At a Glance
Activate Capital is a San Francisco growth equity firm backing breakout technology companies across energy, industrial and digital infrastructure. It partners with entrepreneurs who share its vision of a better future and who have the audacity and persistence to make that vision real, investing behind management teams using technology to make systems more efficient, intelligent and sustainable. The partnership has collectively deployed more than $1 billion across those markets and recorded roughly 30 exits through IPO and M&A. Fund I generated a 43 percent gross internal rate of return on $139.4 million of invested capital as of March 2021, Fund II closed at a $500 million hard cap, and the close of Fund III carried the firm past $1 billion in assets under management, with its first ten companies producing more than $3 billion in cumulative revenue. The portfolio spans Crusoe in AI data centers and stranded-energy compute, Enpal in European residential solar, Antora in thermal energy storage, Tomorrow.io in weather intelligence, Nozomi Networks in industrial cybersecurity, and grid and electrification software companies Voltus, WeaveGrid and Omnidian. Muon Space and Starfish Space extend the book into space infrastructure, while Fictiv, Flexe and KlearNow sit in industrial supply chain. What distinguishes Activate is the continuity of its partnership: Atluru and Lincoln invested through the first cleantech cycle together at DFJ Element and, in Atluru's case, at Silver Lake Kraftwerk, and the firm concentrates on growth-stage companies with commercial revenue rather than seed-stage science risk.
Managing Partner Raj Atluru built the energy and resources practice at Draper Fisher Jurvetson, launched DFJ Element with David Lincoln in 2005, and later founded Silver Lake Kraftwerk, the private equity firm's energy and resource vehicle. Lincoln, also a Managing Partner, invested alongside him across both predecessor platforms, and Anup Jacob completes the managing partner group. Eric Meyer, named alongside Atluru and Lincoln as a founder of the firm, is a Partner, as are Jon Guerster and Paul Jordan. Emma Bell serves as Principal, with Caroline Chick and Leila Martin as Vice Presidents. Anna Nitschke is Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer and Patti Szczepaniak is Chief Administrative Officer. The roughly 16-person team works from San Francisco and describes more than 130 years of collective experience building and scaling companies.
Activate Capital raised its debut growth fund in the second half of the 2010s, after Raj Atluru and David Lincoln left the DFJ Element franchise they co-founded in 2005. Fund I generated a 43 percent gross internal rate of return on $139.4 million of invested capital as of March 31, 2021, a figure disclosed in a portfolio company's SEC registration statement. Fund II closed at its $500 million hard cap, lifting firm assets to roughly $657 million by 2022. Activate returned to market in 2025 seeking another $500 million for Fund III, with European limited partners in the mix, and the close of that vehicle carried the firm past $1 billion in assets under management. The firm reports that Fund III's first ten portfolio companies together generate more than $3 billion in cumulative revenue. Across their careers the partners have collectively deployed more than $1 billion into energy, transportation and industrial technology and recorded roughly 30 exits through IPO and M&A.
Activate Capital Partners primarily invests at the Series A, Series B+ stages. This means they focus on companies that are scaling their go-to-market after proving product-market fit.
Activate Capital Partners is headquartered in San Francisco, CA. Many of their portfolio companies are also based in this region, though they invest across geographies.
Activate Capital Partners focuses on investments in Climate, Deeptech, Enterprise. Their portfolio reflects deep expertise and networks within these sectors.
Activate Capital Partners's typical investment check size ranges from $. to $.. Actual amounts may vary based on the stage, sector, and specific opportunity.
Activate Capital Partners manages approximately $1B in assets under management (AUM) across their funds.
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