Tailwind News & Insights

Carbonova Secures Financing to Accelerate C$13.6M Commercial Demonstration Project in Alberta

Thu, 04 Dec 2025 14:41:16 GMT

Tailwind Ventures Inc. acted as Financial Advisor on behalf of Carbonova Corp.

Tailwind Ventures is pleased to announce that their client Carbonova Corp. (“Carbonova” or the “Company”), a cleantech company transforming greenhouse gas emissions into high-performance carbon nanofibers (CNF), has successfully completed an oversubscribed C$5.1 million equity financing round from a syndicate of strategic and private investors.

The financing round complements the Company’s recent ERA grant funding , enabling Carbonova to advance construction of its C$13.6 million Commercial Demonstration Unit (CDU) in Calgary, which will convert captured CO₂ and natural gas into 25 tonnes of next-generation carbon nanofibers per year. Front-End Engineering Design (FEED) is already well underway and progressing quickly, with the CDU on track for commissioning in mid-2027.

"Closing this round oversubscribed reflects strong confidence in our technology, our team, and our global potential," said Dr. Mina Zarabian, CEO of Carbonova. "This funding accelerates our progress toward commercial demonstration and positions Carbonova to lead in low-carbon, high-performance materials."

The CNF produced by Carbonova's patented catalytic process outperforms alternatives like carbon black, graphite, or carbon nanotubes on quality, cost, carbon footprint, and ease of integration. The Company has secured commercial traction in key markets, including plastics and composites, conductive material for lithium-ion batteries, and construction materials, with Fortune 500 companies among their customer ranks.

“Carbonova is a case study in how to commercialize advanced technology,” said Darren Engels, CEO of Tailwind Ventures. “They have an exceptional product with a strong and growing market, and importantly, the management team has a high degree of introspection, curiosity, and motivation to build a resilient business. Tailwind is delighted to support Carbonova as they continue to scale.”

The Company's investor syndicate includes a diverse mix of cleantech-focused funds, industry strategics, and private capital partners who recognized the strength of Carbonova's technology and market opportunity. Tailwind extends its gratitude to all participating investors for their confidence in the company and commitment to building a scalable business to create impact and value.

Carbonova's technology represents a unique export opportunity for Alberta. Its production can be scaled quickly, and its lightweight, high-value carbon nanofiber offtake can be transported using existing infrastructure, enabling efficient market access.

Upon completion of the CDU, Carbonova will commission a full-scale plant and deploy modular, licensed units across industrial partner sites globally. These facilities will enable Carbonova to meet surging global demand for advanced materials, including next-generation battery components, lightweight composites, and other sustainable, carbon-negative products manufactured through CO₂ utilization.

About Carbonova

Carbonova transforms CO₂ and methane into sustainable, high-performance carbon nanofibers used in batteries, composites, and construction materials. Based in Calgary, the company is accelerating the transition to a circular, low-carbon economy by offering scalable, cost-effective alternatives to legacy carbon materials.

For more information about Carbonova, visit carbonova.com .

About Tailwind Ventures

Tailwind Ventures acted as financial advisor to Carbonova on this financing round, and continues to work with the Company on its upcoming Series A round.

Tailwind Ventures empowers early-and growth-stage companies to secure capital through investment-grade financial rigor and marketing-grade storytelling. Tailwind’s proven methodology enables stronger businesses and improves the risk-reward relationship for ventures and investors. Tailwind has raised over C$400 million for clients since 2022.

For more information about Tailwind, visit tailwindventures.co .

Contact

Jenny McLean
Chief Marketing Officer
Tailwind Ventures
info@tailwindventures.co

Forward-Looking Statements

Certain statements contained in this press release relate to future events, conditions, or outcomes with respect to Carbonova’s business, its customers, technology, and the broader industry. All statements other than statements of historical fact may be forward-looking statements and are often, but not always, identified using words such as “believes”, “seek”, “plan”, “expect” and similar expressions.

This press release is for informational purposes only and does not constitute an offer to sell, a solicitation of an offer to buy, or a recommendation for any securities.

Turning Tides: The White House, IPOs, & Continued AI Dominance | Q2 2025 Market Summary

Fri, 08 Aug 2025 15:33:05 GMT

The analysis in this summary is supported by data from PitchBook, NVCA, CVCA, and other reputable sources — but most importantly, it is informed by the dynamics we observe every day as we enable ventures to withstand the scrutiny of due diligence and secure capital .

TL;DR

Annual GP fundraising is on pace for a decade low through H1 2025, with first-time fund managers struggling the most.

Q2 deal value fell ~25% from Q1. VC investments are increasingly concentrated in growth-stage ventures with clear traction and trajectories, particularly in the AI and commercial products and services sectors.

The AI sector single-handedly comprised ~61% and ~36% of Q2 deal value and deal count, respectively. AI deal value was driven by Scale AI’s US$14.3 billion venture-growth round — the second largest VC deal to date, following OpenAI’s US$40 billion venture-growth round in Q1. Thanks to both AI megadeals in H1 2025, annual venture-growth stage VC dealmaking is on pace for a record-setting high.

Even if excluding these two outlier megadeals, H1 2025 venture-growth deal value is still strong at US$29.6 billion: ~71% higher than H1 2024 venture-growth deal value, outpacing every H1 since venture market highs 2021.

The annual share of sub-US$5 million VC deals as a proportion of total VC deal count has fallen from ~55% in 2024 down to ~49% through H1 2025, which is on pace for a decade low, further reflecting that venture investors are increasingly opting to make fewer but larger investments, in quality businesses with lower risk-reward profiles.

Q2 continued a steep rebound in YTD exit activity, driven by Circle and Voyager’s high-profile IPOs in June. IPO exit values through H1 2025 already exceed IPO exit values through all of 2024.

The ‘One Big Beautiful Bill Act’ largely provides mixed signals for VC, though clearly prioritizing long-term growth within defense tech, AI, fintech, and crypto

In Q2 2025, VC firms deployed US$69.9 billion across 3,038 deals (average deal size: US$23 M), representing a ~25% decline in deal value from Q1.

Our analysis above shows a continuation of the steep decline in GP fundraising since 2022, as annual GP fundraising through H1 2025 is on pace for a decade low.

First-time managers are facing particularly sharp setbacks, comprising an ever-dwindling share of fundraising activity through H1 2025, as LPs look to invest in venture with established managers, if at all.

The AI + Commercial Products & Services Sectors Are Driving Q2 2025 Dealmaking

The GP Fundraising Landscape: A Decade Low for All but a Win for Experience

Fundraising statistics at the GP level through H1 2025 paint a stark picture of LP investor sentiment:

US$26.6 billion raised across 238 VC funds — on pace for a decade low in annual GP fundraising.
First-time managers faced especially strong headwinds amidst the GP fundraising slowdow n — highlighting LPs’ growing preference for investing in venture with established managers, if at all.
The median time to close a VC fund increased by ~21% from 2024 — a concerning milestone, suggesting that LPs are reluctant to commit capital to the venture asset class.
Corporate venture capital participation fel l — especially on seed deals, indicating decreased corporate risk appetites.

US First-Time Managers Vs Established Managers — Capital Raised & Fund Count

The Gradual Rebound in Exits: IPOs & Trump Mandates

Quarterly US VC Deal Value & Count

Q2 2025 dealmaking was dominated by the AI and commercial products and services sectors.

The AI sector (captured in PitchBook’s broader ‘Software’ sector umbrella) single-handedly comprised ~61% and ~36% of quarterly deal value and deal count, respectively.

AI deal value in Q2 was driven by Scale AI’s US$14.3 billion venture-growth round — the second largest VC deal to date, following OpenAI’s US$40 billion venture-growth round in Q1.

Thanks to both AI megadeals in H1 2025, annual venture-growth stage VC dealmaking is on pace for a record-setting high.

In addition to AI, the commercial products and services sector is also gaining ground — it comprised ~22% of Q2 2025 deal value, representing a ~67% increase from Q1. This sharp increase may be attributed to:

The growth of AI , which is fueling expansion in complementary sectors, such as business tools and services — key components of the broader commercial products and services ecosystem.
Investors being more selective with their deals , as they increasingly prioritize fewer but larger investments, in quality businesses with lower risk-reward profiles, to deliver returns to their LPs.
IPO and secondary markets showing signs of recovery , prompting investors to further direct capital towards established businesses with current or near-term profitability and exit velocity.
Supportive government policies such as the new 'One Big Beautiful Bill Act' , which are bolstering industries in and around national security and digital infrastructure, thereby benefiting a wide range of commercial products and services businesses.

The annual share of sub-US$5 million VC deals as a proportion of total VC deal count has fallen from ~55% in 2024 down to ~49% through H1 2025, which is on pace for a decade low — further reflecting that venture investors are increasingly opting to make fewer but larger investments, in quality businesses with lower risk-reward profiles, regardless of sector.

Proportion of Quarterly US VC Deal Value by Sector

Exit activity in Q2 2025 generated US$67.7 billion in exit value across 319 exits, which is the highest quarterly exit value since Q4 2021. Exit activity in Q2 2025 can be segmented as follows:

M&A: acquisitions generated US$32.2 billion of exit value across 229 closed transactions.

Buyouts: buyouts generated US$12.3 billion of exit value across 75 closed transactions.

IPOs: IPOs generated US$23.2 billion of exit value across 15 closed transactions.

The greatest IPO beneficiaries were in sectors that are increasingly being prioritized by the White House, such as defense tech and crypto:

Crypto stablecoin issuer, Circle (NYSE: CRCL), went public on June 5, 2025, with a share price of US$31 and raised ~US$1.1 billion, implying a market cap of ~US$6.9 billion at IPO. The company’s market cap as of market close on July 21, 2025, was ~554% higher, at ~US$45.1 billion.

Defense and space technology company, Voyager Technologies (NYSE: VOYG), went public on June 11, 2025, with a share price of US$31 and raised ~US$440 million, implying a market cap of ~US$1.8 billion at IPO. The company’s market cap as of market close on July 21, 2025, was ~41% higher, at ~US$2.5 billion.

Both companies’ IPOs and trading performances may be foreshadowing what is to come over the next few years, as White House policy changes increasingly prioritize growth across the defense tech and crypto sectors. As it relates to crypto in particular, Trump has continued rolling back SEC oversight through the passage of the Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for US (GENIUS) Act, which aims at loosening regulatory constraints on digital assets.

Further examining the IPO landscape, down round IPOs have become the new normal.

Corporate actions are reflecting a shift towards pragmatism, as companies are increasingly prioritizing additional capital raising and providing liquidity for shareholders as compared to holding on to pandemic-era valuations.

As such, IPO activity has rebounded significantly, with US$44 billion in IPO exit value through H1 2025 surpassing US$41.4 billion in IPO exit value through all of 2024.

IPO exit value through H1 2025 has been driven by fewer but larger exits — there were six IPOs with pre-money valuations exceeding US$1 billion, including Circle and Voyager Technologies’ IPOs in June.

Proportion of Annual US VC Deal Count by Deal Size Bucket

Quarterly US VC Exit Value & Count

Between Q4 2023 and Q3 2024, PitchBook's VC dealmaking indicator tracked all-time highs across all venture deal stages, indicating that this 12-month period was the most asymmetrical VC market on record, in favour of investors.

Despite limited GP fundraising success, more concentrated, competitive deal activity + increased exit activity appears to be spurring the capital flywheel in VC and ultimately helping to restore the balance in dealmaking dynamics between investors and entrepreneurs from H1 2025 onwards.

Amidst these evolving market dynamics, legislative developments are also primed to influence the trajectory of VC dealmaking.

Quarterly US VC Exit Value & Count via IPO

Quarterly US VC Dealmaking Indicator

The One Big Beautiful Bill Act: The Transient Future of Venture Capital Deal Making

Q2 2025 effectively culminated in the signing of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act on July 4, 2025. The bill marks some clear advantages and disadvantages for the US venture capital ecosystem.

Advantages:

Carried interest tax treatment rules preserved — the bill made no changes to the carried interest rule, preserving the existing tax advantage for general partners in VC funds.

Qualified Small Business Stock (QSBS) rules expanded — the bill expanded QSBS rules to encourage long-term investment, making it more attractive to invest in and hold small business stock for angel and early-stage investors.

Immediate domestic R&D expensing rules restored — the bill allows companies to immediately expense domestic

R&D costs, which is a positive signal for US-based and focused biotech, AI, and deep tech companies, as it will lower their effective tax burdens and improve their cash flow profiles.

Disadvantages:

University endowment tax overhaul — the bill introduced a three-tiered excise tax on university endowments for universities with at least 3,000 students, potentially impacting VC fundraising pipelines for venture funds with universities as limited partners.

Restrictions on clean energy credits — while the bill phases out wind and solar tax credits for projects placed in service from 2028 onwards, the more direct impact for VCs appears to lie within constrained eligibilities and shortened timelines for tax credits tied to emerging technologies such as geothermal power and long-duration energy storage. These emerging spaces are beginning to gain traction with early-stage investors, yet the tighter windows for credit qualification and increased compliance complexity, especially under Foreign Entity of Concern (FEOC) restrictions, may complicate capital commitments and slow commercial deployments. As a result, VCs likely need to exercise greater diligence and elongate their planned investment / exit timelines when backing companies in these spaces, although broader momentum for climate innovation continues to build.

Overall, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act offers tax and R&D incentives that benefit early-stage investing but introduces challenges for university LPs and clean energy VCs due to tighter credit restrictions.

Although the long-term impact is unclear, a few key industries, such as defense tech, AI, fintech, and crypto would potentially reap the greatest benefits.

Connecting the Dots

The Q2 2025 venture landscape reveals a concerning interconnected cycle that threatens long-term sector health:

Limited GP fundraising success across the board , especially across first-time managers.
Concentrated AI and commercial products and services investments , crowding out capital for other sectors.
Heightened competition for capital , prompting fewer but larger investments into growth-stage ventures with clear traction and trajectories, regardless of sector.\
Increased IPO exit activity , with key sectors increasingly prioritized by the Trump administration reaping the greatest benefits thus far.
The One Big Beautiful Bill Act , altering VC market dynamics, and prioritizing growth across key sectors under the Trump administration.

This cycle becomes self-reinforcing as each element amplifies the others, creating a challenging environment for sustainable venture ecosystem growth.

Data Notes:

Data appearing in this summary use datasets from Pitchbook-NVCA Venture Monitor Q1 2025 and CVCA Canadian Venture Capital Market Overview Q1 2025.

1: PitchBook’s VC Dealmaking Indicator metric is outlined as follows:

What it measures: it assesses the favourability of the venture fundraising / investing market for ventures / investors, across each stage of the market (early-stage, growth-stage, and late-stage),
How to interpret the assessment: a score of 50 implies market equilibrium, in which venture dealmaking power dynamics are balanced between ventures and investors. The higher the score above 50, the higher the indication that it is an investor-friendly market. The lower the score below 50, the higher the indication that it is a venture-friendly market.
The methodology: the Dealmaking Indicator reflects key deal terms and attributes captured across three categories of PitchBook data:
Market liquidity measures (capital demand-supply ratio, startup funding rate)
Cap table information (cumulative dividends, liquidation participation, percentage acquired)
Momentum metrics (years between VC rounds, valuation change)

Read PitchBook’s deep dive, detailing the methodology .

The Tailwind Ventures Quarterly Market Summary is designed to cut through the noise and bring you the insights we believe are most relevant to the venture ecosystem.

Pitch Deck Review

Wed, 25 Jun 2025 23:52:00 GMT

Gain momentum with (free!) expert feedback on your pitch deck

We regularly hear from companies that getting meaningful feedback on their pitch deck is difficult — everyone has an opinion, but the only opinion that matters is the investor you’re pitching.

So we're introducing a new, free pitch deck review program based on our investor-approved framework. Tailwind’s team has collectively seen over 1000 decks and had 100s of hours of conversations with capital providers as we support our clients. We understand what investors want to see and how they will perceive your pitch deck.

You will receive feedback based on our proven methodology that has enabled Tailwind clients to raise over $400million since 2022.

Carbonova Selected for Funding Through Emission Reduction Alberta's Advanced Materials Challenge

Tue, 24 Jun 2025 17:11:18 GMT

$4.38M ERA Grant Fuels Construction of Canadaʼs First Carbon Nanofiber Commercial Demonstration Plant in Calgary

Read the original news release

CALGARY, AB, July 24, 2025 /CNW/ - Carbonova, a cleantech company transforming greenhouse gas emissions into high-performance carbon nanofibers (CNF), is proud to be among the recipients of the Government of Alberta and Emissions Reduction Alberta's (ERA) Advanced Materials Challenge grant. These funds, totaling $4.38 million, mark a major win in Carbonova's journey—supporting the company as it advances toward the commissioning of its first-of-its-kind Commercial Demonstration Unit (CDU) in Calgary.

"Together, [these projects] are going to generate over $233 million to our GDP by 2027 and create 1,600 high-quality jobs across the province…this is how we drive responsible growth – supporting home-grown technologies, accelerating commercialization, and building stronger, more resilient industries," said Justin Riemer of Emissions Reduction Alberta.

Founded in Alberta and built on proprietary catalytic technology, Carbonova has developed a breakthrough process that converts CO₂ and methane into sustainable, high-performance carbon nanomaterials for use in batteries, plastics, and construction. The company's patented process operates at a fraction of the cost and carbon footprint of traditional alternatives like carbon black, graphite, or carbon nanotubes.

"This support from ERA enables Carbonova to turn breakthrough science into real-world infrastructure," said Dr. Mina Zarabian, CEO & Co-Founder of Carbonova. "With customers lined up and eager for better, lighter, and more sustainable materials, ERA is catalyzing the emergence of a new industry—one where carbon emissions become the feedstock for high-performance advanced materials. Alberta is proving that climate leadership and industrial innovation can go hand-in-hand."

The ERA-funded project will de-risk scale-up and commercialization by enabling Carbonova to complete Front-End Engineering Design (FEED) and begin procurement and construction of its CDU, capable of producing 25 tonnes of CNF per year while utilizing over 50 tonnes of CO₂. The CDU will serve as a launchpad to fulfill offtake agreements already in progress and demonstrate Carbonovaʼs readiness for global deployment through a build-own-operate and licensing model.

This milestone builds on Carbonovaʼs growing momentum, following strategic partnerships with global manufacturers in batteries, composites, and construction, and a strong track record of customer-led Joint Development Agreements.

Carbonova is collaborating with a variety of strategic customers and partners at this exciting inflection point. With patented technology, world-class collaborators, and a clear path to commercialization, Carbonova is poised to scale its impact globally—starting right here in Alberta.

About Carbonova

Learn more about the ERA Advanced Materials Challenge: https://www.eralberta.ca/advanced-materials-challenge/

For more information about Carbonova, visit carbonova.com

Tailwind Ventures is a strategic partner supporting Carbonova and continues to work with the company to prepare for its future Series A financing.

Contact

Jenny McLean
Chief Marketing Officer
Tailwind Ventures
info@tailwindventures.co

Forward-looking statements

Certain statements contained in this press release relate to future events, conditions, or outcomes with respect to Carbonova's business, its customers, technology, and the broader industry. All statements other than statements of historical fact may be forward-looking statements and are often, but not always, identified using words such as "believes", "seek", "plan", "expect" and similar expressions.

This press release is for informational purposes only and does not constitute an offer to sell, a solicitation of an offer to buy, or a recommendation for any securities.

Modular Solutions Closes Financing Round to Drive Innovation in the Insurance Industry

Thu, 19 Jun 2025 16:58:52 GMT

Tailwind Ventures Inc. acted as Financial Advisor on behalf of Modular Insurance Solutions Inc.

View the original news release

Tailwind Ventures is pleased to announce that their Calgary-based client Modular Solutions (“Modular” or the “Company”) has successfully closed a financing round from a strategic industry partner and a syndicate of private investors, facilitated by Tailwind Ventures. Modular Solutions, a leading provider of configurable insurance software, will use the funding to optimize and streamline client onboarding and implementation, advance platform enhancements, and invest in artificial intelligence to deliver even greater value to customers across the insurance industry.

Modular Solutions provides next-gen insurance SaaS technology that enables providers to break free from archaic, siloed legacy software, enabling improved operational efficiency, financial performance, and customer experience. Modular’s platform is purpose-built to empower insurers and brokers with technology that is responsive to a competitive industry, transforming workflows and automating critical and time-consuming operations.

“This capital raise marks a pivotal moment for Modular,” said Braden Bosch, Founder and CEO of Modular Solutions. “We have brought an innovative software solution to the market, and with this investment, we can ensure low total cost of ownership and affordability while continuing to optimize and enhance our offering even further.”

“Tailwind is delighted to have supported Modular in securing this financing. Braden and the team at Modular are building transformative solutions for an industry in desperate need of innovation, and our capital partners share our conviction that Modular will deliver,” said Darren Engels, Tailwind Ventures CEO.

Engels added “Tailwind is committed to its purpose of diligently preparing companies to scale and attract capital so they can create impact and value. Tailwind applies a proprietary, holistic and structured approach that we call diligent preparedness to build a better business. Better businesses go on to withstand the scrutiny of due diligence, secure capital, and generate returns for shareholders.”

Cody Church, Director of Clear North Capital, shared his enthusiasm regarding the investment, stating, “We were honoured to invest in Modular and are excited to watch the evolution of the Company. Braden was very strategic in his investment partners, all of which are local high net worth individuals and venture firms that bring a lot of strategic value to the business.” This network of investors not only reinforces the Company’s vision but ensures a collaborative approach to driving growth and innovation in the insurance industry.

Modular’s capital raise represented the fifth largest seed stage financing for Insurtech companies in North America, while also achieving the second highest pre-money valuation. ¹ It is a credit to Braden Bosch and the Modular Solutions team for their dedication to being diligently prepared and to creating impact and value for their investors.

About Modular Solutions

Founded in 2015, Modular Solutions has been delivering innovative technology to the insurance industry. Their modular, fully integrated platform enables insurers, mutuals, MGAs and brokers with programs with the ability to manage their entire operations seamlessly through a single software solution. Designed to be affordable and configurable, their platform empowers businesses to innovate, adapt and thrive in an evolving and competitive market. Modular Solutions is based in Calgary, Canada.

For more information about Modular Solutions, visit gomodular.ca .

Contact

Jenny McLean
Chief Marketing Officer
Tailwind Ventures
info@tailwindventures.co

Forward-Looking Statements

Certain statements contained in this press release relate to future events, conditions, or outcomes with respect to Modular’s business, its customers, technology, and the broader tech industry. All statements other than statements of historical fact may be forward-looking statements and are often, but not always, identified using words such as “believes”, “seek”, “plan”, “expect” and similar expressions.

This press release is for informational purposes only and does not constitute an offer to sell, a solicitation of an offer to buy, or a recommendation for any securities.

1: Among 17 comparable companies that raised Seed deals in the North American InsurTech space Since Jan. 1, 2023; Pitchbook data.

The Perfect Storm: Market Volatility, Policy Uncertainty, and AI Dominance | Q1 2025 Market Summary

Mon, 16 Jun 2025 17:40:16 GMT

The Tailwind Ventures Quarterly Market Summary is designed to cut through the noise and bring you the insights we believe are most relevant to the venture ecosystem.

The analysis in this summary is supported by data from Pitchbook, NVCA, CVCA, and other reputable sources – but most importantly, it’s informed by the dynamics we observe every day as we enable ventures to withstand the scrutiny of due diligence and secure capital.

TL;DR

Venture capital continued to be a challenging landscape to navigate and participate in.
Macro-economic environment was characterized by significant public market volatility driven by policy and tariff impositions.
Aggregate deal values appeared robust on the surface, but VC market performance masked a concerning over-reliance on AI investments and a single major exit.
Q1 showed a persistent and troubling cycle, where limited exit opportunities and heightened market uncertainty stifles fundraising and sector diversification.

The Perfect Storm: Market Volatility and Policy Uncertainty

Q1 2025 unfolded like a financial thriller, with markets swinging dramatically in response to tariff implementations by global leaders. The US administration’s approach to trade policy created an environment where a single press conference or social media post triggered significant market movement, reminiscent of the volatility experience during the pandemic.

Actions like these tend to have a ripple effect, manifested as investors became increasingly cautious about deploying capital in an already high-risk asset class. The result was a fundraising environment that faces its most significant challenges in over a decade.

VC Fundraising Landscape: A Decade Low

The fundraising statistics at the GP level for Q1 2025 paint a stark picture of LP investor sentiment:
$10 billion raised across 87 VC funds - setting the pace for the lowest annual fundraising total in a decade
Over 50% of capital within 2-5 year investment periods - the highest concentration in ten years, indicating limited fresh capital deployment
Median time between fundraises exceeded three years - a concerning milestone suggesting fund managers are struggling to secure follow-on capital
Dry powder declined from $324.5 billion to $289.7 billion as institutional investors pivoted away from venture capital

U.S. VC Fundraising Activity

The fundraising drought stems from capital allocations, particularly institutional investors, favouring more predictable asset classes given the extended exit timelines. The 2021 – 2022 venture surge created what could be described as a sector-wide hangover, with investors adopting a “never again” mentality toward the aggressive deployment strategies that characterized the peak funding period.

The Exit Conundrum: When Success Takes a Decade

VC’s fundamental promise rests on successful exits – the transformative events that validate years of risk-taking and capital deployment. However, the pathway to exit has become more challenging, with average timelines from initial funding to liquidity event now stretching to 12 years or more.

An extended timeline creates a cascading effect throughout VC. The 2021 – 2022 funding peak produced a generation of companies now caught in limbo between late-stage funding rounds and viable exit opportunities, with the aforementioned market conditions providing little momentum for resolution.

The CoreWeave Exception: Q1’s exit landscape was dominated by a single success story – Coreweave’s IPO, which represented 40% of the quarter’s total exit value. While market conditions initially dampened investor confidence, CoreWeave’s subsequent 270% post-IPO performance (as of June 10th) demonstrates the potential for exceptional returns in the right circumstances. This success story highlights the critical role of AI-focused companies in current market.

AI Investment: The Double-Edged Sword

AI investment has emerged as both the sector’s savoir and vulnerability. Under Pitchbook sector classifications, AI companies fall within the broader “software” category, but the impact extends far beyond conventional software metrics.

The Numbers Tell the Story:

AI captured 71.1% of VC deal value in Q1 2025 , compared to 40.3% in Q1 2024.
Concentration helped drive overall deal values approximately 19% higher than the previous quarter – the strongest performance since Q1 2022.

U.S. VC Deals by Sector

This apparent strength masks underlying concerns. The heavy concentration in AI reflects a flight-to-quality mentality among investors seeking perceived safety in a turbulent market. Corporations, facing cost pressures from tariff implementations, are aggressively pursuing AI solutions to improve operational efficiency, creating substantial demand for AI-focused startups.

While this trend has propped up overall sector metrics, it has also created dangerous concentration risk . The venture ecosystem's health now depends heavily on continued AI investment momentum, making it vulnerable to any shifts in corporate AI adoption strategies or regulatory changes affecting the sector.

Over the trailing 5 quarters, PitchBook's VC dealmaking indicator tracked all-time highs across all venture deal stages, indicating that this is the most asymmetrical VC market on record, in favour of investors .

Connecting the Dots

The Q1 2025 venture landscape reveals a concerning interconnected cycle that threatens long-term sector health:

Extended Exit Timelines limit returns to early investors, reducing their appetite for new commitments.
Concentrated AI Investment creates the illusion of sector health while masking underlying diversification problems.
Policy Uncertainty and Tariffs drive risk-averse behavior among institutional investors.
Limited Fundraising Success constrains capital availability for early-stage companies.
Reduced Portfolio Diversification increases vulnerability to sector-specific downturns.

This cycle becomes self-reinforcing as each element amplifies the others, creating a challenging environment for sustainable venture ecosystem growth.

U.S. VC Dealmaking Indicator ¹

Data notes:

Data appearing in this summary use datasets from Pitchbook-NVCA Venture Monitor Q1 2025 and CVCA Canadian Venture Capital Market Overview Q1 2025.

1: PitchBook’s VC Dealmaking Indicator metric is outlined as follows:

What it measures: it assesses the favourability of the venture fundraising / investing market for ventures / investors, across each stage of the market (early-stage, growth-stage, and late-stage),
How to interpret the assessment: a score of 50 implies market equilibrium, in which venture dealmaking power dynamics are balanced between ventures and investors. The higher the score above 50, the higher the indication that it is an investor-friendly market. The lower the score below 50, the higher the indication that it is a venture-friendly market.
The methodology: the Dealmaking Indicator reflects key deal terms and attributes captured across three categories of PitchBook data:
Market liquidity measures (capital demand-supply ratio, startup funding rate)
Cap table information (cumulative dividends, liquidation participation, percentage acquired)
Momentum metrics (years between VC rounds, valuation change)

Read PitchBook’s deep dive, detailing the methodology .

NBA All-Stars & Elite Entrepreneurs Compete Against Strikingly Similar Odds

Fri, 13 Jun 2025 19:11:40 GMT

Tonight, the Indiana Pacers are looking to clinch game 4 at home to take a 3-1 series lead over the Oklahoma City Thunder in the NBA Finals.

Both teams are among the smallest franchises in the league, and both are competing for their first NBA Championships.

OKC’s road to the finals felt inevitable — the team secured a league-best 68-14 record and became one of only six teams in NBA history to win at least 68 games during the regular season.

On the other hand, the Pacers have arguably had the most improbable finals run in NBA history — since qualifying for the playoffs with a 50-32 record in the regular season, they’ve pulled off “the most unlikely set of playoff wins in the play-by-play era”, per analysis by ESPN and Inpredictable.

As much as I’d love to see OKC’s Shai Gilgeous-Alexander fend off a massive finals upset, win a championship, and become the first Canadian player in NBA history to win Finals MVP (after recently becoming the first Canadian player in NBA history to win the Scoring Title, and the second to win MVP), part of me is rooting for the Pacers, too.

Shai and the Pacers are both telling some of the best, ‘against all odds’ underdog stories I’ve ever heard as a basketball fan.

Stories like theirs are a big part of why I joined Tailwind. I love underdog stories, and I get to live in them through my day-to-day of helping ventures raise capital and exit.

There are too many parallels between the NBA and the VC space to cover in one blog post, so I’ll focus on my favourite — the odds of a basketball player finding outsized NBA success are strikingly similar to the odds of an entrepreneur finding outsized VC success. I’ve done some simple analysis around this, which I believe is particularly relevant now, considering the momentous buildup to the NBA finals this past year, as well as the historically difficult venture capital fundraising environment for ventures this past year.

Entrepreneurs’ odds are certainly daunting, but then again, it couldn’t be an underdog story any other way. If you do what everyone else does, you’re bound to get what everyone else gets. There aren’t any shortcuts, hacks, or magic tricks — the players and entrepreneurs who made it ultimately differentiated on their level of diligent preparedness versus their competition.

Consider Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s diligent preparedness process — according to his former coach, back when Shai was in eighth grade, he consistently came to school early for his own, meticulous 6 a.m. practice sessions in Hamilton, Ontario.

Last summer, Tailwind’s General Counsel witnessed this continued dedication in action while dropping his kids off for a morning basketball camp in Burlington, Ontario. As they walked into the gym for camp, Shai was already wrapping up his early-morning offseason workout.

Evidently, Shai put in more than a decade of work to become an ‘overnight’ success.

If you’re an entrepreneur, Tailwind’s rooting for your underdog story, and we hope you’re rooting for the likes of the Pacers now too, as they compete against the likes of Shai and OKC.

Sources: NBA, ESPN, Inpredictable, Basketball-Reference, Corporate Finance Institute, NCAA, Medium, The Athletic, The Globe and Mail.

$370 Million Raised in 2 Years: How People, Process, and Purpose Fueled Our Clients' Success

Fri, 07 Mar 2025 20:23:42 GMT

When ClearSky Global secured C$230 million, it wasn't just another deal for Calgary's emerging tech scene—it was validation. The CVCA H1 2024 Venture Capital Report finally confirmed what insiders had been whispering: Calgary had quietly risen to become Canada's third-largest venture market, and according to Pitchbook’s Global VC Rankings , 61st globally. Behind ClearSky's raise—celebrated as Deal of the Year at the Start Alberta Tech Awards , and standing as the largest early-stage financing for SAF, all-time, globally—lies a counterintuitive success story.

While Canadian venture capital deal value has dropped 47% year-over-year, our firm has helped clients secure C$370 million since 2022. This anomaly isn't accidental. In a landscape where only about one in 200 startups attempting to raise venture capital succeeds, our portfolio companies are raising venture capital funding at an 86% success rate and are closing rounds at a pace 44% faster than the market rate. Their secret? A framework built on three pillars that transcends traditional fundraising approaches: People, Process, and Purpose. Our founders’ success stories are not just achievements but evidence of a repeatable methodology that works counter to market trends.

People

Tailwind's team has grown from three to eight, with people from a variety of backgrounds in addition to finance—marketing, research, tech, agriculture, academia—which brings diversity of thought and experience that enables non-traditional thinking in an increasingly uncertain landscape. Different in background, the team is united by shared values of pursuing excellence, thinking bigger and creating happiness.

As a sector-agnostic firm, this is incredibly important. Cross-sector expertise plays a key role in bridging communication gaps between founders and investors from different industries and theses, allowing us to translate sector-specific terminology into a common language that both parties can easily understand.

Our firm's distinct advantage lies in our ability to convert relationship capital into financial capital. The strength of these connections stems from reciprocal trust developed over years. This reputation creates a reinforcing cycle—our rigorous vetting process makes us a trusted deal flow source, which in turn attracts higher-quality investors and opportunities.

Process

In a market where deal count has contracted by 14% since 2023, our unique diligent preparedness framework has emerged as a decisive differentiator for clients navigating heightened investor scrutiny. Unlike standard approaches that focus primarily on financial metrics, our methodology has been engineered to anticipate and address the evolving risk sensitivities of post-2022 investors.

Check6™ is a fast, cost-effective way to help companies get investment-ready and successfully complete a founder-led raise, ensuring founders understand how capital providers will evaluate their opportunity, identifying the key blind spots in their venture that pose barriers to capital, and illuminating strategic pathways to success. Built on insights from hundreds of hours working with high-net-worth investors, family offices, VCs, and PEs, Check6™ gives early- and growth-stage companies a structured, investor-focused approach to capital raising.

FlightPlan™ ensures that the venture has the requisite discipline and competencies to earn investor trust, strengthening the fundamentals and financials, and producing a comprehensive set of materials that demonstrate to investors their ability to create impact and value.

This preparation creates a multiplier effect when ventures work with us on Launch Capital Raise , a facilitated raise process in which we selectively market them to our investor network. The trust established through our rigorous process translates to privileged attention from capital providers increasingly protective of their time and resources.

Raising capital is hard, and takes a lot of time–—time, which is the most valuable resource a founder has. A founder's skill in strategically prioritizing and managing their time plays a crucial role in determining the company's chances of success or failure.

Purpose

The C$370 million we've helped secure over two years represents more than a financial milestone—it's a catalyst for tangible economic and social transformation. Our purpose is to diligently prepare companies to scale and attract capital so that they can create impact and value. Why? Because we believe economic prosperity uplifts humanity, and that diligently prepared companies are more likely to scale, create jobs, and transform communities.

Our portfolio companies now span three continents, allowing us to support ventures with impact on a global scale.

Our engagement model fundamentally reinforces entrepreneurial capability. "Tailwind has given me growth and hope," explains Martin Molyneaux, President and CEO of Molyneaux Asset Management, after investing in our vetted portfolio companies. On the founder side, Mark Tysowski, Founder and CEO of Canadian Resource Roadways, shared that “Tailwind’s contributions were fundamental in nature” to achieving a successful raise.

Success Favours the Diligently Prepared

When Darren Engels founded our firm, he envisioned a foundationally different approach to founder support—one that combines the analytical rigor of finance with marketing expertise in a proprietary, holistic, and structured approach that we call diligent preparedness, to build a better business.

The ultimate measure of our impact won't be capital deployed but dreams realized—innovative solutions reaching markets that need them, jobs created in communities that benefit from them, and founders fulfilling potential that might otherwise have remained unrealized. For us, success means continuing to evolve our People, Process and Purpose framework into an increasingly powerful catalyst for ventures that combine commercial viability with meaningful impact

Building Better: How Darren Engels is Paving a Path for Ventures to Succeed

Wed, 12 Feb 2025 20:35:01 GMT

Tailwind founder and CEO talks about Tailwind’s roots and his drive to help businesses flourish

Work hard, get money. For an entrepreneur with a big idea, it’s a story many have been told and it seems simple, right? An angel will come along and fund your venture. If you ask Darren Engels, he’ll tell you it’s a bit more complicated than that.

“I knew the competition for capital was high, but in the beginning, I didn’t realize just how high it was for early- and growth-stage companies. Less than 1% of companies are investable by institutional capital, which I think would surprise most people,” says Engels, Tailwind’s CEO. “There are a lot of smart people doing interesting things, but getting your company ready for external capital is a different skillset that most entrepreneurs don’t have.”

“So, if you’re excellent at your profession and want to grow your business, do you want to risk diluting your focus trying to put in the things that investors care about, like a proper governance structure, reporting, or marketing?” he says. “It’s going to be harder than you think, and we have to assume there are no angels, there’s no silver bullet. It can kill an entrepreneur’s spirit if they are not ready for it.”

Engels was working at a respected investment bank when an idea started to grow to build something of his own. Combining a love of early-stage companies with deep experience with capital providers and investors, something sparked to bring a unique offering to the venture capital space. After a year of reflection, tweaking, and then some more tweaking, he landed on Tailwind, based in Calgary, Alberta.

“I thought the traditional investment banking model was broken. It was super transactional and not relationship oriented—it was about the money, not about making businesses better,” Engels says. “I wanted to knit together the rigour of investment banking with other tools, like risk mitigation and a fresh approach to telling the story of a venture, to create value for our clients and capital providers. To me, it’s a responsibility. Our work helps founders build better businesses.”

Engels created a proven process, honed since Tailwind’s inception, that enables his clients to solidify their fundamentals, helping ensure they can confidently withstand the scrutiny of due diligence. The Tailwind process includes identifying vulnerabilities, mitigating risks, empowering clients to tell their story in the language of investors, and connecting them with capital providers.

“We help companies avoid a ‘no’ from capital providers. We act as a strategic partner, which frees up the CEO to focus on growing the business, while we work on strengthening it, and then articulating it to investors,” he says. “It takes a certain mindset to demonstrate a venture is worthy—it’s not as easy as convincing them. You have to do the hard work and prove value, and then you might get the money.”

Engels should know. As a start-up itself, Tailwind has grown from just him and some interns to a team of eight. Since its inception, they have helped dozens of companies through FlightPlan™️ and Check6™️, enabling 14 ventures to raise capital (with an 86% success rate), resulting in more than $370 million raised since 2022.

“We knew we were onto something when some investors asked to share our work with others on our behalf. That’s a good feeling—when someone asks to share it, it’s the best thing,” he says.

From his early idea, he has since built a collaborative and open office, usually complete with a dog or two wandering through the space. It mirrors his own style, full of flowing ideas and helping people out.

“I wanted a culture where I wanted to come to work and learn,” he says. “If I am going to spend more time with these people than my family, I needed to like working with them.”

Engels surrounded himself with a range of interesting people with broad backgrounds and experiences—not just a typical investment banker Type A personality—that pushed him to further develop a growth mindset that has helped him see what might be possible.

“I think I underestimated how good we could be. I’ve surprised myself. It’s been harder than I thought, but it might be better than I thought, too,” he says.

Now entering 2025, Tailwind isn’t slowing down. Over the next year, Engels sees more national and US-growth, a tech-enabled platform and becoming more active in the investment community.

“We have a proven process that we can confidently share to help more companies,” he says. “If I look ahead to when I’m done my tenure at Tailwind, I believe we will have been able to successfully help create 1,000,000 jobs and impact double that.”

“I want to make our community better, and if I could say that we’ve succeeded on that, it would be pretty rad.”

About the author:

Gillian Edwards is a communicator based in Calgary, with 15+ years of expertise in the higher education, business, and non-profit sectors. Her approach is grounded in good judgment, strong relationships and a sense of humour. She quit her 9-to-5 last year to start her own business, Frances & Associates, working with interesting people and projects.

Impact-oriented ventures can have an edge with investors

Mon, 04 Nov 2024 21:05:27 GMT

The days when tech startups could attract investors with promises of "changing the world" are long gone. Today, impact investors expect evidence of measurable, purpose-driven action—not just a few aspirational lines in a pitch deck. The companies thriving in the new impact landscape are those that translate their vision into tangible impact, delivering both societal value and financial returns. These ventures are proving that commitment to meaningful outcomes can drive profitability while capturing investor interest.

What is venture impact?

Impact is the effect a company has on the environment and society through a achieving a specific outcome. ⁱ Founders demonstrate their commitment to impact by delineating how they will conduct their business through alignment with the triple bottom line, a framework which considers how an organization addresses the planet, people, and profit. Because their business model prioritizes long-term resilience, they are derisked and prepared to create and protect value over the long-term. These ventures mitigate non-financial issues that could have a financial impact in the long term. ⁱⁱ

Impact investors value ventures with a strong narrative that clearly articulates impact, as it helps them to make investment decisions that generate positive and measurable results with societal and environmental benefits, ⁱⁱⁱ with market returns supporting the triple bottom line.

We have discussed the challenges of the current VC landscape in previous posts — increasingly risk-averse investors are deploying capital more selectively, with a marked decrease in available funding. This dynamic has created an asymmetrical market where the balance of power tilts heavily in the investors’ favour.

In a landscape that may appear bleak, recognizing and capitalizing on opportunities to distinguish one’s venture makes all the difference. Impact can be that powerful differentiator.

In this challenging environment, some founders may be tempted to abandon their pursuits in search of more favourable conditions. However, shrewd founders recognize the importance of leveraging every differentiator they can to secure a competitive edge. We will consider where the opportunity lies for founders to differentiate themselves, and how founders can strengthen each element of their impact strategy to prove tangible de-risking to investors.

Subjectivities aside, focusing on impact is one way of objectively differentiating your venture for investors. However, as a consequence of the debates around it, an impact focus may invite additional scrutiny from investors, and thus warrant deeper diligent preparedness for investors.

The Opportunity

The opportunity for impact-oriented founders lies in tangible and purpose-driven action, not just as a few aspirational bullet points on a pitch deck. Debate around greenwashing has influenced legislation on how ESG (environment, social, and governance) metrics can be represented by businesses, creating additional challenges for new and established ventures. Risk-averse investors will screen diligently and perceive discrepancies between a venture’s mandates and demonstrated actions.

In tandem with screening for greenwashing comes a need for clearly defined measurement methods. The World Economic Forum (WEF) published a report where they categorized stakeholder capitalism into principles of Governance, Planet, People, and Prosperity, ^iv each aligned with corresponding United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), a widely recognized method of assessing targets to address global challenges by 2030. ^v

Despite apprehension surrounding greenwashing claims, the market for impact investing exists, and it’s growing. According to the Global Impact Investing Network (GIIN) 2024 State of the Market Report, the impact investing market has expanded at 14% CAGR over the past five years. ^vi This sustained growth reflects the increasing allocation of assets to impact-driven strategies, with investors projected to commit US$95 billion by the end of 2024.

This search for ways to clearly define what counts as a company’s impact presents both a challenge and an opportunity for founders: the challenge lies in measuring intangible aspects like social or environmental value, while the opportunity allows them to differentiate their business by demonstrating real, measurable contributions to stakeholders beyond profit, despite how elusive measurement can be.

By aligning their operations with metrics targeting Governance, Planet, People, and Prosperity, founders have the opportunity to enhance the non-financial aspects of their business and to position themselves to participate in the growing impact investing market, where investors increasingly use these metrics to evaluate opportunities and conduct due diligence.

Let’s look at three strategies as they correspond to impact that founders can use and what makes them so attractive to investors:

1. Planet: Founders can weave sustainability into their supply chain.

To implement a strategy that addresses impact upon the planet, founders can weave sustainability into their operations. This means having a target on their carbon footprint and creating a plan to reduce it, something that only 7% startups do. ^vii To do this, founders need to map out environmental risks that occur at different stages of their venture’s development — by analyzing the impact of your product or service in the world, and studying the environmental risks most prevalent in the sector in which your business falls in. One approach is a materiality assessment, which looks at different sectors and the most common sustainability challenges that befall businesses in those sectors. ^viii The general process for incorporating a materiality assessment is to 1) determine critical issues, 2) collect stakeholder input, 3) rank key priorities, 4) match with business goals, and 5) create an actionable strategy.

Besides creating a positive impact in the world, building sustainability into your supply chain can increase the value of your business through cost reductions. ^ix For example, choosing options with lower energy consumption means lower expenses, while simultaneously reducing your contribution to natural resource depletion.

2. People: Founders can adjust their business model to empower all people the business touches.

Internally, founders can build a strong ‘people’ element into their impact strategy by fostering an inclusive workplace culture, ensuring fair labor practices, and investing in employee well-being and development.

Externally, founders can again use the materiality assessment to ascertain if their sector is at risk of disempowering stakeholders. Beyond that, all businesses can analyze and identify ways to give back and support their local communities.

For example, if you have identified that your business requires a large amount of manual labour to create your product or service, you could address the social impact of your venture by choosing to use local, well-regulated labour rather than global labour arbitrage that may be cheaper but often comes with dubious human rights alignment.

A strong people focus can help a founder attract and retain high-quality employees, reducing employee turnover and increasing job satisfaction. Building a sense of trust and purpose with employees creates a positive social impact, which in turn enables employees to perform in a prosocial way that positively advances the needs of the company, avoiding situations such as absenteeism and workplace sabotage, which directly impacts the bottom line.

3. Governance: Founders can make sure that their compliance is future-ready.

To address governance, founders can ensure their compliance mandates are prepared for the future by staying ahead of evolving regulations and adopting flexible frameworks. Diverse boards are the most visible indicator, which can be a metric addressed in early due diligence processes. ^x As regulatory landscapes continue to evolve, impact-driven ventures that prioritize governance risk assessment and mitigation are better equipped to anticipate and navigate evolving regulation, future-proofing their operations against governance challenges.

For example, if you have identified that a key part of your venture’s business model includes the collection and storing of data by AI, incorporating rigorous due diligence can include creating a standard around data privacy and security, creating an offense which is prepared to meet increased scrutiny on AI regulation — something that is presenting significant challenges for organizations that operate in Europe with the introduction of the AI Act. ^xi

Strong governance goes beyond following the law. It is acting with purpose and accountability, and assuming responsibility for how you operate in the world. For founders, leading in their sector creates opportunities for top-line growth — when regulatory authorities recognize that a company goes beyond the bare minimum to address sustainability, they are more likely to grant them access and government support that give opportunities for growth.

The (triple) bottom line

The individual elements of impact are deeply interconnected, with due diligence efforts and materiality assessments often addressing multiple facets at once. This holistic approach ensures that actions taken in one area — such as environmental stewardship — can enhance social impact and strengthen governance practices. Founders have a powerful choice: by embracing sustainability not just as a compliance requirement but as a core business strategy, they can build more resilient, forward-thinking companies. In doing so, they not only create stronger businesses but also contribute to a more sustainable and equitable world. The opportunity to lead with purpose is theirs to take — and the benefits, both financial and societal, will follow.

Footnotes:

i IRIS+. “An Introduction to Impact Measurement and Management | IRIS+ System,” n.d.

ii “What Is ESG and What Does It Mean for Your Business?,” BDC.ca, July 29, 2024.

iii The GIIN. “What You Need to Know About Impact Investing,” n.d.

iv “Measuring Stakeholder Capitalism: Towards Common Metrics and Consistent Reporting of Sustainable Value Creation,” World Economic Forum, September 10, 2024.

v “THE 17 GOALS | Sustainable Development,” n.d.

vi Hand, Dean, Sophia Sunderji, Maddie Ulanow, Renée Remsberg, and Kelly Xiao. State of the Market 2024: Trends, Performance and Allocations. Global Impact Investing Network (GIIN). Global Impact Investing Network (GIIN), 2024.

vii Karen McCormick, “Enabling Start-ups to Measure and Improve ESG Performance,” ESG_VC, n.d.

viii NYU Stern. “A Better World, Through Better Business: Sustainability Materiality Matrices Explained,” May 2019.

ix Witold Henisz, Tim Koller, and Robin Nuttall, “Five Ways That ESG Creates Value,” McKinsey & Company, November 14, 2019.

x Bruce Simpson, “Startups Need an ESG Strategy,” Harvard Business Review, November 14, 2022.

xi PricewaterhouseCoopers. “EU AI Act: European AI Regulation and Its Implementation.” PwC, n.d.

International capital finds a fit in Alberta with game-changing clean fuels technology

Thu, 27 Jun 2024 21:15:39 GMT

Left to right: Rick Christiaanse, InvestAlberta; Clark Grue, President and CCO, ClearSky Global; Marcy Grossman, Chair, Celebrate Canada Worldwide; Matt Jones, Minister of Jobs, Economy and Trade, Gov. of Alberta; Darren Engels, CEO of Tailwind Ventures

London, UK – June 27, 2024 – Alberta showed up in a big way with the Canada delegation at the Canada-UK Business Summit on June 26, demonstrating the impact that is possible for the global business community when international capital meets opportunity in Alberta’s clean energy sector.

Ralph Goodale, High Commissioner for Canada in the UK , Matt Jones, Minister of Jobs, Economy and Trade (Government of Alberta ), Rick Christiaanse, CEO of InvestAlberta , Clark Grue, President and CCO of ClearSky Global , and Darren Engels, CEO of Tailwind Ventures took to the stage to announce a landmark investment in Alberta-based cleantech.

Alberta leads Canada’s energy sector and boasts one of the world’s top cleantech ecosystems – where a deep history in resource management combines with leading-edge innovation and a culture of entrepreneurialism and collaboration to address pressing global energy challenges. ClearSky Global, based in Calgary, Alberta, will produce economically viable low-carbon alternative fuels. This commitment to finding viable solutions for the modernization of the energy industry is one that resonates with ESG-minded investors around the world.

On the Summit stage, Minister Jones shared the news of ClearSky’s landmark financing – over C$230 million raised to commence deployment of their technology across Canada . Tailwind Ventures facilitated a dynamic cross-border investment with a private international ESG investment group, making the ClearSky deal the 5 ^th largest early-stage venture capital raise in the clean fuels space ever, globally and the largest in Canadian history ¹ .

“Alberta is the best place to invest for companies looking to grow while pursuing the highest standards of ESG performance,” says Rick Christiaanse, CEO of Invest Alberta. “Companies such as ClearSky strengthen Alberta’s leadership role in the global energy transition and cleantech ecosystem, and it’s fantastic to see that the dedicated venture development support from Tailwind enabled ClearSky to attract international capital. We look forward to the positive outcomes from ClearSky's solutions."

ClearSky exemplifies the Alberta tradition of solving difficult problems through collaboration and they are committed to maintaining Canada’s long-standing reputation for corporate transparency, accountability, and social responsibility. ClearSky brings proven technology to bear in a novel solution for fuel production.

The seasoned management team recognized that combining existing technologies with innovative applications could cleanly and efficiently convert natural gas into high-quality, low-carbon diesel and jet fuel.

“ClearSky’s conversion process has no toxic emissions,” says Clark Grue, President and CCO of ClearSky. “We have a remarkable efficiency in this application – both in terms of the feedstock required and the cost per litre to produce.” Grue says the company believes that the use of ClearSky aviation and transportation fuels could see a 15-30% reduction in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions compared to refined fuels. “ClearSky is the result of international collaboration with the technology founders, Tailwind Ventures and their capital providers. We’re proud to put this investment to work to create jobs in Alberta and Canada and to lower global GHG emissions,” says Grue.

Operating on a thesis of connecting excellent companies with capital, Tailwind Ventures supported ClearSky to diligently prepare for fundraising, and ultimately facilitated the connection with an international group focused on ESG investing. “Alberta has an abundance of great people with great ideas, and that’s thanks to the thriving culture of innovation and entrepreneurship here in Calgary,” says Darren Engels, CEO of Tailwind. “Ventures need to compete harder than ever before for investors’ time, attention, and capital. ClearSky was prepared and committed to an in-depth preparedness process which enabled them to stand out among the competition and ultimately attract serious capital. International capital providers are often in a position to make a major impact, and our job is to make sure they know about the remarkable opportunities here in Alberta”, says Engels.

Coming out of the 2024 Canada-UK Business Summit, the ClearSky team is energized.

“The reception from business and government leaders in London was overwhelmingly positive, and we were delighted to be there with support from the Government of Alberta and InvestAlberta,” says Grue. “Once we’re operational, we’ll be in a position to make a material impact on emissions and do our part for the modernization of the energy industry.”

[ 1 ] 5th largest early-stage VC raise in the clean fuels space, all-time, globally and the largest in Canadian history”; based on Pitchbook data as of June 13, 2024.

ClearSky Global raises US$168 Million to Deploy Low Carbon Alternative Fuels across Canada and North America

Wed, 26 Jun 2024 20:42:53 GMT

Tailwind Ventures Inc. acted as Financial Advisor on behalf of ClearSky Global Corp.

View the original news release

Calgary, AB – June 26, 2024 – Canada-based ClearSky Global Corp . (ClearSky) has raised US$168 million from a private international ESG investment group, facilitated by Tailwind Ventures as financial advisor. The financing represents the 5th largest early-stage venture capital raise in the clean fuels space globally ¹ .

ClearSky plans to use the funding to deploy ECOGY® technology to produce high-quality, low-carbon, and economically viable aviation and transportation fuel.

This technology combines proprietary and commercially proven technology to convert natural gas to both diesel and jet fuel that ClearSky believes is of a superior quality compared to conventional fuels. ClearSky fuels can be produced at a lower cost than biofuels and refined petroleum fuels. The use of ClearSky fuels has the potential to significantly reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, and harmful particulate matter. ClearSky’s facilities are modular and compact with superior energy conversion technology, designed to be placed at airports or other strategic locations.

This significant financial milestone will enable ClearSky to commercialize its first three facilities, which will enable its customers in multiple industries to accelerate their sustainability goals and emissions-reduction targets. With this rapid deployment, ClearSky believes that the impact of this technology will be measurable in the near-term and stands to become a material solution for emissions reduction once operational.

“This financing demonstrates that our investors share our confidence in the transformative potential of ECOGY® technology and our aggressive vision to operate across Canada and North America. As the aviation, transport and heavy industries seek reliable and cost-effective carbon-reducing technologies, ClearSky offers an economically sustainable solution that can deliver an immediate reduction in emissions.”
- Timothy J. Kozmyk, CEO, ClearSky Global

“We’re pleased to have supported ClearSky in securing the financing required to execute their growth plans in North America and look forward to a continuing partnership. Our capital partners recognize the significant opportunity for ClearSky’s ECOGY® technology to make a major impact for the aviation and transportation industries.”
- Darren Engels, CEO, Tailwind Ventures

“Alberta’s government in collaboration with Invest Alberta is proud of this innovation driven forward by a Canadian company, headquartered in Alberta. ClearSky’s focus on the development of clean energy makes them an important partner as the world moves to reduce emissions. ClearSky’s solutions to complex energy issues will help lower global carbon levels while creating jobs and supporting the economy.”
- The Honourable Matt Jones, Minister of Jobs, Economy and Trade

About ClearSky Global

ClearSky Global is a modern energy company that offers economic, viable and responsible solutions deploying innovative technology capable of providing a measurable reduction in GHG emissions, while powering the modernization of the transportation industry. ClearSky Global is based in Calgary, Canada. Visit the ClearSky Global website for more information.

Contact

Clark Grue
President and Chief Commercial Officer
ClearSky Global
info@clearskyglobal.ca

Jenny McLean
Chief Marketing Officer
Tailwind Ventures
info@tailwindventures.co

Forward-Looking Statements

Certain statements contained in this press release relate to future events, conditions, or outcomes with respect to ClearSky’s business, its customers, the ECOGY® technology, and the broader energy industry. All statements other than statements of historical fact may be forward-looking statements and are often, but not always, identified using words such as “believes”, “seek”, “plan”, “expect” and similar expressions.

This press release is for informational purposes only and does not constitute an offer to sell, a solicitation of an offer to buy, or a recommendation for any securities.

1: 5th largest early-stage VC raise in the clean fuels space, all-time, globally; based on Pitchbook data as of June 13, 2024.

LiNova Energy, Inc. announces US$15.8 M Series A Financing

Tue, 30 Apr 2024 16:40:48 GMT

Tailwind Ventures Inc. acted as Financial Advisor on behalf of LiNova Energy Inc.

View the original news release

Monrovia, CA – April 30, 2024 – LiNova Energy Inc. (LiNova) has raised $15.8 million in a Series A financing round that was led by Catalus Capital, who were joined by Saft, a subsidiary of TotalEnergies, Chevron Technology Ventures and a syndicate of investors. LiNova will use the funds to accelerate its mission to revolutionize the energy storage landscape with its polymer cathode battery.

This significant financial milestone will enable LiNova Energy to expand its research and development efforts, scale up operations, and accelerate the commercialization of its cutting-edge batteries. LiNova has developed a high-energy polymer battery technology that is designed to allow material replacement of the traditional cathode containing cobalt, nickel, and other critical materials.

LiNova also announced that it has entered into a joint development agreement with Saft, pursuant to which LiNova and Saft will work together to develop the battery technology for commercialization in Saft’s key markets. “We are proud to collaborate with LiNova in scaling up its technology, leveraging the extensive experience of Saft's research teams, our newest prototype lines, and our industrial expertise in battery cell production,” said Cedric Duclos, CEO of Saft.

“The technology developed by LiNova is designed to have higher energy density while providing a safer, lighter and lower-cost solution to the battery market," said Jim Gable, Vice President, Innovation and President of Technology Ventures at Chevron. “This is the latest investment from our $300 million Future Energy Fund II, which focuses on industrial decarbonization, emerging mobility, energy decentralization, and the growing circular economy. We welcome LiNova Energy to the portfolio.”

“We are excited to lead LiNova’s Series A round and support their path to commercial success,” said Saif Qazi, Vice President at Catalus Capital. “LiNova’s innovative polymer cathode technology is a strong addition to our energy storage portfolio. Catalus’ investments in the space are focused on companies that combine a sound technical foundation with a capable management team and a robust commercial plan. LiNova is emblematic of this approach. We look forward to a successful partnership.”

"We are grateful for the support and confidence of our investors," said Michael Nagus, CEO of LiNova Energy. “This funding is a testament to the potential of our technology and the impact it will have on delivering a more sustainable battery for the world’s energy storage needs. With this investment, we are well-positioned to advance our mission and bring our innovative polymer cathode batteries to market."

Catalus Capital, Chevron Technology Ventures, and Saft bring a wealth of experience and strategic resources to the table, which will be instrumental in guiding LiNova Energy's growth trajectory.

As LiNova Energy moves forward, the company is committed to leveraging this investment to make significant strides in the battery technology sector, driving innovation, and delivering value to its customers and stakeholders.

About LiNova Energy, Inc.

LiNova Energy is developing ultra-high-energy batteries utilizing a Polymer Cathode for the EV, Aerospace, and Energy Storage industries. LiNova Energy’s cathodes require no Nickel, Cobalt or any metal oxides, ensuring a sustainable and cost-effective battery solution. The company is dedicated to revolutionizing the way the world stores energy.

For more information about LiNova Energy and its mission to transform the energy landscape, please visit linovaenergy.com .

Contact

Michael Nagus
CEO
LiNova Energy
info@linovaenergy.com

This press release is for informational purposes only and does not constitute an offer to sell, a solicitation of an offer to buy, or a recommendation for any securities.

Tailwind News & Insights

Carbonova Secures Financing to Accelerate C$13.6M Commercial Demonstration Project in Alberta

Tailwind Ventures Inc. acted as Financial Advisor on behalf of Carbonova Corp.

About Carbonova

About Tailwind Ventures

Contact

Forward-Looking Statements

Turning Tides: The White House, IPOs, & Continued AI Dominance | Q2 2025 Market Summary

TL;DR

The AI + Commercial Products & Services Sectors Are Driving Q2 2025 Dealmaking

The GP Fundraising Landscape: A Decade Low for All but a Win for Experience

US First-Time Managers Vs Established Managers — Capital Raised & Fund Count

The Gradual Rebound in Exits: IPOs & Trump Mandates

Quarterly US VC Deal Value & Count

Proportion of Quarterly US VC Deal Value by Sector

Proportion of Annual US VC Deal Count by Deal Size Bucket

Quarterly US VC Exit Value & Count

Quarterly US VC Exit Value & Count via IPO

Quarterly US VC Dealmaking Indicator

The One Big Beautiful Bill Act: The Transient Future of Venture Capital Deal Making

Connecting the Dots

Data Notes:

Pitch Deck Review

Gain momentum with (free!) expert feedback on your pitch deck

Carbonova Selected for Funding Through Emission Reduction Alberta's Advanced Materials Challenge

$4.38M ERA Grant Fuels Construction of Canadaʼs First Carbon Nanofiber Commercial Demonstration Plant in Calgary

About Carbonova

Contact

Forward-looking statements

Modular Solutions Closes Financing Round to Drive Innovation in the Insurance Industry

Tailwind Ventures Inc. acted as Financial Advisor on behalf of Modular Insurance Solutions Inc.

About Modular Solutions

Contact

Forward-Looking Statements

The Perfect Storm: Market Volatility, Policy Uncertainty, and AI Dominance | Q1 2025 Market Summary

TL;DR

The Perfect Storm: Market Volatility and Policy Uncertainty

VC Fundraising Landscape: A Decade Low

U.S. VC Fundraising Activity

The Exit Conundrum: When Success Takes a Decade

AI Investment: The Double-Edged Sword

U.S. VC Deals by Sector

Connecting the Dots

U.S. VC Dealmaking Indicator 1

Data notes:

NBA All-Stars & Elite Entrepreneurs Compete Against Strikingly Similar Odds

$370 Million Raised in 2 Years: How People, Process, and Purpose Fueled Our Clients' Success

People

Process

Purpose

Success Favours the Diligently Prepared

Building Better: How Darren Engels is Paving a Path for Ventures to Succeed

Tailwind founder and CEO talks about Tailwind’s roots and his drive to help businesses flourish

About the author:

Impact-oriented ventures can have an edge with investors

What is venture impact?

The Opportunity

1. Planet: Founders can weave sustainability into their supply chain.

2. People: Founders can adjust their business model to empower all people the business touches.

3. Governance: Founders can make sure that their compliance is future-ready.

The (triple) bottom line

Footnotes:

International capital finds a fit in Alberta with game-changing clean fuels technology

ClearSky Global raises US$168 Million to Deploy Low Carbon Alternative Fuels across Canada and North America

Tailwind Ventures Inc. acted as Financial Advisor on behalf of ClearSky Global Corp.

About ClearSky Global

Contact

Forward-Looking Statements

LiNova Energy, Inc. announces US$15.8 M Series A Financing

Tailwind Ventures Inc. acted as Financial Advisor on behalf of LiNova Energy Inc.

About LiNova Energy, Inc.

Contact

U.S. VC Dealmaking Indicator ¹