Optivolt, a provider of solar technology that enables self-powered IoT devices, 5G infrastructure, military equipment, robotics, and EVs, has raised $8 million in a seed funding round.
Including the latest round, Optivolt has raised $10.1 million to date. The company plans to use the funds to expand its operations and business reach.
Atlas Innovate led the funding round with Social Impact Capital, Pure Ventures, City Light Capital, and Peter Relan, an initial investor in Discord.
“Roughly every decade, there’s been a revolution in the solar industry,” said Rohit Kalyanpur, Optivolt’s founder & Chief Executive Officer. “In the 2000s, the cutting edge of solar was deployed on utility-scale solar projects. The 2010s were about solar for residential and commercial rooftops. Now, in the 2020s, Optivolt’s technology has unlocked the next wave of applications: ‘solar for electric machines.’ We’re making this future a reality,” he added.
This week, Ambient Photonics, a low-light solar photovoltaic cells company, raised $31 million in Series A funding. Amazon’s Climate Pledge Fund and Ecosystem Integrity Fund (EIF) led the funding, with Tony Fadell’s Future Shape and I Squared Capital participating. The company plans to use the new funds to build the largest low-light solar cell production facility in the U.S.
Last week, Common Energy, a community solar provider, raised $16.5 million in funding from S2G Ventures, the direct investment team of Builders Vision. The company plans to use the fresh funds to expand consumer access to local, community solar projects across the country, scale its energy management platform, and grow the management and operating teams.
According to Mercom’s Q1 2022 solar funding and M&A report, global VC funding for the solar sector in Q1 2022 came to $1.2 billion in 26 deals, a 45% decrease compared to $2.2 billion raised in 19 deals in Q4 2021. Year-over-year funding was 19% higher compared to Q1 2021.
