The World's Greenest Venture Capitalist

Vinod Khosla has spent a fortune financing enviro-startups
By Drew Nelles,  Newser Staff
Posted Jul 16, 2008 11:59 AM CDT

Vinod Khosla isn’t just smarter and richer than the average venture capitalist—he’s greener, too. Khosla has sunk $450 million into what he calls “imprudent science experiments" over the past 4 years, financing 45 enviro-tech startups. “We've funded an incredible number of things that would make no sense at all for a traditional venture fund,” the 53-year-old tells Fast Company.

Khosla is a study in contrasts: a family man who enrages his coworkers, an environmentalist who says solving the climate crisis requires “a dash of greed.” He’s also relentlessly optimistic. "There are only four problems with global warming: oil, coal, cement, and steel," he says. “If we do those four, we're done.” (More environment stories.)

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