Climate CEOs

Learn 5 quick insights in climate & clean energy, startup investment, AI tips, and mindfulness in leadership — straight from my newsletter. Join 20,000 who get it. https://entrepreneursforimpact.substack.com

Learn how to dramatically lower HVAC energy use via metal organic frameworks with Sorin Grama, CEO of Transaera. 🎧 Episode Summary Transaera is reimagining air-conditioning with solid desiccant materials that strip out moisture before cooling. Translation: less energy, fewer emissions, and a planet that sweats less. It’s a plug‑and‑play upgrade across residential and commercial HVAC systems. Sori...

Learn 5 quick insights in climate & clean energy, startup investment, AI tips, and mindfulness in leadership — straight from my newsletter. Join 20,000 who get it. https://entrepreneursforimpact.substack.com

Legendary VC investor Brad Feld explains why “giving first” (his new book) is the key to building resilient founders, impactful startups, and thriving startup communities—especially in climate tech and turbulent times. 🎧 Episode Summary Brad Feld, co-founder of Foundry Group and Techstars, joins Dr. Chris Wedding to discuss why his “Give First” philosophy—mentorship without expectation of immedia...

Learn these 5 quick insights in climate & clean energy, startup investment, AI tips, and mindfulness in leadership — straight from my newsletter. Join 20,000 who get it. https://entrepreneursforimpact.substack.com

Learn how Realta Fusion raised a giant Series A VC round to commercialize university tech for affordable fusion energy in industrial heating. 🎧 Episode Summary Kieran Furlong, Co-Founder and CEO of Realta Fusion, joins host Dr. Chris Wedding to reveal how his team is commercializing a breakthrough approach to fusion energy, spinning out of the University of Wisconsin–Madison. Realta’s “CosmoFusio...

Learn these 5 insights in climate & clean energy, startup investment, AI tips, and mindfulness leadership. Join 20,000 who get my newsletter: https://entrepreneursforimpact.substack.com

Discover how World Tree combines regenerative forestry, carbon sequestration, and impact investing to scale climate solutions across North America and Latin America. 🎧 Episode Summary Doug Willmore, CEO of World Tree, shares how the company is commercializing the world’s fastest-growing hardwood, Paulownia , and how their EcoTree program enables retail investors to support regenerative forestry w...

Explore how Marilyn Waite and the Climate Finance Fund mobilize trillions in capital, proving each dollar delivers more climate impact in the Global South. The Climate Finance Fund is a philanthropic platform that helps to mobilize capital for climate solutions. Supported by the Hewlett Foundation and hosted by the European Climate Foundation , they’re focused on China, the European Union, and the...

Learn how Paul Gross and Remora retrofit trucks and trains to capture 90% of CO₂ while turning emissions into revenue. Remora , founded in 2020 in Michigan, retrofits diesel locomotives and semi-trucks with onboard systems that capture, liquify, and purify up to 90% of CO₂ emissions – while also cutting soot, particulates, and NOₓ – then stores it for offloading and sale, sharing revenue with oper...

Discover how Jim McDermott, a 9x founder and private equity investor, is backing carbon capture, rethinking fund models, and keeping optimism alive in climate finance. Rusheen Capital Management is a Santa Monica, CA-based private equity firm that invests in growth-stage companies in the carbon capture and utilization, low-carbon energy, and water sustainability sectors. – Prior to co-founding Rus...

Hear how Dr. Liz Dennett and Endolith use biotech microbes to revolutionize copper recovery, cut chemicals, and power clean energy metals. Endolith is a Denver-based biotech startup revolutionizing mining by leveraging microbes to sustainably extract copper and lithium from low-grade ores .  Founded in 2023, the company employs custom-engineered microbial communities, adaptive biohatcheries, and r...

Discover how Joe Rodden & Lydian Labs convert CO₂ into jet fuel with renewable power, slashing aviation emissions by up to 95%. Lydian Labs is a Cambridge, Massachusetts -based startup founded in 2021, dedicated to decarbonizing the aviation industry by producing sustainable fuels from carbon dioxide, water, and renewable electricity.  Their proprietary technology employs fully electrified, mo...

Explore how Ahmad Ghahreman & Cyclic Materials recycle rare earths from EVs & wind turbines, building a circular, low-water supply chain. Cyclic Materials is a Canadian cleantech company , founded in 2021, specializing in the recycling of rare earth elements (REEs) from end-of-life products such as electric vehicle motors, wind turbines, and electronic waste.  Their proprietary technologie...

Hear how Chuck Templeton (OpenTable founder & S2G Managing Partner) invests $2.5B in food, ag, oceans & energy while blending returns with impact. Chuck Templeton is an ex-operator, including founding OpenTable and serving as lead investor and operating Chairman in companies such as Grubhub and Venmo (Braintree Payment Systems).  He is focused on helping the S2G team, entrepreneurs, and ex...

Jigar Shah (SunEdison founder & ex-DOE LPO Director) unpacks $107B in climate deals, why VC is broken, & how evergreen capital can scale cleantech. Jigar Shah  served as Director of the Loan Programs Office (LPO) at the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) from March 2021 to January 2025, where he oversaw a $400B budget. Prior, Shah was co-founder and President at Generate Capital , where he fo...

Josh Felser (Climactic & Freestyle Capital) shares lessons from 5 unicorns, $395M in exits, & why climate investing needs fresh narratives. Climactic is an early-stage venture fund investing in the energy, AI, automation, and robotics sectors to address climate change and its effects. It is backed by folks like Chris Sacca, Reid Hoffman, Mio Partners, and StepStone. Prior to Climactic, Jos...

Roman Teslyuk (Earth AI CEO) explains how machine learning + new drilling tech slash costs & speed up critical mineral discoveries to meet $10T demand. Earth AI is discovering untapped critical metal deposits at half the cost in a fraction of the time. They combine machine learning and new modular drilling technology to move from detecting a prospect to drilling in just three to six months. Th...

Discover how Presto is unifying EV fleet charging with a Stripe-like platform, dynamic pricing, & seamless API integration. Presto Charging is like Stripe for EV charging , providing a marketplace for EV fleet owners and EV charging networks via an app and API. They recently raised a $15 million seed round led by Union Square Ventures and included investments from Congruent Ventures, Jetstream...

Cambium is reshaping global wood sourcing with Carbon Smart Wood™, streamlined supply chains, & scalable impact. Cambium is on a mission to build better supply chains for the timber industry. Through their operating system, Traece , they make it easy to source sustainable and local Carbon Smart Wood™ from fallen trees at large scales. They’ve won awards, including Fast Company’s “Most Innovati...

Activate helps scientists and engineers bring their transformative technologies to life. Through a two-year paid fellowship , these science entrepreneurs receive the support they need to turn their ideas into hard-tech startups .  Fellows work on climate solutions, advanced manufacturing and robotics, new uses of chemistry and materials, reimagined food and agriculture, space innovations, and more...

Alsym Energy is developing low-cost, high-performance batteries for a zero-carbon future while scaling global energy access & industrial decarbonization. Alsym is developing a new generation of high-performance, low-cost, non-flammable batteries to help enable a zero-carbon electrified future for all. Using readily-available materials that are inherently non-toxic, Alsym’s breakthrough battery...

Amperon uses AI-powered forecasting to help utilities, traders, & power producers predict demand, prices, and renewable generation for a more reliable, decarbonized grid. Amperon is a Houston-based technology company specializing in AI-powered electricity forecasting and analytics solutions. Founded in 2018, Amperon provides high-precision demand, renewable generation, and price forecasts to e...

Ernst Sack of Blue Bear Capital shares how AI-driven energy startups are funded, what makes founders succeed, and the VC playbook for energy tech investing. Blue Bear Capital is a venture and early-growth equity fund focused on digital technologies for the energy industry. On their third fund, their companies harness IoT, machine learning, and cyber security across solar, wind, and the broader ene...

Bellwether uses AI to predict climate disasters, analyze Earth observation data, and help governments & organizations respond faster while building resilient systems. Bellwether is a climate prediction tool that uses AI to analyze Earth observation data and anticipate changes to the planet. It's used by the public and private sectors to help with disaster preparation and recovery.  How Bel...