Pre-conference Workshop: How to Accelerate the Commercialization of Biofuels 

Profiting from Biofuels: Which Business Models will Speed Deployment, Increase Yields – and Deliver Substantial Returns for Investors

Jim Long, Venture Partner, Gabriel Venture Partners

Is the biofuels sector only about $100M+ deals and building large projects? Jim Long, who led Gabriel Venture Partners’ investment in leading biofuels company Aurora BioFuels, will discuss which biofuels business models are alternatives to large projects and will be the most financially sustainable in the medium to long-term. Jim will talk about the capital-efficient investment models that work to provide sufficient funding to biofuels startups, so they are able to reach commercial output in the shortest amount of time possible, but also provide a significant return to investors. Jim will discuss the pros and cons of several biofuels innovations. He’ll give an overview of how the industry is shifting from sugar-based feedstocks like corn and sugar cane, to more sustainable synthetic production methods and oil-based feedstocks, such as algae and jatropha.

Attendees will learn:
• How to structure a capital-efficient deal in a biofuels company, and which valuation models make the most sense in this emerging field
• What to look for in biofuels technologies and innovations to find financially sustainable business models and viable commercial businesses
• Which biofuels sub-sectors are still getting funded by venture investors and why
• What level of returns the venture industry can expect to see from biofuels investments, and when these investments will begin to pay off
 

Speaker Bio:
Jim has over 20 years experience and success in building businesses in the technology industry, as well as in developing new technologies and patents for the Internet and PC environments. He has been a founder, CEO, and executive at leading technology companies, and has served as a strategic advisor to many startups and venture capital firms.

Jim has been an advisor to several leading startups, including Ruckus Wireless (WiFi video), Skipper Wireless (mesh nets & VoIP); Coghead (SaaS for the long tail); and Jibe Networks (acquired by Citrix). Previously, Mr. Long was the CEO of RioPort, a leading music application service provider used by MTV.com, Best-Buy.com, Yahoo, HP, Nike.com, and Microsoft. Jim has also worked with various venture capital firms as an advisor, and spent four years as a venture manager for Fred Adler Venture Capital.

Jim is also an entrepreneur. He was the CEO and Founder of Starlight Networks, which pioneered video streaming and video multicasting with award-winning Intranet video infrastructure software and coined the term "streaming video". In fact, Jim is known as the "father" of the streaming video industry. Starlight Networks was the leader in the corporate video streaming market when it was acquired by PictureTel in November 1998. Jim began his career in software development and product marketing at Hewlett Packard, where he invented the first presentation graphics application.
Jim current serves on the boards of Aurora BioFuels, Connectbeam, PlantSense, and YLX. He holds an MBA from Harvard University (with distinction) and a BS in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science from UC Berkeley.