Washington climate tech founders score funding as AI boom drains investor cash

What happened

The effort announced six investments from a pool of nearly 40 applicants. As investor dollars are channeled into data centers (a building full of computers that runs online services), a philanthropic effort stepped up to fund six early-stage Washington climate tech startups building hardware, bio-resins and energy storage.

From left: Allison Arnold, co-director of the Opalene Climate Challenge; David Gory, co-founder and CEO of AirBuild; and Aina Abiodun, president and executive director of VertueLab. (Opalene Photo) Some climate tech startups tied to the AI boom are still attracting investors, but deals are fewer overall and times are tougher for companies addressing sustainability issues that don’t align with data center needs.

Concerns about those trends inspired a one-time Washington state initiative called the Opalene Climate Challenge , which was led by the nonprofit VertueLab . The program planned to partner with the state to secure matching dollars, but organizers realized it would take too long to raise the needed capital.

Key facts

• The effort — announced: six investments from a pool of nearly 40 applicants