Outsail 🚢

Setting the Scene

• The maritime sector, traditionally reliant on fossil fuels, is facing a significant challenge in reducing its carbon footprint.

• However, switching to carbon-neutral fuel creates a few problems:

  • For long passages batteries are too bulky and expensive.

  • Alternative fueling creates a chicken-and-egg infrastructure problem.

  • Competing sail technologies are too large to fit on most ships.

• This week’s company leverages wind energy to provide a cost-efficient and sustainable solution in the shipping industry.

In a Sentence

Outsail manufactures a retractable, autonomous windsail, advancing the decarbonization of the shipping sector.

• Retractable: The wing sail's retractable design enables compact storage, enhancing maneuverability and aerodynamics for ships of all sizes.

• Autonomous: The wingsail requires no management from captain or crew and can be engaged with a single button press.

The Basics

• Industry: Maritime Transportation

• Headquarters: Redwood City, California

• Year founded: 2022

• Employee count: 4

• Investors: Y Combinator, Climate Capital, Collaborative Fund, Venture Hacks Fund , Sandhill Investments, Hephaestus Ventures, Balaji Srinivasan, Alan Rutledge.

• Amount raised: $1.1 million Pre-Seed

• Currently raising: $4M Seed

• Business model: B2B2C- Broker the yacht deal, sell the wing

• Early traction: $32M in LOIs from major yachtbuilders and leading customers in commercial shipping, plus two versions of our deployable wingsail tested on the water

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IN PARTNERSHIP WITH

• Are you an early-stage company looking to capture leads from buyers who are interested, but not yet ready for a sales cycle?

• Haggle allows potential customers to anonymously request "pre-demo" videos and ask questions, facilitating engagement without pressure.

• Streamline your sales by focusing on leads that are pre-qualified and genuinely interested, saving you time and effort.

• Gain valuable insights on which companies are engaging, helping you tailor your marketing strategies more effectively.

Due Diligence

WHAT WE LIKE

• Market Opportunity: Positioned at the intersection of shipping, leisure, defense, and military sectors, Outsail taps into a large market eager for decarbonization solutions.

• Sustainability: Outsail's innovations align perfectly with global regulatory shifts towards decarbonization, positioning the company as a pivotal player in helping the maritime industry meet stringent environmental standards.

  • Additionally, in adverse conditions, vessels equipped with Outsail’s wings harness solar energy to charge their batteries, ensuring motor operation if needed.

• Proprietary Technology Advantage: Outsail's retractable and autonomous wingsail technology, capable of fitting any vessel, sets a new industry standard for efficiency and adaptability, distinctively placing it ahead of competing sail technologies that are limited by size and scope.

POTENTIAL RISKS

• Technological Integration: Integrating Outsail's advanced wingsail technology with existing maritime vessels and infrastructure requires overcoming significant technical and logistical barriers.

• Market Adoption: The success of Outsail hinges on its ability to convince an industry traditionally resistant to change to adopt its innovative wingsail technology, a task that may prove challenging despite the clear environmental and economic benefits.

• Long Sales Cycles: The inherently long sales cycles of the maritime industry, driven by high capital expenditures and lengthy decision-making processes, could slow Outsail's growth and extend the time to profitability.

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Founder Profile

• Arpun Rau, CEO: Previously designed hardware for NASA and SpaceX.

Comps

• Bound4Blue: Backed by EIT Climate, GTT Strategic Ventures, and the European Innovation Council

• Norsepower: Backed by Valve Ventures, VNT Management, Business Finland, and the European Innovation Council

• Ayro: Backed by Ocean Zero, GO Capital, and BPI France

• BAR Technologies: Acquired.

Event Board

• Industry Dinners

  • April 16th, Consumer and SaaS Dinner NYC (limited spots, apply here)

  • May Cloud Infrastructure Dinner (limited spots, apply here)

• Upcoming Events (Interested in getting in front of thousands of founders and investors IRL? Work with us)

  • June NYTech Week Events TBA

Cast Your Vote

Last Week Today

• The results are in: Wallaroo.AI, a software company that enables businesses to efficiently implement and improve AI in existing workflows, was favored in last week’s poll.

• Subscriber feedback: “Given the heavy cost of capital to accurately and effectively onboard AI, this company is key to an exponentially growing market”

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