Climate tech is teamwork
Twitter LinkedInA look back at the networking event “ReSTART: ClimateTech”
How do you find your dream co-founder? This question was an essential one discussed at the networking event “ReSTART: ClimateTech in 2023”, organised by Carbon13, Planet A Ventures and START Berlin at the ai campus in Berlin.
For years, the wrong composition of the founding team has been a constant in the top three reasons why start-ups fail. And it is not bold to assume that the lack of a dream co-founder is also one of the main reasons why ideas do not become ventures in the first place.
Diverse perspectives lead to better climate tech solutions
Limiting climate change and rapidly bringing effective technologies into widespread use requires different perspectives on a problem. Without deep-tech innovations – in hardware as well as in software – the 1.5 degree target cannot be met. The necessary scientific, technological and market expertise is difficult to distribute over a single pair of shoulders. In addition, the workload is so heavy, especially in the first months before and after the foundation, that resources have to be shared sensibly. A founding team should combine expertise that comes from diverse backgrounds, skillsets and experiences – this is a fundamental conviction that guides the work at Carbon13.
How to find your dream cofounder?
But how do you find the perfect co-founder to fill the gaps? The keynote by Michael Langguth (COO & cofounder @Carbon13) and Florian Schabus (investor @Planet A Ventures), as well as the panel showed many approaches on how to get close to the ideal founding team that designs, develops and scales up ideas to climate impact. After all, the panelists Matthias Martensen, founder @Ostrom, Dr. Aditi Ramdorai, director @Systemiq, Sarah Benarey, founder of eco.mio and Charlie Cotton founder and CSO at Cambrium all agreed on one thing: climate tech is teamwork.
“Rejection is part of the journey, you must not let it get you down.”
Climate work platforms like terra.do and networking events, whether virtual or onsite, bring together many seekers. There is no harm in being part of many, advised Dr. Aditi Ramdorai. In the process of searching, however, one needs to have a long breath. Matthias Martensen said that there were two people in the audience alone to whom he had pitched his idea years ago and who had rejected him. “Rejection is part of the journey, you must not let it get you down”. Once the first step has been taken and someone shares the enthusiasm for a problem or solution, it is important to understand whether values and expectations are compatible. Questionnaires such as 36 questions that lead to love (but with your co-founder), recommended by Michael Langguth, help here. Phase I of Carbon13’s Venture Builder programme is all about forming 70 top-class talents, from different disciplines and diverse backgrounds, into teams. More than 90% find their cofounder(s) in just 6 weeks.
Ultimately, all methods and questions are helpful, but crucial is something else, Mathias made clear. “Is this person really the one with whom you would like to go on the entrepreneurial journey? Your gut gives you the answer”.
The next events, which will cover more journeys, are in the pipeline. To make sure you don’t miss any, sign up for the Carbon13 newsletter here.