Flood of money pours into climate tech – Axios

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Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios
Funds are making moves to achieve climate solutions breakthroughs, as well as investing in companies that seek to help communities better manage the climate risks they already face today.
Driving the news: StormSensor, a company that monitors watersheds in real time, including providing flood data, announced on Wednesday that it has closed a $10 million funding round. The funding is co-led by Orbia Ventures and Buoyant Ventures, with participation from other funds and individuals.
Details: The company’s work is not the sexiest role in the climate tech space, but it’s increasingly vital as extreme precipitation events increase in intensity and frequency as global warming continues.
What they're saying: Erin Rothman, founder and CEO of StormSensor, told Axios that her vision for the company is for it to provide city agencies the equivalent of Google traffic maps of sewers and stormwater systems, and eventually coastal systems, too.
State of play: In a separate development illustrating the push on carbon mitigation and cutting emissions, Lowercarbon Capital, the climate-focused VC firm led by Chris Sacca, yesterday told limited partners that it wants to raise two new funds, Axios has learned. One will be focused on carbon removal and the other on fusion.
What we're watching: Ryan Orbuch will lead the carbon removal fund. He joins Lowercarbon from Stripe, where he was widely credited with helping make the payments company a carbon removal pioneer.
Get smarter, faster on climate technology with our free, 5-video short course.
The need to decarbonize heavy industries such as steel, aluminum and cement manufacturing is taking on new urgency as policymakers and financiers search for ways to speed up the transition to a low carbon future.
Driving the news: On the aluminum front, Sortera Alloys, a company that seeks to achieve 100% reuse of aluminum waste from end-of-life products, announced $10 million in funding from Bill Gates-affiliated Breakthrough Energy Ventures on Tuesday.
Illustration: Rebecca Zisser/Axios
Denver is rapidly moving toward electrifying buildings and homes by eliminating gas ranges and fireplaces.
Driving the news: The Denver City Council unanimously approved an ordinance last week that will require large office and apartment buildings to use solar power and switch to electric and water heating systems by 2030.
Peng Shuai of China serves during the China Open in Beijing in 2017. Photo: Andy Wong/AP
The women's professional tennis tour suspended tournaments in China Wednesday out of concern for Peng Shuai, on the same day that a top business voice made excuses for Beijing.
Why it matters: Ahead of February's Winter Olympics in Beijing, some sports figures are taking on the regime — while Big Business shrinks from confrontation with the world's second-largest economy.
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