Why we invested in Clevergy

A local team building the OS for home energy management

At Earth, we’re always on the hunt for exceptional founders who are capable of building products that heal the climate and can build a great business at the same time. Enter Clevergy. 

Important problem, validated solution 

Over the last few years, we have explored many different segments in the energy space. We’ve found that, because the space is so large, there’s often a disconnect between energy providers and the end-consumers of energy. The boom in clean energy – renewables, solar panels, appliances – is rapidly changing energy demand and only creating more complexity in how providers are able to interact with consumers. 

Our friend Max at KFund wrote a fascinating piece on the future of energy that paints this picture more clearly. In his words, “the changing role for utilities is the digitalisation of the grid - moving from a largely analogue set-up to one where flow can be tracked and managed, accurately, from plant to home.” 

So, when we came across Clevergy, we were immediately excited by the team’s vision. 

Clevergy is building software that brings energy consumption transparency to homeowners. Through Clevergy, homeowners can understand how they consume and produce energy throughout their household and – going one step further – will also be able to do things like switch their utility providers or buy favorable appliances, so they can optimize their consumption, and enable community energy management so consumers can become active network participants. Think of it as the operating system for energy that connects the dots between homeowners and energy providers. 

What’s interesting is also the team’s go-to-market strategy in connecting these dots; they’re reaching homeowners top-down through avenues like solar panel installers and utility companies. This model has already been proven in other parts of the world by companies like Uplight, a billion-dollar unicorn in the US. The fact that Adrian Tuck, the founder of Uplight, is involved in Clevergy as an advisor only gave us more confidence in backing this business model. 

An exceptional team who can build 

At Earth, we optimize for working with founders who can identify a screaming market need in the climate space, care deeply about sustainability and impact, can also get others (customers and businesses) to care about sustainability and impact, and are just generally good people. This often requires the combination of technical skills, intentionality, customer centricity, and business acumen. Rare qualities to find in a single team, but qualities the Clevergy team imbues naturally.  

As a result, we decided pretty quickly that we wanted to work with Beltrán, Alvaro and Juan. We were first introduced to the team through a founder that we trust and, after our first meeting, found that one of our favorite investors was also working closely with them and had glowing things to say about their team and space. As we got to know Beltrán, Alvaro and Juan further, we found all three were extremely gifted in their domains, and had built solid tech that we were impressed by and wanted to be a part of scaling. 

The cherry on top 

The fact that Clevergy is a local company based in Madrid is particularly exciting for us. We can’t wait to continue meeting with the team to support them in building a much-needed product that brings transparency to energy consumption, alongside our friends at Zubi Capital, Finaves, Fredrik Wikstrom and a stellar line-up of climate-tech angels.