In a recent Founder Spotlight Session, Kibby Pollak, the founder of Enurgen (Techstars 2023), sat down with Techstars Managing Director Audun Abelsnes to share a direct and honest look at the grueling reality of building a climate tech startup.

Kibby’s journey isn’t a straight line, it’s a masterclass in resilience, moving from a bootstrapped hardware failure in a basement to raising over $5M for enterprise solar software. Here are the key takeaways for any founder currently in the trenches:

1. Failure is Your Greatest Credibility

Kibby is an engineer by trade, but he attributes much of his current success to a previous hardware company that "went through the wringer" during the supply chain crisis.

When pitching investors for Enurgen, that failure wasn't a red flag, it was a competitive advantage.

"I built thousands of electronics devices, shipped them globally... I've learned some hard lessons. And so not only were we the appropriate team for the industry, but we failed. And we learn from that, and we learned how to get better. And so, you know, it gave them more confidence to say, hey, these guys know what they're doing, you know, and we're willing to take that bet," said Kibby.

The Lesson: Don't hide your "war stories." Investors at the seed stage are betting on the people. Showing that you can survive a crisis gives them the confidence to take that bet.

2. Fundraising is a Numbers Game

Kibby didn't just talk to a few dozen investors; he pitched to nearly a thousand. His success rate? About 1%.

• Build Thick Skin: You have to get used to a "99% no" rate.

• The Power of the Lead: Getting that first lead investor is the hardest part. Once the term sheet is on the table, the dynamics flip, and you can finally build the FOMO (fear of missing out) needed to fill the round.

• Strategic Syncing: Kibby secured his recent $4.12M Seed round by identifying co-investment patterns. When one investor hesitated, he pointed to another credible investor in their network who was already on board, creating the "conviction bridge" they needed.

3. Selling to Enterprises? Find the "Hair on Fire"

Enurgen works with massive energy companies where sales cycles are notoriously slow. Kibby’s strategy for moving fast in a slow industry is simple: Identify the urgency.

• The "Hair on Fire" Problem: If you are a "nice-to-have," you’ll be stuck in procurement forever. If you solve a problem that is costing them revenue today, they will move you through procurement in a week.

• Human Connections > Teams Calls: Kibby advocates for getting together in person: "If you're working with an enterprise customer, really try your best to just get in person with them. That's when you start to learn more about their processes... it all comes out over coffee."

• Expansion Over Initial Revenue: Don't obsess over the dollar amount of the first deal. Get in the door, build the dependency, and then focus on scaling across business units.

4. Scaling is About "Product-Market-Problem" Fit

Scaling isn't just about hiring; it's about a relentless feedback loop. Even as CEO, Kibby insists on being on customer calls to identify their top three problems.

"You need to be asking them what their top three problems are. And if you're not solving those problems, maybe it's not the right customer. But you need to be talking to people, and you need to be solving those top problems, those hair-on-fire problems. Is your product doing so or is it not? And that's part of finding product market fit," shared Kibby.

What’s Next for Enurgen?

With the Seed round closed, the focus has shifted entirely to revenue and talent. Enurgen is currently looking for talented software engineers with experience in the energy industry to help increase product velocity.

Final Advice for Founders: Building a company is painful, but if you are passionate, relentless, and solve a problem that touches the bottom line (revenue), the "yeses" will eventually come.

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