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Is Climate Tech Pivoting to Europe? Po Bronson Weighs In
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Kira Colburn
Kira Colburn

Po Bronson, SOSV General Partner, recently spoke with Heatmap about why more U.S. climate tech companies are heading to Europe for early deployments.

Europe has long outpaced the U.S. on climate policy. Since the late 2000s, EU member states have implemented continent-wide carbon pricing and binding renewable-energy goals that now span nearly every sector. With funding and regulatory hurdles at home, many U.S. startups are finding Europe a more viable place to build.

“This is about money. This is about lifelines. It’s about where you can build. [European] regulations are essentially 10 years ahead of where we wanted the Americas and the Asias to be.” Po told Heatmap.

Last year, SOSV launched a new Ireland-based fund to support advanced biomanufacturing and decarbonization startups open to co-locating in the country as they scale into the European market. Thus far, the fund has invested in companies working to make emissions-free fertilizers (California Organic Fertilizers), sustainable aviation fuel (ViaFuels), biofuel for heavy industry (Mira Biotech), among others.

SOSV’s choice of Ireland mirrors the path taken by tech giants like Google and Microsoft — an English-speaking base with low corporate taxes and strong connectivity to the continent. While managing teams across oceans is challenging, for many founders struggling to raise capital in the U.S., expanding to Europe may be the best path to survival.

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