Climactic VC
Climactic VC is a climate-focused venture capital firm co-founded by Josh Felser and Raj Kapoor, investing $1.5-3M at seed/Series A in software-first Physical AI, Energy Tech, and Waste-to-Value startups. It manages a $65M fund and the Material Scale hybrid debt-equity fund.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2023
- HeadquartersSan Francisco, United States
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Climactic VC does
Climactic VC is a US-based, climate-focused venture capital firm co-founded by Josh Felser (ex-Freestyle Capital, founder of Spinner and Crackle) and Raj Kapoor (former Chief Strategy Officer of Lyft). The firm invests $1.5-3M checks at the seed and Series A stages into software-first climate startups across three core verticals: Physical AI, Energy Tech, and Waste-to-Value, with portfolio companies spanning electric appliances (Copper), energy infrastructure robotics (Gritt Robotics), Earth remote sensing (MuonSpace), EV-grid software (WeaveGrid), sustainable materials (Rubi Laboratories), home services sales enablement (EDEN), and clean energy project finance (CapeZero). The firm reports five unicorns and $395M in exits across its portfolio.
The firm operates two investment vehicles: a $65M inaugural fund closed in December 2023, backed by institutional LPs (MIO Partners, Stepstone, Brown Advisory, HG Ventures, NfX, Mayfield) and individual LPs (Reid Hoffman, Chris Sacca, Ev Williams, Mark Pincus, Chris Larsen), and Material Scale, a hybrid debt-equity fund launched in February 2026 to address the scaling-phase "valley of death" for climate tech startups, with Ralph Lauren serving as anchor offtake buyer for the apparel vertical. Beyond capital deployment, the firm operates the 9zero Climate Innovation Hub in San Francisco, the Climactic Podcast, and annual Climate Week events in NYC and SF, while offering portfolio support through operating partners dedicated to Energy and Robotics sectors. Revenue is generated through standard venture fund economics: management fees on committed capital plus carried interest on successful exits.
Climactic VC firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Climactic VC
- Legal name
- Climactic.vc
- Website
- https://climactic.vc
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2023
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Climactic VC is a climate-focused venture capital firm co-founded by Josh Felser and Raj Kapoor, investing $1.5-3M at seed/Series A in software-first Physical AI, Energy Tech, and Waste-to-Value startups. It manages a $65M fund and the Material Scale hybrid debt-equity fund.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Climactic VC industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Venture Capital
- NAICS
- Other Investment Pools and Funds (5259), Funds, Trusts, and Other Financial Vehicles (525), Portfolio Management and Investment Advice (52394)
- SIC
- Investment Advice (6282)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Sector-Focused Venture Capital (Vertical Specialists) (FSANAAAD)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Early-Stage Venture Capital (Series A/B) (FSANAAAB), SDG / Thematic Sustainable Investment Funds (FSANAJAN)
Keywords
Where Climactic VC is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- San Francisco
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices3 records
Markets served
Climactic VC business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D
Revenue model
- Venture Capital Fund Management: Climactic generates returns through successful exits of portfolio companies. As an LP/GP fund structure, they earn management fees and carry on investment returns. Their $65M inaugural fund targets early-stage climate tech startups with the goal of achieving significant returns through equity appreciation and exits.
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels7 records
Climactic VC product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Climactic VC is a venture capital firm that deploys $1.5-3M investments into early-stage (seed/Series A) software-first climate tech startups in the Physical AI, Energy Tech, and Waste-to-Value sectors through its $65M inaugural fund and the Material Scale hybrid debt-equity fund. The firm supplements capital with operator expertise, Silicon Valley talent network access, and CEO coaching for founders.
Product overview
Climactic VC is a climate-focused venture capital firm offering two primary investment vehicles: a $65 million inaugural VC fund investing $1.5-3M in early-stage software-first climate tech startups (Physical AI, Energy Tech, Waste-to-Value), and Material Scale, a hybrid debt-equity fund designed to help scaling climate tech startups overcome the 'valley of death' by combining equity with non-dilutive financing. The firm also produces the Climactic Podcast as a media content offering. Climactic operates offices in San Francisco and NYC, with a physical climate innovation hub in San Francisco.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Material Scale: A hybrid debt-equity fund launched by Climactic in February 2026 to help climate tech startups overcome the 'valley of death' between early-stage funding and commercialization, initially focused on sustainable materials for the apparel industry.
Products and services
- Inaugural VC Fund $65 million venture capital fund investing $1.5-3M per company in early-stage software-first climate tech startups in the Physical AI, Energy Tech, and Waste-to-Value sectors. The fund is aimed at founders who need capital combined with operator expertise, Silicon Valley talent network access, and CEO coaching.
- Material Scale Hybrid debt-equity fund that combines equity investment with non-dilutive financing for scaling-phase climate tech startups, initially focused on sustainable materials for the apparel industry. Provides offtake-backed capital to help market-ready startups avoid premature dilution during the valley-of-death phase.
Quantifiable outcome
- $65M inaugural fund deployed
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use Climactic VC
Customer profileNamed customers7 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Climactic VC technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Climactic VC partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Three partnerships are on record, tiered core.
- Material Scale (Ralph Lauren)coreRalph Lauren serves as the initial buyer for the Material Scale hybrid debt-equity fund targeting sustainable apparel materials startups
- 9zero Climate Innovation HubcoreClimactic opened their first physical climate innovation hub in San Francisco through 9zero, bringing the climate community together in-person and digitally
- Ralph LaurencoreLaunch buyer for Climactic's Material Scale hybrid fund platform, providing offtake certainty for sustainable materials startups in the apparel industry
Scale indicators3 records
Recent moves7 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Climactic VC competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Prime Movers Lab: Early-stage VC backing breakthrough scientific startups in energy, transportation, infrastructure, manufacturing, and human augmentation. Closely comparable on deep-tech/climate seed-to-Series A thesis.
- Breakthrough Energy Ventures: Bill Gates-backed climate tech VC investing across electricity, transportation, buildings, manufacturing, and agriculture. Direct peer in climate-only venture mandate with multi-hundred-million-dollar fund sizes.
- DCVC (Data Collective): Deep-tech VC backing entrepreneurs applying computer science and materials science to big problems including climate and energy. Comparable as deep-tech-focused early-stage investor with overlap in Physical AI and energy.
- Lowercarbon Capital: Climate-focused venture firm investing across energy, industry, and carbon removal. Most directly comparable to Climactic given its exclusive climate mandate and early-stage focus.
- Clean Energy Ventures: Early-stage climate tech VC investing in digitally-enabled solutions across energy, transportation, buildings, and industry. Closely aligned with Climactic's software-first climate thesis.
- Congruent Ventures: Early-stage venture firm investing in climate-tech companies transforming energy, mobility, and the built environment. Strong comparable given similar fund size, stage focus, and climate-only mandate.
- Powerhouse Ventures: Climate tech fund backing entrepreneurs decarbonizing the world's most carbon-emitting sectors. Co-investor alongside Climactic (e.g., CapeZero seed round), signaling portfolio overlap.
Broad incumbents
- Khosla Ventures: Large broad-tech venture firm with significant climate and clean-tech portfolio. Comparable as a competing capital source for the same founders, though significantly larger and not climate-only.
- Energy Impact Partners: Global investment platform partnering with utilities and energy companies to fund climate tech startups. Comparable as a strategic climate investor, though typically later-stage and utility-anchored.
Others
- Mayfield: Silicon Valley early-stage VC that is also an LP in Climactic's $65M fund. Related as an ecosystem peer and capital partner rather than a direct competitor; useful comparable for early-stage VC economics.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Climactic VC social profiles
Digital presenceClimactic VC financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Climactic VC leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles10 records
Climactic VC funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Climactic VC M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments22 records
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Climactic VC
What does Climactic VC do?
Climactic VC is a venture capital firm that deploys $1.5-3M investments into early-stage (seed/Series A) software-first climate tech startups in the Physical AI, Energy Tech, and Waste-to-Value sectors through its $65M inaugural fund and the Material Scale hybrid debt-equity fund. The firm supplements capital with operator expertise, Silicon Valley talent network access, and CEO coaching for founders.
Is Climactic VC a public or private company?
Climactic VC is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Climactic VC founded?
Climactic VC was founded in 2023. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Climactic VC based?
Climactic VC is headquartered in San Francisco, United States, in the North America region.
How does Climactic VC make money?
One revenue line is on record: venture Capital Fund Management.
Who are Climactic VC's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Prime Movers Lab, Breakthrough Energy Ventures, DCVC (Data Collective), Lowercarbon Capital, Clean Energy Ventures, Congruent Ventures and Powerhouse Ventures. Broad incumbents are Khosla Ventures and Energy Impact Partners. Mayfield is listed as an others.
Does Climactic VC have an API?
No public API is recorded for Climactic VC.
What industry is Climactic VC in?
Climactic VC's product category is Venture Capital. Its primary akta.pro industry code is FSANAAAD, Sector-Focused Venture Capital (Vertical Specialists), with a secondary code of FSANAAAB, Early-Stage Venture Capital (Series A/B). Its NAICS code is 5259 and its SIC code is 6282.