Venture capital is fundraising at decade lows. Against that backdrop, VoLo Earth Ventures clinched its second fund at $135 million, a 50% increase over its inaugural $88 million fund in 2021.
The Snowmass Village, Colo.-based firm, founded in 2021, secured investments from Voloridge Investment Management, Carbon Equity, Morgan Stanley Graystone, Cathay InnoSquare, and WovenEarth Ventures, among others. The fund targets companies developing technologies that can both reduce emissions and cut costs for customers.
This second fundraise doubles down on the success of its predecessor, which ranks in the top decile of venture performance as of Q4 2024, according to Carta. The 2022-vintage fund has already delivered two exits above book value in 2025: Pearl Street Technologies (acquired by Enverus in February) and Gaiascope (acquired by Gridmatic in June).
“We wanted to invest [fund I] in better products and services that saved money, and stay very disciplined on unit economics and a returns-first underwriting strategy.” VoLo Earth’s Kareem Dabbagh told ImpactAlpha “Fund II is about doubling-down on those fundamentals, in an even more challenging time.”
‘Operator mindset’
VoLo attributes this success to its hands-on “operator mindset,” where it leads funding rounds and takes board seats to help its portfolio companies scale more effectively. Nearly all of the firm’s investments involve board participation—a hands-on approach that differentiates it in the climate tech space.
The firm focuses on what Dabbagh calls the “backbone” sectors of the energy transition: grids, materials, and industrial systems. VoLo has already begun deploying capital from Fund II, with investments in companies including XGS Energy, which is scaling next-generation geothermal technology, Cambium Carbon, which is rethinking the timber industry with cost-effective mass timber, and a recently announced investment in Reframe Systems, which is applying AI and robotics to address America’s housing crisis.
“We are narrowing our focus to our core verticals — energy, mobility, buildings, and industry/materials — without expanding into new areas, and are pursuing Fund II with higher-conviction investments and larger check sizes.” explains Dabbagh.
VoLo Earth also works closely with RMI’s Third Derivative climate tech accelerator and has invested in several of its startups.
