Alexander Nevinskiy

The Lightrock team are proud to have co-led Makersite’s €60M Series B, alongside Partech, with SE Ventures joining and continued backing from all the company’s Series A investors. Manufacturing accounts for more than a fifth of global emissions, and companies are under increasing pressure to reduce climate impact while remaining competitive. Makersite is meeting that challenge by making product design and manufacturing smarter – and, in turn, delivering resource, energy, and cost efficiencies in addition to positive climate impact. The company’s AI-powered platform helps manufacturers like Microsoft and Schneider Electric understand their supply chains by fixing fragmented and inconsistent product data, enriching it with one of the most comprehensive supply chain databases available, and enabling real-time analysis of cost, carbon, compliance, and risk – all throughout the product design process. With its scalable, technology-driven business model and proven impact, Makersite aligns perfectly with Lightrock's investment thesis: The company embraces sustainability not just as a trend or tick box, but as a strategic business advantage. Congrats to Neil D'Souza and the ‘Makernauts’ on this milestone success, which you can learn more about from Sifted’s coverage and the company’s announcement - both linked in the comments. The Lightrock team is excited to support Makersite’s next stage of growth. #Lightrock #AI #ClimateTech #Manufacturing #ProductDesign #SupplyChain

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Huge milestone for the US power industry and for the team at ElectronX⚡ They’re now the first US-regulated, direct-access electricity derivatives market, with DCM and DCO approvals from the CFTC. This unlocks a new set of tools for energy asset operators and larger users to better manage short-term price volatility and risk. We believe this market infrastructure will help unlock a cleaner, more resilient grid. It’s been a privilege to partner with Sam Tegel, CFA and the team as they’ve built toward this moment. Their vision and persistence have been incredible to watch, and this is just the beginning. Congrats to everyone involved. Looking forward to what's ahead! https://lnkd.in/g85acSHq

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SCOOP: Graphcore CEO to launch deeptech VC fund --- Graphcore founder and CEO Nigel Toon is set to launch a new growth-stage deeptech fund, following a bruising year for the sector in Europe that saw a number of darlings fall by the wayside. Toon, who is still chief at the AI chip maker following its acquisition by SoftBank last year, is launching the vehicle with Ekaterina Almasque, who was previously general partner at Finnish VC OpenOcean, according to Companies House filings. The new fund is called BlankPage Capital, will launch in 2025 and invest at growth stages in the UK and Europe, according to a company website seen by Sifted. A pop-up on the site invites LP investors and deeptech companies to get in touch. While Europe boasts world-leading research institutions, commercialising science-based technology has proved difficult in the region. In 2024, a number of once hyped unicorns, including EV maker Arrival, electric plane startup Lillium and battery company Northvolt all filed for bankruptcy. Full story: https://lnkd.in/e2R86TWv

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How Bitcoin mining could scale water abundance In arid coastal regions such as much of Africa, desalination is critical to getting water to the people The problem is it's expensive, which means only wealthy MENA countries typically do it. But this could be about to change. MARA recently partnered with Zero Two (a digital asset firm backed by Abu Dhabi's sovereign wealth fund) to use the region's abundant solar energy to address water scarcity by integrating mining operations with desalination Here’s how it works: Historically, energy-intensive desalination in UAE relies heavily on fossil fuels By capturing and redirecting waste heat from solar-powered bitcoin mining rigs for distillation, the project reduces desalination's energy costs while improving efficiency. It’s also decarbonizing. The setup uses revenue from Bitcoin mining to subsidize desalination infrastructure, lowering the cost to produce water Studies show heat recovery can reduce desalination's energy footprint by 20-30%, meaning more water- per-$ invested, improving water abundance in the region. The facilities even use seawater for immersion cooling of mining hardware, which is then heated and repurposed for desalination. This approach minimizes freshwater consumption while enhancing desalination output. Incredibly, in water-scarce nations like UAE, this model not only improves water abundance, but also accelerates the transition to renewable-powered desalination by making excess solar energy more economically viable. Amazingly, as recently as 2023, a media article circulated claiming Bitcoin mining used excessive water (a claim that arose from a 5-page study, since discredited). The latest data now shows that a typical Bitcoin mining operation uses less water than an average family home.

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Here’s a harsh truth: fundraising today is slow, costly, and unfairly tilted towards the well-connected. You know what I’m talking about. We’ve all seen it again and again.   Europe has brilliant founders with bold ideas, yet too many fail before they even get a fair chance. And don’t get me wrong, it’s not because they lack vision, but because the fundraising system is outdated. CORE changes that. Because founders get a digital co-pilot that levels the playing field: AI guidance, investor-ready decks, early visibility, and rounds live in under 72 hours.  For the cost of a dinner, every founder now has access to the tools, structure, and visibility once reserved for a few. The real cost isn’t trying, it’s waiting. This isn’t about building another tool. It’s about building Europe’s private market infrastructure, where preparation, raising, and managing capital become accessible to all. 👉 This is how we level the field: https://lnkd.in/dsYhQqnp

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