Lecture by
David Danielson
Managing Director, Breakthrough Energy Ventures
Breakthrough Energy & Gigaton Opportunities in Climate-Tech Innovation
Abstract
The goal of Breakthrough Energy is to make sure that everyone on the planet can enjoy a good standard of living, including basic electricity, healthy food, comfortable buildings, and convenient transportation, without contributing to climate change. Our strategy links cutting-edge, government-funded research to patient, risk-tolerant capital so that more clean energy innovations get to market faster. The Breakthrough Energy Coalition created Breakthrough Energy Ventures, an investor-led fund, to build the new, cutting-edge companies that will deliver on that promise.
David Danielson and Breakthrough Energy Ventures
Dr. David Danielson is a Managing Director at Breakthrough Energy Ventures, a new Bill Gates led $1 billion investment fund focused on building the breakthrough energy technology companies of tomorrow. He also currently serves as a Precourt Energy Scholar at the Precourt Insitute for Energy at Stanford University. He is considered a global expert in the development of next generation clean-energy technologies and the creation of new R&D and organizational models for high-impact clean energy innovation.
Prior to joining Breakthrough Energy Ventures, Dr. Danielson served for four years as the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Assistant Secretary of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE), where he led the world’s largest government clean-energy innovation funding organization. At EERE, he directed the Obama Administration’s innovation strategy in the areas of sustainable transportation, renewable power, energy efficiency, and clean-energy manufacturing.