So to speak, S2G Ventures has graduated today.
For the past three years, the climate technology investment firm has operated under Builders Vision, the philanthropic and investment umbrella organization of Walmart heir Lucas Walton. Walton was his sole limited partner in S2G. Now, the organization is bringing others on board.
Mr. Walton started S2G in 2014 to invest in startups focused on energy, agriculture, and oceans, with the goal of creating new companies that benefit the climate and environment.
Mr. Walton plans to continue investing in and supporting S2G, giving the company a little more control, but not leaving the company completely, according to people close to the company.
S2G has more than 100 portfolio companies and $2 billion in assets under management, according to PitchBook data. S2G has also made more than 180 investments in the past 10 years. The company's strategy ranges from seed stage to growth to infrastructure investments, not only to invest in early-stage companies but also to cross the “valley of death” that makes scaling so difficult for climate change technology startups. It is one of the few companies that guides companies in this way.
Although Walton himself has a huge fortune ($28.3 billion, according to Bloomberg), his fortune is tiny compared to the amount of investment needed for the world to reach net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. It looks like something. According to McKinsey, $9.2 trillion will need to be spent on physical assets each year for the next 25 years, about $3.5 trillion more than the world spends today.
By freeing S2G from a builder's vision, Walton is following a well-worn path taken by many philanthropists. Philanthropists often provide initial and recurring funding to get initiatives off the ground. However, once a project takes off, philanthropists tend to have others step in to facilitate continued expansion so that they can address other issues.