Autism Impact Fund (AIF) was a pioneer when it emerged in 2021, three years after the son of its co-founder and managing partner, Chris Male, was diagnosed with ASD.
A joint effort of Male and others, its ambition was to become “the investment and innovation arm of the autism community,” Male told TechCrunch.
Since then, startups in the neurodiversity space gathered momentum, and so did AIF, which recently closed its first fund at $60 million.
AIF’s decision to broaden its scope has to do with autism itself, Male said.
It’s also global, with healthtech Genial Care raising $10 million to help kids with autism and their families in Brazil.
The SEC voted on Wednesday to require public companies to report a portion of their greenhouse gas emissions and their exposure to risks from climate change.
While the new rules do not apply to privately held companies like startups, they do create opportunities for those focused on the carbon tracking, accounting, and management space.
Some, like Amazon, Vanguard, Ralph Lauren, and Chevron, supported Scope 3 disclosures; already, many public and private companies voluntarily track those emissions.
In recent years, a number of startups have turned to AI to automate and improve Scope 3 estimates.
In adopting the new rules, the SEC is playing catch-up with other large economies, including China and the EU, which both have greenhouse gas reporting requirements.
The bid would help inform investors about any climate- or energy transition-related risks publicly traded companies face.
And depending on how far the SEC takes the proposed climate disclosure rule, many of these startups stand to benefit.
Scope 3 emissions are the broadest category, and if the SEC would require their reporting, the effects would ripple far beyond just publicly traded companies.
Look for it to be one of the first climate tech companies to list publicly when the IPO window opens.
Enter Bend, a corporate spend startup that focuses not just on tracking expenses, but also carbon emissions.
Meta’s external advisory group, its Oversight Board, announced today that it is expanding its scope to Threads along with Facebook and Instagram to scrutinize Meta’s content moderation decisions.
This means if users on Threads are unsatisfied with Meta’s decision on issues like content or account takedown, they can appeal to the Oversight Board.
Having independent accountability early on for a new app such as Threads is vitally important,” Oversight Board co-chair Helle Thorning-Schmidt said in a statement.
In 2018, Mark Zuckerberg formally talked about having an independent oversight board for the first time.
The Oversight Board has ruled on some important cases over the years.
