6 Nov 2024
In 2024, Advanced Thermovoltaic Systems (ATS) earned global recognition as the Fix Our Climate Winner of The Earthshot Prize for its breakthrough technology that converts industrial waste heat into clean electricity with no moving parts.
Since that momentous win, ATS has taken significant strides toward scaling its innovation and two key members of The Earthshot Prize Global Alliance have played a significant role in accelerating that journey.
Through strategic legal and operational support, Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer and Deloitte have stepped in to help ATS navigate some of the most critical and complex challenges of early-stage climate innovation. Their support reflects the power of The Earthshot Prize’s Global Alliance to unlock real-world momentum after the spotlight of the Prize has dimmed.
“This is The Earthshot Prize mission in action,” said Andrew Heck of Deloitte. “Accelerating and scaling environmental solutions through targeted support that meets innovators where they are.”
Gavin Williams, Partner and Global Co-Head of Infrastructure at HSF Kramer added, “ATS embodies the kind of scalable, solutions-focused innovation that The Earthshot Prize was designed to spotlight and that we’re proud to support.”
After ATS was awarded The Earthshot Prize, Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer (HSF Kramer), the only law firm in The Earthshot Prize Global Alliance, stepped in to support the company as it transitioned from recognition to implementation.
The firm has since provided over 50 hours of pro bono legal advice, helping ATS advance key commercial and investment partnerships. HSF Kramer’s support included the development of a Waste Heat Recovery and Power Purchase Agreement with a leader in the global building materials sector, and legal guidance on a Simple Agreement for Future Equity (SAFE) that ATS has already used to raise capital.
“These engagements have been critical to helping ATS secure catalytic capital and demonstrate commercial viability at scale,” said Williams. “It’s been a privilege to support them as they take this transformative technology to market.”
Beyond legal support, the firm has also elevated ATS’ voice through thought leadership and convening. ATS featured prominently in a roundtable hosted by HSF Kramer and The Earthshot Prize on Scaling Decarbonisation Technologies in London, an event that brought together stakeholders across policy, finance, and industry to explore how to unlock capital for first-of-a-kind climate tech.
ATS has developed a simple, safe, and scalable technology to capture waste heat and convert it into electricity.
At the same time, Deloitte began working with ATS to address a core challenge faced by many industrial start-ups: building a scalable and resilient supply chain.
As a company operating at the frontier of thermovoltaics, ATS required highly specialized materials and vendors, some with limited availability or production capacity. Deloitte helped the team map their entire supply chain, consolidate manufacturing requirements, and assess geographic and vendor-specific constraints. A deep dive into the supply chains for bismuth and tellurium, critical inputs for ATS’s technology, provided valuable insights to secure supply within North America, where their product will be assembled.
Deloitte’s support also positioned ATS with onshore manufacturing strategies, potentially unlocking tax credits and reducing time-to-market.
“Our work with ATS was designed to address their most pressing growth constraint,” said Heck. “This supply chain analysis is not only helping them scale more effectively, but it’s also creating a repeatable model that could benefit other climate tech innovators in emerging markets.”
While winning The Earthshot Prize helped ATS gain global visibility, it’s the continued support from Earthshot’s Global Alliance Members that’s helping the company translate vision into impact.
The contributions of Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer and Deloitte exemplify the ecosystem The Earthshot Prize has built: one that goes beyond awards to offer hands-on, strategic collaboration with innovators tackling the world’s toughest environmental challenges.
As ATS continues its journey toward wide-scale deployment, its story underscores the value of deep, sustained partnerships and the transformative potential of aligning legal, technical, and strategic expertise in service of the planet.
