Karla Julieta Arrambide, Manager of Cemex Ventures’ Leaplab, highlights that the accelerator rapidly connects startups with Cemex to tackle construction challenges, driving sustainability, productivity, and innovation while validating scalable technologies for a more efficient industry.
Could you share the vision behind Leaplab and how it aligns with Cemex Ventures’ broader innovation strategy?
Cemex Ventures leads the company’s global innovation agenda, with a mission to drive transformation through open innovation and strategic venturing. Within this framework, Leaplab focuses on piloting and validating startup solutions that address Cemex’s operational and strategic challenges.
The vision behind Leaplab is to act as a fast-track for collaboration between Cemex’s business units and high-potential startups, enabling real-world experimentation that accelerates the adoption of transformative technologies.
It also serves as a collaborative space where startups, Cemex teams, and other industry and business advisors build a more efficient and sustainable future for construction. We’ve worked with 16 startups from 10 countries, engaging nearly 300 internal experts, a proof of both the program’s reach and its ability to deliver meaningful innovation.
What specific challenges in the construction and building materials industry are you aiming to solve through Leaplab’s accelerator program?
Leaplab solves high-impact challenges that directly affect productivity, sustainability, and efficiency in the construction and building materials industry. We prioritize real-world problems that align with our strategic goals and can generate tangible value when solved.
Key focus areas:
- Green Construction: reducing CO₂ emissions, boosting circularity, and promoting more sustainable materials.
- Enhanced Productivity: digital tools, automation, and advanced analytics to improve construction site performance and decision-making.
- Supply Chain Optimization: increasing visibility, reliability, and cost-efficiency.
- Future of Construction: novel business models, offsite and modular construction, and digital customer experiences.
Leaplab is problem-first and business-led, designed to validate startup technologies through pilots that are scalable and relevant The aim is to drive a more sustainable and competitive construction industry.
How does Leaplab identify and select startups to participate, and what qualities do you look for in a potential Leaplab company?
Leaplab leverages the broader scouting and evaluation mechanisms of Cemex Ventures to identify high-potential startups. A key sourcing channel is the Construction Startup Competition, the largest of its kind globally, which we co-organize annually with leading industry partners.
In parallel, Leaplab also runs targeted application calls through our website, designed around specific business needs and focus areas.
We also source startups through referrals from our global innovation network, including other CVCs, VCs, Innovation Programs, and industry events.
In terms of selection, we focus on early- to growth-stage startups with proven technology, solid execution, and the potential to address scalable, real-world challenges. Ultimately, we look for startups that demonstrate high potential for successful pilots, procurement integration, and long-term value creation.
What are some standout success stories or innovations that have emerged from Leaplab’s cohorts so far?
To date, we’ve launched three Leaplab acceleration editions, evaluating nearly 600 startups and initiating collaboration with 16 of them. These partnerships have led to real-scale pilots across more than 130 Cemex sites in 15 countries, tackling challenges across cement, ready-mix, aggregates, supply chain, and urbanization. Impressively, after successful trials, 50% of these startups have become commercial partners, while collaboration with others remains ongoing as we explore further potential.
The selected startups have ranged from pre-seed to Series B stage, and the Leaplab cohorts have benefited from the support of a robust network of nearly 300 mentors. These outcomes speak to the strength of Leaplab’s model in scaling innovation that at the end shapes and shakes the ecosystem and the industry.
How important is collaboration between startups and established players like Cemex in driving real transformation in the construction sector?
Collaboration between startups and established industry leaders like Cemex is essential to driving real transformation in the construction sector, which has historically been slow to adopt change. Startups bring fresh thinking, cutting-edge technologies, and the agility to rapidly prototype and iterate, while corporations offer deep industry expertise, global reach, and access to real operational environments where innovation can be tested and scaled.
At Leaplab, we see this collaboration as a win-win opportunity that unlocks tangible outcomes like procurement, integration, and measurable business value.
Structured programs like Leaplab help reduce the barriers to collaboration and make experimentation faster, safer, and more scalable. We believe that’s how transformation happens: through intentional partnerships that combine the best of both worlds.
With sustainability being a major focus globally, how does Leaplab support startups working on green construction technologies or carbon reduction solutions?
Sustainability is a core strategic priority for Cemex, and therefore a central focus for Leaplab. One of our primary target areas is Sustainable Construction, which means we seek and support startups offering carbon reduction technologies, circular economy solutions, and innovations that reduce environmental impact.
Through Leaplab, these startups gain access to testing environments, expert feedback, and connections to Cemex teams deeply invested in ESG outcomes. Our program also integrates sustainability-focused advisory sessions.
Interestingly, we’ve seen that most startups—even those focused on areas like productivity, maintenance, or quality—embed sustainability in their value proposition, whether by reducing energy use, minimizing waste, or optimizing material efficiency. Leaplab provides a platform to accelerate these innovations and contribute to a lower-carbon, more sustainable construction industry.
In what ways has the evolving digital transformation—like AI, robotics, or IoT—shaped the types of startups you are looking to accelerate?
One of Cemex Ventures’ key focus areas is what we call the Future of Construction, where we actively seek out startups working on new construction methods, advanced materials, and emerging technologies. The accelerating pace of digital transformation through AI, IoT, robotics, and beyond, has significantly influenced the types of solutions we aim to support. We see these technologies not as ends in themselves, but as powerful enablers to address strategic challenges across the building materials value chain and construction lifecycle. Whether it’s using AI to optimize project planning, IoT to enhance real-time monitoring, or robotics to improve productivity and safety on job sites, we’re particularly interested in startups that apply these tools with clear, measurable impact for the industry.
Looking ahead, how do you envision Leaplab growing, and what role do you see it playing in the future of construction innovation globally?
As the construction industry continues to face critical challenges, Leaplab is well-positioned to become a more agile and scalable vehicle for identifying, validating, and implementing solutions that deliver tangible value.
Our ambition is to move beyond a cohort-based approach and toward a model that enables continuous testing and broader deployment of startup technologies across business units. Achieving this requires a stronger alignment between startup capabilities and Cemex’s operational priorities, as well as deepening internal engagement and fostering a culture that embraces external innovation.
On a global scale, I see Leaplab continuing to connect high-impact technologies with real-world challenges across the building materials sector and broader construction industry to help shape a more collaborative, opportunity-rich, and sustainable future for all.
