AI-Powered Climate Tech Breakthroughs with Neotribe's Kittu Kolluri, Ep #67

When it comes to climate tech, there are a lot of new kids on the block, investors that have brought billions of dollars of new capital and have helped fund climate innovation we badly need. 

It’s rare that you find folks who have been investing in climate tech for over a decade, let alone two decades. So I was thrilled to sit down with Neotribe’s Swaroop Kolluri who goes by Kittu, a long-time climate investor who sees enormous opportunity in the intersection of different technologies. We talk about several of his investments – from solar to wave energy, to energy storage, to risk resilience – and more generally about the role of AI and other advanced technology in changing the game for climate tech. 

Lots to learn and think about in this one. Enjoy! 

In today’s episode, we cover:

• [2:24] Neotribe & the opportunity to invest in climate right now
• [4:16] How is climate investing different today & what’s exciting
• [7:50] Heliogen as an example of breakthrough climate tech
• [9:15] How is AI showing up in investment opportunities like CalWave
• [10:37] Opportunities beyond energy generation
• [12:24] Other opportunities for AI & climate tech
• [16:05] Other exciting technologies with transformative potential
• [20:31] Kittu’s thoughts around time to market & types of risks [21:47]
• [21:47] Kittu’s leap to Neotribe from NEA
• [23:24] Gaps in the investment space & the type of capital needed
• [25:39] Recent federal investments & impacts on early-stage startups
• [27:04] What else needs to happen to support climate tech
• [29:10] Common barrier to startups
• [30:25] Advice for today’s climate tech leaders

Resources Mentioned

• Neotribe
• Bloom Energy
• NEA
• Heliogen
• Idealab
• CalWave
• Energy Vault
• Metalenz

Connect with Swaroop ‘Kittu’ Kolluri

• Connect with Kittu on LinkedIn

Connect with Jason Rissman

• On LinkedIn
• On Twitter

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