South African climate-tech startup Plentify has closed an oversubscribed funding round from top African and North American venture investors to fuel its growth in South Africa and commence its international expansion.
The round included a mix of existing and new investors, such as Third Sphere, TELUS Pollinator Fund for Good, Susquehanna Foundation and Fireball Capital.
Plentify is a South African and U.S-based smart energy company that makes affordable, reliable and clean electricity a reality for everyone. The company fuses advanced hardware, artificial intelligence and user-centric design to create smart home products that strengthen electricity systems for everyone.
“Whether you’re trying to fix a weak grid-like South Africa’s, or make the transition to clean energy like every country in the world, the fundamental problem is the same—a mismatch between the timing of energy demand and clean energy supply. Plentify’s residential load management platform addresses this problem for 75% less than the cost of batteries,” says Jon Kornik, Co-Founder and CEO of Plentify.
Plentify’s suite of products connects to home appliances, helping them draw energy at optimal times. This ensures that appliances deliver desired services, generate major savings on energy bills through efficiency gains, and maximise energy use during clean energy periods while minimising it during constrained times. This is exemplified by their flagship product, HotBot, which connects to electric water heaters, optimising energy use and contributing to a virtual power plant that shifts energy use from peak, costly times to periods when renewable energy is abundant.
“In 2024, we have already deployed more than three times as many HotBots as in all of 2023,” remarked Kailas Nair, Plentify’s Co-Founder and Chief Growth Officer. “This growth has come in partnership with leading South African companies like Balwin and Wetility, who are deploying Plentify technology alongside their solar and battery systems to deliver the most affordable clean energy.”
The company says it exists with a singular mission: to enable utilities (including rooftop solar panels) to deliver affordable, reliable, and clean energy. Their rapid growth has led to significant progress on this mission, with their fleet of smart devices providing enough resilience to the grid to mitigate the equivalent of more than an hour of morning and evening blackouts per month in Cape Town.
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