This June, Cleveland Water Alliance’s (CWA) Ebie Holst and Bryan Stubbs attended the American Water Works Association’s Annual Conference & Exposition (AWWA ACE 2026) in Washington, D.C. As the premier annual gathering for the drinking water sector, ACE brings together thousands of utility leaders, manufacturers, and scientists from around the globe to explore strategies for the industry's most pressing challenges. For CWA, the conference provided a vital platform to track emerging market trends, connect with key partners, and present on our world-class testbed infrastructure.

Showcasing CWA’s Testbed Infrastructure 

A major highlight of the conference was a session led by CWA’s Ebie Holst, titled "Water Accelerator Testbeds - Driving Innovation in the Great Lakes." Addressing a crowd of water professionals, Ebie discussed how modern challenges, ranging from contaminants of emerging concern to deteriorating infrastructure and an aging workforce, urgently demand new solutions. 

She highlighted how CWA has developed Lake Erie into the largest digitally connected freshwater body in the world. Our Smart Lake Erie Watershed (SLEW) provides over 1 million data points annually to help water managers proactively protect public health and manage resources. SLEW also serves as a core piece of our testbed network, allowing innovators to trial and validate their water tech in real-world environments before entering the market. Ultimately, this infrastructure allows CWA to act as a crucial convener, bridging the gap between vetted technologies and end-users to accelerate the adoption of new solutions.

Industry Trends and Innovations

Throughout the conference, the CWA team tracked several prominent themes shaping the future of drinking water. PFAS mitigation technology remained at the forefront of industry discussions, alongside a massive wave of digital water tools. The floor heavily featured advanced "digital twin" software and AI-driven platforms designed to detect complex patterns, pinpoint infrastructure leaks, and forecast asset failures before they disrupt municipal systems.

The team also spent time reconnecting with network partners and scouting fresh global talent. In the Korea Pavilion, they caught up with The Wave Talk, a testbed participant and current CWA office tenant, while also connecting with an exciting new Korean technology company now entering the CWA pipeline. We also connected with our partners at Badger Meter, as well as CWA innovators like Motmot and CoFlux. 

Making the Connections that Accelerate Real-World Adoption

AWWA ACE 2026 was a great opportunity for Cleveland Water Alliance to keep a steady pulse on evolving market needs and global industry trends. Through our expansive testbed network, CWA remains uniquely positioned to help accelerate cutting-edge water technologies and connect them directly to end-users.