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Listen now:Apple // Spotify // YouTube

🌊 The Inflection Point Nobody Noticed

Why electrification, materials innovation, and better unit economics are reshaping climate VC.

We’re joined by Sarah Sclarsic, General Partner & Co-Founder at Voyager Ventures, a transatlantic VC firm backing foundational innovations across energy, materials, and machines.

Sarah has spent decades building companies in climate, crafting federal policy, and investing across cycles, from Cleantech 1.0 to today’s electrified, AI-accelerated industrial wave. In this episode, we dive into what LPs really think about climate right now, and why the fundamentals have never been stronger, even when headlines suggest otherwise.

Because while sentiment swings, physics doesn’t.

In our conversation, we covered:

→ The LP perception gap, why institutional investors see long-term fundamentals while headlines focus on short-term noise

→ The quiet inflection point, electricity is now the dominant global energy form (~34%)

→ Why falling battery costs (90%+ in a decade) change everything

→ What emerging managers must prove to LPs beyond “the thesis”

→ Why deeptech no longer can hold a green premium

→ The electro-tech stack advantage (and why fossil-based models are structurally weaker)

→ How to evaluate hardware startups in 2026

→ Why teams, not tech, build billion-dollar companies

→ The compounding gains of electrification + AI + advanced manufacturing

→ Rebuilding 1,000-year-old industrial processes with modern tools

Sarah’s core lens is simple:

If it can’t win on price and performance, without subsidies, it won’t dominate a global market.

Voyager backs companies that:

Replace fossil-based processes with inherently superior systems

Benefit from declining input costs (electrification, automation, AI)

Have durable innovation engines, not one-off breakthroughs

We also explore two fascinating examples:

A company reinventing alloy production using high-powered energy waves

A rare-earth refining startup using nature-derived proteins instead of fossil heat

The pattern?

Massive industries built on outdated industrial assumptions are being reimagined from first principles.

If you’re building or investing in climate, this episode is a masterclass in thinking long-term while executing fast.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit newwavenewsletter.substack.com

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New Wave | Hugo Rauch | Substack

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🌊 Mining Without Mines

How plants could unlock the next wave of critical metals.

We’re joined by Fabien, Co-Founder & CEO of Genomines, a company rethinking how the world sources nickel, not by digging deeper, but by growing smarter.

In this episode, we dive into a radical idea at the heart of the energy transition: what if we could produce critical metals using plants instead of mines?

Fabien walks us through hyper-accumulator plants, the brutal economics of mining, and why biology might be the most under-appreciated extraction technology of our time.

This is a conversation about cost curves, patience, and why sustainability only scales if it wins on unit economics.

In our conversation, we covered:

→ Why electrifying everything doesn’t work if metals stay carbon-intensive

→ How hyper-accumulator plants pull nickel straight from soil

→ The brutal reality of mining economics — and why most deposits aren’t viable

→ Why nickel isn’t rare, just inaccessible

→ Raising deep-tech capital when everyone thinks you’re crazy

→ Why winning on cost matters more than winning the climate argument

→ Transitioning from an R&D lab to an operating company

→ How cheap nickel could reshape batteries, EVs, and geopolitics

If you’re building in deep-tech or mining innovation, Fabien is someone worth listening to.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit newwavenewsletter.substack.com

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New Wave | Hugo Rauch | Substack

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🌊 Building a Sovereign Copper Supply

We’re joined by Katie Marsh, Co-Founder & CEO of Recupere Metals, a next-gen industrial company rethinking how copper is produced for electrification.

Fresh off a €5M seed round closed in just 30 days, Katie shares how Recupere is turning scrap copper into high-performance electrical wires, without smelting, without green premiums, and without compromising on quality.

In this episode, we dive into the coming copper supply crisis, and unpack what it really takes to build a climate-critical industrial company that can scale fast, compete on cost, and integrate directly into global supply chains.

In our conversation, we covered:

→ How to run a fast, disciplined fundraising process in a brutal market

→ Why copper supply, not batteries, may be the real bottleneck to electrification

→ The technical breakthrough that makes scrap copper competitive

→ Why smelting is the hidden carbon and cost villain in metals

→ How software and data create Recupere’s defensibility

→ What Europe gets wrong about sovereignty, supply chains, and resilience

→ The real risks founders face when moving from lab to first commercial plant

Katie also explains why price parity matters more than climate narratives, how OEMs think about supply-chain de-risking, and why the best climate businesses don’t rely on green premiums to win.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit newwavenewsletter.substack.com

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New Wave | Hugo Rauch | Substack

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🌊 Building Cities Without Breaking the System

Why urban climate tech must be faster, better, and cheaper to truly scale.

We’re joined by Jacob Bro, General Partner at 2150, one of Europe’s most thoughtful urban climate investors, fresh off the close of €210m Fund II.

In this episode, we dive into what it really takes to fund the next generation of urban climate infrastructure, and why climate tech is no longer a “vertical,” but a defining layer of the global economy.

Jacob shares hard-earned lessons from Fund I, how LP expectations have evolved, and why sustainability only matters if the economics work.

In our conversation, we covered:

→ Why raising Fund II took longer, and why that’s actually healthy

→ What LPs are really worried about in today’s macro environment

→ Why “climate tech” is maturing into an economic reality, not a niche

→ The danger of business models that rely too heavily on regulation

→ Why team > idea, even in deep tech and Series A–C investing

→ How AI + energy + industry are colliding into a once-in-a-generation opportunity

→ Why 80% of global GDP, and emissions, are urban. And how to fix it.

→ When price matters in venture, and when it really doesn’t

Jacob also unpacks 2150’s evolving definition of urban climate tech, their growing exposure beyond Europe, and why emerging markets matter if you believe in future prosperity at scale.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit newwavenewsletter.substack.com

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New Wave | Hugo Rauch | Substack

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🌊 A VC Playbook for Industrial Biotech

What it really takes to turn great biology into scalable, venture-backable companies.

We’re joined by Joško Bobanović, Partner in Industrial Biotech at Sofinnova Partners, one of Europe’s most experienced investors at the intersection of biology, industry, and climate.

In this episode, we dive into how industrial biotech companies are really built, from lab-grade science to full-scale production, and unpack what it takes to turn ambitious biology into durable businesses.

Joško has been investing in this space since long before “climate tech” was fashionable. His perspective is shaped by scars, cycles, and decades of pattern recognition.

In our conversation, we covered:

→ What industrial biotech actually means

→ Why generalist VCs struggle without deep technical partners

→ The difference between great science and venture-scale companies

→ Platforms vs. product companies, and why too many choices can kill startups

→ Why IP strategy and freedom to operate are often underestimated

→ How teams must evolve from scientists to industrial operators

→ Why exits in industrial biotech still skew toward IPOs, not M&A

This is a masterclass in how long-cycle climate technologies really scale, and why patience, specialization, and realism matter more than hype.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit newwavenewsletter.substack.com

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Thank you to this week’s sponsor:

Accelerating Impact - a non-profit advancing impact finance by mobilizing capital and running free accelerator programs for emerging fund managers. Join for expert coaching, training, financial support, and a strong community. Apply here.

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🌊 Why Circularity Is the Real Climate Lever

Why staying within planetary boundaries demands a rethink of how we design, use, and reuse everything.

We’re joined by Martijn Lopes Cardozo, Partner at Regeneration.VC, one of the world’s leading investors in the circular economy.

In this episode, we dive into why climate alone isn’t enough, and unpack what it really takes to build venture-scale companies that protect biodiversity, water, materials, and supply chains, not just CO₂. Martijn argues that even at 1.5°C, we can still lose the planet, unless we radically rethink how products are designed, consumed, and regenerated.

In our conversation, we covered:

→ Why circularity impacts 90% of biodiversity loss, not just emissions

→ The real VC opportunity hiding in design, use, and reuse phases

→ Why competing on a “green premium” is a losing strategy

→ How brands like IKEA, and H&M pull circular startups through the supply chain

→ What Martijn looks for in a “big seed” (late-seed) circular startup

→ How better measurement could unlock capital

→ The rise of asset-utilization models (and why sharing beats owning)

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit newwavenewsletter.substack.com

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New Wave | Hugo Rauch | Substack

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🌊 Pricing Nature As An Asset

Why the next wave of climate returns will be built on data, ecosystems, and risk

We’re joined by Jahed Momand, General Partner at Cerulean Ventures, a pre-seed fund backing founders applying AI and software to the physical world, from nature and oceans to grids, steel, and supply chains.

In this episode, we dive into what “investing in nature” actually means, and unpack how turning ecosystems into measurable, investable assets could unlock entirely new markets, business models, and venture-scale returns.

Jahed shares how Cerulean thinks about pre-seed conviction, why data gaps in the physical world are the biggest opportunity in climate, and what it really takes to back founders before the story is obvious.

In our conversation, we covered:

→ Why nature is the most underpriced input in the global economy

→ How environmental data becomes an investable asset

→ The real business models behind “nature tech” (beyond carbon credits)

→ Why insurance, supply chains, and pharma are early buyers

→ How AI in the physical world creates defensibility most startups miss

→ What pre-seed investing actually optimizes for (and why Cerulean sometimes overpays)

→ How to build a contrarian thesis that later-stage funds will follow

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit newwavenewsletter.substack.com

Thank you to this week’s sponsor:

Accelerating Impact - a non-profit advancing impact finance by mobilizing capital and running free accelerator programs for emerging fund managers. Join for expert coaching, training, financial support, and a strong community. Apply here.

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🌊 Hardware Is Hard. That’s the Point.

What it really takes to fund, build, and scale climate hardware in Europe

We’re joined by Jessica Burley, Investor at Planet A Ventures, one of Europe’s leading climate and deep tech VCs pioneering a science-based approach to venture capital.

In this episode, we dive into why climate hardware is fundamentally different from software — and unpack what it really takes for founders and investors to scale atoms (not just bits) without breaking the cap table.

From capital stacks and bankability to team composition and customer urgency, this is a grounded, insider conversation for anyone building or backing climate infrastructure.

In our conversation, we covered:

→ Why hardware isn’t broken — but VCs need a new playbook

→ The real reason climate hardware fails (hint: it’s not the science)

→ How to structure a capital stack beyond pure equity

→ What “bankability” actually means for first-of-a-kind plants

→ Why sustainability alone doesn’t close customers

→ Where climate hardware is quietly becoming profitable right now

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit newwavenewsletter.substack.com

Thank you to this week’s sponsor:

Accelerating Impact - a non-profit advancing impact finance by mobilizing capital and running free accelerator programs for emerging fund managers. Join for expert coaching, training, financial support, and a strong community. Apply here.

***

🌊 How To Commercialize Science

Why Europe’s world-class research rarely becomes global companies, and how to fix it.

We’re joined by Erik Engellau-Nilsson, Founder of Norrsken Launcher and former CEO of the Norrsken Foundation, one of Europe’s most influential platforms for impact-driven entrepreneurship.

In this episode, we dive into why most science never leaves the lab, and unpack what it really takes to turn deep tech and climate breakthroughs into scalable, profitable companies. From cap tables and commercialization risk to why the VC model fails scientists, Erik shares a brutally honest view of what’s broken and what actually works.

In our conversation, we covered:

→ Why great science gets stuck in universities

→ The cultural gap between scientists and company builders

→ Norrsken Launcher’s hands-on model: fewer bets, deeper ownership

→ Why Europe produces world-class science, but not world-class companies

→ Clean cap tables, IP ownership, and the “teacher’s exemption.”

→ Strategic investors: accelerator or hidden landmine?

→ Why “patient capital” is often the wrong answer

→ How to build climate and deep tech companies that actually scale

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit newwavenewsletter.substack.com

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This week on New Wave Weekly:

👉 AI won’t magically invent new materials

AlphaFold worked because biology had great data. Inorganic materials don’t. Sparse datasets, missing thermodynamics, and poor characterization remain the biggest blockers.

👉 The real moat is synthesis, not models

From rare-earth-free magnets to catalysts, value is created in the lab: making, characterizing, and scaling materials that actually work in the real world.

👉 Vertical beats generalist (for now)

Foundational models are capital-intensive moonshots. Highly verticalized plays, magnets, catalysts, specific industrial use cases, have a much clearer path to market.

👉 Commercialization is brutally hard

Discovery is step one. Producing at scale, at cost, and getting industry adoption is where most materials stories break, graphene being the cautionary tale.

👉 Europe’s materials moment?

With critical minerals concentrated in China, supply-chain security is creating real pull from industrial players, not just curiosity, but urgency.

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Wave Makers:

Matt - Voyager Ventures

Robina - Contrarian

Vera - Apex Ventures

Hugo - New Wave

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit newwavenewsletter.substack.com