The Climate Cycle

A generation of climate tech was built on assumptions that no longer hold up. AI primitives and cutting-edge models are commoditizing software, creating new questions around the future of climate software.
We sit down with an investor and founder to unpack what the Saaspocalypse means for climate tech.
Geordan Hankinson is a Partner at Renewal Funds, a Vancouver-based impact VC with a track record of climate software exits including Opus One Solutions (acquired by ABB). Mike Hejmej is the CEO of Senpilot, an AI-native platform for electric utilities.
Geordan has backed and exited climate startups under the old software playbook, while Mike is building squarely inside the new one, betting that regulated, high-stakes deployment environments create a moat that a model alone can't replicate.
What we cover:
What the "SaaSpocalypse" actually means for climate software
Why the old software playbook is hitting a ceiling
Stress testing the idea that anyone can build production-ready software in hours or days
How utility buyers are actually evaluating build-vs-buy right now
Where moats still hold: physical infrastructure, regulated trust, and proprietary context
A speculative new playbook for climate software founders building today
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Show notes: https://climatetechcanada.ca/p/podcast-is-climate-software-dead⁠⁠⁠
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Cover art: Igor Omilaev on Unsplash

Canada's industrial carbon pricing system just went through its biggest redesign since it launched, trading ambition for stability. Depending on who you ask, the deal is either a major unlock - or a major step backwards.
We sat down with Etienne Rainville, VP for Central Canada at Clean Prosperity, a Canadian think tank that's been one of the most consistent voices for market-based climate policy. He's been making the case for carbon contracts for difference and was actively engaged as the Ottawa-Alberta negotiations unfolded.
We unpack what the certainty-price trade-off really means, how it impacts investment decisions - and where climate policy goes from here.
What we cover:
Why the industrial carbon market was broken - and what the gap between the $95 headline price and $30 trading price actually means
What changed: the new headline price schedule, the price floor, and how carbon contracts for difference work
Why the floor alone isn't enough - and what CCfDs do that regulation can't
What this means for founders and investors evaluating capital commitments
Whether renegotiating the system undermines its long-term credibility
How this deal impacts provinces beyond Alberta
And where we go from here
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Feedback or guest ideas: hello @ climatetechcanada.ca

Climate startups face a commercialization gap: They've proven the science, but are too risky for VCs - and too commercial for a government grant.
It's a gap that philanthropic capital is well-positioned to close.
Galith Levy is the CEO and co-founder of the Climate Solutions Prize, a dedicated philanthropic platform for climate innovation, deploying capital at the moment it matters most. Since 2020, they’ve deployed more than $12M in awards and unlocked over $120M in follow-on investment for winners.
What we cover:
Why a prize vs grants, funds, or donor-advised vehicles
The unique gap that philanthropic capital can address
How CSP structures the prizes to unlock follow-on investment
Why climate makes up just <2% of climate philanthropy - and how that can change
Family offices and the next-generation of climate capital
Communication impact returns - not just financial ones
What blended finance actually looks like in practice
Building the "Davos for climate"
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Feedback or guest ideas: hello @ climatetechcanada.ca

We know heat pumps work - they’ve been around for decades - but actually getting them into homes is a challenge. The gap is structural: high upfront costs, a buying process stuck in the 90s, and a supply chain stacking layers of margin between the manufacturer and your home.
We talk with Stephen Lake, founder and CEO of Jetson, a home electrification company focused on making the transition to electric systems more affordable and sustainable. Jetson was started by the same team that built and sold North (formerly Thalmic Labs) to Google. They raised a $50M Series A earlier this year and are operating in Vancouver, Colorado and Massachusetts.
Jetson is giving heat pumps the DTC treatment and vertically integrating the entire experience - from hardware to install -building a system that functions more like mass production than a typical HVAC company.
What we cover:
Why home heating is a bigger emissions lever than switching to an EV
The structural barriers keeping heat pump adoption low - and Jetson’s thesis for closing the gap
Jetson’s strategy for turning one-off installations into a repeatable process
How Jetson thinks about entering new markets- The cold-climate and cost myths that are still slowing adoption
What a fleet of connected homes means for the customer experience
The grid integration play: demand response, time-of-use optimization, and what comes next
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Feedback or guest ideas: hello @ climatetechcanada.ca

Can Toronto become a global climate hub - and put Canada on the map?
Becky Park-Romanovsky is a global leader in sustainability and climate action, with a track record of launching and scaling climate-focused initiatives across multiple continents. She founded Toronto Climate Week, co-founded Climate North, is a lecturer on Social Entrepreneurship at IE University in Madrid, and previously developed carbon offset projects across the Americas, Africa, Middle East, and Eastern Europe.
TOCW is a decentralized platform - part convener, part infrastructure layer for Canada's climate ecosystem. Their October kickoff was planned as a single day with 20 events. Instead, it drew 100 events, 5,000 attendees, and representation from 30 countries - with zero international outreach. The full week runs June 1–7 with 200+ events across 16 tracks.
We get into:
Toronto's potential as a climate hub - where it's strong and who still needs to come to the table
Why corporate climate action isn't slowing down even as public commitments disappear
The strategy behind radical inclusion - arts, sports, culture
Building the infrastructure to turn a week of conversations into measurable outcomes
What Canada's climate ecosystem looks like if Toronto gets this right
We're happy to be supporting TOCW in their inaugural year as a media partner.
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