|
Jan Michael Hess |
|
|
- 18
- March
2020
Coronavirus: Ecosummit Berlin 2020 postponed
The global coronavirus pandemic grows exponentially and has already completely changed our economy and way of life. Bill Gates saw it coming: “COVID-19 has started to behave a lot like the once-in-a-century pathogen we’ve been worried about. I hope it’s not that bad, but we should assume that it will be until we know otherwise.” Governments all over the world have taken actions to flatten the epidemic curve of new infections and protect their citizens. Social distancing is key while vaccine development is being accelerated (CEPI, Moderna, BioNTech, CureVac). European and national borders have been closed, public events are forbidden, curfews are declared in Italy, Spain and France and other countries may follow suit. Nobody knows how long the lockdown will continue and what other restrictions and hardships we will experience. But it is now clear that Ecosummit Berlin 2020 is postponed to September or Q4 2020. Setting the new date is an ongoing process and we’ll announce our rescheduled physical Ecosummit Berlin when the time is right.
Read more- 10
- March
2020
Energiency raises €4.5M Series A led by Encevo
Ecosummit startups are startups that pitched at least once at Ecosummit. Ecosummit investors are investors that have at least one Ecosummit startup in their current portfolio. Today the Ecosummit startup Energiency announces its €4.5M Series A led by the Ecosummit investor Encevo. At the same time, we get one more assist because CEO Arnaud Legrand first met VC Analyst Quentin Dupraz at Ecosummit Paris on 6 March 2018. The French startup and the Luxembourg utility speak the same language and quickly found out that they not only understand each other but also have similar ideas for developing joint business opportunities in the industrial energy market. As Nicolas Milerioux and his team are on the mission to expand corporate venturing and open innovation, Energiency turned out to be a really good match for Encevo’s strategy and portfolio.
Read more- 24
- February
2020
Solar data manager Solytic raises Series A from EWE and Vattenfall
Data is key and enables new business models. The more data you have the better. This is also true in the solar industry and that’s why solar data manager Solytic is a hot startup these days. We’re happy to break the news that Solytic celebrates the first closing of its Series A raising almost €5M from new investor EWE and existing investor Vattenfall, 2 of the top 5 utilities in Germany. As a result, Vattenfall owns a bit more than 20% and EWE a bit less than 20%. The A round was also joined by 3 business angels led by ex-Goldman Sachs banker Frank Oliver Lehmann. EWE’s impressive investment manager Justin Müller met Solytic’s Enrico Ohnemüller and Vattenfall’s Alexander Hain on 16 May 2019 at Ecosummit Berlin and learned that Solytic was planning a new round. As EWE is transforming into a smart green utility that believes in the power of data and wants to grow its renewable energy business, the Berlin-based startup immediately looked like a good strategic fit and smart investment. In fact, Solytic’s Series A is still open and more investors are welcome. The second closing is planned for Q2/2020 and the price and terms depend on the strategic value additional investors bring to the table.
Read more- 15
- February
2020
Epilot raises Series A from Enercity after meeting at Ecosummit
At Ecosummit deals get done. We saw the need for bringing new climate tech to the global market a long time ago. Thus we already have 10 years track record of matching smart green startups with investors. Here’s one more success story about a fast growing energy e-commerce startup and a transforming city utility that met for the first time at Ecosummit Berlin 2019 to explore common ground with the help of coffee. Good deals take time. 9 months later, on 11 February 2020, Epilot announced at E-world the closing of its Series A in which Enercity invests a significant but undisclosed amount of growth capital to buy a 25,1% stake in Epilot’s cap table. After finishing our startup tour running around Germany’s leading energy trade fair, we joined Epilot’s lively stand party to celebrate the deal closing, interview the co-founders and enjoy a few Kölsch together.
Read more- 4
- February
2020
Mobile battery pioneer Instagrid raises €8.5M Series A led by SET Ventures
They take mobile electricity where it has never gone before. Their goal is smart green electrification without local CO2 emissions. Their solution is replacing stinky diesel gensets with silent mobile batteries. Today Instagrid makes a big step forward and celebrates the closing of its €8.5M Series A led by SET Ventures and joined by Segnalita Ventures, part of the Swarovski family office which also owns Tyrolit, Germany’s early stage power house HTGF and the Frankfurt-based family office blueworld.group. At the same time, this transaction boosts our Ecosummit track record of successfully matching startups and investors. In fact, Instagrid and SET Ventures met for the first time at Ecosummit Berlin 2019. While this sounds very romantic, the A round is a major milestone for every startup and the beginning of a long-lasting relationship with many board meetings and follow-ons until the M&A or IPO exit.
Read more- 12
- December
2019
Envelio raises €6M Series A from Ecapital, HTGF and Demeter
Today Envelio announced the successful closing of its €6M Series A led by Ecapital and joined by the existing investors HTGF and Demeter that both increased their share more than pro rata. Envelio is an Ecosummit startup as we like it. Co-founded in 2017 by 5 PhDs and researchers at RWTH Aachen, the German smart grid startup first pitched at ECO18 Berlin and then opened its Series A on 15 May 2019 on stage at Ecosummit Berlin. This was the start of 2 busy days for Envelio’s Founder CEO Simon Koopmann running through a myriad of hot VC meetings including the first deal flow conversation with Ecapital’s Hannes Schill.
Read more- 3
- December
2019
Ecosummit invests in Clim8, Dendra Systems and Solar for Schools
If you want to become a VC and manage other people’s money, you need to start investing your own money first. The angel strategy allows us to build a profitable ecoportfolio and track record now rather than waiting for the first closing of our first fund. In 2019, we’ve made 3 angel investments in Clim8, Dendra Systems and Solar for Schools reinvesting profits we made from organising our Ecosummit conferences. All 3 startups are led by outstanding Founder CEOs and raise their Series A in 2020. We look forward to meeting more smart green investors in their cap tables soon. In the future, we plan 2-3 new angel investments every year to generate environmental, financial and strategic returns for Ecosummit and maximise our impact until 2030, the global deadline for reaching carbon neutrality.
Read more- 3
- November
2019
Smart green startups you should know
Our deal flow is on YouTube. We’re happy to present the best smart green startups in energy, mobility and cities that pitched at Ecosummit in the past on Ecosummit TV: Dendra Systems, Solar for Schools, First Light Fusion, Thermondo, Tado, Greencom Networks, Discovergy, Moixa, Instagrid, Blixt, Climeon, Sunfire, Electrochaea, Volocopter, Lilium, BlaBlaCar, Cityscoot, Vulog, Forsee Power, Sigfox, Kiwigrid, Origami Energy, Exeger, Epishine, Fos4x, DEPsys, Lumenaza, Gridx, ENIT Systems, Envelio, Ubitricity, Devicepilot, Skeleton Technologies, Cosmo Tech, Metron, Surfcleaner, Sunna Design, Agrilution, Airlabs, Ekwateur and Clevershuttle. These startups represent exciting investment opportunities with environmental, financial and strategic returns for (C)VCs and family offices. All of them work hard to create big climate impact and many of them have the potential to become smart green unicorns made in Europe. Pitch at Ecosummit Berlin 2020 to tell your startup growth story and increase the quantity and quality of the term sheets in your next financing round.
Read more- 6
- September
2019
Smart green VCs you should know
There are many smart green VCs in Europe and the US that back startups in energy, mobility, buildings, cities, materials, food and circular economy to create impact as well as environmental, financial and strategic returns for their fund investors (LPs). In the VC food chain, early stage investors prefer to invest, at lower valuations and higher risk, in the Seed, Series A and Series B financing rounds of young startups working on product market fit and traction (users, customers, revenues). On the other hand, late stage VCs like shorter holding periods and time-to-exit and, consequently, advanced startups with more than €5M revenues, experienced management teams and fast growth. The existence of KPIs, ideally going up over time, makes the life of every investor easier. Facing climate change, technology revolution and global competition, the majority of corporates have adopted corporate venturing and open innovation strategies in order to invest in and do business with startups. The result are different investment strategies and sometimes competing portfolios that startups should know before pitching. Let’s co-invest and meet at Ecosummit Berlin 2020.
Read more- 5
- September
2019
Join Ecosummit Ventures as General Partner
Ecosummit Ventures will be a new smart green VC in Berlin that invests in promising European software and hardware startups with B2C and B2B business models in energy, mobility and cities. Ecosummit Ventures leverages the deal flow, investor network and track record of 20 Ecosummit conferences in 5 countries since 2010. The initiator of Ecosummit Ventures is Jan Michael Hess, the founder of Ecosummit. We’re looking for 1 GP with VC track record and green heart beat to join as co-founder as soon as possible.
Read more