The Climate Crisis Is Changing How LA VCs Invest — Here's How

Harri Weber

Harri is dot.LA's senior finance reporter. She previously worked for Gizmodo, Fast Company, VentureBeat and Flipboard. Find her on Twitter and send tips on L.A. startups and venture capital to harrison@dot.la.

The Climate Crisis Is Changing How LA VCs Invest — Here's How

Many leading venture capitalists in Los Angeles say they've altered their investment strategy because of climate change, and some are responding to the crisis by pouring more cash into clean-tech startups.

A majority, or 60%, of the more than two dozen investors polled by dot.LA said climate change is affecting how they invest.


The trend is fueling a record-setting year for the sector, as investors put billions behind Southern California-based companies such as electric vehicle maker Rivian and home energy storage firm Swell.

As of late October, Pitchbook tracked $6.4 billion in Southern California "climate tech" deals this year — nearly twice as much as in the entirety of 2020. The expansive sector, as mapped out by the data firm, includes everything from clean-energy generation and electric transportation to the development of plant-based proteins (a.k.a fake meat).

By deal size, Rivian and Faraday Future led the pack in SoCal, followed by Swell, nuclear fusion firm TAE Technologies and Bird, the scooter company that just debuted on the New York Stock Exchange.

"I've been actively investing in the space," Thomas McInerney, L.A.-based angel investor and World Wildlife Fund national council member, told dot.LA. "I think venture can change the world. Its role is crucial," he added, and pointed to several investments in startups such as carbon-removal company Charm Industrial and battery-swapping startup Ample.

Most of the venture capitalists polled said the climate crisis has prompted them to fund more clean-tech startups. One investor noted they were on the lookout for "more novel solutions to these problems."

Globally, climate investments have skyrocketed. In the third quarter of 2021 alone, Pitchbook tracked a record $30.8 billion in related deals. "The industry could give rise to 500 to 1,000 unicorns in the coming years," Pitchbook added in its recent climate report.

What Can't Tech Do?

The promising fundraising trend comes as the White House argues that yet-to-be developed tech will play a critical role in the response to the climate crisis.

"I am told by scientists that 50% of the reductions we have to make to get to net zero are going to come from technologies that we don't yet have. That's just a reality," U.S. Climate Envoy and former Senator John Kerry said in May.

But like others skeptical of Kerry's optimism, Dr. Deepak Rajagopal, professor at UCLA's Institute of the Environment and Sustainability, views the environmental problem as less a "technological one but more socio-political at an aggregate level and behavioral at an individual level."

For years experts have warned that tech alone cannot solve the crisis, and emerging tech often yields unexpected outcomes.

"My research on life cycle assessment of technologies always has shown every technology has unintended consequences and it is an ethical question whether the unintended consequences are worth it. You cannot find a solution which does not have some type of negative impacts," Rajagopal told dot.LA

Dr. Greys Sošić of the University of Southern California, whose research includes supply chain sustainability, called the rise in clean tech investments "commendable," but urged a holistic approach.

"I am wondering what is happening with the rest of their investments? Are there any trends toward reducing investments in "dirty" startups? Until this happens, we cannot make a lot of progress," said Sošić. "Just adding some clean tech startups in one's portfolio, without doing additional changes, looks more like greenwashing than a serious effort to help the environment."

Largest Southern California Clean Tech Deals by Size


Data from Pitchbook.

Lead image and infographics by Candice Navi.

LA Tech Week 2024: Saturday-Sunday Event Lineup
tech-week

Here’s what’s happening during the closing weekend (Oct 19 - Oct 20) of LA Tech Week 2024! Events are organized by location so you can easily catch the sessions that interest you most.

SATURDAY EVENTS

BEVERLY HILLS

12:00 PM

  • BIG Showcase (Invite Only):

BIG Showcase (Invite Only)

2:00 PM

Light Dao

Struck Capital, Seahorse Express

EAGLE ROCK

12:00 PM

Sunrise Integration, Shopify

EL SEGUNDO

9:00 PM

Administratum, Valar Atomics

HOLLYWOOD

10:00 AM

Passes

MALIBU

6:00 PM

  • Malibu Beachfront Investors Networking & Wine Tasting:See Details

Gaya Ventures

MARINA DEL RAY

6:00 PM

  • Awaken Your Spirit: A Journey of Transformation (Invite Only)

Sagos Distro, Alma Wellness

SANTA MONICA

7:00 AM

Founders Running Club

8:30 AM

Techstars

9:00 AM

Magic Mind

StartupStarter, Inc., City of Santa Monica

10:00 AM

Gen She

AI LA

Crea, Barry's, Unsubscribe

10:30 AM

Plantologist

11:30 AM

  • Pickleball Palooza (Invite Only)

YouTube

1:00 PM

  • Realfren Games: From strangers to an inner Realfren within 52 weekends: See Details

Office for Humanity and Circuit Works

  • Talking blockchain technology with special guests: See Details

LadyDayDao

5:00 PM

KARD, What's Plots

THE VALLEY

7:00 AM

Camino5

VENICE

9:00 AM

Westside Yogis

11:00 AM

Open App

1:00 PM

Ripe and Teddy's Hot House

4:00 PM

  • Fashion Forward: How AI is Redefining the Fashion Industry: See Details

VIAVIA, BNTO.RENT, ALMA.AI

VIRTUAL

11:00 AM

BLCK UNICRN

WEST HOLLYWOOD

7:00 PM

Next Sequence

SUNDAY EVENTS

INGLEWOOD

12:00 PM

Entrepreneur Ventures, VCPE GROUPS

PLAYA DEL RAY

2:00 PM

AI LA, DELL, NVIDIA

SANTA MONICA

10:00 AM

  • Women Founders, Cold Brew & Beach View, Rooftop: See Details

Clutch Talent

11:00 AM

11DollarSunglasses.com, Less Litter Foundation

12:00 PM

Data in LA, Amplitude

12:30 AM

New Moon, Warner UK Innovations

TOPANGA CANYON

3:00 PM

Dreamore

VENICE

8:00 AM

  • Surf session with founders, investors, creators: See Details

Surfed Club, Bow Shock

12:00 PM

  • Podcast Panel and Brunch: LA Tech Community Builders: See Details

WeAreLATech.com, Blankspaces.com

VIRTUAL

2:00 PM

BLCK UNICRN


For updates or more event information, visit the official Tech Week calendar.

Enjoy LA Tech Week 2024!


Download the dot.LA App

LA Tech Week 2024: Friday’s Event Lineup
tech-week

Check out Friday, October 18th's schedule for LA Tech Week 2024! Events are sorted by location so you can easily find what matches your goals for the day.

BEVERLY HILLS

8:00 AM

Scrappy

BRENTWOOD

7:30 AM

Seaside Ventures

CULVER CITY

9:00 AM

Intersections LA

1:30 PM

  • Showcasing Bioscience Innovation in LA County (Invite Only)

BioscienceLA, County o LA, Larta Institute, LAEDC

5:00 PM

Grid110

6:00 PM

ACT House, Sip & Sonder

EL SEGUNDO

7:00 PM

Dirac, Inc.

INGLEWOOD

10:00 AM

Zoo Corporation, Embedded Ventures

12:00 PM

  • Tech & The Built Environment Series: LA28 Roundtable & SoFi Stadium Tour: See Details Here

Blended Impact

MARINA DEL REY

9:00 AM

USC ISI

PACIFIC PALISADES

4:00 PM

Silicon Valley Bank, Emmeline Ventures

PLAYA DEL REY

8:00 AM

AI LA

5:30 PM

AI LA

PLAYA VISTA

12:00 PM

  • Women In Gaming Lunch at Google (Invite Only)

Google

4:00 PM

Verizon, Infinity Festival

SANTA MONICA

11:00 AM

SVRN Ventures

Headline, Slow Ventures, Karat

2:00 PM

Glyf

Botanical, Panoptic

The American South Asian Network (ASAN)

4:00 PM

  • Pizza, Wine, & Connectivity: Celebrating the Nomadic App Revolution:See Details Here

Synadia

The American South Asian Network (ASAN)

Dory Consulting

  • Women in Tech: Beachfront Rooftop at Sunset - Wine-up & Unwind: See Details Here

Clutch Talent

Cohere Commerce

5:00 PM

Clutch Talent

Pirros

6:00 PM

  • Unlocking Capital with Angels & Advisors | No Pressure Networking + Panel:See Details Here

No Pressure Networking

Tech Pitch Roast Comedy LLC

6:15 PM

  • Navigating Intersections: Empowering Leaders in Challenging Times: See Details Here

Intersectional Ventures

7:00 PM

Mantis VC, Lightspeed Venture Partners

Medusa Ai, Marco Di Luca Event Design

SOUTH LA

9:00 AM

USC Lloyd Greif Center for Entrepreneurial Studies, Cap Table Coalition, PledgeLA, Sisters with Ventures

UCLA

1:30 PM

CrownData.AI

2:00 PM

Taisu Ventures, Quotient Ventures

VENICE

7:30 AM

Run Tech Club

9:00 AM

Google

12:00 PM

Ripe and Teddy's Hot House

5:30 PM

Spire Circles

7:00 PM

Moss Venice, Yuzulabs, JPMorgan Chase

8:00 PM

Truffle

VIRTUAL

2:00 PM

BLCK UNICRN

WEST HOLLYWOOD

7:30 PM

Legendary Ventures, Day Dream Ventures

WESTSIDE

9:30 AM

A16Z GAMES

7:00 PM

  • Female Funders & Founders (Invite Only)

L'ATTITUDE Ventures

WESTWOOD

9:00 AM

Fedtech, National Security Innovation Network (NSIN)


For updates or more event information, visit the official Tech Week calendar.

Enjoy LA Tech Week 2024!

Download the dot.LA App

LA Tech Week 2024: Thursday’s Event Lineup
tech-week

Here’s what’s in store for Thursday, October 17th at LA Tech Week 2024! Check out the events by location below to find sessions that align with your interests and goals for an inspiring day in LA’s tech scene.

BEL AIR

5:00 PM

Andrew Yeung, Blindspot

8:00 PM

Andrew Yeung, Blindspot

BEVERLY HILLS

8:00 AM

Scrappy

2:00 PM

WE Global Studios

6:00 PM

  • Breaking Barriers: Women Leading the Future of Tech Innovation :See Details Here

Her Workplace

BRENTWOOD

4:00 PM

Slyngshot, Singleton Foundation, East West Projects

6:00 PM

Stanford Angels & Entrepreneurs of Southern California

CULVER CITY

9:00 AM

Intersections LA

9:30 AM

Tediophobes

5:30 PM

Curbivore

DOWNTOWN

10:00 AM

USC Marshall Grief Center for Entrepreneurial Studies

5:00 PM

Toonstar, Loyola Marymount University

EL SEGUNDO

3:00 PM

DTI

5:00 PM

Sift

5:30 PM

Shield Capital

6:00 PM

Sigma Computing, Prodege

HiveWatch

HAWTHORNE

6:30 PM

Astrolab

INGLEWOOD

11:00 AM

Sonder Impact, Sip & Sonder

6:00 PM

Sonder Impact, Sip & Sonder, ACT House

LONG BEACH

6:30 PM

Skuttlebot, Maintenance Bay 54

MALIBU

6:30 PM

Reitler, Carta

MARINA DEL REY

3:00 PM

USC, Information Sciences Institute

5:00 PM

USC, ISI

PALMS

6:00 PM

The Law Firm of Shivani Honwad, Women in LAVA

PLAYA DEL REY

8:00 AM

AI LA

PLAYA VISTA

5:00 PM

Stash, Google

6:00 PM

AI copilot

Tech Me Out, Global Objects, Verizon Innovation Lab

SANTA MONICA

8:00 AM

Human To Human, Superbloom Collective

8:30 AM

Upfront Ventures, Fenwick

olive, Bonfire, Headline, Fika, TipTop Ventures

9:30 AM

  • Founders & Investors - Barry’s Bootcamp with SVB (Invite Only)

Silicon Valley Bank

Clocktower Ventures, Intuit Ventures

Founders Wellth Club

10:00 AM

Pilot

  • ZK House (Invite Only)

Aleo

10:30 AM

Red Beard Ventures

12:00 PM

Inner Circle HQ

  • Tech & The Built Environment Series: Advancing Clean Energy Projects Regionally :See Details Here

Blended Impact, LAEDC

Brydge Club, Lendtech, Two to Twenty

1:00 PM

Olympian Motors

2:00 PM

  • YouTube Creator Collective Pickleball Tournament (Invite Only)

YouTube, @iJustine, @LaurDIY, @StevenHe

3:00 PM

Beaute in Tech

AppsFlyer, Mavan

  • Globalize VC Fund Launch & Startup Showcase (Invite Only)

Globalize

yess.io

3:30 PM

How Women Invest, 2045 Ventures

4:00 PM

WeAreLATech

Amplify, Wonder Ventures, Fenwick, Stifel, CDW

  • Funding the Future of Mental Health Fireside Chat + Mixer (Invite Only)

Silicon Valley Bank, Milken Institute, GreyMatter Capital

Olympian Motors

Hedra

4:30 PM

Emerging LA, Sunset Ventures, Fidelity Private Shares

5:00 PM

  • Investing in Identity: Underrepresented Founders' Consumer Brands :See Details Here

XRC Ventures, Black Women Talk Tech

Palm Drive Capital, Deel

NextGen Venture Partners

MELT

Squad.App

  • Navigating Challenges: AI Solutions for CEOs (Invite Only)

Tripsider, Ferla

LAstartups, Startup Coil, Expert Dojo

5:15 PM

So Cal Tech, WeAreLATech

5:30 PM

  • FEMTECH Innovation & Beauty: Shaping the Future of Women's Health and Wellness :See Details Here

Plantologist

StartupStarter, Hollo.AI, 1500 or Nothing

Clutch Talent

Everything Marketplaces

6:00 PM

Tech Pitch Roast Comedy LLC

Black Tech Meetup

USC Alumni Entrepreneurs Network

Ince Capital

Dreaming in Digital A.I.

  • Israeli Startup Network Meetup (Invite Only)

Fusion VC, Fenwick

  • Fanfix Tech Week (Invite Only)

Fanfix

  • The Kickback (Invite Only)

The Wealth Salons, DVRGNT Ventures, HubSpot, BLCK VC, Cooley, Fabric VC, Canadian Consulate of LA

INCE Capital

This Week In Fintech

Share Ventures, Jack Taylor PR

6:30 PM

ElevenLabs

PowerYou AI

Higgsfield AI

Legendary Ventures, Hustle Fund

7:00 PM

Emerging LA, Sunset Ventures, Fidelity Private Shares

Zeal

8:00 PM

Litquidity Ventures

VAN NUYS

8:00 AM

Pacer.co

VENICE

9:00 AM

Supply Change Capital

Arc, Humans Anonymous, Kindo

10:00 AM

Wave Digital Assets

12:00 PM

JP Morgan, Lux Capital, Camber Road, Varda

1:00 PM

The Redline Apart Hotel

2:00 PM

Everybody Ventures, TriNet

Mercato, Silicon Valley Bank

4:30 PM

West of Lincoln

5:00 PM

The Redline Venice Apart Hotel

Kyte

5:30 PM

XPRIZE, the Female Funders Club, Abundance360

6:00 PM

Graphite.dev

Brandy

AI LA

Intro, a16z

7:00 PM

Date Week, Paloma

VIRTUAL

11:00 AM

SaaSfluencer

APCO

BLCK UNICRN

1:00 PM

Untapped Ventures

Wonder

2:00 PM

Azarian Growth Agency

WEST HOLLYWOOD

4:00 PM

Cake Equity

6:30 PM

A16z

Styld

7:00 PM

Bulletpitch, Pluto LA

  • Science Fiction Meets Science Fact: Advanced Manufacturing (Invite Only)

ACME Capital, Calibrate VC, Techstars Space, Advaita Capital

WESTLAKE VILLAGE

4:00 PM

Trinet

WESTSIDE

11:00 AM

A La Mode Branding

Arizona Commerce Authority

2:00 PM

UCLA Technology Development Group, CNSI at UCLA

5:30 PM

Pryzm

  • Sunset Soirée (Invite Only)

Greycroft, Sound

6:00 PM

Graham & Walker

For updates or more event information, visit the official Tech Week calendar.

Enjoy LA Tech Week 2024!

Download the dot.LA App

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