California-based software startup, WeaveGrid, which is helping utilities ready their grids for a swell of electric vehicle (EV) adoption, has announced that it has raised $35 million in Series B funding.
US-based tech giant’s VC firm Salesforce Ventures led the round, with participation from new investors Activate Capital, Collaborative Fund, Emerson Collective, and MCJ Collective. Existing investors Bill Gates-led Breakthrough Energy Ventures, Coatue, Grok Ventures, and The Westly Group also participated in the latest financing.
With a continued focus on climate investments, the Salesforce Ventures Impact Fund took its first lead role in the WeaveGrid investment. The Series B comes just eighteen months after WeaveGrid announced its $15 million Series A.
The electric vehicle market is growing exponentially, and EVs could make up more than half of global automobile sales by 2035. “We are proud to welcome Salesforce Ventures as the lead investor in this round. Salesforce is the leading enterprise SaaS company in the world — including in the utility and automotive sectors–and will make an excellent partner as we continue our growth,” said WeaveGrid CEO Apoorv Bhargava. “How we handle tens of millions of new EVs coming onto the power grid is amongst the most important technological challenges in the clean energy transition. With this investment, we will expand our product capabilities, deepen engagement with our partner ecosystems, and make charging simple and convenient for EV drivers.”
“Salesforce Ventures understands the importance of supporting businesses with software and solving critical problems,” said Claudine Emeott, Partner, Salesforce Ventures Impact Fund. “SaaS- and cloud-based technologies are critical to the future of transportation — they can enable the integration of millions of new EVs to make the grid more resilient while increasing EV driver satisfaction. WeaveGrid is uniquely positioned to address these challenges.”
SaaS solving EV challenges
Founded by Apoorv Bhargava, CEO of WeaveGrid, and John Taggart, CTO, the startup uses machine learning to help utilities predict and manage large spikes in power demand from EV charging to balance renewable energy production and reduce the need for costly upgrades to the grid. The company’s SaaS platform solves emerging EV challenges to ensure the impending energy transition is clean, equitable, and resilient.
Leading U.S. utilities, including Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E), Xcel Energy, and Exelon Utilities, deploy WeaveGrid’s software solutions to lower grid infrastructure costs, integrate more electric vehicles, and save drivers money. The company recently announced a project with PG&E in California, which has the most EVs on its grid of any utility in the country.
“With one in six electric vehicles in the United States registered in our service area today, PG&E aims to support three million EVs on the road in our service area by 2030,” said Aaron August, Vice President of Utility Partnerships and Innovation at PG&E. “To achieve that goal, PG&E is actively collaborating with innovative technology and software companies like WeaveGrid to integrate this coming wave of EVs onto the electric grid and help realize their full potential in delivering grid reliability, resiliency, and reduced greenhouse gas emissions.”
“We value our collaboration with WeaveGrid to deliver successful solutions to our customers while helping them save money on EV charging,” said Nadia El Mallakh, Vice President of Clean Transportation and Strategic Partnerships at Xcel Energy. “Xcel Energy has a robust clean transportation goal — to provide the fueling infrastructure and energy system to run all vehicles in its service area on carbon-free electricity or other clean energy by 2050 — and working with industry solution providers, like WeaveGrid, allows us to deliver more customers flexibility as they transition to a cleaner energy future.”
Since its Series A fundraise, WeaveGrid has nearly tripled in size of the team, where 44% are women, and 40% are people of colour. Further, the climate tech company has launched new products, established traction through marquee contracts with utilities serving thirteen states, and developed new partnerships across the automotive sector. The new funding will accelerate the development of WeaveGrid’s product roadmap while continuing to improve the charging experience for EV drivers.
