The Water Council Seeks Water Quality Solutions

Milwaukee, WI, Sept. 4, 2025 – The Water Council seeks technologies to better manage water quality within water systems and enable smarter, faster decision-making for its fall 2025 Tech Challenge.

The semi-annual Tech Challenge is open to anyone with a novel solution for the selected topic, including researchers, individuals, entrepreneurs, startups and established companies. Participants compete for a prize of up to $10,000 and, more importantly, the chance to get their innovation in front of leading water technology companies with the potential for further partnership down the road.

Topics are selected and winners are chosen by the program sponsors, A. O. Smith Corporation, Badger Meter, Watts Water Technologies and Xylem. All finalists present directly to research and development representatives from the sponsor companies.

“We selected a broader topic this session than we typically do,” said Katie Kollhoff Mouat, The Water Council director of innovation programs. “We want to cast a wider net to expose our industry partners to innovative solutions that we might not catch in a more targeted challenge.”

The challenge seeks technology solutions and/or new systems, processes or tools for decision-making support for water quality addressing any stage of the water cycle related to human consumption, including drinking water and wastewater systems across residential, commercial and utility-scale applications well as their distribution networks. Solutions should be at technology readiness level (TRL) 3 and above and provide a new level of decision-making support for water quality.

Applications are due Oct. 10.

Since launching the Tech Challenge in 2019, The Water Council has awarded $240,000 in funding to 24 innovators from 11 countries.

About The Water Council
The Water Council (TWC) is a global hub dedicated to solving critical water challenges by driving innovation in freshwater technology and advancing water stewardship. Built on more than a century of innovation, TWC has coalesced one of the most concentrated and mature water technology clusters in the world from its headquarters at the Global Water Center in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA. Recognizing the need for smarter and more sustainable use of water worldwide, TWC also promotes water stewardship as a natural complement to water innovation in the effort to preserve freshwater resources in the Midwest and around the world. Today, The Water Council has established itself as a global leader in the water industry and one of America’s premier economic development clusters as recognized by government agencies, Brookings and the Harvard Business School.

NOTE: This press release was submitted to Urban Milwaukee and was not written by an Urban Milwaukee writer. While it is believed to be reliable, Urban Milwaukee does not guarantee its accuracy or completeness.