Climate Pledge Fund

What Climate Pledge Fund does

Climate Pledge Fund is Amazon's corporate venture capital program, established with an initial $2 billion commitment to invest in climate technology companies whose products and services can accelerate the transition to a low-carbon economy. The fund targets ventures across eight defined sectors: transportation and logistics, energy generation/storage/utilization, buildings, manufacturing and materials, circular economy, food and agriculture, carbon removal, and water. Investments are structured as preferred equity or convertible debt, with check sizes ranging from hundreds of thousands of dollars at the seed stage to multimillion-dollar rounds at growth stage, and the fund operates globally with no geographic restrictions stated.

The fund does not build or sell technology products; rather, it deploys capital and provides portfolio companies with access to Amazon's operational resources, expert guidance, and potential commercial relationships across twelve named Amazon business units (Aviation, Trucking, Marine, Construction, Building Operations, Energy, Data Centers, Water, Grocery, Devices, Packaging, and Warehouses). Deal flow is sourced through direct applications via the fund's contact form as well as through formal partnerships with climate tech incubators and accelerators including Greentown Labs and Elemental Excelerator.

As of the latest data, the fund has backed 36 portfolio companies globally. In 2025, Amazon committed an additional $53 million through the Female Founder Initiative — $50 million for direct investment in women-founded climate tech companies and $3 million matched by USAID for the Climate Gender Equity Fund — extending the program's mandate beyond pure sector themes into gender-equity outcomes. The fund is operated by a small team (11–50 employees) out of Seattle and has no external limited partners, with all capital sourced from Amazon's balance sheet.

Name

Climate Pledge Fund

Legal name

The Climate Pledge Fund

Website

https://fund.theclimatepledge.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2020

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Amazon's $2 billion corporate venture capital program investing in climate technology companies across transportation, energy, buildings, manufacturing, circular economy, food and agriculture, carbon removal, and water to accelerate Amazon's net-zero-by-2040 pledge.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Corporate Venture Capital / Climate Tech Investment

NAICS

Pension Funds (52511), Other Insurance Funds (525190)

SIC

Investment Advice (6282)

akta.pro primary industry

Carbon Finance & Investment Advisory (Project Finance, Funds, SPVs) (EUABADAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

Climate Finance Funds & Green Investment Facilities (BPADACAH), Offsets & Carbon Removal Procurement Strategy (portfolio design, quality screening) (EUABAKAL), Carbon Markets & Climate Finance (Offsets, Allowances, Carbon Funds) (FSAAALAH)

Keywords

• Venture capital investing
• Climate technology investments
• Corporate venture capital
• Decarbonization financing
• Net-zero equity funding

Headquarters

HQ city

Seattle

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Investment Returns: Climate Pledge Fund invests capital in climate tech companies in exchange for equity stakes (preferred equity or convertible debt). Returns are realized through portfolio company exits, IPOs, or strategic transactions.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

The Climate Pledge Fund is Amazon's corporate venture capital program, funded with an initial $2 billion commitment, that invests in visionary climate technology companies developing solutions to help Amazon and others reach net-zero carbon emissions by 2040. It deploys capital in the form of preferred equity or convertible debt across seed, early-stage, and later-stage rounds, targeting eight sector areas: transportation and logistics, energy generation/storage/utilization, buildings, manufacturing and materials, circular economy, food and agriculture, carbon removal, and water. Portfolio companies also gain access to Amazon's resources, expertise, and potential commercial relationships with Amazon business units.

Product overview

The Climate Pledge Fund is a corporate venture capital program operated by Amazon with an initial $2 billion in funding. It is not a technology product or platform but rather an investment vehicle that provides preferred equity or convertible debt financing to climate technology companies. The Fund does not have a unified product architecture or named product modules—it functions as a portfolio investment program with sector focuses including transportation and logistics, energy generation/storage/utilization, buildings, manufacturing and materials, circular economy, food and agriculture, carbon removal, and water. The Fund also operates a Female Founder Initiative with a $53 million commitment supporting women-led climate tech companies.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Female Founder Initiative: A $50 million initiative within The Climate Pledge Fund to invest in women-founded and women-led climate tech companies, launched in partnership with USAID's Climate Gender Equity Fund.

Products and services

• The Climate Pledge Fund
• Female Founder Initiative

Quantifiable outcome

• 36 startups funded across 8 industry sectors globally
• +1 more outcomes

Segments8 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core, minor and flagship.

• Greentown LabscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNorth America's largest climate tech incubator supporting startups through programs including Access to Success series for diverse founders. Amazon serves on Greentown Labs Industry Leadership Council and participates in pitch events to source investment opportunities.
• Elemental ExceleratorcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNonprofit investor focused on scaling climate solutions and social impact for all communities. Amazon is a member of Elemental Navigator program to source and engage with diverse climate tech startups.
• Him for HerminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSocial impact venture aimed at accelerating diversity on corporate boards by bridging the gap between board opportunities and talented females ready for board service.
• USAIDflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerPublic-private partnership launching the Climate Gender Equity Fund to remove systemic market barriers preventing women and girls from accessing climate finance. Amazon commits $3 million matched by USAID to launch the fund, which provides grants for businesses, NGOs, accelerators, and grassroots organizations working on women-led climate solutions.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Generate Capital: Specialty finance company focused on distributed infrastructure and decarbonization projects. Comparable as an institutional climate capital provider with infrastructure focus, though structured more as project finance than VC.
• Khosla Ventures: Major US venture firm with significant dedicated climate/clean-tech practice and founder Vinod Khosla's well-known conviction in climate investing. Comparable as a broad incumbent with substantial climate-tech allocation among other tech investments.

Emerging players

• Greentown Labs: North America's largest climate tech incubator and a direct partner of Climate Pledge Fund. Comparable as a climate tech ecosystem player, though structured as an incubator rather than a deployable venture fund.
• Activate (formerly Cyclotron Road): Fellowship and venture program supporting entrepreneurial scientists working on climate and decarbonization technologies. Comparable in mission and stage focus on deep-tech climate founders.

Direct peers

• Lowercarbon Capital: Climate tech VC firm founded by Chris Sacca, deploying capital across carbon removal, fusion, geoengineering, and clean energy. Comparable as a dedicated climate-tech investor with concentrated conviction-led approach.
• Prelude Ventures: Early-stage venture firm focused exclusively on climate tech with a multi-sector thesis (energy, mobility, food/agriculture, buildings, industry). Closely comparable in stage focus, sector breadth, and dedicated climate-tech mandate.
• Congruent Ventures: Early-stage climate tech fund focused on digital and physical infrastructure for the energy transition. Comparable stage and sector focus with dedicated climate infrastructure thesis.
• Breakthrough Energy Ventures: Bill Gates-founded climate tech VC fund with $2B+ across multiple vehicles, investing in companies across the five major greenhouse gas-emitting sectors. Directly comparable as a dedicated climate-tech venture investor with similar scale and sector breadth to Climate Pledge Fund.
• Clean Energy Ventures: Seed-stage venture firm investing in early-stage climate tech companies. Comparable as a dedicated seed-stage climate-tech fund with similar mandate to Climate Pledge Fund's earlier-stage investments.
• Energy Impact Partners: Global venture platform investing in next-generation energy, mobility, and sustainability technologies with LP base of 30+ utilities and energy companies. Comparable as a strategic-backed climate venture platform with utility and corporate LP structure.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks4 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments53 records

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Climate Pledge Fund