Scaling What Works:
Our Impact in 2025
Meet Unreasonable Impact
Unreasonable Impact is a partnership between Barclays and Unreasonable Group which supports high-growth entrepreneurs that seek to address pressing global issues by connecting them with a network of mentors and industry specialists, including experts from across Barclays.
Through regional programmes, at which the entrepreneurs can engage with this network, and other virtual and in-person events, the Unreasonable Impact programme is designed to help participating entrepreneurs to build strategic relationships and quickly solve key challenges facing their business in order to help them scale.
With billions in financing already raised by the companies that have participated in the programme, the partnership’s momentum continues to grow – and the ventures are driving innovations in a variety of industries from food and agriculture to energy and manufacturing.
Portfolio Overview
376 companies have joined the Unreasonable Impact community
$16.7 billion in funding raised*
Impact*
Over 140 million tonnes of GHG emissions reduced as a result of their products and services.
$14.3 billion in revenue generated*
Jobs
The companies have 33,000 full time equivalent (FTE) around the world.
Since completing the program, the companies in the portfolio report over 14,000 net new employees.
*Metrics are cumulative since company founding
Over 2 billion kgs of waste avoided or diverted from landfills.
Over 126 million units of products with sustainable features sold.
What would a world look like in which our global economy is built upon a foundation of renewable energy, materials and agriculture that is both efficient and regenerative?
A world in which we have adapted to the radical shifts brought upon us by globalisation and digitisation to shape a more socially inclusive economy. Imagining that world we all want for all our children helps us realise the vital importance of supporting leaders who are actively engaged in building that world today. The challenges we face in the world are immense and varied. We need to counterbalance disruption with job creation in an economy that is low carbon, resource efficient and socially inclusive.
CHRISTIANA MUSK Chairwoman of Unreasonable Group
Unreasonable Impact focuses on leaders who are working on breakthrough solutions to our world’s greatest problems. We are betting on them to transform our world. It’s a powerful theory of change. From tackling food waste with cutting-edge AI, developing clean energy from our sun, and even creating the world’s first air-based meat, brilliant solutions to urgent problems exist, but they are not easy to scale at speed. True disruption is ignited when the innovation of startups collides with the expertise, scale and financial strength of large enterprises; and how those sparks have flown since the partnership launched in 2016. Since 2016, Unreasonable Impact has supported 376 companies across the world who now collectively employ over 33,000 people.
It’s exciting to see Barclays’ creative courage, input and impact in supporting entrepreneurs, accelerating the creation of thousands of new jobs. Never before have I
seen so many people move so swiftly to support purpose-led leaders to take action. The Unreasonable Impact partnership serves as a catalyst to educate and inspire the next generation. It’s a partnership like no other, and here’s to the progress we’ve made so far, and to the future we all know is possible.
On establishing Unreasonable Impact in 2016, our aim was to create a global community of growth-stage entrepreneurs, each with a goal to seek to address some of the world’s most pressing social and environmental challenges. Together with Unreasonable, at Barclays, we are proud to have built that community, and of the
impact the partnership continues to make in driving sustainable business growth.
The Unreasonable Impact entrepreneurs and CEOs are at the forefront of innovation, developing solutions and technologies to drive progress in areas such as renewable energy, transportation, sustainable agriculture, manufacturing and more. As these businesses grow, so too can their impact and their potential to create thousands of new jobs.
After achieving our goal to support 250 ventures by the end of 2022, we are planning to support an additional 200 entrepreneurs over five years through the programme, and we’re honoured to be on this journey with Unreasonable. With a deep understanding of the entrepreneurial journey, and the tools that can support their growth, Unreasonable are key to the programme’s success, and complement the collective expertise, mentorship, and business connections that we can provide at Barclays.
Our partnership with Unreasonable allows us to further our commitment to champion innovation and sustainable growth. By supporting businesses to grow, we hope to build a stronger and more inclusive economy that’s better for everyone.
We’re excited for the next chapter of the programme and to continue to collaborate with this growing community of inspirational leaders.
TRAVIS BARNES
Global Co-Head of Global Treasury Coverage, Barclays
Supporting ventures to maximise impact
Re:Dish provides reusable packaging systems that replace single-use cups and containers. Across Barclays’ offices in NYC, Whippany, and Wilmington, the shift to reusables has already avoided more than 1,000,000 single-use foodservice items, reducing waste at the source and demonstrating what a better system can look like at scale.
About the programme
INSIDE UNREASONABLE IMPACT
Unreasonable Impact invites growth-stage companies who are already wielding the most effective solutions to world problems. They have financing, staff, and revenue. Entrepreneurs are handpicked to join the programme based on their companies’ ability to scale, solve global problems, and spur job growth.
ECOSYSTEM OF SUPPORT
Each programme is highly curated and shaped around the entrepreneur’s critical business needs – from growing company culture to shifting regulatory marketing to expanding to new markets and scaling manufacturing. With both virtual and in-person components, many of the sessions are designed to activate deep connections between the entrepreneurs and curated members of our global network.
UNREASONABLE FELLOWSHIP
After the programme, each entrepreneur becomes part of the Unreasonable Fellowship. It consists of successful entrepreneurs, Fortune 100 C-suites, industry experts, and global funders. With their own go-to relationship manager, fellows receive lifetime support to help their companies to scale.
THE TALENT OF BARCLAYS
Since it started, Unreasonable Impact has engaged hundreds of Barclays colleagues who have shared their expertise as mentors and advisors. From connecting them to clients to offering industry insights, Barclays mentors have helped guide and grow these growthstage ventures to maximise their impact on the world.
The power of technology
Unreasonable’s custom-built platform leverages technology to encourage entrepreneurs, mentors, and funders to connect and support one another on an ongoing basis. This digital ecosystem allows them to make warm introductions, post in the multi-channel forum, and stay up-todate with a real-time newsfeed. It also allows the partnership to track the entrepreneurs’ impact and progress over time.
Air Protein: Making meat from air
ENTREPRENEUR
Dr. Lisa Dyson
Co-Founder & CEO
SECTOR
REGION Americas
World’s first
air-based meat
Investors include Google Ventures, ADM, Barclays & Unreasonable Collective
Winner of Davos World Economic Forum Technology Pioneer award
It was space travel that inspired scientist Dr. Lisa Dyson to create an unusual climate solution: protein made from air, which can be grown inside a tank instead of using valuable land. Air Protein is crafting the world’s first air meat – by using cultures, water, renewable energy and elements found in the air.
Launched in 2019, Dyson based the technology on research carried out by NASA in the 1960s, which explored ways to feed astronauts on long space journeys. One proposal was to make food by combining microbes with the carbon dioxide (CO2) that the astronauts were breathing out, but the concept was never proven by NASA.
Agriculture and land use are major sources of greenhouse gas emissions. Air Protein’s process is naturally low in emissions, helping restore the atmosphere and renew the planet. The California-based startup is in advanced stages of the regulatory process required to bring its products to market, and is working to scale up its technology and bring its products to consumers within the next couple years.
“Unreasonable Impact exceeded all my expectations. They have created a quality network of changemakers who work together to advance the missions and impact of the entrepreneurs in their programme.”
DR LISA DYSON
Co-Founder & CEO, Air Protein
ListenField: Crop and Soil Management SaaS
ENTREPRENEUR
Rassarin Chinnachodteeranun Founder & CEO
SECTOR Agricultural
technology
REGION Asia Pacific
Operations in
countries
50K+ clients and farmers using the technology
UNDP Low Carbon Award and R&D Award by the Japanese Society of Agricultural Information
Can data analysis improve crop growth, development, and yield while reducing the impact on our environment? That’s what Rassarin Chinnachodteeranun was investigating when she was a student. After finishing her PhD, she started ListenField in 2017 to take her research into practice.
The company offers farm analytics solutions that provide insight from soil to harvest for farmers and food factories and uses a mobile app tool called FarmAI. Besides monitoring, the software also acts as a service, giving practical advice to improve soil conditions and crop performance. Thus, FarmAI enables farmers to produce more while reducing the environmental footprint of agricultural production.
Kubota is the strategic partner and investor of ListenField. The company is a global team 40 team members, including part-time staff, across 11 countries, serving corporate clients mainly in Asia Pacific.
"The network of Unreasonable Impact exceeded my expectations. All the mentors share their experience without hesitation. What I also like is the sense of safety to be open and vulnerable among the fellows who joined the cohort."
RASSARIN CHINNACHODTEERANUN Founder & CEO, ListenField
UPSIDE Foods: Making real meat from animal cells
ENTREPRENEUR
Uma Valeti
Co-Founder & CEO
100% renewable energy in their facility
$400M series C funding
39% of management identifies as female
UPSIDE cultivates meat, poultry and seafood from real animal cells, a more sustainable and humane way of producing the meat we love. Its first product will be chicken, and UPSIDE can use a small amount of cells to cultivate the same amount of poultry that ordinarily would come from hundreds of thousands of traditionally farmed birds. At scale, it’s projected that UPSIDE’s cultivated meat will use 77% less water and 62% less land than conventional meat.
Co-founder and CEO, Uma Valeti, built UPSIDE on the belief that we shouldn’t have to choose between the meat we love and a thriving planet. In 2022, UPSIDE received the green light for its cultivated meat from the FDA. The milestone marked a major step towards a new era in meat production.
The company’s $400M Series C is the largest funding round ever raised for cultivated meat, it has the support of worldclass investors such as Bill Gates, Sir Richard Branson and Whole Foods. Pending USDA approval, UPSIDE plans to share its first products with consumers soon.
"The
Unreasonable Impact team is very missionfocused and always has positive energy. I have made long-term relationships with other CEOs and gained a lot of new ideas for my business growth."
UMA VALETI
Co-Founder & CEO, UPSIDE Foods
Lithium Urban Technologies: sustainable urban mobility
ENTREPRENEUR
Sanjay Krishnan, Founder
SECTOR Transportation
REGION Asia Pacific
6.5M litres of fuel saved
50K metric tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions reduced company-wide (2015–present)
Winner of World Economic Forum’s Technology Pioneers Award
Delhi is one of the most polluted cities in the world, but Lithium Urban Technologies seeks to change that. As India’s largest zero emission corporate transport service, Lithium is a pioneer in sustainable urban mobility, operating the most productive electric vehicle (EV) fleet globally.
In 2020, Lithium formed a partnership with another Unreasonable Impact venture, Fourth Partner Energy, to set up solar-powered EV charging infrastructure across the country under a joint venture, laying the groundwork for the company’s growth.
Lithium’s partnership with Tata Motors and Morris Garages has deployed another 5,000+ electric vehicles in India, a significant leap towards faster adoption of electric vehicles in the shared mobility space.
Barclays is utilising Lithium’s electric vehicle fleet to transport colleagues to its offices in Chennai, Pune, and Noida, and the Barclays–Lithium partnership has, since 2018, supported a reduction of 4,640 metric tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions, alongside 1.73 million litres of fuel saved and 20.08 million kms covered.
“A life-changing opportunity to make lifelong friendships with an outstanding group of gifted individuals pursuing their passions. Nowhere else would you find people creating such an impact on humanity. From artificial blood, launching satellites to developing urban farms, they are changing the way we live, commute, work and play for a sustainable future.”
SANJAY KRISHNAN Founder & CEO, Lithium Urban Technologies
Awards Over the course of Unreasonable Impact, the
partnership and many
TIME has recognised Unreasonable ventures in its Best Inventions of the Year lists.
ECOncrete (2019), unspun (2021), Biolite (2023), Brimstone (2023), GALY (2024), and Cabinet Health (2024) were celebrated for helping to make the world a better place.
The World Economic Forum has welcomed many Unreasonable ventures into its Technology Pioneer community: Avant Meats, Banyan Nation, Greyparrot, Natural Fiber Welding, Air Protein, Alesca Life, Full Harvest, and TIPA.
Six brilliant ventures have been recognised on the Forbes 30 Under30 list: Kuli Kuli (2018), Via Separations (2018), The EVERY company. (2020), Prime Roots (2021), Aura Health (2022), and C16 Biosciences (2022).
SOURCE Global (2020), 80 Acres Farms (2021), Cabinet Health (2022), LanzaTech (2023), C16 Biosciences (2024), Aigen (2024), and Greyparrot (2025): what do these ventures have in common? They’ve been recognised as Fast Company’s Most Innovative Companies
fellows have achieved key business milestones. Below is just a snapshot…
In 2021, Unreasonable Impact was named Partnership of the Year at the Reuters Responsible Business Awards, alongside Best Environmental Programme (bronze) at the Corporate Engagement Awards.
In 2022, Unreasonable Impact received an honourable mention in Fast Company’s World Changing Ideas for its work on extending collaboration grants to ventures addressing issues exacerbated by COVID-19.
Ventures 44.01, GRST, and S4S Technologies have won the Earthshot Prize in 2022 and 2023 for their carbon capture, cleaner battery, and agriculture innovations, respectively. Finalists have included LanzaTech’s carbon recycling technology, Aquacycl’s wastewater management solutions, Circ’s textile recycling, and NFW’s plant-based materials.
Daniel Epstein, CEO of Unreasonable Group, at Barclays in London, speaking to mentors and advisors for the Unreasonable Impact programme.
The power of an unlikely partnership
I’m truly humbled to be reflecting on the amazing strides Unreasonable Impact has made since its inception in 2016. The Unreasonable Impact ventures now collectively employ over 33,000 people and are positively impacting people around the world. At Unreasonable, we focus our efforts on “scaling what works,” and this is clearly working. Together with our friends and partners at Barclays, we’ve become an R&D engine, helping address the global unemployment crisis by scaling up entrepreneurs worldwide.
But this is just the beginning. I continue to say… yes, business is business. But more than anything, business is people. The greatness of what we achieve will be dictated by the quality of relationships we have with the people around us. Our partnership with Barclays reflects our shared belief that high-growth entrepreneurial solutions are best primed for scale when supported by a major corporation that is able to accelerate growth. Barclays is deploying its existing expertise and its most valuable resources – its colleagues – to make a positive impact on society by supporting these incredible ventures.
Through ongoing, meaningful collaboration, Unreasonable Impact is not only creating a better tomorrow, it’s helping build a connected, vulnerable, powerful, inclusive, and influential global community – a diverse community of individuals dedicated to creating tangible, lasting, and intercontinental change.
Thank you to everyone who is making this critical work possible.
DANIEL EPSTEIN CEO, Unreasonable Group
“The reasonable person adapts themselves to the world; the unreasonable one persists in trying to adapt the world to themselves. Therefore all progress depends on unreasonable people.”
Quote
adapted from
GEORGE BERNARD SHAW
