Listen now on Apple, Spotify, and YouTube.
Thank you to BioEsol for sponsoring this episode. 💚
BioEsol is an AI-powered energy company bringing Energy-as-a-Service (EaaS) to industrial and SME clients, enabling energy autonomy, cost savings, and sustainability - with no upfront investment. In April, the company will open its Series A round to accelerate its expansion in France & Europe.
This week, we’re joined by Andrew Shebbeare, co-founder of Counteract, to unpack the state of carbon removal in 2025, what's broken, what's working, and what needs to change. From LP dynamics to resilient startup models, we cover it all.
In this episode, we discuss:
Why raising capital for CDR is harder in 2025
The shift from hype to fundamentals in CDR
Carbon credits vs. carbon-negative business models
Advice for both investors and founders in the carbon space
Why MRV and ecosystem enablers matter more than ever
… and more!
Watch this episode on YouTube. 👇
⌛TIMESTAMPS
00:00 Introduction to the episode
03:45 A sci-fi take on the current political/economic moment
08:30 What founders are experiencing on the ground in 2025
11:09 The carbon credit myth: what startups really sell
14:35 Business models from the Counteract portfolio
21:00 Has the hype died? What Hello Tomorrow 2025 revealed
25:19 Headwinds vs tailwinds for carbon removal
29:52 How much CO₂ has Counteract catalyzed so far?
33:40 What LPs are now looking for in climate funds
39:03 How to identify resilient carbon removal startups
42:24 The role (and limits) of storytelling in CDR
45:11 🔥 Fire Questions
📚 STARTUPS MENTIONED
Chloris Geospatial (trees from space)
Seqana (soil MRV)
AgriCarbon (robotic soil sampling)
Adaptavate (carbon-negative wallboards)
Concrete4Change (CO₂ in concrete)
Crew Carbon (alkaline wastewater)
🤝 SPONSOR THIS PODCAST
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💚 LEAVE A REVIEW
Apple Podcasts - https://shorturl.at/HIDcg
Spotify - https://shorturl.at/yDTfR
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