BIV Monthly Update LXVIII

BIV Monthly Update LXVIII – June 22, 2026‍ ‍

“Try the local sewer” Dr Henry Jones Jr., Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark

Highlights

• SewerAI closed a Growth Equity financing from JMI, providing BIV Fund I’s first major exit, and first DPI. An important milestone for us. Our thanks to Matt, Billy and all the team. We will continue to be huge SewerAI fans. 

• CREW Carbon closed an oversubscribed $25M Series A – led by BIV with participation from AP Ventures, Sony Innovation Fund, Builders Vision, Kibo Invest, and Idemitsu. We don't lead Series A rounds this large all the time, but we are delighted to do so here. Here’s why we did it. Jo and all the team - welcome to the Burnt Island.

• Cala Systems passed 250 units installed. They are building a rather powerful commercial engine, and it really is a $14bn market up for grabs.

• Some superb news for Aclarity. More to follow on that. 

• Flocean produced their first water from Flocean One, 60% lower PPM than WHO standards.They also signed a development agreement with WaterConnect for a first-of-its-kind subsea desalination project in the Maldives. 

• Aqua Membranes and Flocean both named as semifinalists in the $119M XPRIZE Water Scarcity competition. Semifinals testing Q4 2026.

• After 22 years, Arsenal are Champions again (CLASSIC that I was in Madrid and the “Arsenal pub” was empty). After 53 years, the Knicks are Champions again. The vibes in NYC are very much on. 

June Asks

• Register for Steve’s upcoming session on the Colorado River Basin 2.0 

• Tune into The Fundamental Molecule: Ep. 53: Alaina Harkness – Falling in Love with the Problem.

• Buy an Irrigreen system. Buy a Cala Systems heat pump water heater. Buy an AquiSense water disinfection system, also available at Lowes. Use Beagle to install a home shutoff valve.

• Point the smartest people you know to our BIV jobs – we're always looking for exceptional talent.

BIV Portfolio Updates

Seed Fund I‍ ‍

• 2S Water – Some good commercial progress here - very welcome. 

• Aclarity – Entering a new phase. Excellent work from Mike and the team.

• Aquafortus – Progressing well, with material tailwinds from the water situation in Texas. Series B conversations advancing.

• Beagle Services – Still humming. Building the base for their insurance product.

• CivilGrid – On track for a big 2026. Their moats are increasingly apparent.

• Daupler – Spotlighted during National Public Works Week. In a good place for a strong H2.

• Floodbase – Quote API distribution continuing to build with brokers and carriers. Liberty Mutual partnership driving instant quoting for the US commercial market.

• Irrigreen – Drip control unit generating strong B2B channel interest as spring selling season ramps. Partnerships continue to develop, and adding some buffer to cashflow breakeven.

• LAIIER – Growing commercial smart leak detection footprint. You can feel the momentum building here. Matt doing a super job on the sales side. 

• NLine Energy – New website live - great job by Katie and the team. Continuing to pick dollars up off the boiler room floor. 100+ Accelerator will be a big deal for them. 

• SewerAI – Some superb news. Our thanks to Matt, Billy and all the team for building and exceptional company, and we know there is much more to come. This will deliver our first DPI from Fund I. 

• Shower Stream – 225 units and counting. Hotel savings as high as 40%. Small tranche ($150k) of their $2m round available.

• Spout – Demand continues to accelerate. Beyond breakeven for 6+ months running. All referrals welcome. 

• Ziptility – Profitable and scaling steadily. Contract operator GtM motion continues to deliver. Good plan in place.

• ZwitterCo – Have had a big first half to the year, with much more to come in H2. 

Seed Fund II

• AlgaFilm – Kingsville commercial demo continuing to deliver impressive results. This photo demonstrates the capability of their platform. The implications for wastewater treatment are profound. 

• Aquatic Labs – Some challenges in terms of the funding round, but working through it. Staying close. 2026 budget fully allocated.

• AquiSense – UV-C LED disinfection technology well-positioned as federal policy discussions around water disinfection standards evolve.

• Cala Systems – Passed 250 units installed. Starting to be supply-limited (good problem to have, but still not ideal). Round demand is building - good to see. 

• CNSRV – Metropolitan Water District rebate-verified. Now at a $2m+ run rate. There is an inevitability here that is so fun to see.

• CREW Carbon – Announced their oversubscribed $25M Series A led by BIV. Reducing costs, improving outcomes, and delivering verified carbon dioxide removal. "Why We Invested in CREW" live on the blog.

• Current Software – The commercial case continues to build, now across $1m ARR. In great shape. 

• Epoch – Sphera partnership providing first mile intelligence to 8,500+ customers progressing well. Strategic alliance with Altana advancing.

• Flocean – Big month. First water from Flocean One in Mongstad, and completed a  development agreement with WaterConnect for the Maldives.

• HOPE Hydration – HydroStation network expansion accelerating. Starting to see the fruits of hiring CRO Ross Hatamiya. Some very helpful tailwinds from FIFA’s idiotic water policy. 

• Subeca – Deployment pipeline expanding. Marin Municipal Water District pilot delivering over 90% read rates across 104 devices. Final close on round imminent.

• TeamSolve – Have impressed HRSD and other key emerging customers.

• Previsico – WTW launched a parametric flood risk policy for UK race courses designed with Previsico and Descartes Underwriting. Building into a real business, great to see.

• Power & Water – Also in the 100+ Accelerator, will be a big deal for them. Feels like they’re in the scrum at the five meter line, and just need to keep pushing.

• Waterly – Digital sample management partnership with SampleServe. Named to GovTech 100. Texas private utility deal opening up 100+ more plants.

Growth Fund I

• Aqua Membranes – Named a semifinalist in the $119M XPRIZE Water Scarcity competition. Working carefully through their testing with a major Japanese strategic, that will unlock a major commercial partnership. Pushing hard on production fine tuning.

• Daupler – Spotlighted during National Public Works Week. Expanding across 200+ utilities and growing. Still iterating in power IOUs, but pipeline strong. Clear path to breakeven, and it’s great to have John’s full focus on the business. 

• Irrigreen – Drip control unit generating strong B2B channel interest as spring selling season ramps. Critical partnerships continue to develop, and adding some buffer to cashflow breakeven.

Company Pipeline

• Overall Pipeline: 2,324 (+38)

• Multiple active fundraises advancing (Aquafortus Series B, Cala Series A, Aquatic Labs seed extension, Subeca Series A-2, ShowerStream & Spout looking for smaller checks to round out raises). 

• #16 for Fund II confirmed, and #17 coming into focus. Both exciting platforms.

• Industrial treatment, smart infrastructure, and PFAS destruction continue to dominate inbound. Meaningful tick-up in desalination interest post-XPRIZE and Flocean headlines. Monitoring & sensing remains crowded (a real glut here), but the quality is improving.

Market Insights

• EPA Proposes to Repeal Standards for Four PFAS in Drinking Water – Circle of Blue / Federal Water Tap. A significant regulatory pivot with far-reaching implications for water utilities nationwide.

• EPA Advances Comprehensive PFAS Strategy with PFAS Destruction Event – EPA reaffirming commitment alongside DHHS. Holistic approach tackling PFAS across its full lifecycle. Watch this space.

• XPRIZE Water Scarcity competition advances – $119M global competition to transform seawater desalination reaches semifinals. Aqua Membranes named among semifinalists.

• "The planet has entered an era of 'water bankruptcy'" – UN report highlights $58 trillion investment opportunity. 46% of global GDP projected at risk from water scarcity by 2030.

• FEMA reopened applications for a climate-resilient infrastructure grant program previously cancelled. A positive signal for water infrastructure funding.

• EPA Flags Microplastics and Pharmaceuticals as Priority Drinking Water Contaminants – Draft Sixth Contaminant Candidate List designating both for the first time.

Team

• Our immense thanks to Eliza Harrison who was with us for two semesters of her Duke MBA, and was such a huge help. Can’t wait to see the impact she has at Blue Forest - Zach and the team are lucky to have her. Thank you Eliza - Once an Islander…

• We feel genuinely supercharged by all the infrastructure upgrades put in place by Marissa and Jennie in particular. Kudos to them and our digital additions to the team. 

BIV Insight/Visibility

• Why We Invested in CREW

• Our reflection on the SewerAI story to date

• Tom on Bloomberg Intelligence's ESG Currents – Water is emerging from climate's shadow and the conversation is finally catching up to the opportunity. Bloomberg’s offices are so great, it was fun to visit and be in a proper recording booth again. 

• Reflagging Matt Ferrell / Undecided featuring Cala Systems – the water heater is a non-discretionary battery. A huge deal for grid flexibility. 

• The Fundamental Molecule Ep. 53: Alaina Harkness – Falling in Love with the Problem

• The last installment of Jennie’s Understanding our DD Process - The Nuts & Bolts

• Part 1 and 2 of Christine’s series on water and AI - The Technology Adoption Curve in Water Is Speeding Up and Water's Next Digital Architecture: Building Around Events, Not Data

• Register for Steve’s upcoming session on the Colorado River Basin 2.0

We're Reading/Listening/Watching

• The latest Lunch with the FT - “The man Iran brands a water terrorist”

• The PFAS regulatory landscape is a fascinating study in contradictions right now. Worth reading both the Circle of Blue and EPA pieces in full.

• Interesting to see Berkshire finally pile into Google. Might have been sensible to do it 6 months previously, but you can’t have everything. 

• Wading around in all the takes on the SpaceX IPO, and reflecting on the Cerebras stock price arc. The SpaceX valuation prices in a LOT of growth, but then any more growth will likely attract similarly FOMOYOLO multiples. Headscratcher.  

• For centuries, math has been a human endeavor. Does AI mean it’s over? from the Washington Post.

• Literally everything to do with the Arsenal title win. And OG on repeat (it helps that he’s a Londoner, and a Gooner)

Things to Work On‍ ‍

• Capitalising on Growth Fund I fundraising momentum.

• Some more thought into our event strategy, online and offline. Some good experiments coming up.

Thanks so much as ever.