solar

Two former CloudKitchens execs are tackling Mexico’s solar power lag

The Mexico City-based startup raised a seed round to expand its solar installation platform.

AALTO seeks to democratize high-speed internet access through solar-powered drones

In the beginning of 2021, Alphabet shuttered Loon. It was a familiar story within the annals of Google X history: an ambitious moonshot with tremendous upside that sputtered out prior to gaining any s

Tesla’s solar installs drop, but battery business is booming

It was a bad year for Tesla solar — its worst since 2020.

Urbanista integrates Powerfoyle tech with solar-powered headphones

The subject of solar-powered tech rouses a bit of deserved skepticism among consumers. At the end of the day, I suspect most folks would love more sustainable gadgets they never have to charge, but on

Tesla’s solar business is tanking but energy storage is making up for it

By the megawatt, solar installations are outpacing other energy sources in the U.S. this year — but you wouldn’t know it judging from Tesla’s latest reports. Once among the top three res

Solar-powered everything with Giovanni Fili of Exeger

Welcome back to Found, where we get the stories behind the startups. This week Becca and Dom are joined by Giovanni Fili, the founder and CEO of Exeger, a startup that creates flexible solar cells tha

Okra raises $12M as it brings solar power to grids in developing areas

It’s been fun watching Okra Solar’s journey over the last few years. I first encountered the firm on a trip to Shenzhen, before it won our 2019 Hardware Battlefield competition in that city. Today

Swap’s robotic mowers score $7M in seed funding

Swap Robotics entered our orbit last year, when the firm was a finalist for our Battlefield competition at Disrupt 2022. In a world full of robot mowers, the startup grabbed the judges’ attention wi

BoxPower wants to cut emissions, wildfire risk by taking power off the main grid

After sparking California’s second-largest wildfire ever, and dozens more in recent years, it’s no secret that Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E) — one of the nation’s largest uti

SunFi aims to be the fastest way for Nigerians to find, finance and manage solar

SunFi, the Nigerian clean tech startup that connects people and businesses who want solar energy access to payment plans that match their needs, has raised $2.325 million in seed funding. The self-des

Tesla Powerwall customers in Texas can now sell their electricity back to the grid

Elon Musk’s plan to “operate as a giant distributed utility” is creeping toward reality. Tesla first piloted a “virtual power plant” in California, inviting Powerwall hom

Hyundai launches home charging ecosystem as part of EV push

Hyundai announced this week at the LA Auto Show a new way for its customers to charge at home as part of the company’s efforts to woo a new group of EV buyers. Hyundai Home, the automaker calls

Seven scaleups hog over 70% of funding to Africa’s solar pay-go ventures

Over the last 10 years startups in Africa’s off-grid solar sector have attracted over $2.3 billion in funding. However, the largest share of the financing has gone to just seven pay-as-you-go (pay-g

Solestial promises solar panels in space for a tenth of the cost and lines up $10M seed

The coming wave of satellite constellations all need power, but solar panels built for space are extremely expensive and difficult to manufacture. Solestial is ready to change that with space-grade pa

Enact Systems connects solar installers and customers for more efficient energy use

There are about three million solar installations in the United States per year, but that process is costly and often lacks transparency. Pleasanton, California–based Enact Systems wants to increase

Want a Tesla Solar Roof? You may need to shell out for a Powerwall first

At Tesla, the company’s stock price apparently isn’t the only thing that’s climbing lately. Powerwall sales are also poised to rise, now that the automaker’s big batteries are

Ford locks in solar energy deal with DTE Energy

Ford said Wednesday it has reached a deal with DTE Energy to power its electricity supply in Michigan with clean energy, a step toward its goal to become carbon neutral by 2050. The automaker’s deal

Online-only home solar seller bags $23M, pledging ‘dramatically lower prices’

Project Solar doesn’t make solar panels, nor does it employ crews to plop them on roofs, but the startup argues it can shake up the residential solar business by steering clear of sales reps and

Bill Gates’ Breakthrough Energy backs Terabase’s robot-built solar farms

Breakthrough Energy Ventures, a climate-focused VC firm linked to some of Earth’s wealthiest individuals, has joined a $44 million bet on solar startup Terabase Energy. Terabase aims to rapidly

Google pauses hiring, Netflix loses nearly 1M customers, and Slack increases prices

Hey, friends! It’s that time again. Another week has passed us by, which means another issue of Week in Review — the newsletter where we recap the top stories to hit TechCrunch’s front p
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