Welcome to another episode of Category Visionaries — the show that explores GTM stories from tech’s most innovative B2B founders. In today’s episode, we’re speaking with Omar Abou-Sayed, Co-Founder & Executive Chairman of Vaulted Deep, a carbon removal company that has raised $8 Million in funding. Here are the most interesting points from our conversation: - Early Career at BP: Omar’s career began in 1998 at BP, where he was immediately involved in projects aiming for compliance with the Kyoto protocol, showcasing BP’s early commitment to environmental standards. - Diverse Experience: Before his entrepreneurial journey, Omar worked across various sectors within BP, including deepwater operations and international business development, and played a pivotal role in spinning off BP’s chemical division into a standalone company. - Transition to Entrepreneurship: After an MBA from Harvard Business School and a stint as an entrepreneur in residence at TPG, Omar ventured into the clean tech and energy services sectors, eventually founding Vaulted Deep based on technology developed by his father. - The Birth of Vaulted Deep: Vaulted Deep emerged from the realization that carbon could be effectively sequestered in organic matter using a technology initially invented for environmental remediation in the oil industry. This idea, however, had to wait for the carbon credit market to mature. - Market Evolution and Strategy: Omar discusses the bifurcation of the carbon market into emissions reduction and carbon removal, highlighting Vaulted Deep’s position in the latter as it aims to become the largest, high-quality carbon removal company. - Future Vision and Impact: Looking ahead, Omar envisions Vaulted Deep expanding significantly, driven by the urgency of climate change and the necessity for scalable, durable carbon removal solutions.