# From AI to CO₂: Building the Future in Climate Tech Dec 10 Written By [Laura Oppenheimer](/content/newsletter?author=685b252ea047d845b5ccd255/index.html) This week, Enrich brought together three leaders working at very different edges of climate tech — deep tech, carbon markets, and consumer electrification: - [Etosha Cave](https://www.linkedin.com/in/etoshac/), Co-founder & Chief Science Advisor, Twelve; Managing Director, Activate NY - [Sara Xi](https://www.linkedin.com/in/saraxi/), Chief Product Officer, Rubicon Carbon; Board Member, [water.org](http://water.org/) - [Tom Mercer](https://www.linkedin.com/in/tomercer/), VP Product, Rewiring America While headlines suggest climate tech has been overshadowed by AI, the conversation surfaced something more interesting: AI isn’t replacing climate as the urgent frontier — it’s accelerating the pressure on our energy systems, forcing new models for funding, and reshaping which climate solutions can scale in the near term. **If you’d been there, here’s what you’d still be thinking about:** **AI is about to break the U.S. energy system** Tom made the case that even if energy demand forecasts are wrong, the trend is undeniable: > “Utilities have been operating with flat or modest load growth for decades. AI blows that up.” Sudden demand from data centers is forcing utilities to modernize after years of underinvestment — a shift that could accelerate electrification, grid innovation, and efficiency in a way that climate policy alone hasn’t. **Climate funding is entering its hardest era** Federal grants are being frozen or reversed, philanthropy is stretched thin, and venture has become more conservative. Etosha described how Twelve navigated the classic deep-tech funding stack: grants → philanthropy → deep-tech VC → project finance Today’s founders don’t have that luxury. They need customers earlier, stronger unit economics, and a value proposition that resonates beyond carbon impact. Sara added that this pressure is most acute in carbon removal and water systems — technologies we _desperately_ need in 5–10 years, but for which revenue is too uncertain today. That’s where **blended finance** (concessional debt, first-loss guarantees, impact capital) is filling the gap. **America’s deep-tech ecosystem still relies on public dollars — and we’re losing ground.** Etosha’s point was unmistakable: every major deep-tech industry in the U.S. (from semiconductors to aerospace to solar) was built on the back of government investment. Today, China is outspending the U.S. on frontier clean energy — especially nuclear, fusion, and advanced materials. > “If we want to lead the next industrial revolution, we need an industrial strategy — not just venture capital.” For complete event notes and the recording, [apply to join Enrich](/content/apply/index.html).