Harnessing AI to make climate adaptation investable

Avoiding the worst impacts from a warming planet will demand both a dramatic reduction in the use of fossil fuels and a massive scaling up of investment in climate adaptation and resilience. But to date, the overwhelming share of climate finance in capital markets has focused on decarbonization, with investments in adaptation and resilience driven chiefly by government spending on hardening
infrastructure against sea level rise and other physical risks from climate change.

Although demand for solutions that can reduce the risks and impacts of climate change is generating opportunities for private investors, few companies self-identify as businesses focused on climate resilience or adaptation. This creates an impediment for investors who might otherwise view technologies and solutions designed to protect society from the physical risks of climate change as prime candidates for investment, given the massive future need for such solutions.