Investor Advice Every Founder Should Hear | Voyager, SOSV, Decarbonization Partners & More

Investor Advice Every Founder Should Hear | Voyager, SOSV, Decarbonization Partners & More

From Climate CEOs: Scaling Startups by Dr. Chris Wedding — Climate Tech CEO Coach | CEO @ EFI

May 29, 2026 · 8 min

About this episode

The episode features insights from leading climate investors and discusses strategies for founders in the climate tech space, including the challenges of industrial heat decarbonization.

The discussion draws on insights from leading climate investors, including Voyager Ventures, Decarbonization Partners, MassMutual Ventures, SOSV, SJF Ventures, Energy Impact Partners, Spring Lane Capital, Climate Insiders, and Tailwind. Examples of what we discussed: Clarity beats complexity – If a non-expert cannot explain your differentiation after one conversation, your positioning still needs work Lead with the risks – Founders who proactively surface weaknesses build trust faster than those who hide them Desperation is visible – Targeted fundraising and calm execution outperform broad outreach and forced urgency And also... The $1T Industrial Heat Problem Most Startups Underestimate | Tempo Industrial heat is one of the largest decarbonization opportunities in the world. This second portion explores how to commercialize hard-tech infrastructure without falling into the common traps that slow adoption. Pasquale Romano is the CEO of Tempo and a four-time CEO with multiple successful exits. He shares lessons from building and scaling industrial energy businesses. Examples of what we discussed: Avoid rip-and-replace projects – Technologies that integrate with existing…

People in this episode

Host: Dr. Chris Wedding

Guest: Pasquale Romano

Topics covered

  • investor advice
  • founder strategies
  • decarbonization
  • industrial heat
  • startup scaling
  • climate technology

Keywords

  • climate investors
  • founder advice
  • startup fundraising
  • industrial heat
  • decarbonization opportunities
  • technology adoption
  • business scaling

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Voyager Ventures, Decarbonization Partners, MassMutual Ventures, SOSV, SJF Ventures, Energy Impact Partners, Spring Lane Capital, Climate Insiders, Tailwind

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