Swish Solar, a cleantech startup that provides self-cleaning solar panel technology, has raised $1.5 million in an oversubscribed pre-seed funding round.
The round was led by Friday Ventures, with participation from Velocity Fund, Front Row Ventures, Alif Fund, and Suno Growth. The company also received financial and advisory support from the JLL Foundation, Good Machine, Walking Softer, and other early partners.
The funding is expected to support product manufacturing, AI model development, and team growth across engineering and business development as the company moves toward full commercialization.
The company’s technology combines two complementary products. The first is its self-cleaning nanotech film coating, which removes sand and snow without the need for water or moving parts, thereby restoring lost efficiency. Its AI-driven analytics platform, SwishOS, monitors soiling rates and predicts optimal cleaning schedules.
The company, based at Velocity, the University of Waterloo’s startup incubator, located in Ontario, Canada, has signed customers across multiple countries in North America and the Middle East, including pilot deployments with solar operators.
“Swish is tackling one of the biggest operational challenges in solar energy with an elegant mix of nanotechnology and AI,” said Shastri Mahadeo, managing partner at Friday Ventures. “Their approach has the potential to redefine how solar assets are maintained globally, and we’re proud to back their vision for a cleaner, more efficient energy future.”
According to Mercom’s 9M and Q3 2025 Solar Funding and M&A report, VC funding activity decreased 17% YoY in 9M 2025, with $2.9 billion raised in 55 deals compared to the $3.5 billion raised in 39 deals in 9M 2024. Solar downstream companies led financing activity with 40 deals worth $2.5 billion in 9M 2025.
In September, sun.store, a B2B digital marketplace specializing in solar and energy storage components, raised €6 million (~$7 million) in seed funding. The investment was co-led by Contrarian Ventures, Market One Capital, and Movens Capital, with additional backing from FJ Labs, Push Ventures, and Aidiom.
