Amy Westervelt writes:

Cleantech companies applying new technologies to old problems faced by the world’s poor are attracting funds. But the money’s coming from Silicon Valley venture funds, not NGOs.

Venture funds Walden International and New Enterprise Associates (NEA) are looking into funding India-based Novatium, developer of a $100 personal computer.
[...]
The needs of BOP include everything from clean water and electricity to computers, but Day says some of the best plays are those that combine something for both ends of the pyramid. “A lot of technology companies are aiming at dual markets, both at deep-pocketed markets in the United States and Europe, and with slightly different twists on the technology for the bottom of the pyramid,” he says.