AI for Climate and Nature Grand Challenge Details
Phase I — 2024
The AI for Climate and Nature Grand Challenge launched in April 2024, inviting nonprofits and academic institutions to submit proposals focused on sustainable proteins, power grid optimization, biodiversity conservation, and visionary wildcard solutions. By the August deadline, more than 1,000 organizations from 94 countries had applied. Proposals were first evaluated by a panel of 175 reviewers using the program's selection criteria. This diverse group of experts represented leading organizations in climate, nature, and AI, including Columbia University, Universidade do Vale do Rio dos Sinos, Greenpeace, the National Park Service, the Indian Institute of Forest Management, MIT, the University of Lagos, and OpenAI. Top-scoring proposals then advanced to a multidisciplinary judging panel of 13 experts in AI, climate science, and environmental sustainability. Ultimately, 24 Phase I grantees were selected, each receiving a $50,000 award and an invitation to advance to Phase II. Phase I of the Grand Challenge was implemented with support from Luminary Labs and Radiant Earth.
Phase II — 2025
Phase I Grantees participated in a virtual Innovation Sprint, receiving mentorship from AI and domain experts and support to develop full implementation plans. Following a rigorous review process, 15 Implementation Grantees were selected — each awarded up to $2 million to move their AI-powered climate and nature solutions from concept to reality over the following two years.
How proposals were evaluated
All submissions were scored equally across five criteria: impact (transformative outcomes for climate or nature), viability (practical and technically sound), suitability (a problem AI is uniquely suited to solve), scalability (potential to adapt and multiply impact globally), and societal benefit (equitable, accessible, and mindful of potential risks). For reference, the Phase I submission form and Grand Challenge Agreement are available for download.
Judging panel
Thirteen judges — drawn from the fields of AI research, conservation, energy, food systems, and climate policy — supported the evaluation of proposals: Tasso Azevedo (MapBiomas), Seong Lok Choi (NREL), Aleksandra Faust (Google DeepMind), Boris Gamazaychikov (Salesforce), Lucas Joppa (Haveli Investments), Aileen Lee (Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation), Geoffrey Levene (NVIDIA), Kofi Nyarko (Morgan State University), Joana Portugal Pereira (Coppe/UFRJ and IST/ULisboa), Liz Specht (Good Food Institute), Veena Srinivasan (WELL Labs), Greg Ulrich (Mastercard), and Alayna Van Dervort (The Big Wild). The Bezos Earth Fund is very grateful for their support and expertise in this process.