In today’s interview we get to know the startup Liight. We interview its Cofounder & CEO, Santiago Jiménez Cortés.
What problem does your start-up address and what solution does it propose?
Climate change is a problem that affects us all, but we can tackle it effectively. For this reason, Liight is a startup with the mission of motivating people to be more sustainable in their daily routine. Through its technology and gamification, it encourages the acquisition of sustainable habits such as the use of public transport and bicycles, recycling, etc.
Our Liight application validates your actions through sensors on your mobile device, comparing them in real time with data from smart cities to calculate the reduction in carbon footprint. This reduced CO2 is converted into points, which users earn through different gamification mechanics, competing in challenges with rewards and direct prizes in leisure, technology or sustainable fashion.
How and why did you start this entrepreneurial adventure?
Carlos and I met at a camp in the mountains, where we learned about technology, leadership, and entrepreneurship. A few months later, during a college hackathon, the initial idea for Liight came up. We realized about the pollution problem in our cities and the fines that it entails, so we decided to approach sustainability from a positive perspective, rewarding good actions, instead of punishing bad ones. With our passion for technology, nature and entrepreneurship, we have shaped what Liight is today: an innovative, fun and necessary proposal.
Our advice is to work hard and surround yourself with a good team. Success doesn’t come overnight and can take years of effort, or not come at all. It is important not to become obsessed with it, since entrepreneurship can absorb us a lot and make us neglect other fundamental parts of our lives, such as family, friends, sports and health.
How do you expect the sector to evolve? And what expectations do you have for your start-up?
The entrepreneurial ecosystem in Spain has multiplied in recent years, becoming increasingly solid, with more mature projects and a percentage of highly-prepared entrepreneurs.
In our case, we currently have more than 20,000 downloads and around 2,500 active users every week throughout Spain. At this time, we are in a phase of validation and growth of the product. Being a digital project, we have great potential to scale. Our mission is to become the leading platform for “eco-friendly smart-city gamification”.
We are especially focused on implementing our corporate model in companies, promoting sustainable habits among employees. We already collaborate with large companies such as Acciona, Estrella Galicia, ONCE, Mapfre, DIAGEO or Marina de Empresas.
Any new developments in the near future that you would like to share with the rest of the start-ups?
Our next steps are to roll out new features in the app, such as sustainability at home, or start integrating with shared mobility solutions, offering users more sustainable solutions. As for our Corporate clients, we are evolving hand in hand with the new European sustainability regulations to accompany companies in promoting their corporate culture, reflected in their sustainability reports. Also, some of our current customers want to deploy Liight to their sites in other countries, so we are considering going international.
In what areas would you like to collaborate with other start-ups, companies or other organisations?
User interaction with the app is very positive due to its intuitive, attractive and largely automated design. This interest and usability on the part of citizens/employees is perfect for attracting and generating mutual benefits with brands, cities and companies, who find in Liight an attractive, effective and easy-to-implement solution in their environments.
In short, we are looking for companies and partners for creative and technological collaborations that have a significant impact.
Liight’s description: Link
