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ΔιαχειριστήςAdmin- Αριθμός μηνυμάτων : 26399
Ημερομηνία εγγραφής : 29/10/2010 
Climate tech is dividing investors
27/7/2023, 13:01
Climate tech is dividing investors | ||||
| Welcome to the 11th issue of the Tech Wrap-Up Europe newsletter. Every fortnight, we'll be sharing interesting stories and expert insights from LinkedIn members. In this issue, Sam Shead looks at whether VCs are hot or cold on climate tech, how AI is set to revolutionise gaming and if the Turing test needs a refresh.  Europe is certainly feeling the heat this summer. Wildfires have spread across Greece, France and Spain, while several other countries on the continent are sweltering in record-breaking temperatures. It's times like this when climate change feels very real, and one starts to wonder if technology can get us out of this crisis. While some technologies can help – such as carbon capture solutions and renewable energy technologies – there is likely no single silver bullet for global warming. So are we giving ourselves the best chance of mitigating the effects of climate change? Is there enough money being pumped into businesses that can help save the world? Funding cools for climate tech It's worth noting that climate tech is relatively new for many of today's venture capitalists and several firms are approaching it cautiously. "They're used to investing in B2B Saas (business-to-business software-as-a-service) and then someone comes along who is growing algae and burying it in the desert," Eamon Jubbawy, the co-founder of climate tech startup Isometric, told LinkedIn News. “They find it tough.” Despite this, there have been some promising signs. In 2022, while the wider tech sector saw an 18% funding drop on 2021 investment, European climate tech had a record year with $10.8bn raised, according to Dealroom.co. This inevitably led some to question whether it was recession-proof.  But the excitement was short-lived. Venture funding for European climate tech companies dropped 43% to $6.5bn in the first half of 2023, which suggests the party may be over. The drop was largely due to a sharp decline in funding at the growth stage, series B and beyond. "Investors need to remember that climate tech requires deep tech breakthroughs, often involving lots of capital, brilliant technology and patience," Jonathan Medved, CEO of tech funding platform OurCrowd, told LinkedIn News. "While none of this comes easy, the stakes are literally existential for us all." Isometric's Jubbawy is among the climate tech founders who have raised capital this year, with investors backing the London-based company's carbon removal registry with $25m in a seed round this month. Lubomila Jordanova is another entrepreneur who has convinced VCs to put money into her business, with total investment in Plan A currently at around $20m. Jordanova's firm, founded in Berlin in 2017, has built a carbon accounting and decarbonisation software platform that is being used by corporates like BMW Group, Deutsche Bank, BNP Paribas and N26. But these startups are the lucky ones. There are many climate tech founders out there who are struggling to raise capital, as investors turn their attention to AI or perceived safer bets where they're more likely to get a return. Liza Rubinstein Malamud, chief impact officer at Carbon Equity, said there are a few challenges that the climate tech industry needs to overcome, noting that the "[url=https://www.investopedia.com/terms/d/death-valley-curve.asp#:~:text=A startup company's death valley,has not yet been proven.]valley of death[/url] persists". This is a term used to describe the difficulty of covering the negative cash flow in the early stages of a startup, before their new product or service is generating revenue. "Getting funding to build the first large-scale factory is always a challenge, also in climate tech," Rubinstein told LinkedIn News. "It's risky (for climate startups) because you're not sure what design will work best, and while banks may find it too risky to give you a loan, you don't want to fund it all with equity because that's too expensive. Fortunately funds are popping up with more flexible mandates that can provide both debt and equity financing to help companies bridge the gap." What role can technology play in the fight against climate change? Share your thoughts in the comments at the end.  AI has been in video games for decades. In Pac-Man, which landed on arcade machines in the 80s, AI was used to tell the ghosts how to hunt the player down, for example. But now game developers are starting to use AI to actually make the games themselves. Generative AI tools can be used to create scripts, imagery and even character voice. "Generative AI has the potential to revolutionise game design and development," according to venture capitalist Eze Vidra. "By using generative AI to automatically generate game content and test different design variations, developers can save time and resources while also improving the quality and variety of their games." Dr Richard Wilson OBE, boss of TIGA, one of the bodies representing games developers, thinks AI will ultimately lead to more games and more jobs in the industry.  Some game developers are worried that AI is getting so advanced it's going to start taking human jobs, but in the near term most see it as a huge opportunity to advance the industry. Clive Illenden, a commercial and business affairs manager at the BBC Television who has spent much of his career in gaming, said the influence of AI on the games industry is going to be massive. "We've already seen the work that NVIDIA has been doing in terms of using generative AI to power NPC (non-player characters) speech, without having to build massive dialogue trees etc," he said. "Imagine GTA 6 populated with a world of NPCs with their own motivations." He added that he thinks it will be particularly useful for smaller indie developers when it comes to creating art assets, even if it is only to inspire the creative process. Illenden added: "AI can help improve and streamline code, and speed up game engine development." So what difference will gamers actually see in the coming years? Bengu Atamer, a former Google and YouTube employee, said: "Games are going to be more immersive, more personalised and the whole industry is going to level up." But it's not all good news. "As games become more personalised and more gamified, they will be more addictive," Atamer said. "I am just not sure if all impacts will be positive on the societal side of things." See what others in the industry are saying here and share your thoughts in the comments below.  The Turing test is an assessment of a machine's ability to exhibit intelligent behaviour equivalent to, or indistinguishable from, that of a human. First proposed 73 years ago by the renowned British computer scientist Alan Turing, the test was an adaptation of the Victorian-style imitation game. Turing said that if AI could convincingly replicate human language, communicating well enough that a human couldn’t tell it was a machine, it could be considered intelligent. In the Turing test, human judges sit at a computer, type out a conversation, and guess whether the respondent is a human or a machine. The test became a key component of building AI and something that many AI researchers have dedicated years of their work towards. The issue is that the test has almost been passed by the latest crop of large language models, which can competently generate human-like text. Indeed, some argue that machines have already passed the Turing test. But many other academics question the actual intelligence of these AI systems and other chat bots. Mustafa Suleyman, the cofounder of Google DeepMind and Inflection AI, argues that we should now consider a new Turing test. "We need something better," he wrote in an opinion piece for MIT Tech Review. "Something adapted to this new phase of AI." In his forthcoming book, The Coming Wave, he proposes that humans should assess an AI on what it can actually do in the real world. Specifically, he suggests tasking an AI with making $1m on a retail web platform with a $100,000 investment. In this case, the AI would need to go beyond simply drafting some copy, as current systems like GPT-4 – backed by LinkedIn's parent company Microsoft – are doing, Suleyman says. "It would need to research and design products, interface with manufacturers and logistics hubs, negotiate contracts, create and operate marketing campaign," he said. "It would need, in short, to tie together a series of complex real-world goals with minimal oversight. You would still need a human to approve various points, open a bank account, actually sign on the dotted line. But the work would all be done by an AI." Suleyman says a machine could be able to pass a test like this in as little as two years, noting that many of the ingredients are already in place. "Technical challenges include advancing what AI developers call hierarchical planning: stitching multiple goals, subgoals, and capabilities into a seamless process toward a singular end; and then augmenting this capability with a reliable memory; drawing on accurate and up-to-date databases of, say, components or logistics," he wrote. "In short, we are not there yet, and there are sure to be difficulties at every stage, but much of this is already underway."
There are many safety issues associated with building and releasing such a system. "There needs to be a conversation – and, likely, a pause – before anyone actually makes something like this live," Suleyman said. "If – when – a test like this is passed, it will clearly be a seismic moment for the world economy, a massive step into the unknown," he added. Suleyman isn't the only one who thinks the Turing test needs a refresh. Rohit Prasad, head scientist for Alexa at Amazon, argued in 2020 that the Turing test is obsolete and it's time to build a new barometer for AI. "Now is the time to dispel the Turing Test and get inspired by Alan Turing’s bold vision to accelerate progress in building AIs that are designed to help humans," he wrote in Fast Company. How do you think we should assess the intelligence of an AI system? Drop your thoughts in the comments at the end.  [/size][list="margin-top: 1em; margin-right: 0px; margin-left: 1.5em; padding-right: 0px; padding-left: 0px;"][*]Twitter rebrands as X. Twitter has officially become X, after owner Elon Musk announced a company rebrand. The move is part of Musk’s overall goal to make X the "everything" app he foresees, which would include messaging, social media and payment services – similar to China's WeChat. [*]Sergey Brin is back at Google. After stepping down from an executive role at Alphabet in 2019, Google co-founder Sergey Brin has reportedly returned to help the company develop its next large AI system. [*]Oppenheimer parallels with AI. In launching his latest film, director Christopher Nolan has likened the birth of nuclear weapons to the creation of AI – and the consequences it could have for humanity if left unchecked. [*]Apple’s headset attracts investors back to lacklustre sector. Apple’s unveiling of its Vision Pro device has reignited enthusiasm in virtual and augmented reality firms that have been deprived of funding. [*]UN concerned about smartphones in schools. The United Nations has warned of the risks of smartphones in schools, saying the devices can cause distraction, risk pupil privacy and lead to cyber-bullying. [/list] [size]  How do you digitally detox during your holidays? Many professionals wish to leave behind the pressures of work during a vacation. But relaxing is not so easy when your phone keeps reminding you of a meeting you might miss or an approaching project deadline. Some may opt for a digital detox: limiting time on digital devices to focus on connecting the old-fashioned way. How do you unplug during your holidays? [url=https://www.linkedin.com/feed/?shareActive=true&sourceReference=editorial-kindling-euro-20230726-095028&text=How do you digitally detox during your holidays%3F %23VacationMode %23LinkedInNewsEurope]Publish a post sharing your tips and advice[/url] for a successful digital detox using the hashtags #VacationMode and #LinkedInNewsEurope.  Melina Sánchez Montañés – Melina is a climate tech investor at AENU. She talks about climate and its impact on business, impact investing, and venture building. Arman Anaturk – Arman is the co-founder of Hack Capital. He shares weekly wrap-ups of climate tech news and insights on climate developments.  Get Hired UK – A fortnightly update dedicated to advice and insights on landing your next role and progressing in your career. Get Hired Europe – A newsletter focused on helping you land your next job. A bi-weekly digest of news, views and insights from the world of tech written by Sam Shead.[/size] | ||||
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