Podcast
New Wave.
Hosted by Hugo Rauch · EN
19episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
#94 - Renaud Visage - SlateVC - The CTO behind Eventbrite is now chasing Europe's climate unicorns
1w ago00:53:41Tap to summarizeBrought to you by:Heights: a design agency founded by Gabri Grassi, helping impact-driven tech companies sharpen their brand, attract investors, and scale their reach. Grab your free brand checklist here or reach out to Gabri to elevate your brand.****Subscribe to the newsletter:New Wave | Hugo Rauch | Substack****🌊 Building Europe’s Climate Growth EngineWhy the next generation of climate champions will need more than early-stage capital to win.We’re joined by Renaud Visage, Co-Founder at SlateVC and former CTO of Eventbrite, for a deep dive into what it really takes to scale climate companies in Europe, from founder psychology to growth-stage financing.After helping build Eventbrite from startup to IPO, Renaud spent years angel investing and learning the mechanics of venture from the inside at Index Ventures and Point Nine. Today, with SlateVC, he’s focused on one of the biggest gaps in European climate tech: growth-stage capital.In this episode, we unpack why Europe needs specialist climate investors now more than ever, and what separates companies that scale from those that disappear.In our conversation, we covered:→ Why brand matters more than product in the age of AI→ The hard lessons Renaud learned from 80+ angel investments→ Why many climate startups still underestimate their “equity story”→ What growth-stage climate investing really looks like in practice→ Why climate specialist funds may outperform generalists over the next decade→ How founders should think about exits earlier than they do today→ What makes a company financeable beyond venture capital→ Why Europe urgently needs more Series B and growth-stage climate capitalOne of the strongest takeaways from this conversation:The tourists have left climate tech, and that may actually be the best thing for the sector.✨ Leave a review and share the episode if this conversation challenged the way you think about growth, innovation, and sustainability. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit newwavenewsletter.substack.com
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#93 - Patrik Möller - CorPower Ocean - "Wave energy could surpass global nuclear capacity."
2w ago00:38:36Tap to summarizeBrought to you by Heights:A design agency founded by Gabri Grassi, helping impact-driven tech companies sharpen their brand, attract investors, and scale their reach. Grab your free brand checklist here or reach out to Gabri to elevate your brand.****Subscribe to the newsletter:New Wave | Hugo Rauch | Substack****🌊 Riding the Next Energy WaveWhy wave energy might become the missing piece of the 24/7 clean power puzzle.We’re joined by CorPower Ocean co-founder & CEO Patrick Müller, an engineer and deeptech entrepreneur building one of the world’s most advanced wave energy companies.In this episode, we dive into the future of wave energy, and unpack what it really takes to turn one of the ocean’s harshest environments into a scalable source of clean electricity. Patrick explains why wave energy has historically failed, what changed technically over the last decade, and why CorPower believes it can finally make ocean power commercially viable.In our conversation, we covered:→ Why wave energy could become a multi-terawatt global opportunity→ The brutal engineering challenge of surviving 18-meter ocean waves→ How CorPower’s “phase control” technology boosts energy capture 3x→ Why wave energy complements solar and wind instead of competing with them→ The economics behind 24/7 clean power systems→ Why modular “Lego-style” deployment matters more than giant machines→ The role of grants, public support, and first commercial projects→ Why data centers may become one of wave energy’s biggest customers→ How CorPower spent nearly 14 years de-risking the technology before scalingOne of the most interesting parts of the conversation was Patrick’s framing of the ocean as a giant natural battery. Instead of generating power only when the wind blows or the sun shines, wave energy captures energy already “stored” in ocean swells, creating a much smoother and more predictable production profile.And that changes the economics of clean energy systems entirely.According to CorPower, adding wave energy into a renewable mix can significantly reduce the amount of storage and grid infrastructure required to reach near-constant clean electricity.✨ Leave a review and share the episode if this conversation challenged the way you think about growth, innovation, and sustainability. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit newwavenewsletter.substack.com
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#92 - Timothée Parrique - "You can’t save the climate with capitalism"
3w ago01:01:44Tap to summarizeSubscribe to the newsletter:New Wave | Hugo Rauch | Substack****🌊 Can Capitalism Survive the Planetary Boundaries?We’re joined by Timothée Parrique (website), researcher in ecological economics at the University of Lausanne and one of the leading voices challenging the idea that endless economic growth can coexist with a finite planet.In this episode, we dive into the uncomfortable tension between capitalism, climate innovation, and ecological limits, and unpack what it would actually take to build an economy that operates within planetary boundaries.From venture capital and climate tech to sufficiency, cooperation, and post-capitalist systems, this conversation pushes far beyond the usual climate debate.In our conversation, we covered:→ Why climate change may be the easiest ecological crisis to solve→ The difference between innovation… and “exnovation”→ Why green growth hasn’t reduced ecological overshoot fast enough→ Why capitalism structurally depends on expansion and growth→ The limits of venture-backed climate solutions→ Why policy alone won’t solve the transition→ The role of NGOs, cooperatives, and non-profit models in a post-growth economy→ Why degrowth is not collapse, but a planned downscaling of production and consumption→ The hidden contradiction between finance and nature→ Why cooperation, not competition, may define the next economic system✨ Leave a review and share the episode if this conversation challenged the way you think about growth, innovation, and sustainability. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit newwavenewsletter.substack.com
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#91 - Ahmed Ismail - Dunia - Where AI meets material discovery
May 501:20:39Tap to summarizeSubscribe to the newsletter:New Wave | Hugo Rauch | Substack****🌊 When AI hits the atomWhy the future of materials discovery won’t be built on simulations alone.We’re joined by Ahmed Ismail, Co-founder & COO of Dunia, a Berlin-based deeptech company building AI- and robotics-powered systems to accelerate the discovery and scale-up of industrial breakthrough materials.In this episode, we dive into one of the biggest bottlenecks in climate and industrial innovation: materials discovery, and unpack why the real opportunity is not just asking AI to invent new formulas, but building the physical infrastructure to test, validate, and scale them.In our conversation, we covered:→ Why so many scientific breakthroughs still depend on serendipity — and how AI might increase the frequency of those “lucky” moments.→ The difference between AI-generated materials, simulation-first approaches, and autonomous industrial labs.→ Why the sim-to-real gap is the central challenge in AI for materials: what looks perfect on a computer often fails in a reactor.→ How Dunia built IRIS, an autonomous industrial lab designed to generate high-quality, device-level data for real-world applications.→ Why the future may belong to vertical, industry-specific AI systems — not one general “ChatGPT for materials.”AI for good. 🔥 This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit newwavenewsletter.substack.com
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#90 - Carl-Magnus Norden - Decade Energy - Powering the next generation of trucks
Apr 2800:53:52Tap to summarizeSubscribe to the newsletter:New Wave | Hugo Rauch | Substack****🌊 Charging the TransitionWhy electric trucks won’t scale without rethinking energy infrastructureWe’re joined by a Carl-Magnus Norden, a veteran entrepreneur and founder of Decade Energy, previously behind Volta Trucks, one of Europe’s most ambitious electric truck startups.In this episode, we dive into why electrifying transport isn’t just a vehicle problem, it’s an energy system problem, and unpack what it really takes to build the infrastructure layer before the demand fully arrives.In our conversation, we covered:→ Why the “electric vs hydrogen” debate is effectively over for trucks→ Lessons from building (and losing) Volta Trucks, and why it still mattered→ Why trucking is a “big boys game” requiring massive upfront capital→ The real bottleneck: grid access, not vehicle technology→ Why depots are the key to scaling truck charging→ Decade’s strategy: secure power before trucks arrive→ Turning battery storage into revenue via grid services→ Europe vs China vs Tesla: who wins the electric truck race?→ Why resilience and energy independence are becoming critical drivers→ The long-term vision: software orchestrating trucks, batteries, and gridsAt the core: the transition won’t fail because of trucks, it will fail because of power.Let’s go electric! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit newwavenewsletter.substack.com
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#89 - Lea Strumberger - KfW Capital - The LP Perspective on Raising a Climate Fund
Apr 2100:48:14Tap to summarizeSubscribe to the newsletter:New Wave | Hugo Rauch | Substack****Thanks you, Morning for hosting the podcast this week. Get 20% off your next meeting room (in Paris), just say you’re coming from Hugo at New Wave.****🌊 Inside an LP’s MindWhat it really takes to raise climate-tech funds.We’re joined by Lea Strumberger, investor at KfW Capital, where she focuses on climate tech, impact, and deep tech investments.In this episode, we dive into how LPs actually make decisions, and unpack what it really takes to raise your second fund in today’s climate market.In our conversation, we covered:→ Why Fund II is a completely different game, and what LPs expect now→ The truth about DPI, TVPI, and what “performance” really means early on→ How to build trust with LPs (hint: it’s still a people business)→ The Series B funding gap in Europe, and why it’s still unresolved→ What climate sectors worked (energy), and where we got it wrong (food/alt protein)→ Why climate is no longer “impact”, but a real investment vertical✨ If you want to help this show, don’t forget to leave a review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit newwavenewsletter.substack.com
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#88 - Andy Lubershane - Energy Impact Partners - Energy Carriers and the Future of Fuel [5/5]
Apr 1900:41:55Tap to summarizeSubscribe to the newsletter:New Wave | Hugo Rauch | Substack****🌊 The Fuel Problem No One Talks AboutWhy replacing fossil fuels isn’t just about energy, it’s about how we carry it. We’re joined by Andy Lubershane, Partner at Energy Impact Partners and author of Steel For Fuel. In this episode, we dive into energy carriers, and unpack what it really takes to replace fossil fuels not just as energy sources, but as the backbone of global storage and transport.In our conversation, we covered:→ Why fossil fuels are two things at once: energy source + perfect carrier→ The uncomfortable truth about batteries (even lithium-ion)→ Why planes, ships, and global trade still have no real solution→ The limits of hydrogen — and why it may not scale as hoped→ Breakthrough storage: iron-air, thermal, and sodium-ion→ Metal fuels — the most radical (and promising) bet for global energy transportFossil fuels aren’t just powerful, they’re incredibly convenient. They store energy cheaply, move easily, and scale globally. Beating them requires more than incremental innovation. It requires something closer to a civilizational leap.This is episode five of a five part series. Subscribe to receive every episode. 👇 This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit newwavenewsletter.substack.com
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#87 - Arnaud Tran - Voltaback - Charging Is the Real Bottleneck to Electrification
Apr 1400:44:00Tap to summarizeSubscribe to the newsletter:New Wave | Hugo Rauch | Substack****🌊 Decentralizing the Fuel StationWhy EV charging, not the car, is the real bottleneck to electrificationWe’re joined by Arnaud Tran, Co-founder & CEO of Voltaback, a company building the software layer for charging corporate electric vehicles at home.In this episode, we dive into the hidden infrastructure problem behind EV adoption, and unpack what it really takes to turn fragmented, at-home charging into a scalable system for companies.In our conversation, we covered:→ Why EV adoption is accelerating, but the system around is breaking→ The “decentralized fuel station” problem companies didn’t anticipate→ Why charging at home is 3-4x cheaper, and still underused→ How Voltaback tracks, measures, and reimburses charging with precision→ The data challenge behind energy loss (and why accuracy matters) → Why corporate fleets, not consumers, drive EV adoption→ The China vs Europe gap in EV infrastructure and scale→ How scheduling charging could unlock another 25% savings→ What happens when millions of EVs hit the grid at onceLet’s go electric! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit newwavenewsletter.substack.com
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#86 - Andy Lubershane - Energy Impact Partners - Drilling for Hydrogen and Heat [4/5]
Apr 1000:37:26Tap to summarizeSubscribe to the newsletter:New Wave | Hugo Rauch | Substack****🌊 Drilling for the Future of EnergyCan geologic hydrogen and deep geothermal actually power the world?We’re joined by Andy Lubershane, Partner at Energy Impact Partners and author of Steel For Fuel. In this episode, we go deep underground, into geologic hydrogen and geothermal, and unpack what it really takes to unlock planet-scale, zero-carbon energy from beneath our feet.In our conversation, we covered:→ Why hydrogen went from “Swiss Army knife” to overhyped, and where it actually matters→ The brutal economics of green hydrogen vs. gray hydrogen (and why cost still dominates)→ Geologic hydrogen: drilling for a naturally occurring clean fuel→ The wild uncertainty: from niche resource to “powering civilization for millennia” → Why geothermal today is tiny, and what’s blocking it from scaling globally→ The real bottleneck: drilling deeper (and why it’s harder than it sounds)→ Why deep geothermal could outperform fusion, if we solve the engineeringThis is episode four of a five part series. Subscribe to receive every episode. 👇 This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit newwavenewsletter.substack.com
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#85 - Torsten Kolind - Underground Ventures - What It Takes to Make Geothermal Global
Apr 700:51:44Tap to summarizeThanks you, Morning for hosting the podcast this week. Get 20% off your next meeting room (in Paris), just say you’re coming from Hugo at New Wave.****Subscribe to the newsletter:New Wave | Hugo Rauch | Substack****🌊 Drilling the Future, Can Geothermal Power Everything?From 0.01% to 8%, what it takes to unlock next-gen geothermal at scale.We’re joined by Torsten Kolind, Co-founder of Underground Ventures, a specialist VC fund backing next-generation geothermal technologies.In this episode, we dive into why geothermal, one of the most reliable and abundant energy sources, remains almost invisible today, and unpack what it really takes to turn a niche resource into a global energy backbone.In our conversation, we covered:→ Why geothermal is still ~0.014% of global energy, and what’s holding it back→ The breakthrough behind “next-gen geothermal”→ How oil & gas infrastructure could be repurposed to scale geothermal globally→ Why geothermal might not compete with solar and wind, but complement them→ The rise of companies like Fervo, and what their success unlocks→ Europe vs US: heat vs power, and diverging market dynamics→ Why drilling, flow control, and steam conversion are the real bottlenecks→ The “super hot rock” opportunity, and how 400°C could 10x efficiency→ Why Underground Ventures is betting on picks & shovels, not power plants→ What’s still missing in the geothermal stack, and where founders should buildLet’s go underground! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit newwavenewsletter.substack.com
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