Portland State of Charge: Batteries at PNW Climate Week
The gap between Oregon’s battery technology and Oregon’s capital has widened. Q1 2026 Portland-metro VC hit a 10-year low, down ~65% year-over-year. Oregon’s battery founders have kept building anyway.
The PNW Battery Collaborative and E8 Angels are co-hosting Portland State of Charge as the Portland anchor for PNW Climate Week 2026. An afternoon focused on that gap, and what strategies are working for startups in this environment.
Hosted by Duncan Miller (Oregon Hub Liaison at PNW Battery Collaborative Oregon and E8 Angels ). Panel moderated by Jim Huston, Portland Seed Fund (Founder), E8 Angels (Board), Intrepid Oregon, and Intel Capital (former Managing Director).
Format
Two acts. First, five Oregon battery founders each give an 8-minute lightning talk pitching what they’re building. Then the same founders sit on a moderated panel working through how Oregon battery tech actually gets funded: what the capital stack looks like today, what it took to get there, and what the future holds for energy storage.
Lightening Talks
Brian Bishop, CEO at Skip Tech
Wesley Surta (PhD), Founder & CEO at A-Next Battery
Gebrehiywot (Geb) Mengistu, Founder & CEO at SPWES
Michael Grenier (former E8 Board Member), President at Elexity
Chad White, Sales Director at Photon Marine
Panel
Jim Huston (moderator), E8 Angels, JH Climate Ventures
Taylor Steele, E8 Angels, Intrepid Energy
+ lighting talk founders
Run of Show
12:00pm: Doors open & check-in
12:15pm: Opening remarks
12:35pm: Lightning talks (4 × 8 min)
1:10pm: Moderated panel & audience Q&A
1:30pm: Announcements & Networking
2:00pm: Event concludes
Logistics
This event is hosted at UpStart Collective on the 5th floor inside U.S. Bancorp Tower (Big Pink), 111 SW 5th Ave, Portland, OR 97204
Please arrive between 11:45am–12:00pm to sign in; programming will begin promptly at 12:15pm.
This event is free and open to everyone. RSVP is required.
Have questions? Email duncan.miller@pnwbatterycollaborative.org
Thank You Supporting Organizations
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E8 Angels
E8 is a nonprofit membership community of impact investors dedicated to funding high-impact cleantech startups that advance the sustainability and health of our planet: https://www.e8angels.com
Prosper Portland
The City of Portland’s economic development agency and We Build Green Cities initiative supports companies offering products, services and technologies that address the climate change crisis, adapt to the effects of climate change and solve environmental challenges: https://webuildgreencities.com
PNW Battery Collaborative
A community of battery entrepreneurs, scientists, policymakers, and enthusiasts united to make the PNW the nation's leading hub of battery innovation. Follow our LinkedIn page to learn about battery innovations & opportunities in the PNW and join the 1,200+ other collaborators who subscribe to our events calendar. The PNWBC is the PNW's largest association of battery professionals.
Donation: The PNWBC is run by battery enthusiast volunteers driven by a desire to help our local battery community grow. Please consider making a tax deductible donation, all proceeds go towards organizing site visits, workshops, panels, meetups, conferences, and more for our community. Every dollar enables us to do more, thank you! Make donations HERE.
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By registering for this event, you agree to share your information with the event organizers, PNW Climate Week, and Climatebase / the Climate Week Network. You may receive updates from these organizations, and can opt out at any time in accordance with their respective privacy policies.