Capital Series: Amy Francetic, Buoyant Ventures

This episode is part of our new Capital Series hosted by Jason Jacobs. This series explores a diverse range of capital sources and the individuals who drive them. From family offices and institutional LPs to private equity, government funding, and more, we take a deep dive into the world of capital and its critical role in driving innovation and progress.

Amy Francetic is Managing General Partner and co-founder of Buoyant Ventures. Buoyant Ventures partners with early stage companies that can rapidly deploy and scale bold solutions, homing in on software and simple hardware. They invest for financial results with a commitment to measure climate impact across their portfolio.

Amy and Jason have a great discussion in this episode about Amy's journey to becoming a venture capitalist, the origin story of Buoyant Ventures, why it came about, how it came about, and some of the behind the scenes details of the process of raising their first fund. They also talk about their strategy for deployment, some examples of investments they've made to date, and how their work fits into the broader climate tech capital stack.

In this episode, we cover:

[01:28]: Updates since Amy was on the pod in 2020
[03:54]: An overview of Buoyant Ventures
[07:06]: Amy’s transition from consumer tech to climate
[08:20]: Founding Evergreen Climate Innovations and Energized Ventures
[10:48]: Challenges with fundraising for “deep tech” vs. software
[12:33]: Amy’s views on sectors in climate and her focus on digital
[15:44]: Measuring diversity, impact, and returns
[23:31]: Young climate entrepreneurs
[24:43]: Seeking investors who share Buoyant’s vision
[30:40]: The role of supportive advisors, including placement agents
[32:02]: Using sidecar investments and special purpose vehicles (SPVs) to balance fund size
[34:15]: Evaluating investment opportunities based on deep dive research and market map
[42:52]: Amy's collaboration with generalist venture firms, especially in software and AI
[46:04]: Evaluating reserves, product-market fit, and long-term commitment
[49:12]: Buoyant's key differentiators and "in the trenches" expertise
[53:44]: Amy's vision for the future of Buoyant and ESG in general
[57:06]: Who Amy wants to hear from and job opportunities at Buoyant’s portfolio companies
[58:44]: Jason's updates on MCJ 2023

Get connected:
Jason Jacobs
Amy Francetic LinkedIn
MCJ Podcast / Collective

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Episode recorded on May 11, 2023

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*Editing and post-production work for this episode was provided by The Podcast Consultant