- EcoCart raises $3 million for a Honey-like browser extension to offset shoppers’ carbon emissionsEcoCart, a company pitching consumers on ways to offset their carbon emissions for free at select merchants (with a browser extension!) has raised $3 million in financing from Base10 Partners. Brands pay the company a commission to drive traffic to their websites under a standard affiliate marketing model and EcoCart ... read more
- Ocean Solutions Accelerator doubles down on blue economy with new track for later-stage companiesThe planet-loving folks at the Sustainable Ocean Alliance started an accelerator a couple years back focusing on very early stage companies, but this year they’re expanding the program to accept those who have already closed their first round. The mix of experimental and (comparatively) proven approaches may help diversify the ... read more
- Shell invests in LanzaJet to speed up deliveries of its synthetic aviation fuelThe energy giant Shell has joined a slew of strategic investors — including All Nippon Airways, Suncor Energy, Mitsui and British Airways — in funding LanzaJet, the company commercializing a process to convert alcohol into jet fuel. A spin-off from LanzaTech, one of the last surviving climate tech startups from ... read more
- Chinese startups rush to bring alternative protein to people’s platesOn a recent morning in downtown Shenzhen, Lingyu queued up to order her go-to McMuffin. As she waited in line with other commuters, the 50-year-old accountant noticed the new vegetarian options on the menu and decided to try the imitation spam and scrambled egg burger. “I’ve never had fake meat,” ... read more
- Recycling startup Redwood Materials is partnering with Proterra to supply EV battery materials sustainablyA growing number of companies have emerged over the last few years determined to reduce waste in the electric vehicle battery market. Chief among these is recycling firm Redwood Materials, which has quickly expanded since its launch in 2017 by Tesla co-founder JB Straubel to become the largest lithium-ion battery ... read more
- Will the pandemic spur a smart rebirth for cities?Michael Proman Contributor Share on Twitter Michael Proman is a managing director at Scrum Ventures and heads the firm’s SmartCityX program. More posts by this contributor The future of sports tech: Here’s where investors are placing ... read more
- A Supreme Court ruling affirming Canada’s carbon tax opens the door for a startup explosionLast week the Canadian Supreme Court ruled that the national government’s plan to tax carbon emissions was legal in a decision that could have significant implications for the nation’s climate-focused startup companies. The ruling put an end to roughly two years of legal challenges and could set the stage for ... read more
- Berlin’s Blacklane raises $26M to expand its high-end chauffeur-driven sustainable car serviceAs the Ubers of the world continue to scale, a smaller on-demand transportation startup has raised some funding in Germany, underscoring the opportunities that remain for startups in the space targeting specific service niches. Blacklane — the Berlin startup that provides on-demand black-car chauffeur services in Berlin, London, Dubai, Los ... read more
- Amazon begins testing its Rivian electric delivery vans in San FranciscoAmazon is expanding customer deliveries via electric cargo vehicle to San Francisco, making the Bay Area the second of 16 total cities the company expects to bring its Rivian-sourced EVs to in 2021. San Francisco’s unique terrain and climate were a couple of the reasons Amazon said it chose the ... read more
- Norrsken Foundation is closing on an oversubscribed impact venture fund at €125 millionAbout four years ago, social impact organization Norrsken Foundation launched a small program investing around €30 million in capital it had received from its wealthy patron, Klarna co-founder Niklas Adalberth. Now, that initiative has become its own impact investment firm, Norrsken VC and, according to people familiar with the firm, ... read more
- Three energy-innovation takeaways from Texas’ deep freezeMicah Kotch Contributor Share on Twitter Micah Kotch is the managing director at URBAN-X. Individual solutions to the collective crisis of climate change abound: backup diesel generators, Tesla powerwalls, “prepper” shelters. However, the infrastructure that our modern ... read more
- Startup founded by ‘Survivor’ champ debuts airless bike tires based on NASA rover techAs NASA is quick to remind people, the investments it funnels towards space exploration often winds up improving life on Earth – and it’s now in the business of speeding up some of that work through startups. SMART, a startup founded in 2020, has a partnership with NASA through the ... read more
- Farmland could be the next big asset class modernized by marketplace startupsJim Jackson developed timber and farmland in Eastern Washington, protected from coastal rains by the peaks of the Cascade mountains, building out a clutch of apple farms and other properties on the state’s sunny side for 40 years. Traditionally, he raised money to expand operations for his farms through his ... read more
- Volkswagen will bring 240 gigawatt hours of battery production capacity to Europe by 2030Volkswagen AG is gearing up to seize the top spot as the world’s largest electric vehicle manufacturer with plans announced Monday to have six 40 gigawatt hour (GWh) battery cell production plants in operation in Europe by 2030. To get there, the automaker put in a 10-year, $14 billion order ... read more
- Swedish battery manufacturer Northvolt receives a $14 billion order from VWNorthvolt, the Swedish battery manufacturer which raised $1 billion in financing from investors led by Goldman Sachs and Volkswagen back in 2019, has signed a massive $14 billion battery order with VW for the next 10 years. The big buy clears up some questions about where Volkswagen will be getting ... read more