Former Vice President Al Gore has joined Silicon Valley powerhouse Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, boosting the firm's position as a clean tech investor with the world’s most prominent environmental activist.
The Nobel Peace Prize winner is joining Kleiner Perkins as a partner, the firm said in a statement Monday. It was not revealed if Mr. Gore, 59, would be investing any of his own money in the firm.
“Together, we have a working understanding of this urgent, multi-dimensional challenge and are resolved to help business and government leaders accelerate the development of sustainable solutions,” Mr. Gore said in a statement.
Under the deal, Generation Investment Management, the investment firm co-founded by Mr. Gore with former Goldman Sachs executive David Blood in 2004, will work closely with Kleiner Perkins.
London-based Generation will continue to invest in larger companies with an environmental bent, and Kleiner Perkins will continue its early-stage investing in high-tech startups. But the two will collaborate on opportunities in renewable and cleaner fossil energy, building efficiency, sustainable agriculture, and carbon markets, according to the statement.
Mr. Gore is no stranger to Silicon Valley. He is on Apple’s board, advises Google, and founded an advocacy organization in Palo Alto called the Alliance for Climate Protection.
Only a few years ago, the clean tech sector was off the radar for most venture capital firms and Wall Street investment houses. But it increasingly has become one of the investment world’s darlings.
CleanTech Group estimates that between 2006 and 2009 there will be between $6.2 billion and $8.8 billion invested in over 1000 North American clean tech venture rounds. The group said that the sector could reach up to 10 percent of all VC funding by 2009.
“This partnership is great to see because it shows that the sector has become part of the mainstream,” said @Ventures principal Rob Day. “Now some of the most visible investors are investing in it, and it will continue to attract smart investors and large potential acquirers.”
But as hot as the clean tech sector is, at least one analyst who asked to remain anonymous has questioned what real investment know-how Mr. Gore will bring to Kleiner Perkins, which has already put about $200 million in green startups.
Mr. Gore at least seems intent on making a strong go at the venture capital world. He has installed a high-definition videoconferencing system in his Nashville, Tennessee, home to link into Kleiner Perkins' weekly meetings, according to a Fortune report.