Intel Capital announces five cleantech investments

SAN FRANCISCO, USA: At the Technology Innovation Summit, Intel Capital, Intel Corp.’s global investment organization, reaffirmed its dedication to foster clean technology innovation with the announcement of five cleantech investments.

The deals, which total approximately $10 million and span two continents, include first-time investment in US-based CPower (demand response and energy efficiency), as well as follow-on investments in Ireland-based Powervation (digital power control) and US-based companies Convey Computer (energy efficient high performance computing), Grid Net (smart meter infrastructure) and iControl (home automation and monitoring).

“Intel Capital has made a significant commitment to invest in the cleantech sector in recognition of the increasing need for alternative energy production and advanced energy management and utilization solutions,” said Arvind Sodhani, president of Intel Capital and Intel executive vice president.

“The global nature of these five investments demonstrates our focus on accelerating cleantech innovation, emphasizing Intel Capital’s unique strength as a global, stage agnostic investor.”

“These investments share synergies focused on accelerating adoption of Smart Grid technologies, fostering energy efficiency and performance in ways that benefit consumers of electricity and power utilities as well as complement Intel’s strategic objectives,” said Steve Eichenlaub, managing director of platform technologies, cleantech and digital health, Intel Capital. “Each investment underlies Intel Capital’s commitment to invest in cutting edge technologies and support our expanding portfolio of cleantech-related companies.”

Details on the five new investments include:
CPower (New York) delivers targeted energy management services and solutions that enable companies to optimize their facilities and operations through energy reduction initiatives and earn market payments for those reductions.

As an industry pioneer that has grown into one of the largest energy management and demand response firms in North America, CPower combines an understanding of energy management technologies, energy markets and the daily challenges of facility operators to maximize the value of energy sustainability. This is Intel Capital’s initial funding of CPower.

Grid Net (San Francisco) is a pioneer in providing the network operating system and management control plane for the Smart Grid.

PolicyNet, Grid Net’s standards-based management platform for all networked transmission, distribution and generation smart grid devices, provides cost-effective rapid deployment and management that leverages 4G broadband networks. Grid Net’s Series C funding round includes Intel Capital’s third investment.

Powervation (Limerick, Ireland) provides digital power controllers for server, desktop computing and communications platforms that deliver capabilities in automatic configuration and self stabilization.

These devices speed design time and enable system stability as other power supply components age, leading to higher energy efficiency at the system level, faster time-to-market and lower overall system costs. Intel Capital co-led Powervation’s Series A funding round and this is its second investment in the company.

Convey Computer (Richardson, Texas) offers high-performance computing (HPC) solutions which aim to dramatically reduce energy consumption and boost performance.

Convey’s HC-1 solution tightly integrates advanced existing off-the-shelf hardware -– namely an Intel Xeon processor and Field Programmable Gate Arrays –- with compiler technology that minimizes the programming challenges that have long withheld the potential of reconfigurable hardware. Convey’s Series B funding round includes the second investment by Intel Capital.

iControl (Palo Alto, Calif.) provides an IP-based platform that delivers monitored home security, remote home monitoring and home and energy management capabilities to security and broadband providers, enabling them to deliver enhanced, value-added services to their new and existing customers. iControl’s Series C funding round includes a follow-on investment by Intel Capital.