Today we met Ram Amar, CEO of Rewind
The Climate Journey:
Ram has a background in software entrepreneurship and spent 11 years in the military doing cyber security and software project management. After starting a big data company and selling it to Google, Ram took time off and started looking at the big challenges that humanity is facing. This is when he started researching climate change and decided to take action. After spending about two years of developing the concept, finding the right team and investors; Ram launched Rewind.
Rewind:
Founded in 2022, the idea behind Rewind is to remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. In order to reverse climate change, it’s not enough to stop emitting carbon, we must also remove it from the air, and this is what Rewind is doing. Their methodology includes using organic carbon from agriculture and sinking it into the Black Sea, where the carbon will be permanently removed from the air. To ensure the permanent removal of carbon, Rewind is developing an end-to-end monitoring system that provides proof and accuracy from field to sea bottom. Additionally, they are working on developing remote sensing technology for deep-sea biomass and a supporting logistics system.
We asked Ram a series of questions.
Q: Can you explain the science behind your carbon sequestration method in simple terms?
Ram: In simple terms, when plants are cut down, they release carbon into the atmosphere, so we’re working on ways to preserve the plants and keep the carbon locked in. The Black Sea is one of the largest organic carbon sinks in the world. The rivers around it deposit megatons of carbon every year. Due to its special conditions (lack of oxygen and stagnant water), the anoxic bottom of the sea preserves organic carbon for thousands of years. We conducted experiments to test what materials preserve well without oxygen and found that wood preserves better without oxygen. So at Rewind, we found a method of preserving wood by sinking it into the Black Sea.
Q: What stage is Rewind at now?
Ram: As mentioned, we’ve been conducting experiments to demonstrate the feasibility of our concept, including one in the Black Sea, which required permits and connections with the governments of the countries involved. In parallel, we’re also working on obtaining certification for selling carbon credits so that our business model is up and running as soon as we become commercial. We partnered with Puro, a carbon registry to write a methodology that will enable us to sell carbon credits once it's certified.
To sum up our technology, we are developing technology to measure carbon from the field to the bottom of the sea, identify the mass, measure the carbon, deduct the emissions from transport, and prove that the carbon is in fact at the bottom of the sea, we'll also monitor the carbon at the bottom of the sea, and create a transparent process of carbon measurement and environmental services.
Rewind's Monitoring Software
Q: What are your long term goals?
Our next milestone is to get paid for sequestering 1000 tons of carbon in the water. In the long term, we plan to sequester 50 million tons of carbon in the Black Sea and other locations along the coast of Georgia, Turkey, Bulgaria, and Romania. We’ll achieve this by working with local and global companies to transport the biomass and build processing facilities. And our ultimate goal is to help Europe achieve net-zero by 2035-2040.
Q: What are the main difficulties you’ve been facing?
Ram: The main difficulty that Rewind is facing is convincing investors that carbon markets will be huge and that removing carbon is necessary to solve climate change. A year ago, fundraising and global markets were much easier. However, since May of the previous year, inflation became dominant worldwide, and central banks started raising interest rates, causing the VC industry to become more risk-averse.
Q: What makes your team a super team?
Ram: Each member of the team has significant experience with big projects in the past, is mature and independent. Additionally, we all work well together both professionally and personally.
The Super Team
Q: If you had one tip that you could give climate tech entrepreneurs, what would it be?
Ram: Don’t be afraid to choose an unknown space that needs to be decarbonized, do research, and explore the market. I would encourage entrepreneurs to search for new ideas because all the technology we use emits carbon and needs to be replaced or made more efficient including buildings, agriculture, power generation, material manufacturing and more.