Some retired CEOs go to space. Others move to Hawaii. But Unity co-founder David Helgason chose a different path after 12 years leading the game engine company, which went public in 2020 with a valuation of $13.7 billion.
Having left as CEO in 2014, Helgason still sits on the board of directors of the now publicly traded company he co-founded in Copenhagen in 2004; but most of his time is spent Transition companiesan early-stage venture capital firm that launched in 2021 to focus on climate.
It is an indication that the background is called “transition” and not, say, “apocalypse.” This is partly because Helgason is convinced that legacy industries, typically harmful to the environment, will eventually be overtaken by more sustainable solutions, and partly because of his personality. “My friends describe me as an optimist with a glass one-tenth full,” he told TechCrunch.
In an interview at his home near Reykjavík, the entrepreneur-turned-VC shared his thoughts on his companies and the journey that took him from Unity to climate tech, a homecoming of sorts. “It's kind of embarrassing how much fun it is to work on the climate crisis,” he said.
A long way home
Unity's public debut made Helgason a multimillionaire, at least on paper. The market capitalization has decreased since then, but the essence remains: he made a lot of money from the company and this capital became more and more liquid Through the years.
This allowed him to become a prolific angel investor, fulfilling his natural inclination to spend time with entrepreneurs. But his climate concerns had to wait: As he describes himself as a software expert, he had no clear way in.
That changed when one of his brothers, Ingvar, founded a lab-grown leather company. VitroLabs Inc.. This led Helgason to get involved with the startup and with synthetic biology in general. Over time, that led him to create climate-minded deep tech startups.
In addition to his angel investments, Helgason also became a limited partner in many climate-focused funds. “For a while, I said it was probably the most invested LP in climate,” he said.
Both activities gave him the kind of learning he craved. “He always wanted to be a scientist,” he recalled. However, in his current state, he realized that he had more value to add as an early-stage investor. Thus Transition Ventures was born as a venture company. Helgason already had (and has) a family office called Foobar. Transition Ventures is a different beast, and not just because of its climate mandate.
A suitable background
It would be a mistake to think of Transition Ventures as a family affair. Sure, Helgason and Ingvar's brother Ari is one of their four partners, but Ari's resume speaks for itself. Its implementation, fabricHe participated in Y Combinator's Winter 2010 batch before becoming an investor at Dawn Capital and Index Ventures.
The third partner, Kristian Branaes, a London-based Atomico alum, was on board from day one, and the trio soon hired New York-based Mona Alsubaei, who learned the ins and outs of venture capital at Union Square Ventures and its climate fund. The investment team also includes principal Clara Ricard, who recently completed the Forbes 30 under 30 Europe 2024 list.
While Helgason's wealth made it possible for Transition to begin investing immediately, the partners were also careful to find limited partners. “We never really considered not doing it as an appropriate commercial risk fund,” he said. This meant joining the ranks of other climate funds such as Climate capital and Lowercarbon Capital by Chris Sacca. Although it has LPs, Transition does not disclose established fund sizes or how much it has invested to date and plans to invest.
Although Helgason was able to found the fund himself, fundraising was not easy. By the time the documentation was ready, market conditions had changed.
“Before we could start fundraising properly, the war (in Ukraine) had started and we went from the hottest market in living memory to the coldest market in quite some time, so it was a lot of work,” he said.
Once the fundraising was complete, Transition Ventures ended up with a mix of LPs that Helgason considers quite healthy: some backers aligned with its mission, but also others that are more financially driven and without a climate mandate. In other words, they are there to make a profit, which is the commitment of any commercial venture fund.
Having LPs means having to generate returns and do so within a limited time period, but Helgason is fine with that.
“We are quite disciplined about focusing on schedules, but the climate crisis requires that of us too,” he said. “We don't have time to just stay and explore. … We’re in the business of finding companies that are ready to go … and then helping them really accelerate.”
A portfolio of projects
Because Transition Ventures views climate as an issue, not a sector, the 12 companies in its briefcase They are quite varied:
- Electricity mapswhich calculates the carbon intensity of electricity consumption to optimize use at scale.
- FabricNanowhich hopes to make cell-free biomanufacturing cheaper and more efficient at scale.
- heat geekwhich provides independent installers with the support needed to accelerate the adoption of heat pumps.
- Odysseyan online marketplace and software platform that connects investors with renewable energy project developers.
- Phase biolaboratoriesa synthetic biology startup that recycles CO2 in ethanol and other chemicals.
- Reela renewable electricity provider that allows companies to enter into power purchase agreements.
- Revoya swappable battery solution and charging network to convert trucks into hybrid and electric vehicles.
- current tidewhich removes carbon by growing algae in hatcheries and sinking it into the depths of the ocean.
- Safiformerly known as TrueCircle, a B2B marketplace for trading recyclables.
- upwardwhich makes electric bicycles more affordable by renewing and recycling them.
- water planwhich participated in Y Combinator's Summer 2021 batch and helps companies manage water risk.
- Basinwhich helps companies decarbonize their business.
Unlike Helgason, none of these companies are Icelandic, but “that was never the plan,” he said. However, Running Tide uses Iceland as an R&D base, with support from an external team that Helgason helped create. now called Transition laboratorieshelps climate technology companies take advantage of Iceland and its natural and social features. to accelerate its expansion.
Shortly after starting Transition Labs, Helgason returned to his home country.
“I always wanted to live here,” he said. After spending most of her life abroad, he now resides in one of the most expensive properties; although that price is far from invisible in the Bay Area. The house itself is quite simple; Its most striking feature is its panoramic view of the ocean.
For someone who spends their time worrying about global warming, the ocean is likely a powerful reminder to take action.
“But even to people who say climate change isn't real, I say, well, it almost matters, because there are adjacent crises that are so big,” he said. Whether it's biodiversity or ocean health, Helgason is impressed with the caliber of founders tackling these issues. “The talent is incredible,” he added.
Although Helgason no longer considers himself an entrepreneur, he also has a new project, fair playwhose stated mission is to “make games part of the solution in the fight against the climate crisis.”
The project is still under wraps and details will be announced in the Europe Says Conference in September, but we already know that video game bigwig Richard Hilleman is involved, as is Benedikt Franke, the CEO of Planetly, a carbon management startup. acquired by OneTrust in 2021.
It sounds like a great option for Helgason to combine gaming with climate impact investing, but now his heart is firmly planted on the latter.
“A few years ago, I decided that from now on I would only deal with the weather,” he said. Transition Ventures still has work to do on that front; is “about halfway through” deploying its capital, seeking the answer to the question many investors are asking: Which climate solutions are best positioned to scale?
Disclosure: Anna Heim traveled to Iceland at the invitation of Business Iceland to name Reykjavík Science City.
