Last Week in ConTech - 25 July 2023
Florida immigration law changes & Modular cement production
ConTech Roundup - Construction technology startup funding, news and acquisitions this week. No fluff. No marketing.
Last Week in ConTech - 25 July 2023
Startup Funding
Decarbonization
Nexus PMG, a Texas based startup raised $50m. They are a low carbon infrastructure advisory and development service. More here.
Sylvera, a UK startup, raised $57m in Series B funding. They are a carbon data provider. More here.
Aeroseal, an Ohio based startup, raised a $67m Series B round. They have built a carbon dioxide removal technology that creates a gum to seal air ducts and building envelopes to reduce energy links. More here.
Buildings
Vilisto, a Hamburg, Germany based startup raised €5 million in Series A funding. They are creating building heat management and digitalization technologies. More here.
Trebllar, a San Francisco based startup, raised $3.5m in seed funding. They are creating an AI based building management system. More here.
Materials
Source, an Oregon based startup, raised a $8.1m round. They help designers discover and sample materials, track decisions and procure products.
Furno, a California based startup, raised a $4.5m round. They are a zero emission cement producer which builds small, modular and more energy efficient cement plants.
Note: Distribution of low carbon cement is a problem due to the capital intensive nature of building plants. Concrete usually must be poured within a certain time frame of mixing. For example, standards may state concrete must be poured within 90 min. Distribution is a choke point making Furno’s solution particularly interesting.
Stylib, a UK based startup, raised a £1.5M pre-seed round. They are building a material marketplace for designers. More here.
Construction
Skillet, a New York based startup, raised an additional $8.5m. They are a construction labor recruitment startup.
Energy
Oklo, a California based startup plans to go public via a SPAC and raise up to $500m. They are building small modular nuclear reactors. More here.
Terabase Energy, a California based startup, raised $25m. They aim to reduce the cost and accelerate the deployment of solar through construction automation and software. More here
Mobility
Huq, a London based startup, raised $5.2m in funding. They are a mobility intelligence company providing footfall and visitor frequency to local councils, retailers and real estate developers. More here.
Design
PVcase, a Lithuanian startup, raised $100m in Series B funding. They’ve built a 3D modelling platform to help engineers plan and design solar energy projects. More here.
Higharc, a North Carolina based startup, raised $6.5m. They aim to streamline home design data and construction documentation using automation. More here.
Water
Hydroleap, a Singapore based startup, raised $4.4m in Series A funding. They specialize in green wastewater technology using electrochemical techniques to treat industrial wastewater. More here.
Other
Construex, a LatAM startup, raised a $4.1m round. They are building a construction B2B marketplace.
Luyten, an Australian startup, received a A$3m grant from CRC-P. They are building 3D printed homes in remote parts of Australia. More here.
New Funds
Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners raised over $6b for its fifth infrastructure fund. They focus on renewable energy investments. More here.
Epopee Gestion, a French investment firm has reached the first close on its maiden infrastructure equity fund. It aims to support greenfield projects in sustainable mobility, clean energy production and climate change adaptation sectors, as well as maritime infrastructure. More here.
Eurozeo, a French investment company, has raised a €400m new smart city fund. They will fund companies which are working to make more sustainable cities. More here.
News
Brimstone, a California based startup which creates carbon negative cement received a certification that their cement meets the standards for portland cement. They are the first green cement to meet this. More here.
What is digital twin technology? (McKinsey)
Here’s how Florida’s immigration law could lead to construction turmoil
Florida’s immigration related legislation SB 1718 took effect on July 1 2023.
It requires private employers with 25 or more employees to use E-Verify, the federal employee verification system ensuring workers have appropriate documentation.
The construction industry could be affected and forced to increase wages to attract more documented workers in an already tight labor market.
This is a part of an ongoing shift in how technology is being adopted.
The reason? AI is a life or death proposition. Executives can’t risk their future in a startup and lead internal projects to ensure success and control over outcomes.
Lendlease (Australian contractor and developer) to cut 740 staff in global purge
Rumoured images of Boring Co’s prototype vehicles for the Vegas Loop. Images here.
EIT Urban mobility reveals 86 startups selected to participate in 7 accelerator/scale up programs
If I missed anything this week, please reply and let me know! I’ll make sure to include it next week.