Tech billionaire Bill Gates, who famously shifted his focus from Microsoft to global health philanthropy in the early 2000s, sees a striking resemblance between the current climate tech revolution and the fight against preventable diseases that claimed millions of lives in developing nations. He believes that 2024 marks a critical turning point in the battle against climate change, echoing the momentous progress achieved in the health sector during his early philanthropic endeavors.
Gates, the founder of Breakthrough Energy, an organization dedicated to accelerating climate solutions, identifies similar patterns in today’s climate tech landscape. He argues that just as with the global health crisis, many climate solutions already exist but face significant deployment challenges. However, Gates emphasizes a dramatic shift in corporate attitudes towards climate technology investment, a trend he believes signifies a promising future for climate action.
Major investors, including endowments and sovereign wealth funds, are actively stepping in, viewing climate tech as a lucrative business opportunity rather than merely an environmental responsibility. This shift in perception, coupled with the growing availability of mature, commercially viable solutions, indicates that climate tech has finally reached its prime time. Gates asserts that these solutions are no longer mere research projects but proven products ready for widespread implementation.
The report cites several examples of corporate engagement, including American Airlines’ partnerships with multiple climate tech ventures and Siemens’ commitment to building efficiency through innovative vacuum-insulated windows. Breakthrough Energy, established by Gates in 2015, has raised over $3.5 billion in committed capital and invested in over 110 companies. One of their noteworthy investments includes a $107 million grant to Heart Aerospace, a Swedish hybrid airplane manufacturer, to further develop its ES-30 hybrid-electric airplane and bring it closer to commercial viability. The firm is also actively involved in initiatives aimed at extracting lithium from the Great Salt Lake in Utah, a crucial component in electric vehicle batteries.
This convergence of technological advancements, corporate interest, and financial backing, coupled with Gates’s optimistic outlook, paints a promising picture for climate action in the coming years. 2024 could very well be the year climate tech truly takes center stage, paving the way for a more sustainable future.