E-scooter startup Bird is raising $300 million in new funding led by Fidelity, Axios has learned. Bird would maintain its existing $2 billion pre-money valuation, as this is being structured as an extension of its prior round.
The big picture: Bird continues to battle for "micromobility" supremacy with rival Lime, which is said to be seeking $400 million in its own new funding round. A Bird spokesperson declined comment.
Kim Hart fills in for Dan today and chats with Axios science editor Andrew Freedman about the polar vortex and why we experience certain weather patterns. Also in the "Final Two," Kim talks about a key defeat in Brexit negotiations and how 18- to 27-year-olds feel that they will never be able to pay off their debt.
Chevron and Occidental are investing an undisclosed amount in Carbon Engineering, a Canadian company aiming to commercialize technology that captures carbon emissions directly from the atmosphere.
Why it matters: It's a clear sign of increasing interest in the viability of direct air capture (DAC) technologies.
President Trump threatened to cut off FEMA funding for California's wildfire relief in a Wednesday tweet, blaming the state's poor land management.
"Billions of dollars are sent to the State of California for Forest fires that, with proper Forest Management, would never happen. Unless they get their act together, which is unlikely, I have ordered FEMA to send no more money. It is a disgraceful situation in lives & money!"
Our thought bubble from Axios science editor Andrew Freedman: Climate change is extending wildfire season year-round and increasing the frequency of extreme fires that spread quickly and are harder to contain. Forest management, including "raking" brush, which President Trump has previously advocated, would reduce only some of the risk, fire experts have told Axios.
BP is spending $1.3 billion to expand development of its big Atlantis field in the Gulf of Mexico — and technology is unlocking more resources there, the oil giant said.
Where it stands: BP touted the company's breakthroughs in seismic imaging and reservoir characterization, noting they revealed another 400 million barrels of oil. More broadly, the company said Tuesday that the same tech has identified another 1 billion barrels at a separate Gulf field called Thunder Horse.
A new Rhodium Group analysis shows that U.S. carbon emissions from energy — which is the overwhelming cause of emissions — jumped by 3.4% last year, ending years of declines.
The big picture: The news comes after the EU-funded Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S) concluded that 2018 was Earth's 4th-warmest on record, with the past 4 years serving as the planet's hottest seen since instrument records began in 1880 (and likely well before that).
Nations who abandon the Paris agreement designed to tackle global climate change would ultimately be worse off economically despite some GDP benefits from reneging, according to a new analysis of the Paris climate deal by researchers with the Brookings Institution.
Why it matters: The study arrives at a fragile moment in global climate diplomacy, even as more research piles up about the dangers of failing to steeply cut emissions. The U.S. is preparing to abandon the deal and now Brazil's new far-right president is undercutting confidence in that country's green commitments.
