Tech, finance & ocean: three forums, one reality
N°5 - June 2025
This edition has been shaped by three major events: VivaTech 2025, the Blue Economy Finance Forum, and the UN Ocean Conference in Nice. These gatherings reveal tension between technological optimism and climate realism.
Key voices emerged on technology's trajectory: Cleo Abram discusses her approach to optimistic tech journalism with 6 million YouTube subscribers, while Chris Summerfield warns that humanity has "run over a cliff" with AI deployment. In climate applications, Sweep's leaders at VivaTech emphasised targeted AI deployment for ESG compliance, balancing innovation benefits against energy consumption.
Ocean ecosystems emerge as a critical blind spot: Florentin and Laville reveal that 40% of French jobs depend on marine environments, yet companies largely ignore their oceanic impact. Meanwhile, our planetary thermostat has absorbed 90% of excess heat and 26% of our CO₂ emissions.
Financial markets signal major shifts: secondary market commitments are set to rise 37%, while the €300M ECBF fund targets regenerative agritech. However, Karl Zanclan warns that Trump's pro-fossil policies are already destabilizing European investment. After missing industrialisation and digital revolutions, Europe cannot afford to lose the environmental transition race.
We hope this curation will drive your own reflections and actions. Please feel free to share it with those who might be interested.
Let’s dive in! 💫
Insights
Camille Wong 🇫🇷 explores how ocean-focused startups are gaining momentum as the blue economy matures, with $2.2 billion invested globally since 2017. While the UN Ocean Conference highlights marine protection urgency, French initiatives like the Blue Tech index showcase promising maritime startups, though investors note limited deal flow and models often unsuited for rapid VC scaling in this emerging sector. | Les Echos - ENVIRONMENT - Blue Economy
Karen McVeigh 🇬🇧 reports that Britain will ratify the high seas treaty by year-end, following momentum at the UN Ocean Conference where French President Macron announced enough countries had committed to bring the landmark agreement into force by January 2026. The treaty will create the first legal mechanism for marine protected areas in international waters covering two-thirds of the ocean, crucial for the global "30x30" biodiversity target. | The Guardian - ENVIRONMENT - Marine Protection
Arnaud Florentin & Elisabeth Laville 🇫🇷 reveal that 40% of French jobs depend on ocean ecosystems, yet companies remain unaware of their marine impact and dependency. Their research shows 80% of marine waste originates from land-based activities, with agri-food and hospitality sectors responsible for 56% of marine ecosystem degradation, highlighting the urgent need for comprehensive ocean strategies across all business sectors. | Le Monde - ENVIRONMENT - Blue Economy
The Conversation 🇫🇷 explains how the Global Ocean Observing System (GOOS) monitors Earth's climate regulator, with oceans absorbing 90% of excess heat and 26% of CO₂ emissions from human activities. Despite technological advances since the 1960s combining satellites, buoys and numerical models, scientists emphasise the urgent need to strengthen observations in deep waters and polar regions to better anticipate climate disruptions. | The Conversation - SCIENCE - Ocean
Nick Hilden 🇺🇸 interviews Oxford cognitive neuroscientist Chris Summerfield, who argues that humanity has "run over a cliff" with AI deployment, entering uncharted territory where non-human agents generate knowledge for the first time. Summerfield warns that while LLMs excel at formal reasoning, they may exacerbate existing societal problems and create new risks when AI systems begin interacting with each other in ways misaligned with human values. | Nautilus - TECH - AI
Sweep 🇫🇷 explores how AI can responsibly accelerate climate solutions through insights from VivaTech 2025, featuring Sweep CTO Yannick Chaze and 2050 fund founder & CEO Marie Ekeland. They emphasise targeted AI deployment for ESG compliance and data management rather than broad application, with both leaders stressing the need to balance AI's energy consumption against its positive climate impact. | Sweep - TECH - AI
Ben Smith & Max Tani 🇺🇸 interview Cleo Abram on Mixed Signals podcast, exploring how the former Vox journalist built her YouTube show "Huge If True" into a 6-million-subscriber platform focused on tech optimism. They discuss her approach to navigating conversations with tech leaders like Mark Zuckerberg and Jensen Huang, positioning her as one of today's most influential tech journalists. | Semafor - TECH - Media
Lily Wakeley 🇬🇧 explores what makes regenerative agritech attractive to VCs through the €300M European Circular Bioeconomy Fund (ECBF), highlighting three key investment categories: biological substitutes replacing chemical inputs (like Aphea.Bio's microbial pesticide alternatives), precision agriculture using AI sensors to reduce waste (like Trapview's 50% pesticide reduction technology), and financial mechanisms supporting farmers' transition to sustainable practices. | Sifted - AGTECH - VC
Silas Sloan 🇺🇸 reports that over half of limited partners seek to buy and sell positions on the secondaries market, with 37% planning to increase commitments over the next 12 months according to Coller Capital's summer 2025 Global Private Capital Barometer. The survey of 110 investors shows LPs increasingly view secondaries as a "natural portfolio management tool" while interest in evergreen funds jumped to 33% from 21% last year. | Secondaries Investor - FINANCE - Private Markets
Karl Zanclan 🇫🇷 explains how Trump's pro-fossil fuel policies are already impacting European investment, with Dutch pension fund ABP (€500B AUM) planning to reduce green bonds allocation by 25%. The Qileo co-founder argues Europe must resist US pressure and maintain its Paris Agreement trajectory, warning that after missing industrialisation and digital revolutions, Europe cannot afford to lose the environmental transition race. | LinkedIn - FINANCE - Investment
Graph of the week
This edition’s graph from Pitchbook illustrates the venture capital industry's inevitable maturation. After years of explosive growth that saw micro-fund formations peak at 723 successful raises in 2022, the market is now acting as a ruthless filter. With numbers collapsing to under 300 funds in 2024 and capital dropping from $9.5 billion to $3.3 billion, only micro-funds with genuine differentiation, proven track records, and clear value propositions are surviving the selection process. What initially appeared as a market downturn is actually the industry separating signal from noise, transforming venture capital from a gold-rush mentality back to a profession requiring real expertise and defensible advantages.
