As the demand for energy and utility infrastructure is growing, electricity grids are projected to double in size by 2050 to connect critical renewable energy sources. However, the planning process is complex and the current pace of development is too slow to meet net-zero targets. Companies are facing a challenge as they rely on decades-old technology that is not fit for purpose today.
This is where Edinburgh-based Continuum Industries comes into the picture. The AI company accelerates the global energy transition by helping infrastructure developers complete work at a faster pace.
$10M funding to fuel growth
In a recent development, Continuum Industries has raised $10 million in Series A funding. The round was led by Singular alongside participation from existing investors Credo, Playfair (that backed Ascento and uMed), Techstart Ventures, and angels, including executives from UiPath, Skyscanner, and SSE. With this, the total investment raised by the company accounts for $15.5 million.
The funding will enable Continuum Industries to grow in Europe and the US. The company also aims to double its headcount over the next year to support customers in rolling out the software across rapidly-growing portfolios of projects. Growing the engineering and product teams will also facilitate the creation of new cutting-edge functionality to support developers across more project stages.
Grzegorz Marecki, co-founder and CEO at Continuum Industries, said: “We have an exciting and important opportunity to accelerate the march of the infrastructure industry into the digital age and make a lasting impact for people and planet. Having set out to raise a round in challenging economic conditions, we’re pleased to have found new investors in the shape of Singular – alongside our previous backers – who didn’t just see the potential of our technology, but the urgent need to diverge from traditional approaches to transform the sector, and showed a real hunger to support that change.”
Henri Tilloy, Partner at Singular, said: “Infrastructure is a vital, but under-discussed, aspect of the energy transition. Without robust, future-fit infrastructure to transport the growing amount of energy and utilities we need – especially as renewables come online in larger and larger volumes – all the innovation that goes into new generation and storage solutions will be wasted. Grzegorz and the team at Continuum have built impressive technology and are already working with some significant names to enable infrastructure to be delivered at a pace that matches the urgency of the situation. We’re pleased to be supporting them, and look forward to seeing the company grow from strength to strength as it looks beyond the planning stage to become the definitive platform for the infrastructure industry.”
Optioneer, first-of-its-kind AI-powered platform
Founded by Grzegorz Marecki, Emil Hansen, and Adam Anyszewski in 2018 in Edinburgh, Continuum Industries aims to accelerate the world’s transition to renewable energy by enabling faster, lower-risk and more sustainable energy infrastructure planning. With Continuum, the process that would otherwise take 12 months will be completed in as little as eight weeks while minimising impact on the environment and communities.
Its first-of-its-kind AI-powered network and linear infrastructure development platform, Optioneer, enables power, utility, and renewables companies to visualise, analyse, and comprehensively assess routing options for power lines, onshore and offshore cables, and pipelines for hydrogen, water, and CO2.
The combination of vast computing power, geospatial data, and human intuition unlocks unique insights throughout projects, from conception to completion. This includes generating a shortlist of viable routing options from millions of alternatives in just a matter of hours, real-time iteration of designs as new data arises, recording key decisions, and mitigating against unforeseen delays at later stages.
Continuum Industries is supporting customers in the UK, the Netherlands, Spain, Italy, and the USA, including National Grid, SSEN Transmission, National Gas Transmission, Fred. Olsen Seawind, and Iberdola Group.
