EV charging demand is stressing local grids, and Texture just raised $12.5M to tackle it

Grid software startup Texture has raised a $12.5 million Series A round as utilities scramble to keep up with rising electricity demand from EVs, EV chargers, data centers, renewables, and extreme weather. The funding round was co-led by VoLo Earth Ventures and Equal Ventures, with participation from Lerer Hippeau and Abstract Ventures. The Series A round brings Texture’s total funding to roughly $23 million. The company says the new funding will support hiring and further platform expansion. Utilities are under pressure from all sides now. Grids that were built for one-way electricity flow now have to handle EV charging spikes, utility-scale renewables, rooftop solar, batteries, smart thermostats, and growing demand from AI data centers, often all at the same time. Texture’s pitch is that utilities don’t need another disconnected software tool. Instead, the company wants to give operators one real-time view of everything happening on the grid. Advertisement - scroll for more content The platform connects with meters, devices, or data sources. Then data from batteries, EVs and EV chargers, solar systems, SCADA systems, advanced metering infrastructure (AMI), and smart thermostats flow into a single layer so operators can monitor grid conditions and respond faster when something goes wrong. Texture says utilities can plug the system into their existing infrastructure without replacing current software or hiring large engineering teams. Why utility co-ops are early adopters Texture is initially targeting utility cooperatives, which serve around 42 million Americans, many of whom live in rural areas. Co-ops face the same grid modernization challenges as large investor-owned utilities, but with much smaller budgets and staff. “Co-ops kept telling me the same thing,” said Texture co-founder and CEO Sanjiv Sanghavi. “They wanted to run modern grid programs but didn’t have software built for their scale or budget.” Texture says utilities can get its platform up and running within days instead of the multi-year rollouts often tied to legacy grid software. EVs are creating new stress points on local grids One of the biggest challenges utilities face is localized load growth from EV charging. Texture says its software can detect sudden increases in electricity demand at the meter level and trace how that demand affects transformers and feeders across the grid. That gives operators a chance to intervene before equipment fails. That matters because transformer shortages and rising costs are becoming a major problem for utilities. According to Wood Mackenzie, transformer prices have jumped as much as 95% since 2019, and lead times for large units can now stretch beyond two years. Vermont Electric Cooperative, which describes itself as one of the US’s few carbon-neutral utilities, uses Texture to monitor its grid and manage hundreds of batteries across its territory. The company also says it has built direct integrations with more than 50 OEMs and energy companies, including Tesla, FranklinWH, Honeywell, Ecobee, SolarEdge, Leap Energy, and WattTime. That access helped Ann Arbor’s Sustainable Energy Utility launch a community battery program using FranklinWH systems across 100 homes earlier this year. New NRTC partnership Texture also announced a partnership with National Rural Telecommunications Cooperative (NRTC), whose network includes 850 utility co-ops across the US. Through the partnership, NRTC members will get access to distributed energy resource management (DERMS) software powered by Texture to help coordinate batteries, smart thermostats, and other distributed energy resources in real time. The startup says many virtual power plant (VPP) and demand response platforms still lack access to real-time meter data, making it harder to make accurate dispatch decisions based on actual grid conditions. Read more: What really broke on the grid during Storm Fern – it wasn’t wind or solar If you’ve ever considered going solar, make it easy by finding a trusted, reliable solar installer near you that offers competitive pricing by checking out EnergySage. It has hundreds of pre-vetted solar installers competing for your business, ensuring you get high-quality solutions and save 20-30% compared to going it alone. Plus, it’s free to use, and you won’t get sales calls until you select an installer and share your phone number with them.  Your personalized solar quotes are easy to compare online, and you’ll get access to unbiased Energy Advisors to help you every step of the way. Get started here. FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.

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