Dive Brief:
- Superorganism, the first venture capital firm dedicated solely to biodiversity, announced the close of its inaugural fund on Tuesday, which garnered $25.9 million in investments, according to a press release shared with ESG Dive.
- Superorganism’s debut fund received investments from the Cisco Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Cisco Systems; the Builders Vision, founded by Walmart heir Lukas Walton; and Wedgetail, a biodiversity focused fund from Canva co-founder Cameron Adams, according to the release.
- Over half of the global gross domestic product (55%) — over $58 trillion — depends on nature, according to an April 2023 PricewaterhouseCoopers report. However, there is an estimated biodiversity funding gap between $598 billion and $824 billion annually, according to an August study published in Ecological Economics.
Dive Insight:
Superorganism, launched in 2023, participates in pre-seed and seed round funding, providing biodiversity-focused startups with $250,000-$500,000 in capital, co-founders and managing directors Tom Quigley and Kevin Webb told ESG Dive in an interview. Superorganism has funded 20 startups and is looking to expand its portfolio to 35 companies though its debut fund, its co-founders said in an interview.
The firm focuses on funding companies that are in industries that have historically driven biodiversity loss, or those with a climate and biodiversity overlap and ones that have focused on conservation-enabling technologies with strong commercial arcs like artificial intelligence, robotics or space tech, Quigley said. Whether Superorganism invests in a startup comes down to its belief in the scalability of the venture and its belief in the founder, Webb said.
“The idea that nature and economic progress must always conflict is outdated," Webb said in the release. "Nature already underpins our global economy, from supply chains, to food systems, to the air we breathe. We’re backing entrepreneurs who understand this, and are reshaping industries to work better for humans and ecosystems alike.”
Superorganism’s portfolio includes startups Inversa, which makes leather from invasive species like Burmese pythons and lionfish; Sway, which creates thin film plastic from seaweed; and Array Labs, which does 3-D imaging from space, according to its website.
Other investors in the firm’s inaugural fund include private investor AMB Holdings, fund Stray and climate investor Understorey Ventures, as well as investments from venture capitalist Jeff Jordan, former Nature Conservancy CEO Mark Tercek and philanthropists Sven and Kristin Lindblad, according to the release.
Prior to the fund closing, Superorganism had largely raised funds from large family offices, corporate foundations and some corporations, according to Quigley.
“What we found in the process [of fundraising] was that there was a lot of interest in biodiversity, but there was also a lot of education that was needed to expand on what it looked like to do venture capital and biodiversity in the same sentence,” Quigley said.
At least 24 funds — all listed in European Union markets — had biodiversity in their name or investment strategy as of September 2024, with $1.6 billion in assets under management, according to MSCI. However, Superorganism is typically investing alongside funds that focus on climate, agriculture, oceans or materials, as well as generalist funds, Webb said.
“We are one of a small number of funds that have biodiversity as a core named focus. We're the first, as far as we've seen, to be entirely focused on it,” Webb said. “We certainly hope we won't be the last. We think this is an opportunity, much like climate, where you can take a very broad look at where there are disproportionate ways to look at how the economy runs, find backable startups that can make a dent on ecological uplift near term and long term.”
