Climate Tech Investor: $50M+ of Catalytic Capital — Amy Duffuor, Principal of Prime Impact Fund
Co-led by Principal Amy Duffuor, the Prime Impact Fund invests catalytic capital into early-stage technologies with the capability to have a gigaton scale impact on carbon emissions.
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What is Prime Impact Fund, and how does it fit within the broader picture of the Prime Coalition?
The Prime Coalition is a 501(c) nonprofit intended to put catalytic capital to work towards solving the climate crisis. When our founder and CEO Sarah Kearney started Prime, there were almost no venture capital dollars being invested in hardware-focused solutions to climate problems.
Hardware-based climate tech startups have higher levels of capital intensity and require longer investment horizons, but instead of focusing on why venture capital was unattracted to this sector, Sarah looked to connect the almost $600 billion worth of US foundation and family office money that existed in 2013-2014 with climate tech opportunities in the space.
In the early days, Prime Coalition did a lot of deal-by-deal syndication, in which we connected philanthropists with companies looking to raise capital. Over four years, we mobilized the investment of $24 million dollars into 10 companies, and more importantly, we learned a lot from this experience. Prime Impact Fund was then born as an offshoot.
Prime Impact Fund is a $50 million early-stage fund focused on pre-seed, seed, and Series A rounds for companies with the potential to create gigaton-scale carbon emission reductions. All of our capital from limited partners is structurally more patient and flexible, or what we call “catalytic capital,” which gives us an advantage and opportunity to approach the problem a little differently.
Historically what has been the motivation of your limited partners, and how do they balance interests in market-rate returns and impact?
We are unapologetically impact-first, but that does not mean that we are backing charity cases. Our portfolio companies continue to do incredibly well. The investment strategy has not changed between Prime Impact Coalition and Prime Impact Fund. We have just expanded our capital pool, which has provided greater access to governance and the opportunity to add additional value.
Can you contextualize the gigaton of carbon reduction goal?
There are some estimates that all the wind deployed in the world currently has prevented about 2-3 gigatons of greenhouse gas emissions reductions annually. Clearly, this is a high standard for seed-stage companies to achieve, but we truly believe we need to fund the transformative companies of tomorrow because we simply do not have time from a climate perspective.
Can you talk more about your all’s CRANE tool for measuring climate and emission impact?
Forward-looking emission reduction estimation is very difficult, but without measurement, it is very difficult to have a sense of accountability. CRANE is a methodology developed by Prime Coalition in conjunction with NYSERDA, the MacArthur Foundation, Massachusetts Clean Energy Center, Greenometry, Rho AI and Clean Energy Trust. It provides companies and investors the ability to estimate the climate impact potential of various forms of technology. The tool is open source. We had already been doing some of the work required to make this kind of estimation possible and, as a fund, we do not operate on an information hoarding philosophy so we were happy to share this tool with the broader climate community.
Can you provide some examples of companies that Prime Impact Fund has invested in?
We have invested in 13 companies to date, and they really run the gamut. The first company that we invested in was Lilac Solutions, which is an extraordinary company that is doing great work in the lithium extraction space. Another portfolio company is Clean Crop Technologies that creates unique ionized gasses to increase food safety, reduce crop loss, and address food waste. This is important since agriculture is responsible for over 25% of global greenhouse gas emissions, and food waste alone is responsible for about 6% of emissions. The last one that I will mention here is Noon Energy which is a long-duration energy storage provider. Their low cost battery is a carbon-oxygen battery driven by a proprietary catalyst that could replace peaker plants.
Can you provide a summary of your path to this point in your career?
My path into the climate space has not been linear. My background is a combination of business, finance, and impact. My identity is very intersectional and that is how I like to approach problems and solutions. Before I got into climate tech investing, I was an investment banker in the renewable energy space at Bank of America. I worked on several meaningful projects in my time there, including the IPO for Sunnova, which is a large residential solar financing provider. Prior to that, I ran an early-stage accelerator for social ventures in Singapore that provided incredible hands-on experience with brilliant problem solvers attempting to fix incredibly hard problems with limited resources. Ultimately, I became deeply passionate about the climate crisis after I began to see and understand the human impact that it is already having and will continue to have going forward. With an MBA and a Master’s Degree in Migration studies, I emotionally connect to the human stories of our climate crisis.
What advice would you have given yourself 10 years ago?
First, I would say stay in your own lane. Have an awareness of what is going around you, but don’t get distracted from what you are working on by focusing too much on what others are doing.
Second, don’t make yourself smaller so that others can feel bigger. I think this is something that women often do in particular. I think it is incredibly important to share your perspective and insight as it is.
Third, your worth is not measured by your productivity.
Do you have habits or routines that keep you focused or motivated?
I have three broad habit categories that I find personally important. First, for health I put emphasis on meditating, sleeping, and exercising. Second, I spend a lot of time reading articles and books that span different perspectives and subject areas in pursuit of a three-dimensional life. Lastly, I would emphasize the importance of critical inquiry and remain curious enough to question and probe when something doesn’t make sense.
Do you have a book or podcast recommendation?
I would recommend All We Can Save for its impactfulness and the variety of perspectives that it offers on the importance of addressing the climate crisis. For podcasts, I would recommend The Energy Gang.
Is there a quote that inspires you or has meaning to you?
One quote or sentiment that I live by from Maya Angelou is this: “People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but they’ll never forget how you made them feel.” I want to be someone that makes others feel valued, safe, and respected. Demonstrating understanding and empathy is a crucial aspect of that in all of our interactions.
How can listeners support your mission at the Prime Impact Fund and Prime Coalition?
If you are an entrepreneur or founder who feels like your company might fit within our broader thesis, please go to our website and fill out a form to get in touch. Listeners can also feel free to donate to Prime Coalition and the various endeavors that it supports within the climate community. Ultimately, we want to hear from everyone because we need more climate warriors. We all have a role to serve.
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THE TORCH is an interview series from Entrepreneurs for Impact. We profile CEOs and investors mitigating climate change. Our goal is to highlight their work and inspire others. As we deal with multiple crisis, from Covid and racial injustice to climate change and economic recession, we need some of this positive light in what seem like dark times. Onward and upward.