Theia Ventures Newsletter: January - June 2024
In this edition of the Theia Briefing, we are delighted to reflect on our journey from January to June of 2024. We extend our heartfelt gratitude to our portfolio companies, partner funds and ecosystem partners for their support and collaboration with Theia Ventures.
Key Highlights
During the first half of 2024, we were invited as panellists at global forums organised by Yale University in New Haven, MIT’s Climate Energy Prize in Boston, Cleantech Asia Summit in Singapore, Kalaari Net Zero, Terrarium, BITS Conquest, Stanford GSB students’ India Climate Trek and IIT Bombay’s Biochar workshop program. We delivered guest lectures on climate tech in India & other emerging markets to undergraduate and Master’s students at their campuses at Brown University, Cambridge University’s Judge Business School and BITS Pilani’s SusVentures program. We were hosted by a private family office network, Aikya Connect, where we shared insights on climate tech trends over a fireside discussion. We also hosted students from the Princeton Startup Immersion Program (PSIP) who were working across a range of early stage companies and investment firms in Bangalore.
Our Milestones:
1. Gigaton Sponsor at Sus Crunch, hosted by Sustainability Mafia: We proudly co-sponsored the SusCrunch summit, which showcased innovative climate solutions with over 250 participants in attendance, and led to multiple collaborations across investors, corporates, startups and academic institutions. The event also saw the launch of the ‘Sus Ventures’ program with BITS Pilani, co-created and mentored by Theia Ventures to give wings to 5 promising student start-ups operating in the fields of energy efficiency, carbon tracking and other climate sectors.
2. Harvard Business School Club of India: We co-hosted an lively evening on the emergence of new climate technologies in India with HBS Club of India, where Priya Shah moderated a panel with experts from Spectrum Impact, 3one4 Capital, Smart Joules, and Lucro Plastecycle.
New Investment
We are thrilled to welcome Sarla Aviation, a pioneering company in eVTOL technology, to our portfolio. Sarla Aviation is transforming urban air mobility with their advanced electric air taxis, offering a safer, quieter, and more sustainable alternative to traditional aircrafts. Explore our portfolio page to learn more on why we invested in them.
Portfolio Spotlight
We congratulate our portfolio company Canvaloop for their feature on Shark Tank India, where they made waves by attracting investment from all sharks and showcasing their innovative work in the sustainable textiles (fibres and yarns) space. Our regenerative agriculture company, Varaha, deployed over 6,000 tons of sustainable rock powder to capture CO2 as part of their Enhanced Rock Weathering (ERW) program, with a goal of 250,000 tons by year-end. We also congratulate Exponent Energy Co-founder Arun Vinayak for being featured in Fortune India's 40 Under 40 list of India’s brightest young business minds.
Our Insights
The first half of 2024 was incredibly rewarding for us at Theia Ventures. We delved deeply into various sectors, articulating our thesis through a series of articles, reports, and podcasts. Below are some of the key insights and publications:
Our latest article on Industrial Decarbonisation explores path breaking technologies that are disrupting the carbon footprint of heavy industry.
We launched our podcast series, Unheated, which features insights and perspectives from global climate tech funds and allocators such as Wavemaker Impact, 2150, The Engine, Carbon 13, Powerhouse Ventures and Pale Blue Dot.
Meet Our New Team Members
Ashita joined Theia Ventures as a Short-Term Associate from London Business School, bringing experience from Innoven Capital and Ernst & Young.
Shradha joined Theia Ventures as Chief of Staff, bringing experience from working at Zerodha, startups such as PadCare Labs and a climate fellowship at Terra.do.
Piyush joined Theia Ventures as a VC Analyst Fellow, with prior experience at UBS, Revolut, and Sattva Consulting.
We thank Ashita, Shradha and Piyush for being a part of the Theia Ventures journey.
If you're building a business in climate tech, we'd love to hear from you!
To get in touch, please write to us at info@theia-ventures.com. We look forward to exploring how we can support your venture and contribute to a sustainable future together.