique integrated solutions platform, designed for Asset Managers to manage energy compliance, prioritize investments in energy efficiency, and competitively source energy - all in one place and at a remarkably reasonable price point.
Telkes, led by Jennifer Arcebal, is an innovative sustainable housing company designing, manufacturing, and delivering net-zero energy homes by integrating advanced solar roof technology directly into factory-built, manufactured homes. Named to evoke a legacy of solar innovation, Telkes combines modern renewable energy systems with high-performance home construction to redefine affordable, sustainable living.
Cami Energy, led by Brandee Davis, is an energy data platform that helps utilities and agencies identify energy burden and participation gaps, enabling better targeting of clean-energy and energy-assistance programs to ensure Maryland's energy investments reach those most in need.
Rise Above Consulting (RAC), led by Conor Broderick, is developing a Smart Indoor Charging Safety Module that provides a dedicated protection layer for Personal Electric Vehicles (PEVs). By combining AC power monitoring with dual-probe thermal and acoustic sensors, the module detects battery venting signatures up to two minutes before ignition. This hardware-agnostic system transforms standard chargers into "battery-aware" devices, offering automated fail-safe cutoffs and real-time telemetry for high-density urban environments.
We're proud to support these founders as they build the next generation of climate tech solutions. Interested in joining the Summer 2026? MEIA is always looking for high-potential climate tech teams ready to move their innovation forward. Apply here to get started.
Maryland Energy Innovation Accelerator published this content on May 01, 2026, and is solely responsible for the information contained herein. Distributed via Public Technologies (PUBT), unedited and unaltered, on October 07, 2026 at 21:30 UTC. If you believe the information included in the content is inaccurate or outdated and requires editing or removal, please contact us at [email protected]