Ayrton Forum | 2026
Driving energy transitions through innovation
The Ayrton Forum, held on 22 June 2026, brought together more than 300 leaders from 22 countries across government, finance, innovation, industry, academia and civil society to celebrate five years of the UK Government’s Ayrton Fund and help shape its next phase.
Highlights from the Ayrton Forum 2026
The Ayrton Forum convened more than 300 leaders from across business, finance, government, academia and civil society - bringing together the people and ideas driving transformational clean energy transitions in emerging economies. Watch some of the highlights from the day below.
Delivering impact through the Ayrton Fund
Across its first phase, Ayrton-supported innovation has improved clean energy access for 46 million people, reduced more than 14 million tonnes of CO2, mobilised over £3 billion in public and private finance, and supported more than 250,000 green jobs.
Voices from the forum:
Forum by numbers:
people with improved clean energy access
tonnes of CO2 reduced
public and private finance mobilised
green jobs supported
Key themes from the Forum:
Creating the conditions for clean energy markets
The opening plenary moved beyond technology to the challenge of scale: how clean energy markets are built, financed and sustained.
Electrification as a foundation for development
Electricity is a development platform: powering homes, clinics, businesses, transport and local industry.
Reaching the hardest-to-reach communities
Health facilities, displacement settings, extreme poverty and inclusive design were central to the Forum’s discussions.
Celebrating UK-international partnerships
The Innovators Marketplace showed how UK-supported innovation is turning bold ideas into real-world impact across Africa, Asia and the Indo-Pacific.
Clean energy supply chains and local value creation
The transition should support local manufacturing, repair, recycling, skills and jobs, not only technology deployment.
Looking ahead to the next phase
Ayrton’s next phase should help proven ideas move from demonstration to deployment, from isolated pilots to investable pipelines, and from innovation to lasting impact.
The insights generated across both days will directly inform the next phase of the Ayrton Fund.
For further information, and for images from the day, contact teacomms@carbontrust.com
Event partners:
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