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Exxon’s CEO on climate. 7 culture killers. Greek poet on grit. (#175)

Welcome to the three-minute newsletter from Entrepreneurs for Impact (EFI).

I write about timely trends in climate tech and timeless wisdom in living the good life.

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Today’s topics:

1. Exxon Mobil CEO as a climate champion?

2. A unicorn with one employee.

3. Podcast — Gigawatts of renewable energy deals between $30M to $750M.

4. Three of the biggest recent US climate tech startup fundraises.

5. “They buried us, but they didn't know we were seeds."

6. Avoid these 7 culture killers.

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1.

Exxon Mobil CEO as a climate champion?

Here’s what he says about climate policy under Trump:

• “I don’t think the challenge or the need to address global emissions is going to go away. Anything that happens in the short term would just make the longer term that much more challenging.”

• “I’ve been advising that we have some level of consistency. One of the challenges with this polarized political environment we find ourselves in is the impact of policy switching back and forth as political cycles occur and elections happen and administrations change. That’s not good for the economy.” (Source: Politico)

Why might he say this?

CNBC notes that:

• “Exxon has plans to invest $20 billion through 2027 in carbon capture and storage technology, hydrogen fuel, and lithium mining in the U.S. for electric vehicle batteries.”

• “Exxon’s investments in technologies to lower emissions depend on federal tax credits that were established or expanded under the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). He warned that the company’s investments in these technologies would change if the incentives are weakened or repealed.”

Finally, he says, “I’m not sure how ‘drill, baby, drill’ translates into policy.”

And who knows? Drilling might be great for geologic hydrogen or geothermal.

So what?

Before we decide who the “enemy” is, maybe there’s common ground to find.

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2.

A unicorn with one employee.

Earlier this year, Sam Altman (CEO of OpenAI) predicted that AI will soon enable said entrepreneurs to build companies valued at over $1B without team members.

That sounds easy when you’re leading a company valued at $150B+.

So what?

Who cares if or when that prediction comes true?

What matters is how we should all harness AI tools from ChatGPT, Perplexity, or Claude to make our climate tech companies more impactful ASAP with less investor funding in shorter time frames.

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3.

Podcast — Gigawatts of renewable energy deals between $30M to $750M.

My guest on a recent Entrepreneurs for Impact (EFI) podcast was Jason Segal, Managing Partner at Javelin Capital.

Javelin Capital is an investment and merchant banking firm focused on mergers, acquisitions, and capital raising in the renewable energy, energy storage, and green chemistry sectors.

Jason brings 15 years of experience in cleantech finance and entrepreneurship, plus prior executive roles at Goldman Sachs and Citi.

In this episode, you’ll learn these four important takeaways.

1. How they serve green electron and green molecule companies with financial transactions ranging from $30M to $750M

2. What merchant banking means and why they provide it

3. The importance of not being all things to all people

4. The difference between designing a life and building a career

So what?

Listen to the episode and share your thoughts on my LinkedIn post.

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4.

Three of the biggest recent US climate tech startup fundraises.

Technosylva — Wildfire risk monitoring platform, raised a growth round from General Atlantic BeyondNetZero and TA Associates.

Iontra — Battery performance and safety platform, raised $45M in Series C funding from Volta Energy Technologies.

Oishii — Strawberry vertical farm developer, raised $16M in additional Series B funding from Miyako Capital and Resilience Reserve.

So what?

Get more detailed lists of recent climate tech capital raises from my friends at CTVC and Keep Cool.

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5.

“They buried us, but they didn't know we were seeds."

This comes from the poet Dinos Christianopoulos, who faced exclusion from the Greek literary community in the 1970s due to his sexual orientation.

So what?

The next four years in the US might be tough for companies tackling climate change.

When we hit brick walls, let’s remember this quote.

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6.

Avoid these 7 culture killers.

The American Franciscan priest Richard Rohr cautions us to be wary of the seven C’s of delusion:

1. Comparing

2. Competing

3. Conflicting

4. Conspiring

5. Condemning

6. Canceling out any contrary evidence

7. Crucifying with impunity

So what?

These are as relevant to clear thinking as they are to creating a culture of trust.

Make a note if any of these show up before, during, and after your next company meeting.

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How else can I help you?

• EFI’s private climate CEO peer group — 100 people. $40B of value or AUM.

• Executive coaching from me — 3 seats, Business and personal topics.

• Learn more and apply at our website — www.entrepreneursforimpact.com

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High fives and such,

Chris