Deep Tech Briefing #39: 🔋 Trump Energy Shake-Up; 🧠 Musk’s AI Hits $50B Valuation; 🚀 Lunar Tech Booms; ⚛️ AI Fast-Tracks Nuclear; 🧪 Lab-Grown Leather Advances and more...

An insider’s update on Deep Tech Ventures: Your dose of tech innovations, startups, exponential industries, policies, and market moves to stay ahead and capitalize on it.

Welcome to issue #39 of Deep Tech Briefing, our Sunday column where we break down the week's standout developments in Deep Tech Startups and Venture Capital.

Here, you’ll gain unique insights to keep you ahead, competitive, and ready to seize new opportunities—and, why not, spark fresh ideas for thought-provoking conversations. :)

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This Week’s Deep Tech Briefing: What’s Inside

• Chris Wright's appointment reshapes renewable energy and industrial policies.

• Sustainable business models are driving innovations in satellite and lunar technologies.

• AI is accelerating nuclear innovation by streamlining regulations and advancing reactors.

• Specialist AI technologies are transforming the market and overtaking generalist models.

• European defense investments surge amid geopolitical tensions and strategic mergers.

• Advanced materials like lab-grown leather and 3D printing are revolutionizing industries.

• Agri-food innovations are transforming supply chains with new proteins and digital platforms.

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🔋Climate Tech’s New Reality? Pivot in the Post-Biden Era?

As we discussed, the past few weeks have brought new vibrations in the climate landscape, with uncertainty as the main protagonist, following Trump's re-election. The clean energy sector, which under the Biden administration had experienced historic and comfortable growth, now finds itself navigating decidedly choppier waters...

At the center of the scene this week is Chris Wright, Trump's new "energy champion" chosen to lead the Department of Energy, who could bring a potential shift in America's energy and industrial policy framework, at least regarding subsidies:

"If you are worried about collecting subsidies for clean energy, maybe you do have reason to be concerned," says Chris Wright.

And yes, let's face it, as pragmatic industrialist brings with him a reputation not exactly of "hugging ancient sequoias at all costs."

For instance, when North Face refused to sell jackets to an oil company, he responded by renting billboards in Denver that says “Your North Face puffer looks great on you. And it was made from fossil fuels.” Or his critique of a “myopic focus on climate change and climate politics,” detailed in the 180-page Liberty report, The Big Picture of Energy.

And while these views have made him a darling among his peers and on the conservative speaking circuit—they’re far from universally beloved to others, which is why his appointment to lead the Department of Energy is bound to ruffle some feathers..

Nevertheless, Wright isn't opposed to energy innovation. While being less enthused by wind and solar energy – criticized for their intensive land use and intermittency – Wright promotes 24/7 available energy sources, new nuclear technologies, and geothermal energy. He supports companies like Fervo Energy (geothermal), Oklo (innovative nuclear fission), and Natron (sodium-ion batteries).

On the market front, investment dynamics offer an interesting scenario. According to PitchBook, available capital is abundant, with $652.2 billion in venture capital and $1.5 trillion in private equity at the end of 2023. Rachel Slaybaugh of DCVC emphasizes that technologically sound investments will persist, regardless of political changes. The challenge for the sector will be identifying technologies capable of thriving without government support, maintaining competitiveness against traditional energy sources.

Meanwhile, the Loan Programs Office (LPO) is running at full speed. Chemical & Engineering News reports a record October with 4 new conditional commitments, bringing the 2024 total to 17 – an epic jump from 5 in Biden's first two years. With 210 active applications and an average of one new application per week, the program seems like a train running at full speed.

It should be noted that a "realignment of climate technology" was already underway before the elections. After the 2021 peak, investments in the sector began to decline while artificial intelligence stole the spotlight. Coincidence? Hard to say, but the market now faces crucial questions.

What's the next move? Will current production commitments withstand the political shock wave? Will private capital step forward to fill any public gaps? And above all, which business models will be able to demonstrate they can make it on their own, without government crutches?

🚀 The New Space Race Isn't About Tech—It's About Sustainable Business Models

The week in deep tech, touching the space sector, has been marked by significant movements highlighting