On May 13, Tec Labs hosted a new edition of the Meet the Investor series, welcoming Guilherme Shirazawa from EDP Ventures for a session dedicated to the future of energy innovation and corporate venture capital.
The session began with an overview of EDP’s vision for the future, centered around the goals of becoming “all green” and achieving “net zero”. Guilherme shared EDP’s innovation strategy and explained how the company is positioning itself to drive the energy transition through collaboration with startups and emerging technologies.
Participants also had the opportunity to learn more about some of EDP’s innovation initiatives and programs, including Energy Starter and Free Electrons, which foster collaboration between startups and the energy sector on a global scale.
The conversation then moved into a deeper dive into EDP Ventures and its venture investment strategy. Guilherme explained the investment thesis behind EDP Ventures, highlighting the areas of focus such as Renewable Energy Sources, Grid, Distributed Energy Resources, Green Hydrogen, Storage & Flexibility, Mobility, Decarbonization of Energy Use, and AI & Digital.
A Q&A session followed, allowing participants to discuss challenges, opportunities, and trends within the energy innovation landscape.
The event concluded with 1:1 meetings between Guilherme and selected participants, including Tec Labs’ incubated company and spin-off KeepIt, as well as a group of students from the “Projeto Empresarial” course unit who are currently developing an innovation project in the energy sector.
Their participation reflected one of the key messages shared during the session: EDP Ventures is not only interested in mature startups, but also in connecting early on with promising ideas and emerging innovation projects, even before incorporation, in order to stay close to the evolving ecosystem.
Tec Labs would like to thank Guilherme Shirazawa and EDP Ventures for the insightful session and for engaging with our entrepreneurial and academic community.
