VC firm 2150 has successfully raised a €210M fund aimed at addressing urban climate issues, highlighting a strong investor interest in sustainable city solutions. The fund will focus on backing startups that can deliver scalable environmental impact, reflecting a targeted approach to climate tech innovation.
🏆 #1 - Top Signal
VC firm 2150 raises €210M fund to solve cities’ climate challenges
Score: 70/100 | Verdict: SOLID
Source: Techcrunch
European VC firm 2150 raised a €210M second fund focused on climate tech that reduces cities’ carbon footprint, bringing total AUM to ~€500M. The fund targets ~20 investments, primarily Series A, with typical checks of €5–6M and ~50% reserved for follow-ons. Early Fund II investments include AtmosZero (industrial heat pumps), GetMobil (e-waste recycling), Metycle (scrap/recycled metals marketplace), and MissionZero (direct air capture). The raise reinforces a near-term opportunity for “urban climate infrastructure” software + services that help cities and city-adjacent operators (real estate, utilities, data centers, waste) measure, procure, and execute decarbonization projects faster—especially where AI-driven load growth (data centers) collides with grid constraints.
Key Facts:
- 2150 raised a €210M second fund to invest in climate tech startups aimed at reducing cities’ carbon footprint.
- 2150 frames cities as central to the problem: ~80% of GDP and ~70% of emissions are concentrated in cities (as stated by 2150’s Jacob Bro).
- The new fund’s LPs include Chr. Augustinus Fabrikker, Church Pension Group, EIFO (Danish sovereign fund), Carbon Equity, Novo Holdings, Islandbridge Capital, Security Trading Oy, and Viessmann Generations Group.
- The raise brings 2150’s assets under management to ~€500M.
- Fund II has 34 limited partners and is already invested in 7 companies; 3 are unannounced.
Also Noteworthy Today
#2 - k4yt3x / video2x
SOLID | 70/100 | Github Trending
[readme] Video2X is a machine-learning video super-resolution + frame interpolation framework that shipped a major C/C++ rewrite in v6.0.0 and is currently at v6.4.0 with a Windows installer and Linux packages. [readme] It targets GPU-accelerated pipelines via Vulkan (ncnn + Vulkan for Real-ESRGAN/Real-CUGAN/RIFE; libplacebo/MPV-compatible GLSL shaders for Anime4K v4), and claims “zero additional disk space during processing” beyond final output. Recent GitHub issues show reliability and packaging pain points (black video output, mp4 not opening, Vulkan out-of-device-memory crashes, and outdated AUR dependencies). The near-term opportunity is not “another upscaler,” but a reliability/ops layer: automated compatibility checks, VRAM-aware scheduling, and reproducible packaging across distros/GPUs.
Key Facts:
- [readme] Project: k4yt3x/video2x; described as “a machine learning-based video super resolution and frame interpolation framework.”
- [readme] Version 6.0.0 is a complete rewrite in C/C++ with a “faster and more efficient architecture” and cross-platform Windows + Linux support.
- [readme] Supports two modes: filtering (upscaling) and frame interpolation.
#3 - First, make me care
SOLID | 68/100 | Hacker News
Gwern’s post argues many nonfiction pieces fail because they lead with background instead of an immediate hook, causing readers to abandon before reaching the “good part.” HN commenters connect this to modern attention dynamics (e.g., TikTok’s first-seconds retention) and to practical framing tactics (renaming an essay from “automated HR system” to “The Machine Fired Me”). This creates a product opportunity for “hook-first” writing assistance: tools that detect weak openings, generate high-stakes leads, and A/B test titles/openers across channels. Funding heat is extremely high in Technology (31 deals, $853.0M in 7 days), but there are no hiring signals in the provided dataset, suggesting unclear near-term labor demand visibility.
Key Facts:
- The core advice: open with the single anomaly/question that makes the topic interesting; move background later after attention is earned.
- The post claims readers often leave “before reaching the good material” when writing starts with background.
- A commenter notes TikTok creators have only a few seconds to capture attention before viewers skip.
📈 Market Pulse
No community comments were provided in the signal. The strongest “reaction” signal is institutional: 34 LPs backing a €210M Fund II suggests sustained allocator appetite for urban/climate infrastructure plays, even as many climate categories have become more selective on unit economics.
The repo is trending on GitHub (source: github_trending), indicating elevated short-term attention. The open issues cited show active user adoption and real-world failures across output validity, VRAM limits, and Linux packaging—signals of demand plus friction rather than lack of interest. Requests like “dark mode” (#1446) suggest the GUI is being used by non-expert users, expanding the addressable audience beyond CLI power users.
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