Michael Claes, director technology at Sabic Ventures, is one of our top 50 Emerging Leaders in corporate venturing for 2025.

Michael Claes spent nearly 20 years as an entrepreneur in the startup ecosystem, before moving into corporate venturing. “It helps me take both sides of the deal into consideration.” 

He helped develop carbon nanotubes startup Nanocyl in a series of technical and business development roles, finishing up as chief technical officer. “It was great because I did every job possible and it fitted with my way of handling things.” Over time, he also made some VC investments and “developed an appetite for bridging the gap between the startup ecosystems and the corporate VC world”.  

The opportunity to lead the global team at Sabic Ventures, the investment arm of Saudi Arabian chemicals company Sabic, came at a point when Claes was thinking about the next move in his career, and he felt the fit was right. He joined the team in 2020 and says “the job has been everything I dream of”. 

“We need to act as the de-risker within the parent organisation, who are typically risk adverse, to make those hard decisions a little bit easier for them”

Sabic Ventures typically invests $20m to $30m every year and has 18 companies in its portfolio. The CVC team looks at startups that can help it achieve the parent company’s carbon neutrality ambitions and those focused on the production of certified circular polymers to close the loop between plastic producers and end-use customers.  

Claes has a special interest in deals within the sustainability ecosystem and mentions Sabic Ventures’ investment in Novocycle, a battery recycling company, as being one of note. Sabic Ventures led a $3m seed funding round for Novocycle last year.  

Claes believes startups and corporates need to work together, but they rarely approach things the right way. “That is why we as CVCs need to bridge the gap. We need to find a way for the money to be used for the right things, but also set the expectations of both parties clearly from the beginning. We need to act as the de-risker within the parent organisation, who are typically risk adverse, to make those hard decisions a little bit easier for them.”  

See the full list of Emerging Leaders 2025 here.