Zero Circle Pathfinder
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    Pathfinder, by Zero Circle

    Winthecustomersyourcompanyneedstogrow.

    Pathfinder gets you in front of the buyers who can sign. We use people they already trust: mutual contacts, partners, events and advisors. Once you have signed customers, we introduce you to Zero Circle's capital partners.

    Book a discovery session or contact us
    We'll look at two or three of your target accounts on the call and tell you if we can reach them.
    Target record · exampleWarm path found
    Company
    Global packaging manufacturer· 41,000 employees
    Decision owner
    Category Lead, Decarbonisation & Circular Materials
    Holds the budget, though other names in the function are more senior.
    Evidence trail
    The 2024 sustainability report names them as owner of the waste-to-value program on p.14, and they signed this year's Scope 3 supplier target.
    Buyer-fit check
    The parent is investment grade and has signed multi-year supply contracts before, so a 7-year term is possible.
    Second-degree viaa former colleague, 3 yrs

    Three steps. You set the pace.

    1. 1

      Win customers.

      We find the buyers who fit and get you a warm introduction.

    2. 2

      Build traction.

      Signed customers, pilots and offtake deals show the market wants what you make.

    3. 3

      Raise when you're ready.

      We introduce you to Zero Circle's capital partners who back companies at your stage.

    Your buyers exist. They're just hard to reach.

    • A few big companies sign most climate deals. The rest of the market is spread across many smaller buyers.
    • Inside a large company, only a few people own the budget, and job titles won't tell you which ones.
    • Cold email gets ignored. Buyers reply to people they know.

    The numbers behind it

    Share of disclosed durable CDR tonnes contracted
    Microsoft
    Frontier-linked buyers
    Every other buyer

    Source: CDR.fyi, Durable CDR Demand Structure Snapshot, April 13, 2026

    Microsoft holds 78.5% of disclosed durable carbon removal tonnes. Of 259 suppliers that have sold durable credits, 195 sold to neither Microsoft nor Frontier-linked buyers. The rest of the demand is spread across many smaller buyers who are hard to find.

    Climate tech founders, CEOs and commercial leads who need more customers.

    • You sell energy, storage, EV or efficiency products and need bigger customers.
    • You sell decarbonization software or services to large companies.
    • You make low-carbon or circular materials and need long-term buyers.
    • You're developing a project and need someone to buy what it produces.
    • You've proven the product, and now you need a few signed customers before you raise.

    We reach buyers through people they trust.

    Find the right buyers

    We read what your target companies publish: sustainability reports, supplier targets, procurement plans. That tells us who owns the budget and when they need to act. You get a short list, not a big database.

    Everything lives in your own tools. Your CRM, inbox and Notion stay as they are, and the research stays with you.

    Not every interested buyer is a good customer. We check before you spend months on one.

    Six questions about every buyer.

    • How long can they commit?

      A multi-year deal gives you revenue you can plan around.

    • How much can they take?

      The volume has to be big enough to cover your costs.

    • How is price set?

      Fixed, indexed or with a floor. You want a price they won't walk away from.

    • What can they exit on?

      If they can leave easily, it isn't a real deal.

    • Can they pay for the whole term?

      A strong balance sheet, or backing from a parent company.

    • Do you agree on what you're selling?

      Their auditors have to accept your low-carbon claim.

    A mid-size buyer that can sign for seven years is often worth more than a famous name that only signs a letter of intent.

    Real conversations with real buyers, in weeks.

    Waste-to-value startup · Fortune 500 packaging and food manufacturers
    5
    buyer conversations in 3 weeks
    2
    deals in discussion within 45 days

    Why we can do this.

    Pathfinder started as Zero Circle's own tool. We needed to reach a few hundred people, and nothing on the market worked. Our clients saw it and asked us to point it at their buyers.

    Hemanth Setty
    Built by Hemanth Setty, founder and CEO of Zero Circle and former Chief Product Officer for Risk and Compliance at Dun & Bradstreet. LinkedIn

    Start small. Part of our fee depends on your results.

    Discovery session

    20 minutes on two or three of your target accounts.

    Pilot

    4 to 6 weeks: short list, relationship map, first introductions.

    Ongoing

    We run buyer development as a monthly function and report to your team.

    Deal-based

    For a specific deal with a clear outcome.

    Book a discovery session

    FAQ

    No. We start with people your buyers already trust: mutual contacts, your investors and advisors, industry partners and channels, and the events where your buyers show up. An introduction from someone the buyer knows gets read in a way a cold message does not. We only send a cold message when there's a real reason the buyer would care, such as something they published about their own targets, and even then it's a handful of messages, not a campaign. You approve every one before it goes out.

    Find the customers that grow your company.

    Know who owns the decision, who can introduce you, and whether the deal is worth signing.

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