Breakthrough Energy Ventures

Breakthrough Energy is a global platform, founded by Bill Gates, dedicated to accelerating clean energy innovation and building the industries of the future. Its stated mission is to empower innovators to build the future of energy, framed around the idea that global electricity demand will double by 2050 (from roughly 27,000 TWh in 2024 to 51,000 TWh in 2050) and that innovation is required to meet that demand affordably, reliably, and cleanly without sacrificing prosperity or the planet. The organization works to accelerate progress across every major source of emissions by investing across five sectors of the global economy: manufacturing, electricity, agriculture, transportation, and buildings. Its portfolio spans 29 manufacturing companies, 26 electricity companies, 20 agriculture companies, 17 transportation companies, and 11 building companies. Breakthrough Energy describes its investment approach in three stages: Discover, where it surveys the landscape for technology white space and opportunities to build companies from the ground up; Develop, where it partners with leading innovators to turn breakthrough technologies into viable businesses; and Deploy, where it emphasizes that clean technologies must deliver superior, affordable, and reliable performance to reach global scale. Founder Bill Gates is quoted describing the platform's origin as an effort to bring the power of innovation to bear on climate change, which he characterizes as the toughest problem humanity has faced.