REVOLUTIONIZING DESALINATION FOR GLOBAL WATER USE
Phase
Active
Guidelines
The Competition Guidelines 3.0 (updated as of January 23, 2025) summarize the high-level requirements and procedures of the competition. These guidelines are based upon extensive research and consultation with dozens of experts and researchers across a wide array of relevant fields. Public feedback, open from March 1 to June 1, 2024, provided further refinement. If you have any questions, please email [email protected].
*Note: In an effort to widen the impact and reach of the competition, we have updated Track A - Desalination: System-Level Innovation to allow for partial/component level solutions to enter. And, Track B - Desalination: Novel Materials and Methods, has been updated to allow any novel desalination materials and methods to enter.
Competition Guidelines 3.0 (PDF)
WHO CAN PARTICIPATE?
XPRIZE competitions are driven by teams of innovative groups and individuals, comprising subject matter experts, enthusiasts, start-ups, student teams, amateurs, and all problem-solvers in between. A winning idea can come from anyone, anywhere.
PRIZE CATEGORIES
XPRIZE Water Scarcity is a multi-track competition that focuses on addressing the challenges and opportunities related to seawater desalination and water access. It is structured into two complementing tracks designed to individually and collectively drive meaningful impact to address water scarcity on a global scale.
$108M Track A - Desalination: System-Level Innovation
$10.9M Track B - Desalination: Novel Materials and Methods
HOW TO WIN
In addressing global water scarcity, we focus on two strategic pathways:
■ Track A - Desalination: System-Level Innovation - the winning team will reliably and most sustainably generate at least one million liters of potable water daily (1,000 m3/ day) from seawater at the lowest cost over the course of 1 year, demonstrating scalability for global impact.
■ Track B - Desalination: Novel Materials and Methods - the winning team will demonstrate a novel material and/or method that can sustainably and cost-effectively treat seawater to potable water quality, using any salt-water separation technique, with an operational lifetime of 10 years or more.
By concurrently driving these advancements forward, we pave the way for a water-secure future that is both economically viable and environmentally sustainable.