• The sustainability-focused startup is under The Catalyst incubation and accelerator program in Masdar City

Abu Dhabi: An innovative solution that enables people to grow healthy produce at home, took center stage at an event held to mark World Food Day at Expo Dubai 2020. The app-controlled HydroArtPod smart garden, developed by a Masdar City-based start-up, was the only technology product to be featured during the event, hosted under Expo’s Programme for People and Planet.

The HydroArtPod has been developed by Masdar City-based byAlinePate, a tech start-up being incubated at the region’s first sustainability-focused startup accelerator, The Catalyst. The automated device requires minimal user effort, while reducing the reliance on chemicals, packaging, and transportation in the supply chain, ensuring a steady supply of fresh produce with minimal food waste. Visitors to the event were able to learn just how easy it can be to grow healthy fruits and vegetables at home.

Start-up founder and CEO Richard Pate also took part in an onstage panel discussion on growing better food and how this can positively impact the environment.

Cinar Kurra, CEO, The Catalyst, said: “We are delighted to support HydroArtPod by AlinePate and look forward to watching their business grow and develop. As the region’s first sustainability-focused start-up accelerator, the role of The Catalyst is to encourage and stimulate entrepreneurship in Masdar City. The Catalyst is a joint venture with BP and via the funding, training and mentorship of innovative startups, we actively accelerate the development of viable technology businesses and catalyze innovation and entrepreneurship while providing fundamental support to early lifecycle startups.”

“At The Catalyst we also provide selected applicants with capital that can be converted into equity as their business bears fruit over the long term,” Kurra continued.

HydroArtPod inventor, Aline Pate said, “My inspiration for designing the HydroArtPod was to help every home be able to make a little difference toward their own health and minimize our impact on the environment. As a mother myself I also think it’s so important to raise awareness among younger generations about healthy food production and the environment. We are delighted to partner with Expo 2020 in helping show how we can all eat better while taking care of our world.”

HydroArtPod users can also grow edible and decorative flowers easily at home. The HydroArtPod can be mounted on the wall in a home for easy access, while also looking like a piece of art.

Masdar City is home to more than 1,000 businesses, encompassing a variety of organizations - from multinationals and SMEs to homegrown startups - committed to advancing the sustainability agenda and spearheading the innovations to realize greener, more sustainable urban living. By basing their businesses in Masdar City, Abu Dhabi, startups such as HydroArtPod, will also benefit from the exceptional network already in place and connecting with other innovative R&D initiatives.

-Ends-

About Masdar City

Abu Dhabi’s Masdar City is one of the world’s most sustainable developments. It is made up of a rapidly growing clean-tech cluster, business free zone and residential neighborhood with restaurants, shops and public green spaces. Masdar City is a working model for cities around the world in environmental, economic and social sustainability, and continues to push the boundaries of innovation. The sustainable city is home to the headquarters of the International Renewable Energy Agency, as well as several Fortune 500 companies, hundreds of entrepreneurs, and a leading graduate-level research institute.

About Masdar

Abu Dhabi’s renewable energy company Masdar is advancing the commercialization and deployment of renewable energy, sustainable urban development and clean technologies to address global sustainability challenges. Wholly owned by Mubadala Investment Company, the strategic investment company of the Government of Abu Dhabi, our mandate is to help maintain the UAE’s leadership in the global energy sector, while supporting the diversification of both its economy and energy sources for the benefit of future generations. Today, Masdar is active in more than 30 countries, including the UAE, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Mauritania, Egypt, Morocco, the UK, the US, Australia, Spain, Serbia, India, Indonesia, Uzbekistan, and many more.

Contacts:
HydroArtPod
Richard Pate - Founder and CEO
Email: richard@byalinepate.com
Website: www.hydro-art-pod.com

Masdar
Email: press@masdar.ae
Tel enquiries in Arabic: +971 2 653 3333
Tel enquiries in English: +971 2 653 6014

For more information please visit: http://www.masdar.ae

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