Startup Stories of 2017: Blockchain, Batteries and Acquisitions

<p>We've reached a new stage in&nbsp;cleantech. Years after the VC bubble popped, startups are pursuing new approaches to scaling, finding customers, partnering, and raising money.</p><p>Those new approaches to scaling early-stage&nbsp;cleantech&nbsp;were crystallized this year. And we're going to talk about them.</p><p>This week, we recorded live at&nbsp;<a href="https://www.greentownlabs.com/" target="_blank">Greentown&nbsp;Labs</a>, the largest&nbsp;cleantech&nbsp;incubator in the country. We discussed a wide range of trends: the emergence of&nbsp;blockchain, a diversifying class of corporate investors, the blitz of mergers and acquisitions, low-cost ways of scaling new technologies, how to ask for money, and where startups can engage in policy.</p><p>Plus, we ran through the top headlines of the week: Tesla's 100-megawatt battery, the heinous Congressional tax bill, and the Bonn climate talks.&nbsp;</p><p><em>This podcast is sponsored by Mission Solar Energy, a solar module manufacturer based in San Antonio, Texas. You can find out more about Mission’s American-made, high-power modules at&nbsp;</em><a href="http://missionsolar.com/" target="_blank"><em>missionsolar.com.</em></a></p><p><em>Are you coming to&nbsp;</em><a href="https://www.greentechmedia.com/events#gs.VWwInfs" target="_blank"><em>GTM's&nbsp;Storage Summit</em></a><em>&nbsp;on December 12-13? Podcast listeners get 20 percent off their registration with the promo code PODCASTS.</em></p><p>Recommended reading:</p><ul><li><a href="https://www.greentechmedia.com/articles/read/can-lo3-cut-through-the-hype-on-blockchain#gs.bQQi9A0" target="_blank">Can LO3 Energy Cut Through the Hype on Blockchain?</a></li><li><a href="https://www.greentechmedia.com/articles/read/a-battery-materials-startup-applies-lessons-from-the-VC-cleantech-bust#gs.j3mxgyM" target="_blank">A Battery-Material Startup Applies Lessons From the Venture Capital Bust</a></li><li><a href="https://www.greentechmedia.com/articles/read/european-utility-giants-are-on-a-grid-edge-shopp