Interview: Jørn

Why did you choose to be a VC?

I took a winding road to venture capital. I ran marketing at a major record label, led a B2B SaaS startup to a small exit, and spent years building Oslo’s startup ecosystem for founders and investors tackling sustainability. There are some common denominators here - following my passion, collaborating with interesting people, working where I think the most exciting things happen, and a good bit of serendipity.

But the moment I knew I wanted to focus on VC was when I started working with climate impact startups. Climate solutions aren't niche anymore - we’re talking about the most complex and attractive opportunity in venture. And that takes not only capital but commitment and patience, the kind that VC offers. Venture is about getting from 0 to 1, backing founders who might just turn a breakthrough idea into something that could last a generation. It’s a long game. In Katapult, the first VC fund I built up, I realized I’d found a place where I could do work that mattered.

Why did you join an Article 9 fund?

There are two sides to impact: measurable change and viable scale. Article 9 is the best setup for holding a fund accountable to both. There’s a lot of hype around climate impact, but if you really care about it, you have to dig into the details of how to make things work at scale. 

I’d already invested in 32 early-stage climate startups before joining Climentum. And in that time, I’d seen the difference that serious, structured capital and resources can make to a founder working on a real problem. The commitment isn’t just about putting money on the table; it’s about putting in the effort to help founders create something that moves the needle. The Climentum fund is designed so we can pursue this with real rigor, with climate as our driving focus.

Which success are you most proud of?

Building Katapult Climate together with a fantastic team remains one of my professional highlights. We managed to raise three funds and catalyze a significant amount of funding for impactful ventures around the world. It’s too early to say how well the portfolio will perform, even though it looks great on paper, but I’m proud of the fact that we mobilized resources and accelerated founders who might otherwise have struggled to get funding. 

This dynamic of venture capital continues to amaze me. If you’re willing to do the work and take on risk then you can be rewarded with exceptional financial and climate returns. It requires understanding and managing unstructured data, and that’s not for everyone.

How do you decide who to invest in?

Team, team team. So says the slide. Everyone says it’s the most important thing. I believe we collectively put too little emphasis on the team. Maybe it’s because it’s a slogan that’s easy to repeat but hard to really follow. When you’re evaluating founders, it’s not just about charisma or even domain expertise - it’s about their resilience, adaptability, and understanding of the problem they’re solving.

I think the best teams have shown signs of exceptionality at some point. Maybe it’s being at the top of your class. Maybe it’s running a successful series of garage sales as a kid. It’s less about what they did and more about their drive and ability to multiply talent and resources. Combine this proxy for exceptionality with speed of execution, willingness to experiment and working in a market that’s ready and I think you have the necessary (but not sufficient) ingredients for success. And when you’re in hard tech, having a team that understands capex and can build real-world infrastructure is essential.

Why do you invest in hard tech?

Hard tech is where structural change really happens. Software has its place, but it alone can’t decarbonize a high-emission industry. If we’re serious about solving the most complex problems in climate tech we must be willing to move atoms, not just bits. 

I’ve always been drawn to big challenges. Hard tech is about taking those on, not with quick solutions but with real, grounded answers. That also has the side benefit of providing a real moat - attractive for any VC. 

For the next decade, we’re committed to finding, supporting, and scaling those solutions. It’s as simple as this: If you’re going to go all-in on climate impact, you have to back the innovations that can drive lasting, industry-level change and have the right fundamentals that go beyond hype cycles.