Top Social Impact Startups to Follow in 2023

Every year, new startups pull to the forefront of their industry through exciting innovation and industry-disrupting business models. We’ve rounded up the most exciting social impact startups of 2023 that startup-lovers, investors, and aspiring entrepreneurs should follow. 

Disclaimer: With so many exciting startups launching and growing worldwide, we aren’t able to cover them all. Furthermore, the startups that are listed below are not officially ranked and are listed in no particular order.

Location: Stockholm, Sweden
Funding: Angel, €860,000

Blisser is a social impact startup that connects users with impactful leaders and prestigious talent, uniting them for the greater good by allowing people to purchase personalized video content from the artists and leaders they admire with the profits being donated directly to a charity of the talent’s choice. In addition, personal messages from the talent help to inspire and entertain, and global social issues are given center stage with no less than 10% of every purchase going directly to a charity. Blisser was founded by Sara Fernstrom in 2020 in the middle of the Covid-19 pandemic to create positive change in the world.

Location: London, United Kingdom
Funding: Equity Crowdfunding, $15.1 Million

CIRCA5000 calls itself the investment platform of the human future. This social impact startup, also known as CIRCA5K, is an impact investing app which connects investors with causes they believe in. Founders Matt Latham and Tom McGillycuddy developed the startup with the aim of revolutionizing the world of investment and showing future generations that wealth can be built while simultaneously contributing towards a better overall future for the planet and humanity.

Location: San Francisco, California
Funding: Bootstrapped

Do Good Points is a social fintech startup founded by Andy Choi. On a mission to gamify giving, Do Good Points offers the first rewards system for charitable donations. The startup also boasts an internal non-profit, The Do Good Foundation. 

Location: Berlin, Germany
Funding: Seed, €500,000

ABC Doc is a Berlin-based social impact startup that provides a web-based service to recognize bureaucratic letters, develop a summary of the letter, and suggest next steps. This relatively young company's product offering also includes an app that allows users to quickly assess the content of a letter, help them determine whether they need to take action, and either reply, dispute, pay, or, locate relevant legal assistance if required. The offering is specifically focused on tackling bureaucratic inequality in Germany, which has historically created a major problem for the migrant community.

Location: Stockholm, Sweden
Funding: Series B, $54 Million

Sana Labs' tagline is "goodbye one-size-fits-all," and in this social impact startup's context, that refers to workplace learning. The company seeks to help democratize learning in the workplace by creating an engaging and personalized education platform. This edtech solution uses AI to create an all-in-one platform that empowers organizations to design, deliver, and optimize learning material which adapts to each individual's unique learning style. This makes workplace education more enjoyable and accessible and also helps team members to feel more fulfilled and satisfied in their roles. Sana Labs was founded in 2016 and partners with many influential and fast-growing organizations globally to help empower their teams in achieving their full potential. 

Location: Greenwich, Connecticut
Funding: Seed, $3.6 Million

Uncommon Good is a social impact startup seeking to make positive changes through their software platform, which provides non-profit organizations with a comprehensive solution to aid in amplifying their ability to fulfill their mission. The company's solution provides simplified fundraising concepts, marketing strategies, and project management software for nonprofits of all sizes. 

Location: Austin, Texas
Funding: Self-funded, $270,000

FreeWater is an innovative social startup that is giving water away for free while donating to charity. By selling advertisements on their paper water bottles, the startup is able to provide free drinking water as well as build water wells in Africa. 

Location: Karachi, Pakistan
Funding: Seed, $2 Million

Trellis Housing Finance Limited seeks to provide affordable home financing to low and middle-income earners in Pakistan. This social impact startup's values include equal opportunity, meritocracy, innovation, integrity, and respect, and it is on a mission to take the lead in Pakistan's housing finance market through product innovation and the introduction of technology to reduce costs.