What's up

The second edition of the Belgium Startup Awards confirms the growing momentum of Belgium’s entrepreneurial ecosystem. This year, 51 start-ups have been selected as finalists following a series of pitch sessions held across eight major innovation hubs throughout the country, including A6K.

Among them, two start-ups actively supported by our Acceleration team. ARK Capture Solutions and Fuzz.energy have earned their place in the highly competitive Impact category, highlighting both their innovation potential and their contribution to today’s most pressing societal challenges.

National competition

Launched with the ambition of uniting Belgium’s historically fragmented start-up landscape, the Belgium Startup Awards aim to bring together founders, investors, corporates, and public stakeholders under one national platform.

This year’s selection process gathered 75 start-ups, connecting the dots from Hasselt to Liège, across hubs such as BeCentral, Corda Campus, Hangar K, La Grand Poste, The Beacon, The POD, Wintercircus, and A6K. After evaluation by expert juries, 51 finalists were chosen based on three key criteria.

• Innovation and disruption potential
• Team quality and vision
• Economic viability and growth prospects

Strong trends

Beyond the competition itself, the 2026 selection reveals several key trends shaping the Belgian start-up landscape.

B2B and SaaS models dominate the cohort, reflecting investor appetite for scalable, recurring revenue businesses. At the same time, artificial intelligence is widely present, not as standalone products, but as an enabling layer embedded within sector-specific solutions.

Notably, the Impact category stands out for its depth and maturity. Climate, energy, circular economy, and sustainability-related ventures are increasingly well-structured, with some already backed by significant funding and clear business models.

ARK Capture Solutions, scaling carbon capture innovation

ARK Capture Solutions is one of the most advanced start-ups in this year’s selection. Founded in 2024, the company has already raised more than €2.2 million in pre-seed funding from a strong consortium of investors.

Its mission is to make carbon capture accessible to a broader range of industrial players through a Capture-as-a-Service model. By developing modular systems capable of capturing low concentrations of CO₂, ARK targets a segment identified as underserved by existing viable solutions.

With ambitions to scale from pilot units to industrial deployments, ARK is positioning itself in the emerging small-scale carbon capture market, a space with significant growth potential as industries accelerate their decarbonization efforts.

Fuzz.energy, driving impact through innovation

Alongside ARK, Fuzz.energy also stands out as a finalist in the Impact category.

Fuzz.energy develops a platform combining hardware and a cloud backend to help companies and installers supervise, control, maintain and optimize energy assets such as EV chargers, heat pumps and batteries in real time, including according to dynamic electricity prices.

Selected among the most promising ventures in Belgium, Fuzz.energy reflects the new generation of start-ups combining strong purpose with scalable business models. Its presence in the final selection highlights both the relevance of its solution and its potential to contribute meaningfully to the transition toward a more sustainable and responsible economy.

More than a competition, a growth platform

The journey does not stop at the selection stage. Finalists will take part in a series of masterclasses held at the Proximus Lounge and Googleplex in Brussels, designed to prepare them for the final pitches and public voting phase.

The competition will culminate on June 2, 2026, with the Startup Day in Brussels, a full-day event featuring conferences, networking opportunities, and a live pitch competition, where start-ups will compete for a €100,000 convertible loan.

Support our champions

For ARK Capture Solutions and Fuzz.energy, being selected among the 51 finalists is already a strong validation of their vision and progress. It also reinforces the importance of supporting high-potential start-ups tackling critical challenges, from climate innovation to sustainable growth.

Public voting will open in May, offering a unique opportunity to support the start-ups shaping tomorrow’s economy. We invite you to keep an eye out and cast your vote for ARK Capture Solutions and Fuzz.energy when the time comes, helping them gain the visibility and momentum they deserve as they move closer to the finals.

At A6K, we work hand in hand with such start-ups through our acceleration program for engineering & industrial tech start-ups, from go-to-market and commercial strategy to financial levers, and to connect key potential clients aiming to build a more efficient, sustainable industrial future.

Join us and take your start-up to the next level!