TECH WEEK by a16z’s Post

As we wrap up our inaugural Climate Angels cohort, we’re filled with gratitude for the vibrant community that came together to forge a path in climate tech investing. A huge thank you to each participant, instructor, speaker, mentor, and partner who contributed their time, knowledge, and passion to make this program a success. Special shoutouts to our incredible instructors, speakers and mentors from Lowercarbon Capital, MCJ Collective, Planeteer Capital & Sightline Climate (CTVC), Earthshot Ventures, Climate Capital, Climactic, Voyager Ventures, Plug and Play Tech Center, Gaingels, Elemental Excelerator, and many others who enriched our journey with their insights. Your contributions have been invaluable in empowering our participants to drive impactful investments in the fight against climate change. To our amazing participants, your enthusiasm and commitment to making a difference have truly inspired us. We’re excited to see how you’ll apply the knowledge and connections gained here to foster a sustainable future. Our next cohort of Climate Angels is in partnership with Terra.do, kicking off on April 18th! If you’re passionate about climate tech and eager to join a community of like-minded investors, we invite you to express your interest. Drop your info at https://climateangels.vc to apply to our upcoming cohort and continue this journey with us. Together, let’s keep pushing the boundaries of climate tech investing and create a lasting impact on our planet. #ClimateAngels #ClimateTech #AngelInvesting #SustainableFuture #ClimateAction Jennifer Turliuk, Vijay R., Nishant Mani, Sundeep A., Michael Luciani, Sophie Purdom, Leonardo Banchik, Cody Simms, Shawn Xu, Mitch Rubin, Max Frenkel, Kirsti Chou, Matt Logan, Peter Sun, Camilla Rizzi, David Lacklen, Agneta Rosenberg, Anthony Pancotti, Craig Vigor, dheeraj sanka, Gaby Peña Fraga, Jake Wombwell-Povey, Nikhil Neelakantan, Rob Joy, Stephanie Simon, Surbi Luhadia

𝐇𝐨𝐰 𝐝𝐨 𝐰𝐞 𝐬𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐥𝐝? Last night, I had the pleasure of attending Tenzin C.'s seminar about climate tech, VC, and global impact. One discussion was particularly salient: 𝐇𝐨𝐰 𝐝𝐨 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐛𝐚𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐬𝐮𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐛𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐟𝐢𝐭𝐚𝐛𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲? The trillion dollar question. Arguably, the most fundamental question that we must answer before we can effectively tackle climate change. 1️⃣ First, we have to start by challenging our assumptions. For example, there is a notion that investing in developing countries is not a fruitful investment. Or that ESG investments are unprofitable. However, this does not reflect reality. It is critical to keep an open mind and conduct proper diligence. 2️⃣ Second, and these are my own thoughts, we have to challenge the assumptions we have about our assumptions. The underlying assumption is that we *must* make money while fighting climate change. What about simply breaking even? What about operating at a loss? If it were up to me, saving the planet comes before anything else. Stabilizing the environment for future generations, no matter the cost, should be considered a win. This is my "radical" position: the greatest ROI is 𝘯𝘰𝘵 increased profits, but rather a healthy Earth. Until a mass paradigm shift occurs, we have to operate within the constraints of our hypercapitalistic Western society. Tenzin understands this. Saving the world is not easy. Having to do it while 𝘢𝘭𝘴𝘰 maintaining profits is even harder. Tenzin is an environmental superstar who is helping to shape our climate reality under these tough conditions. Connect with her to learn more! Reflecting on my own role in this fight, I hope to chip away at our underlying assumptions, one post at a time. (If anyone is even reading this.) With peace, love, and positivity, Lenny Sun

📣 Heard at VERGE⚡ Few debates are more charged than capitalism vs. climate change. Is capitalism compatible with a world in the throes of a climate crisis? Can endless economic growth persist on a finite planet? 🌎 Last year, Jamie Beck Alexander, Founding Director DRAWDOWN LABS delivered her VERGE 23 keynote: “Can Capitalism Solve the Climate Crisis?” We know that we can't grow our way out of this crisis. But it will take trillions of dollars to mitigate and adapt to a changing climate, so climate tech professionals — solutions providers, startups and investors — may be perfectly positioned to reimagine capitalism to be compatible with thriving life on our planet. ➡ Catch more thought leaders live at #VERGE24 (Oct. 29-31, San Jose): https://buff.ly/4bhglIc

“Progress proceeds at the speed of trust.” Quick reflections from the UK’s biggest climate tech event: Innovationzero-AR 😃 The good: lots of brilliant people coming together at scale with energy and optimism to work on the massive challenge… bumped into lots of old connections and friends. Favourite session: Greg Jackson from Octopus Energy has done more for climate in this country than just about anyone. Cheaper, cleaner, better service … the solutions are obvious for those brave enough to build them. 😠The bad: big corporates boldly talking about leading the green transition whilst continuing to pollute (but at least they know this is the future) 💡 The ‘what could be better’: • add a climate ai hackathon • gamify the panel format • get some live startup pitching happening • amazing science demo’s to enthrall • live fact check corporates climate comms and broadcast on a big dashboard. Climate startups needing funding support > raaise.co Come to our climate AI hackathon next week ClimateImpact > https://lnkd.in/eEPja9QT

Struggling with getting actionable insights? Marie Geneste and I will be hosting 📢 a workshop to share some insight on the barriers to sustainability action and how to overcome them. ✅ REGISTER > https://lu.ma/kv72mcy3

Today, I had a call with a founder asking me… “So what can I do to help save the planet? I have built 3 companies to $5m+ revenue and sold them. How can I get in Climate Tech?” He asked me. I get it… -There have been $149 billions invested in the space last few years in climate tech companies. -There are a remaining $121B of total private climate assets under management (AUM) across 207 new VCs that haven’t deployed their capital yet. -Lots of these investments ($70+ billions) went into EVs while other categories like agriculture, built environment or industrial decarbonization/ adaptation are still under funded. In the meantime: → California & Australia’s wildfires, France floods, Dubai’s floods, heatwaves in Thailand, Singapore, UK… → This climate anxiety is growing as we realize the world we knew is changing. One great story I can share about a founder getting successfully into climate tech is the one of Derek Handley. Watch it here → https://lnkd.in/gbkTUCRj

🌱 Rewatch the Climate Tech Pitch by Max Bezrukov from AC3D 📺 Watch the full pitch video here → https://lnkd.in/gVx5fbr6 – 🏆 About The Adaptive Cities Innovators Awards: 🎯 We are looking for innovations that can help decarbonize and enhance the resilience of housing to climate change, with a focus on affordability for residential and commercial real estate. 🌱 After reviewing 200+ applications and evaluating over 1,000 deals globally, we have selected 40 semi-finalists to showcase their solutions on our platform. 📺 Their pitch decks and videos will be shared with 500+ active climate tech investors in The Climate Tech Coalition. 💸 The winner could receive up to $250,000 from climate tech VCs & CVCs, as well as direct investment from industry leaders shaping the future of the built environment. ✈️ The top 3 startups will be invited to present at our Climate Tech Investors Summit event during Climate Week NYC, showcasing their innovations to an audience of over 100 guests. 👉🏽 Learn more: https://lnkd.in/gXdQvZFR

Tick-tock! Did you know that over the last 20 years, climate change has cost us $16 million per hour? 🚀 Welcome to Climate Hive, where we transform climate anxiety into climate ACTION! 🚀 🌿 Who Are We? 🌿 Think of us as your climate crusaders in the boardroom and beyond. We’re a blend of storytellers, entrepreneurs, networkers, and business growth experts, tackling the triple threat to climate innovation: ✅ Funding ✅ Sales ✅ Visibility Why? Because your brilliant tech idea needs more than just a pat on the back - it needs a robust runway to take flight. And for the climate tech vets? We’re here to ensure your solutions don’t just spark interest but ignite real commitment. Our unique "success-tied" business model means we’re all in this together- your win is the planet’s win, and it’s our win too. 🌱 Ready to join forces and make some real noise? Hit us up. 🌱 #ClimateHive #ClimateTech #ClimateAnxiety #SustainableBusinesses

The 2024 edition of our climate tech VC infographic shows all the momentum & growth in VC funds covering the climate space. We mapped out seed, early stage and growth stage climate coverage across Europe & UK, US & North America, APAC, Africa and the Middle East. We also tried to split the map by funds with specific climate angles, climate generalists, deep tech funds and impact first funds. Many funds cover multiple verticals, stages and geographies at once. There are a few ways to cut this cake. What matters is that your fund is included 🚀 if we missed you, please add yourself here: https://lnkd.in/gjCUbBcA Would you like to get our next rounds of research and VC infographics? Make sure not to miss the next releases by signing up here: https://lnkd.in/gNJRHZP9

🌱 Rewatch the Climate Tech Pitch by Louis Potok from Recoolit 📺 Watch the full pitch video here → https://lnkd.in/g7J2AiZ7 – 🏆 About The Adaptive Cities Innovators Awards: 🎯 We are looking for innovations that can help decarbonize and enhance the resilience of housing to climate change, with a focus on affordability for residential and commercial real estate. 🌱 After reviewing 200+ applications and evaluating over 1,000 deals globally, we have selected 40 semi-finalists to showcase their solutions on our platform. 📺 Their pitch decks and videos will be shared with 500+ active climate tech investors in The Climate Tech Coalition. 💸 The winner could receive up to $250,000 from climate tech VCs & CVCs, as well as direct investment from industry leaders shaping the future of the built environment. ✈️ The top 3 startups will be invited to present at our Climate Tech Investors Summit event during Climate Week NYC, showcasing their innovations to an audience of over 100 guests. 👉🏽 Learn more: https://lnkd.in/gXdQvZFR