Planet A Ventures

A HUGE WELCOME TO Aina! 👋 We are super happy to welcome Aina to Planet A and to our Impact Team. Aina is a life cycle assessment (LCA) specialist who will help us take impact assessment to the next level, and identify breakthrough solutions to the world's biggest challenges. At Planet A we look for novel approaches with the potential to drive systemic efficiencies and deliver sustainable, competitive solutions unlocking the next era of industrial transformation. LCAs help reveal the solutions that really move the needle. Welcome!

THE NEXT GENERATION OF INDUSTRY IS HERE. What will it take to succeed? Capital, conviction, and the kind of ideas that sound impossible - until they change everything.🧪🏭 Our GP Fridtjof Detzner spoke to ZEIT about about why political courage and bold approaches to unlock financing are critical to galvanising entrepreneurs with the vision to re-wire industries for resilience, resource efficiency and growth. And Europe is waking up. Jump in (DE) https://lnkd.in/dfQiH4jk Thanks to ZEIT für Unternehmer for the feature! 

INERATEC is one of TIME’s Top Green Tech Companies in the World 2025! 🏆🏭 The ranking is based on positive impact, financial strength and innovation, with more than 8,000 companies from 30 countries participating. GREAT to see this latest recognition of Tim, Maximilian and Caspar’s vision and execution as they continue to gather momentum scaling e-fuel production. The team’s Frankfurt production plant, set to open this year, will be the biggest in Europe, producing 2,500 tonnes of ultra-low-carbon aviation fuel annually. A huge step forward in the race to scale a TRUE alternative to fossil fuels and take this technology from exciting concept to a commercial reality. MASSIVE! Read the full list here: https://lnkd.in/gTQrm6jr

Amazing news! HIVED is Sifted’s 9th fastest-growing startup in the UK & Ireland! 📦🏆 The 'Sifted 100' identifies the 100 fastest-growing startups in the region, ranking them by revenue growth in the past three years. Brilliant to see this latest recognition of Murvah, Mathias and the whole team’s unstoppable momentum as they continue expanding HIVED’s clean, reliable and best-loved parcel delivery network. Find them in excellent company on the full leaderboard here: https://lnkd.in/eNnGzGtC LET’S GO! 

MORE BIG NEWS! Congratulations C1 Green Chemicals AG on €20m fresh funding to bring competitive green methanol to market. And right on time.👇 👀 Green methanol is set to play a PIVOTAL role re-wiring massive industries like shipping and chemicals for clean, resilient future. Great to be part of this critical journey alongside denkapparat, Maersk Growth and SquareOne Venture Capital. WHY IT’S EXCITING Marek, Christian and the team’s ultra-efficient catalysis technology is a break-through solution to mass-produce green methanol. One of the most widely produced chemicals on earth, this has until now mainly been obtained from coal or natural gas. Green methanol has the potential to cut gigatonnes of co2 out of the global chemical industry and is a hugely exciting emerging energy source! UP NEXT 🏗️ The funding will accelerate progress on C1’s commercial demo facility. Due to break ground this year, it will be a world first for homogeneously catalysed methanol. Let’s go! https://lnkd.in/eU5yTRRx

TURBO NEWS!🔋 Congratulations to PULSETRAIN on €6.1m seed funding to build RADICALLY better EV batteries and accelerate the transition. Pulsetrain’s breakthrough technology extends EV battery life up to 80% while reducing thermal risks, making vehicles more powerful, affordable and safer. Fantastic to lead this round alongside Vsquared Ventures, with participation from Climate Club. THE CHALLENGE👇 While EVs become more popular, battery performance remains a major barrier to competition with traditional models. Despite advances in battery technology, critical limitations still include inefficiency, short lifespans, and rigid configurations—resulting in waste, high CO2 footprint, and reduced vehicle performance over time. THE SOLUTION👇 Pulsetrain is redefining what’s possible in EV power electronics with a system that tackles these challenges head-on, delivering higher performance, lower costs and a new standard in resource efficiency. Their adaptable, future-proof solution integrates with all known battery chemistries and architectures, providing a flexible, efficient, and sustainable path forward. A game-changer for EVs, a turning point for resource management and a systemic shift for mobility. Congratulations Niclas, Leopold, Thomas and the entire team - welcome (officially!) to Planet A! Read more in Tech.eu https://lnkd.in/eDaszUG7

THE WORLD HAS CHANGED. Shifting global dynamics call for a new kind of leadership. Can Europe deliver? The Financial Times talked to our GP Lena Thiede about Trump, green tech and what comes next. What is she seeing? 👀 Opportunity. IF we can capitalise on our unique strengths in sectors like biotechnology and novel materials AND start to commercialise our stellar research landscape, there is no reason the next generation of frontier technologies can’t be built in Europe. For that, we need a public sector that no longer stifles and micromanages but one that enables and accelerates. Read more: https://lnkd.in/dX5kdhRM

GREAT MINDS DON’T THINK ALIKE. 🌋📈 Tuesday April 01 we are starting Open Hours for Underrepresented Founders in Europe. WHY? At Planet A, we are in the business of trying to understand today what tomorrow will look like. We back founders building visionary solutions with the power to re-wire entire industries and drive radical systemic change. From the fossil fuel era into a clean industrial future. It is CLEAR that such complex and dazzling challenges require founders with diverse perspectives, backgrounds and mindsets. And that finding them means looking beyond the obvious. However, ACCESS to resources and opportunities is still far from equitably distributed today. That’s why we are making it easier to connect directly with us.👇 → Sign up to book a slot with our investment team: https://lnkd.in/dUank5vt → Format is open! Pitch, ask us a question or hear more about Planet A. 

THE GOOD, THE BAD & THE UGLY. What Germany’s new leadership means for green tech. 👀 Friedrich Merz is likely Germany’s next chancellor, after an election notable for historic gains by the far right, losses by the Greens and its former leading party slipping into third. 🚛 Germany has historically set a global example on climate and been a force driving Europe towards the clean transition. LOOKING AHEAD, we break down what the results mean for green tech and the clean industrial shift. OUR TAKE?  All is pointing to a coalition between CDU&SPD and while this coalition might lack a strong vision for the green transition, there is great potential for climate-friendly investment and infrastructure build-up under the new regime. Plus continued support for bold EU initiatives like the Clean Industrial Deal. Jump in! DWR eco

 $30.6M offtake for Phlair’s next-gen, low-cost CO₂ capture! Frontier buyer is backing Phlair’s breakthrough electrochemical Direct Air Capture (DAC) to remove 47,000 tons of CO₂ between 2027 and 2030 — a huge milestone to fund their first commercial-scale facility in Alberta, Canada. DAC has the potential to permanently remove CO₂ from the atmosphere, but high costs, energy use, and scalability have held it back. Until now. Phlair’s hydrolyser-based system changes the game: ⚡ Built for renewables – Works with intermittent energy sources like solar & wind 🔩 Off-the-shelf components – Lower costs, easier scaling In just over a year, Phlair has gone from lab-scale to outdoor pilot, built a stellar team, and secured key energy and storage partners. And now, they have signed the first-ever multimillion-dollar deal for a German DAC company, putting Germany and Europe on the map in the race to scale carbon removal. This is how we make DAC commercially viable. Congrats Malte, Steffen, Paul and team! Read more here: https://lnkd.in/e_WGJGx5