🐝 ClimateHack Vol 131: Biodiversity bond fund targets $500M

Hi There,

A life without plastic is nigh-on impossible. And while plastic alternatives are being rapidly developed, they still face challenges in proving commercial viability and adoption at scale - for now.

In the meantime a wave of innovators are on a mission to turn the tide on plastic recycling, reuse and circularity.

From cutting-edge chemical recycling to AI-driven material sorting, enzyme-based recycling technologies, and advanced waste-to-value marketplaces, here at Hack, we mapped 70 companies who are pushing the boundaries of what’s possible in plastic circularity.

In this week’s edition:
🔋 Battery maker giant files for bankruptcy
🦜 Up to $500 million biodiversity bond fund
✂️ £14M to cut hydrogen production cost below £1/kgH2

The Digest

📈 What’s up? A new report reveals that advanced geothermal power could meet nearly two-thirds of new data center energy demand by 2030.

📉 What’s down? EV startup Arrival is shutting down its operations and laying off its staff, following the collapse of its sale plan.

👎 Also down. Battery-maker Northvolt has filed for bankruptcy in Sweden after failing to secure sufficient financial support, despite previous liquidity aid and a Chapter 11 filing in the US.

🇪🇺 The European Commission is proposing an "Omnibus package" to simplify sustainability reporting and due diligence rules, aiming to boost business competitiveness, though critics warn it may weaken existing standards.

💸 5 VCs weigh in on the next frontier of plastic circularity, with Visionaries Tomorrow, Volta Circle, Spin Ventures, Capricorn Partners, Plug and Play Tech Center.

👋 Come and meet IRL at a ClimateHack Meetup in São Paulo, Amsterdam and Zürich. Sign up for free here.

AgriFood x Climate

🌾 Avalo, a North Carolina-based startup that uses interpretable AI to develop climate-resilient crops, raised $11 million Series A funding and has partnered with CCEP to advance its rapid evolution platform, with a focus on creating low-input cotton and sugarcane.

🧫 Swedish cultivated meat startup Re:meat raised €1 million to develop a modular, brewery-inspired production system for cost-competitive cultivated minced beef, using muscle cells from free-range Swedish cows, with the funding supporting the establishment of Scandinavia’s first “Re:meatery”.

🧑‍🌾 Ag biotech startup Quercus Biosolutions emerged from stealth with pre-seed funding to develop a new category of crop protection products using generative AI-designed mini proteins, leveraging a partnership with drug discovery startup Ordaos Bio.

🇰🇷 South Korea’s Uiseong County has secured $10 million in government funding to build the country’s first cultivated meat research centre, set to open in 2027 to support food tech innovation and regulatory approvals.

Carbon x Climate

🇩🇪 Direct Air Capture startup Ucaneo secured new funding from Aramco Ventures to accelerate the development of Germany’s largest DAC demonstration plant, set for launch in 2026.

🇮🇳 Indian startup Varaha secured a multi-million dollar investment from Conductor Capital to scale its carbon removal projects across Asia, expanding initiatives in regenerative agriculture, afforestation, biochar, and enhanced rock weathering, particularly in India and Nepal.

✍️ Alt Carbon signed an agreement with Mitsubishi Corporation to establish India as a hub for carbon dioxide removal, leveraging enhanced rock weathering to scale high-quality carbon removal credits and accelerate global net-zero efforts.

🌳 Arbonics has entered the Swedish market through a partnership with Treebula, enabling private forest owners to generate carbon credits using AI-driven forestry technology while enhancing forest sustainability.

Energy x Climate

🌞 Stockholm-based solar developer Alight secured €46 million from ABN AMRO and SEB to finance the construction and operation of over 300 MWp of solar parks in Finland, supporting energy-intensive businesses in their transition to solar power.

🏭️ Reverion received €19.5 million from the European Innovation Fund to scale up production of its high-efficiency, reversible Solid Oxide Cell power plants, advancing Europe's decarbonisation goals by enabling flexible energy generation and CO₂ capture from biogas.

🧂 Deeptech startup Thorizon secured €20 million to advance its Thorizon One molten salt reactor, which uses long-lived nuclear waste as fuel, offering a scalable, carbon-free energy solution to complement renewables.

⚡️ Green hydrogen startup Supercritical Solutions raised £14 million in a Series A funding round co-led by Shell Ventures and Toyota Ventures to scale its ultra-efficient, high-pressure electrolyser technology, aiming to cut hydrogen production costs below £1/kgH2 this decade.

🇦🇺 Queensland-based EcoJoule Energy secured $15 million in its first external investment round, led by Ellerston Capital and Fifth Estate Asset Management, to support its national rollout and international expansion of renewable energy management solutions.

🎓 Researchers from the Universities of Nottingham, Newcastle, and Bristol have secured a £7 million EPSRC grant to develop sustainable technologies that integrate power converters with electrical motors, aiming to reduce energy waste and CO₂ emissions in industrial and transport applications.

🏘️ Reshape Energy, a Munich-based building energy services company, raised €5 million to acquire and integrate businesses across the energy services value chain, aiming to provide its all-in-one energy optimisation solution to commercial real estate owners. ​

💥 General Fusion has successfully created plasma in its Lawson Machine 26 prototype, marking the start of a 93-week effort to prove its novel fusion approach and achieve breakeven by 2026.

🔋 Renewco Power and Atlantica Sustainable Infrastructure have partnered to develop up to 2.2 GW of battery energy storage projects across Spain, pending grid connection approvals.

FinTech x Climate

❄️ Citibank disclosed in court filings that the FBI, EPA, and Treasury Department requested freezes on accounts of several nonprofits and state agencies, including recipients of the $27 billion Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund.

Funds x Climate

🌺 Goldman Sachs Asset Management launched its first biodiversity bond fund, targeting up to $500 million to invest in green, social, and sustainability bonds, signalling growing recognition of nature as an investable asset.

✈️ British Airways parent company IAG launched IAGi Ventures, a new venture capital arm committing up to €200 million to invest in tech startups focused on aviation innovation, including sustainable fuels and airport operations.

Materials x Climate

📦 German reusable packaging company Vytal Global secured €14.2 million to expand internationally, strengthen its technology-driven solutions, and enhance brand collaborations and consumer engagement.

🔍 Danish startup PhaseTree secured €3 million from Heartcore Capital to advance its AI-powered platform for sustainable material discovery, aiming to reduce development timelines from decades to just a few years by integrating AI, multiscale simulations, and lab automation.

🇨🇭 Swiss startup Jaipur Robotics raised €725,000 in a pre-seed funding round led by TiVentures SA to advance its AI-driven waste management and waste-to-energy solutions.

♻️ Rotterdam-based startup Xycle secured funding from investors including Dow, ING, and Vopak to build its first commercial-scale chemical recycling plant in the Port of Rotterdam, aiming to advance a circular economy by diverting plastic waste from incineration and landfill.

🇸🇪 Glenntex, a Sweden-based startup specialising in graphene functionalisation, secured investment from Paulig’s venture arm PINC to advance its technology, which enhances recycled plastics, reduces virgin plastic use by up to 30%, and improves packaging circularity.

Mobility x Climate

🚲 Electric mobility subscription company Dance raised €12 million in equity and debt funding to expand its e-bike and moped services in European cities, bringing its total funding to over €79 million as it moves toward profitability in 2025.

🚘 Daqus Energy emerged from stealth with $6 million seed funding to scale its novel TAQ cathode material, which is cheaper, lighter, and free from critical minerals like nickel and cobalt, potentially revolutionising lithium-ion batteries for EVs.

Reality x Climate

🎧 Scrolling > escaping a cyclone

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Editorial by Laura, Curation by Nicola