An Ottawa-based startup helping energy utilities across the world more intelligently manage their electricity grids has raised a sizable seed round to help scale up its cleantech solution.
BluWave-ai announced Wednesday it has raised $3.9 million in seed funding. The biggest contributor was the federal government’s Sustainable Development Technology Canada fund, which gave the company $2.43 million last summer as part of a $6-million project to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
The remainder of funding came from private investors and a $300,000 contribution from Ontario Centres of Excellence. BluWave had previously raised a $1.3-million pre-seed round in November 2018.
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BluWave-ai, founded in 2017, uses artificial intelligence to help energy utilities and large industrial customers manage their grids. The company’s AI helps predict upcoming energy demands based on analytics from sensors and historical data. The more accurately utilities can predict the demand for energy, the less chance they will be overwhelmed by sudden surges and the more confidence they can have in relying on sustainable energy sources.
The company has worked with the University of Ottawa and Hydro Ottawa close to home, as well as overseas with one of India’s largest utilities, Tata Power. The company said Wednesday it has recorded more than $1 million in bookings in its last fiscal year.
According to a release, BluWave intends to use the new funding to release multiple products, build its patent portfolio and deepen its reach into international energy markets.