⚡️ 20 Energy Startups to Watch, according to VCs

Energy startups are catalyzing change and scaling new solutions to tackle the sector's most pressing challenges.

And investors are recognising the potential of these pioneering ventures to drive impactful and scalable solutions.

Here we take a look at 20 startups at the forefront of the energy transition.

With revolutionary technologies and disruptive business models to lead the charge towards a greener, more sustainably-powered future.

Let's check out the startups these investors are eagerly watching… 🍿

Till Stenzel @ SET Ventures

🇩🇪 Fuchs & Eule*

• Recent Funding: Series A

• Founder and CEO: Robin Behlau

• What: A fully digital and independent advisor for energy-efficient renovations in the residential building sector, targeting 1 million efficient homes by 2030.

 🇳🇱 Tibo energy*

• Recent Funding: €3M, Seed

• CEO: Remco Eikhout

• What: Smart grid builder software allowing commercial and industrial customers to electrify more easily while avoiding the need for grid expansion. They are building a solution that allows companies to de-risk their energy supply and transform to a sustainable operating model.

 🇳🇱 Quatt

• Recent Funding: €1.5M, Debt Financing

• Co-Founders: Marijn Flipse, Bas Flipse

• What: Helping 3 million households transition to sustainable home energy by 2030 by developing hybrid heat pumps with a highly advanced control system based on several AI technologies.

Anna Trendewicz @ Future Energy Ventures

🇬🇧 Piclo*

• Recent Funding: £8.3 M, Series B

• CEO and Co-Founder: James Johnston

• What: Building an independent marketplace for local energy flexibility with the goals to improve the flexibility procurement process for DSOs for congestion management and to avoid/postpone expensive grid reinforcements, and to enable energy flexibility providers to monetize their flex capacity.

🇺🇸 Station A*

• Recent Funding: $4M, Seed

• CEO and Co-Founder: Kevin Berkemeyer

• What: Developping an AI driven software platform that accelerates the deployment of clean energy technologies like solar PV, battery storage, and EV chargers in Commercial & Industrial (C&I) buildings.

🇩🇪 Trawa

• Recent Funding: €2.4M, Pre-Seed

• CEO and Co-Founder: David Budde

• What: A solution provider for small and medium enterprises (SMEs) for low-cost renewable electricity directly from solar and wind with PPAs.

Christopher Raithle @ Push Ventures

🇦🇹 Balun Energy*

• Recent Funding: Pre-Seed

• Co-Founder: Giovanni Superti-Furga

• What: Accelerating renewable energy forecasting, seamlessly integrating cutting-edge machine learning with detailed SCADA data to deliver hyper-localized power output predictions, which makes the energy grid more robust, streamlined, and eco-friendly.

🇦🇹 Enspired*

• Recent Funding: Series A, €7.5M

• CEO and Co-Founder: Juergen Mayerhofer

• What: Implementing technologically advanced, data-driven and fully automated trading strategies to maximize profitability. Their AI platform enables utilities, developers, VPP operators, and industries to monetise flexibility efficiently.

🇩🇪 Trawa

• Recent Funding: €2.4M, Pre-Seed

• Co-Founder and CEO: David Budde

• What: Supporting small and medium-sized companies in procuring their sustainable electricity cost effectively with an AI based technology to analyze the customers' electricity consumption and create transparency about current costs and CO₂ emissions.

Yair Reem @ Extantia

🇩🇪 Reverion*

• Recent Funding: €8.5M, Convertible Note

• CEO and Co-Founder: Stephan Herrman

• What: Unlocking the full potential of biogas/renewable natural gas (RNG) as a baseload renewable source. 

🇸🇰 GA Drilling*

• Total Funding: $36.9M

• CEO and Founder: Igor Kocis

• What: Exploiting ultra-deep geothermal energy that could give us access to a permanent supply of renewable heating, cooling and power, provided locally anywhere. 

🇩🇪 Carbon Atlantis

• Recent Funding: Pre-Seed

• Founder and CSO: Steffen Garbe

• What: Cost-effective and scalable Carbon Capture Technology.

Luis Gerardo Carvajal Fernandez @ Siemens Energy

🇬🇧 GeoPura*

• Total Funding: £92M

• Director: Andrew Cunningham

• What: Providing hydrogen-fuelled clean energy to enable its customers to decarbonise their consumption of temporary, backup, off-grid, and grid augmentation energy.

🇺🇸 Malta*

• Total Funding: $108.5M

• CEO: Ramya Swaminathan

• What: The Malta plant is a like-for-like replacement for natural gas-powered plants, allowing solar and wind to replace the heat and power generated by traditional generation, reduce dependence on natural gas, and maintain grid stability, power reliability, and system resilience.

🇩🇪 Connect2Evolve*

• Recent Funding: €300K

• Co-Founder: Sylvia Niewiem

• What: A blockchain crowdfunding platform that enables renewable energy solutions with a decentralized approach. It provides transparent impact to its investors.

Łukasz Skarka @ InnoEnergy Central Europe

🇸🇪 Aira 

• Recent Funding: Series B, $145M

• Group CEO: Martin Lewerth

• What: Pioneering a new generation of heat pumps as a subscription.

🇳🇴 Carbon Centrum*

• Recent Funding: Pre-Seed

• CEO: Çağrı Selçuklu

• What: A software platform that helps measuring Scope3 emissions and set targets while creating additional benefits for your employees, turning your company resources into intelligence.

🇩🇪 Nesetten*

• Recent Funding: Pre-Seed

• CEO: Pawel Warszycki

• What: Developing safe, cryogenic micro tanks for bio-LNG transportation and handling of liquids with the temperature down to -196 °C.

🇮🇹 Newcleo

• Total Funding: $432.7M

• Founder and CEO: Stefano Buono

• What: Developing modular next generation nuclear reactors: the lead-cooled fast reactors (LFRs) making use of todays waste fuel.

🇧🇬 TOK Wise* ​

• Total Funding: €3.1M

• Co-Founder: Krasimir Kolev

• What: Scaling AI-powered SaaS to optimise energy market decisions and manage renewable and storage portfolios.

Paul Eisenberg @ Kiko Ventures

🇬🇧 Bramble*

• Recent Funding: £35M, Series B

• CEO: Tom Mason

• Hydrogen fuel cells that scale flexibly to gigafactory scale by leveraging existing PCB fab supply chain.

🇩🇪 Rabot.Charge

• Recent Funding: €17.5M, Series A

• Co-Founder and CEO: Jan Rabe

• What: Contender for the grand prize of home energy management, coming from the direction of smart energy tariffs.

🇪🇸 Jolt Solutions 

• Recent Funding: Pre-Seed

• CEO: Leon Rizzi

• What: Cost-effective coating for electrolyser components that improves durability and current density. 

For transparency: Investors that have ties with the company are marked with a (*)