The Climate Brick - Methodology

METHODOLOGY

FROM 3,000 COMPANIES TO 7 BRICKS

A COMMUNITY EFFORT

Many of the technologies which could solve the climate crisis are already available today. But to make them mature and cost-efficient, we need to fast-track their journey to scale and align the stakeholders needed along the journey. That is why we developed The Climate Brick, complete with seven scaling formulas. Here is how we did it together with the climate ecosystem.

We started documenting the scaling and fundraising journeys of European climate tech companies, mapping more than 3,000 companies in total. We then made more than 100 interviews with all the stakeholders needed along the journey, including more than 100 individuals, ranging from founders and investors, to off-takers and policymakers. We spent weekends and evenings to create the first edition of The Climate Brick, and then spent countless hours iterating on it together with the community.

Truth is, this was a complex task, and even though it might not be the definite answer, it’s a first step. We look forward to continue to evolve it, together.

Note: The research behind The Climate Brick draws on multiple sources, including analysis from McKinsey & Company. The Climate Brick is responsible for the conclusions and recommendations of the research.

THE 7 BRICKS

We singled out seven distinct types of companies within the multi-faceted climate tech space:

Each brick comes with its own scaling formula to create impact, based on its risk level. But we prefer to talk about it as an opportunity for impact.

SELECTING THE COMPANIES

We sourced European climate technology companies (ranging from deeptech and hardware to software) from a long list of sources, from EQT’s Motherbrain platform and McKinsey research to publicly available sources such as Pitchbook, Dealroom and CB Insights. We then narrowed down the list down based on various dimensions such as impact potential, when companies were founded, their financial performance and valuation and furthermore, capital efficiency.

the companies

Each brick represents the median of the selected top-quartile company journeys, from a valuation, future value trajectory and sustainable impact perspective. The rounds selected were between 2020-2023, and some outliers have been removed since they skewed the data. Round sizes include both dilutive and non-dilutive capital (debt and grants), non-dilutive capital in-between rounds have been added to closest round.

THE PIONEERS

In addition to showcasing what a top-quartile scaling journey looks like, each brick also features a pioneer case. We are very thankful for these companies for letting us publish their data:

LOOKING AHEAD

Our first 2024 version of The Climate Brick manual is now live. We will continue to iterate and fine-tune the manual post-launch. Ahead of 2025, we will invite our members to do a comprehensive review and update. Join us!