This week's speaker is:

Craig Tighe, Attorney, DLA Piper LLP
"Determining the Legal and Financial Risks of Turning a Climate Technology into a Business"

Abstract:

Many great climate technologies are being developed in university labs and accelerators. Turning them into businesses that scale often can be a challenge, though.

Among other things, there can be legal restrictions and uncertainties that may stymie the deployment of what otherwise is an ideal solution to a climate problem.

Commercialization of a technology might also be impeded by problems in finding a suitable revenue model. These potential problems will be illustrated by a discussion of ocean alkalinity enhancement as a carbon dioxide removal strategy. The international and U.S. legal issues it presents will be described. The potential problems in relying on voluntary carbon credits to generate revenue from such carbon capture strategy will also be considered. Based on this example, the remainder of the lunch will be devoted to discussing the legal and financing issues that other climate technologies may face when they move from the lab to the marketplace.

Bio:

Craig is an attorney with DLA Piper LLP (US) based in Silicon Valley.   His practice is focused on representing startups and the venture capital and other financing sources that support startups, with a focus on climate technology.   He is 2024 Stanford Distinguished Careers Institute Fellow and a graduate of Stanford Law School

The topics of this seminar are broad but typically fall under technologies’ scaling potential and impact on (the system of) people, the environment and the economy. A particular focus is placed on the interaction potential of technologies with the energy, water, and material systems. Our goal is to create an intimate, collaborative space for students, postdocs, scientists, and PIs within Stanford across micro-level (material and technology) to macro-level (system) interests. These seminars will provide an opportunity to disseminate insights from your studies, connect with fellow researchers, and strengthen bonds across the community.