| Al
Gore joins a California venture capital firm Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers
as partner
13 November 2007
Former vice
president Al Gore announced on Monday 12 November that he had become a partner
in the Menlo Park, California-based venture capital (VC) firm Kleiner Perkins
Caufield & Byers. This not only provides Gore with an additional platform
for advocacy of environmental causes, but also gives the Nobel laureate an opportunity
to nurture green businesses. Venture
capitalists said the move could also help companies financed by Kleiner to establish
ties with big business and government, and obtain subsidies that encourage use
of new technologies. Gore's part-time duties at the firm include investigating
the growth potential of start-up companies focused on the alternative energy sector,
and determining whether Kleiner Perkins should finance those companies. The
former vice president (VP) said he would donate his salary from the venture to
the Alliance for Climate Protection, a non-profit policy foundation. Venture capitalists
usually get a management fee of 2 per cent of the amount of money they invest.
But their main
motivation is the potential for huge returns that comes from their 20 per cent
share of the profit, when their start-ups go public or are acquired. Kleiner Perkins,
one of Silicon Valley's largest VC firms, did not say whether Gore would receive
a management fee or participate in profit sharing. Gore
already sits on the board of Apple, and has an advisory role in Google. He is
co-founder and chairman of Current TV, a San Francisco television network that
broadcasts viewer-created content. He keeps an apartment in San Francisco and
spends five to six days a month in the area. Kleiner
Perkins feels Gore will help the firm attract innovative start-ups, an advantage
in the firm's competition with other VC companies. Silicon Valley's venture firms
have focused increasingly on financing alternative energy start-ups, so-called
clean-tech companies. These
early investors are risking billions of dollars on the proposition that solar
power, ethanol, and other clean and renewable energy innovations will become major
business opportunities as oil prices rise and federal and state government increase
incentives for using alternatives to oil. But
few of the alternate energy start-ups have created big payoffs for investors so
far. VCs say it takes time for start-ups to grow to the point where their services
can grab the mass market. Oil and gas provide most of the world's fuel, and displacing
them in a cost-effective way is an enormous challenge. Some
analysts suggest Gore's new role could benefit start-up companies by providing
handholding through the political maze. He now has a financial incentive to push
for sops like tax incentives or rebates, as well as to provide start-ups with
important connections in government and big business. It
is not unusual for politicians or celebrities to join venture firms or investment
companies. Former president Bill Clinton was an adviser to financier Ronald W
Burkle. U2 singer Bono is affiliated to Elevation Partners, a Silicon Valley investment
firm. Former
Secretary of State Colin L Powell serves as a strategic limited partner for Kleiner
Perkins. Former President George H W Bush has had a strong relationship with the
Carlyle Group, a private equity firm.  Following
the affiliation announcement, Kleiner Perkins has said it will collaborate with
the Britain-based Generation Investment Management to find and finance clean-tech
start-ups globally. Co-founded by Gore, the British company focuses on investing
in large operations and later-stage companies focused on clean technology.
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