)
A Sydney-based free software platform that allows installers to track inventory and manage projects has secured $20 million in equity funding from investors such as Titanium Ventures, Google, 2150 Sustainability Fund and more.
Founded in 2017 by Andrew Birch and Adam Pryor, OpenSolar is a free-to-use cloud-based solar operating system for installers, offering AI-powered customer self-serve estimates, sales proposals, financing tools and project management.
The $20 million in equity financing will be used to invest in Open Solar’s AI technology solutions and expand global coverage.
“The ability for any contractor to access world-class software and imagery for free is supporting the rapid transition to low-cost clean energy,” OpenSolar co-founder and CEO Andrew Birch said.
“OpenSolar technology has facilitated 6,000,000 solar system designs resulting in $10 billion worth of solar sales, since inception.
“With the next generation of AI tools, we can take solar growth to the next level, reduce the cost of delivery and help take solar to 50 per cent of energy globally by 2035.”
In order to keep its software free-to-use for installers, OpenSolar is funded by numerous partners, including home appliance giant Panasonic, solar financing platform Brighte, global energy company CanadianSolar, fintech Plenti and more.
Two months ago, the company announced it had helped manage more than $10 billion in solar sales and installations. At the time, the systems sold through its platform were estimated to prevent an estimated 63 million metric tonnes of CO2 from entering the atmosphere over their lives.
As part of its mission to offer solar globally, OpenSolar has also committed to donating one per cent of its annual revenue to support non-profit Empowered by Light (EBL) projects that power homes, schools and clean water systems with solar energy.
In 2022 and 2023, the donations allowed California-based EBL to install solar-powered water pumps, storage and irrigation systems in four remote communities based in Zambia, which previously had no access to electricity.
To date, OpenSolar has more than 25,000 businesses using the platform across 160 countries.
)
