#111 - Ensuring CT Startups Will be Able to Raise from Conventional Investors & More w/. Heidi Lindvall (Pale Blue Dot)

Hello, Clean Tech enthusiasts, and welcome to an enlightening conversation with Heidi Lindvall, a pioneering spirit in the climate tech venture landscape and one of the founding partners at Pale Blue Dot. Buckle up as we delve into the highlights of their recent feat — closing a 93 million euro fund, and the roller-coaster ride of climate tech investment in Europe. Get ready to unravel the intricacies of the venture world and how transparency in term sheets can be a game-changer in attracting well-aligned portfolio companies.Now, imagine being early investors in a company, nurturing it, and watching it grow. Feels fulfilling, right? But, it’s not all rainbows and sunshine; Heidi gives us an honest account of the challenges that come with it. From founders lacking the experience to understand the term sheet to maintain relationships with the portfolio companies — it's a journey that requires perseverance, patience, and passion. Heidi’s commitment to her 30 portfolio companies is inspirational, and she shares how her team at Pale Blue Dot navigates the tumultuous waters of early-stage businesses.And it doesn’t stop there! We venture further into the world of climate tech investing, discussing the significance of making an impact essential to business models and connecting technical minds with business aficionados. Heidi unearths the current restrictions and regulations in private equity investing in Europe and the potential for crowdfunding platforms. Get ready for a captivating conversation that will leave you in awe of the exciting world of climate tech investing. Tune in now.

(the above is provided courtesy of cohost.ai via buzzsprout.com)

In this episode, Silas Mahner (@silasmahner) speaks w/ Heidi Lindvall (@HeidiLindvall) a founding partner of Pale Blue Dot (@PaleBlueDotVC). This is Heidi's second time on the show and in today's episode, we focus on what they are doing to level up.

They are a 3-year-old fund now, and we cover what they are doing to continue maturing their network and processes. A lot of value in those parts of the conversation for new-ish CT VCs.

Another really interesting thing is their perspective on ensuring they only invest into startups that can get funding from generalist funds in the future. They want to ensure the future of their portfolio co's is not reliant on a strong ecosystem of CT VCs.

A lot of really great insight was packed into a slightly shorter episode.

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Topics:

* 1:42 Re-Intro

* 4:25 State of CT VC in EU

* 8:13 How the Ukraine War has affected the CT investments

* 10:46 Making their term sheet public

* 18:25 Supporting their founders closely

* 21:10 How they look at fund size now

* 25:05  Laying the tracks for their PortCo’s

* 29:45 How to measure themselves

* 32:37 Biggest challenge; the Market

* 39:00 Getting R&D & Commercial together

* 40:47  The mistakes startups make

* 43:03 What she's interested in next 

Links:

* Heidi on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/heidilindvall/

* Pale Blue Dot: https://paleblue.vc/

* Check out our Sponsor, NextWave Partners: https://www.next-wavepartners.com/

* Follow CleanTechies on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/clean-techies/

* HMU on Twitter: @silasmahner

Other episodes you might enjoy:

* Most Recent Episode: Redefining Waste through 3D Printed Clay Containers | Earth to Earth w/ Sanjeev Mankotia (GaeaStar)

* Similar Topic: ClimateTech Investing w/ Valerie Shen (G2 Venture Partners)

* Something Totally Different: Endings, Endineering, Circular Economy, & the Customer Experience w/ Joe Macleod

* Last Episode with Heidi: ClimateTech VC Investing w/ Heidi Lindvall (Pale Blue Dot)

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