Verv Energy

Idea

Introduction

Multi award-winning AI company Verv has created the Smart Isolator; a switch designed specifically for air conditioning units and heat pumps to help reduce energy consumption and predict faults before they occur.

There is a big problem with air conditioning and energy usage. In 2016, roughly 10% of the planet's energy use went towards air conditioning. As climate change proliferates this will only get worse, as global air conditioning sales are expected to reach 150 million units per year by 2027. Global air conditioning energy use is expected to triple by 2050, reaching an equivalent to China's total electricity demand today.

Verv is a business to business company with blue chip customers, proven technology and an impressive patent portfolio. Verv is also a UK-based company on a mission to have a global impact through helping customers hit their environmental, social & governance (ESG) and Net Zero Targets, whilst reducing their air conditioning maintenance costs in parallel.

We calculate that if just 1% of the world’s air conditioning units had a Verv Smart Isolator installed, this would equate to 16,000,000 units and would save around 126,000 tonnes of CO2 every year. This is the equivalent of 485,623 (approx 2%) homes' electricity use for one year in the UK or 63,747,393 tree seedlings grown for 10 years*.

Substantial accomplishments to date

Verv has sold almost 500 smart isolator units to date and has corporate clients including Mitsubishi Electric, Legal & General and Hampton by Hilton Hotels.

Our first trial with Mitsubishi demonstrated a 32% energy saving from a single unit and as a result of the data provided, a second trial has included installing Verv’s Smart Isolators across its headquarters.

Legal and General is installing Verv Smart Isolators on all air conditioning units in its brand new headquarters in Cardiff, which is due for completion later this year.

Hamilton by Hilton Hotels has signed up to a trial installing three Verv Smart Isolators in ten hotels. If this trial proves successful, there is the potential to roll out units across the whole chain of over 220 hotels, which includes DoubleTree by Hilton.

Verv was recently announced as the winner of the Air Conditioning Product of the Year: Components and Peripherals Award at the prestigious RAC Cooling Industry Awards. Such validation from respected industry leaders has provided further motivation for the team and the board to progress this to reach its potential.

Verv has participated in several high profile accelerator programmes over the past 18 months, including Rockstart, PwC, Google, Cambridge University and CMS.

The company is operating in a market with 6% market growth. It is estimated that there are over 0.5 billion air conditioning units in Europe, USA and Middle East alone with a market worth in excess of £1 Trillion.

Monetisation strategy

Verv has a no brainer business model that matches the price of an existing basic isolator and then charges a monthly subscription for the data services including energy monitoring, energy wastage reporting and utilisation. It then offers optional extras such as environmental, social & governance (ESG) and Net Zero reporting and predictive maintenance. Verv then also collects data to report back product deterioration information to the manufacturers and allows the user to be involved in further energy saving initiatives such as demand side response and demand management.

*Illustrative example based on Company calculations.

Use of proceeds

The funds raised from this investment round will be used to expand the sales and marketing teams and allow the company to buy more stock in volume to reduce the cost of each unit created. This aims to accelerate Verv’s sales and revenue in order to better prepare it to reach its next goals, which is to hit £1m of revenue, and then £1m of annual recurring revenue.