XPRIZE WATER SCARCITY

Water Scarcity Semifinalists Advance to Next Stage of $119M Competition

37 Teams Advance, Pushing the Boundaries of Innovation Through Breakthrough Desalination Technologies Designed to Expand Access to Clean Water

Yesterday, 37 teams were announced as advancing semifinalists in the $119 million XPRIZE Water Scarcity competition. Following a rigorous testing and evaluation process assessing the technical merit, feasibility, and operational performance of each team’s desalination technology, these teams have earned the opportunity to advance to the next phase of the competition. There, they will continue developing breakthrough solutions focused on reliable, year-round access to clean water.  

Through two complementary technical tracks, innovators are advancing fully integrated desalination systems and next-generation materials and separation approaches. The semifinalists include 20 teams from 10 countries competing in Track A: Desalination — System-Level Innovation, and 17 teams from 9 countries competing in Track B: Novel Materials and Methods. 

This milestone marks the first phase of physical testing in the multi-year competition and represents a major step forward in accelerating scalable solutions to help address global water scarcity.

Once in the finals phase, teams competing in Track A will be tasked with designing and operating full-scale desalination systems capable of producing more than one million liters of potable water per day from seawater, while competitors in Track B will work to develop novel materials and methods for saltwater separation that can significantly improve the efficiency and affordability of producing potable water from seawater. 

The Urgent Need for Water Innovation  

As global demand for freshwater continues to rise, the need for breakthrough water solutions has never been more urgent. Today, nearly 80% of the global population experiences severe water stress. By 2030, the world is projected to face a 40% gap between available water supplies and global demand. XPRIZE Water Scarcity was designed to help accelerate the next generation of desalination technologies capable of expanding access to clean water through more reliable, sustainable, and cost-effective solutions.

Global Water Summit 2026: Spotlighting The Innovative Water Solutions

To further spotlight these innovations, semifinalist teams will join XPRIZE at the Global Water Summit (GWS) 2026 from May 18–20 in Madrid, one of the water industry’s premier international networking and strategy events. Organized by Global Water Intelligence, the summit convenes more than 1,200 senior executives and leaders from over 80 countries across finance, technology, infrastructure, regulation, and policy to shape the future of water innovation worldwide.

The summit will provide semifinalist teams with a valuable opportunity to engage directly with high-level decision-makers across the global water sector and showcase their emerging desalination technologies. Centered around the theme “Delivering the Water Transition,” GWS 2026 focuses on advancing more sustainable, resilient, and innovative global water systems. As part of these conversations, XPRIZE is excited to showcase semifinalist teams and their technologies among industry leaders shaping the future of water infrastructure, investment, and deployment.  

For more information about XPRIZE Water Scarcity, visit xprize.org/water. To learn more or explore partnership opportunities, please contact [email protected] 

Meet the Semifinalists

Track A: Desalination — System-Level Innovation


Track B: Novel Materials and Methods

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