Down to Zero

Faster deployment of climate-tech at scale is needed to reach out climate goals, from heat pumps to EVs to carbon removal.

-- But how do you deploy physical infrastructure at scale?

-- And what can we learn from industries (like solar) with a track record in deploying at scale?

In the second episode with ⁠Boris Schubert⁠⁠⁠, we demystify the key steps behind project development and highlight key learnings at each stage.

As Chief Operating Officer at ⁠⁠Silicon Ranch⁠⁠⁠ (one of the largest developer independent power producers in the US), Boris is responsible for deploying over $1bn to build solar at GW scale.

Want to go even deeper? Take a look at our ⁠Down to Zero Substack!⁠

Prices for solar energy have dramatically over the last decades. While generating 1 MWh of solar energy still cost $300,000 in 1957, it's around $20 today.

-- But how did solar become so cheap?

-- And what can we learn for other climate technologies?

We speak with Boris Schubert, an energy veteran of 25 years and COO of Silicon Ranch, one of the largest developer independent power producers in the US, to find the answers.

Want to go even deeper? Take a look at our Down to Zero Substack!

Nature-based solutions can provide over 30% of the mitigation needed by 2030 to keep global warming below 2°C. Yet, many of these projects were found to have hugely overestimated their effectiveness in fighting climate damage earlier this year.

It sent shockwaves through the ecosystem: Prices for nature-based carbon credits plummeted from over $15 to less than $2 per ton.

Join us as we dive deeper into this critical, dynamic, and controversial space with Ling Min, Investment Director at GenZero, a decarbonization-focused investment platform wholly-owned by Temasek.

We cover:

- What nature-based solutions are and who invests in them

- Challenges of the NBS market, and why they are productive

- How GenZero identifies high-quality projects

- Advice for current and future climate tech entrepreneurs and investors

You can follow us on ⁠⁠⁠Substack and LinkedIn.

In this episode, we speak to John Diener, CEO of regenerative aquaculture startup Vertical Oceans.

Vertical Ocean aims to grow sustainable shrimp in huge aqua towers inside cities. Their first zero discharge, fully recirculating facility is up and running in Downtown Singapore. But John's ambitions don't stop there: He dreams of having a Vertical Ocean in every major city around the globe.

And people are taking notice. In 2021, Vertical Oceans raised a $3.5mn Seed Round led by Khosla Ventures and is expanding to the US.

We talk about:

How John's journey uniquely positioned him to found Vertical Oceans

How aquaculture harms the environment

Vertical Oceans' tech to create a fully recirculating facility

What innovations are most exciting in sustainable blue food

Vertical Oceans' next steps and US expansion

More on John and Vertical Oceans:

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Vertical Oceans' website (you can also order their shrimp there)⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

⁠Vertical Oceans's presentation at the IndieBio Demo Day⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

⁠Vertical Oceans' funding announcement in TechCrunch⁠⁠

Contact and feedback:

⁠⁠Follow us on LinkedIn⁠⁠

⁠⁠Subscribe on Substack⁠⁠

⁠⁠Email us

In this episode, we speak to Rajesh Swaminathan, Partner at Khosla Ventures.

Rajesh is a CleanTech and ClimateTech veteran of 15 years. An engineer and Harvard MBA, he worked at Bell Labs and Applied Ventures among others, before joining Khosla Ventures in 2020.

Khosla Ventures is one of Silicon Valley's most prolific venture capital firms founded in 2004. Khosla has invested into bold, early and impactful climate and other tech companies ever since.

We talk about:

Why CleanTech 1.0 was not a failure, and how today is different...

Khosla Ventures' investment approach and thesis...

The 12 most critical climate tech sectors...

Why to move into climate now...

And tactial advice for founders and investors.

More on Rajesh and Khosla Ventures:

Khosla Ventures' website

Rajesh's profile on Khosla Ventures

Khosla Ventures' post on why 12-15 entrepreneurs might be enough to save the climate

Contact and feedback:

⁠Follow us on LinkedIn⁠

⁠Subscribe on Substack⁠

⁠Email us

In this episode, we speak to Apoorv Bhargava, Co-Founder and CEO of WeaveGrid.

WeaveGrid brings together utilities, OEMs and electric vehicle drivers in to help the electric grid cope with the coming wave of EVs. They leverage machine learning capabilities and driver engagement tools to support EV charging optimization - all to ensure that power grids are able to satisfy increased electric demand, while keeping costs down. In 2022, they raised a $35mn Series B round led by Salesforce Ventures.

Listen in if you’re interested in:

Electric vehicles, grid technology, the role of software in climate

More about Apoorv and Weavegrid:

WeaveGrid website

TechCrunch article about WeaveGrid's least funding round

Apoorv's Linkedin

Contact and feedback:

⁠Follow us on LinkedIn⁠

⁠Subscribe on Substack⁠

⁠Email us

In this episode, we speak to Andrew Engler, Co-Founder and CEO of Kettle. Kettle uses artificial intelligence to build a smarter reinsurance model for protecting from the catastrophic effects of climate change. Traditional models are built on historic climate risks (e.g., the likelihood of a wildfire over the last 100 years), but with climate change, these models perform worse and worse. That is what Kettle's technology is looking to change, to better predict and mitigate risk.

In 2021, they raised a $25mn Series A round from Acrew Capital, DCVC, Lowercarbon Capital and others. Especially if you have heard of reinsurance, you'll be surprised about this fascinating sector and Kettle's approach.

Listen in if you’re interested in:

Artificial intelligence, climate adaptation, climate risk, and software solutions

More about Andrew and Kettle:

⁠CNBC on how Kettle is helping fight wildfires⁠

⁠Kettle's announcement of their $25mn Series A⁠

⁠⁠Kettle's website⁠⁠

⁠Andrew's Linkedin⁠

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Contact and feedback:

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Subscribe on Substack

Email us

In this episode, we speak to Shawn Xu, Chief of Staff at Lowercarbon Capital, a climate-tech VC aiming to unf*** the planet. Lowercarbon Capital has has raised >$1bn to date and made 70+ investments, including in several unicorns like Solugen, Crusoe Energy and Commonwealth Fusion Systems.

Before joining Lowercarbon, Shawn spent time at On Deck, Floodgate, and Dorm Room Fund. Shawn has personally partnered with ~50 companies to date and was ranked in Forbes 30 under 30 for Venture Capital.

Listen in if you’re interested in:

climate VC, attributes of great climate tech companies, carbon removal and other hot technologies

In this episode:

Shawn’s journey into VC and climate tech,

The role of VC in the climate capital stack,

What Lowercarbon looks for in a startup,

Lowercarbon’s contrarian $350mn carbon removal thesis,

What technologies Shawn is most excited to see,

Shawn's advice for aspiring climate tech investors

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If you want to support us, follow and rate us here, on Linkedin and subscribe to our substack below.

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More about Shawn and Lowercarbon Capital:

https://lowercarboncapital.com

https://lowercarboncapital.com/team/shawn-xu/

https://twitter.com/shawnxu

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Contact and feedback:

https://www.linkedin.com/company/down-to-zerohttps://downtozero.substack.com/[email protected]

In this episode, we speak to Ted McKlveen, Co-Founder and CEO of Verne. Verne pionieers high-density hydrogen storage for trucks to accelerate the transition to zero-emission heavy transportation.

Green hydrogen can be a safe and scalable alternative to batteries for long-haul transport, which accounts for around 10% of global greenhouse gas emissions. But challenges remain, for instance around hydrogen storage. Ted launched Verne in 2020 while at Stanford’s Graduate School of Business to solve them. Since then, Verne has developed a new cryocompressed hydrogen storage system that requires lower pressure while doubling truck range and increasing payload capacity.

Verne is supported by Breakthrough Energy Ventures and Amazon Climate Pledge Fund, amongst others.

Listen in if you’re interested in:

In this episode:

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If you want to support us, follow and rate us here, on Linkedin and subscribe to our substack below.

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More about Verne:

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In this episode, we speak to Maddie Hall, Co-Founder and CEO of Living Carbon.

Living Carbon bioengineers trees that grow 50% faster and taller and capture 27% more CO2, reducing more of the stock of carbon in the atmosphere.

Maddie founded Living Carbon with Patrick Mellor in 2019. Since then, they've developed photosynthesis-enhanced hybrid poplar trees and several others. In early 2023, they raised $21 million from leading climate tech investors like Lowercarbon Capital and Temasek to scale their technology. By 2030, they hope to sequester over 600 million tons of CO2, which is over 1.5% of global emissions.

Listen in if you’re interested in: 

In this episode: 

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