Damien Steel is a longtime operator-turned-investor who founded and exited a tech-enabled healthcare business before joining OMERS Ventures, where he uses the pension fund's broader asset base—highways, ports, real estate, and operating companies—as a value-creation tool for startups, such as pairing autonomous trucking startup Embark with OMERS-owned infrastructure assets. He has publicly criticized the venture ecosystem's fixation on headline valuations and unicorn labels, arguing for focus on deal quality and fundamentals over hype, and recently made the uncommon move of leaving his senior VC role to become founding CEO of Deep Sky, a carbon-removal company OMERS helped seed.

• Deep commitment to large-scale climate solutions and carbon removal technologies. He frequently highlights the urgent severity of the crisis by sharing data on temperature anomalies or risks like agricultural collapse, viewing carbon capture not just as a business but as a necessary survival mechanism.
• Empathy for the founder journey stemming from a recent transition from venture capitalist to operating CEO. He openly reflects on the difficulty of sitting on the other side of the table, such as the enlightening experience of pitching investors himself or apologizing to past management teams for the administrative burden of preparing board decks.
• Strong belief in the Canadian ecosystem as a hub for deep tech and climate innovation. He actively promotes local advantages for carbon removal and celebrates major commercial milestones, such as securing partnerships with Microsoft and RBC or receiving backing from the Quebec government.
• Value placed on mentorship and team appreciation. He expresses gratitude for the impact guest speakers had on his own education and returns the favor by spending time with students, while also publicly celebrating team anniversaries and the specific contributions of colleagues.