Carbon13 SEIS Fund X

Through catalytic programmes and founder-first investment, Carbon13 scales ventures with the power to transform industries and safeguard the Earth. Over the last four years, Carbon13 has supported more than 1,500 founders and helped build over 300 climate tech startups from day zero across the UK and Europe, with the explicit goal of launching hundreds of businesses capable of reducing gigatons of CO₂e emissions.

To date, Carbon13 has helped build more than 300 ventures, made over 90 investments, and invested a total of £13m. Half of the ventures supported by Carbon13 are deeptech companies, reflecting a strong focus on science and technology driven solutions. It invests across a broad range of climate-critical sectors — including energy, AI, the built environment, advanced materials, transport, carbon removal and food systems — so that founders can address the full system of challenges driving the climate crisis.

Typically Carbon13 receives around 600 applicants to each of its Venture Builder programmes and selects 80 to join each programme through a highly competitive process. Each programme cohort can expect to see around 25% PhDs, average age 37, and half who have founded startups before. Each founder is judged to be an exceptional individual with the traits, skills and commitment to building a scalable mission-driven venture.

After six months, ventures pitch for pre-seed investment. Those who receive backing get exposed to stakeholders capable of supporting their next steps as well as opportunities to showcase their venture, including with Carbon13’s industry-leading corporate partners: Barclays, Siemens Energy, Arm, and Herbert Smith Freehills and additional contributions from Google Cloud Credits, Geovation, Honda Innovations and many others.

Carbon13 offers opportunities to speak to investors during the programme and showcases to pitch to a wider audience of investors and stakeholders. Some of their current co-investors include Ada Ventures, Cambridge University, G-Force, Pale Blue Dot, Climate VC, Octopus Ventures, Zero Carbon Capital, AgFunder, Plug & Play, DCVC and many more. Carbon13 is an Investor Partner with Innovate UK and assists companies to leverage non-dilutive grants.

Companies chosen for investment will participate in a final stage of the Venture Builder programme. This phase focuses on generating the proof points necessary around market, product, business model and strategy to prepare the venture for further seed-stage investment. We help the ventures to look at scaling strategies, managing growth pains and developing a funding strategy.