Muscat, August 1, 2019 – Innovation Development Oman (IDO Investments), the Sultanate’s first equity-based venture capital firm, together with MacKinnon and Bennett & Company (“MKB”), have collectively invested approximately USD10m in Sense, whose intelligent home energy monitor provides real-time insights into energy and device activity in the home. IDO Investments and MKB join energy technology leaders Schneider Electric and Landis+Gyr to bring the total B round investment of Sense to USD30m and takes its total funding to USD 50m.
Commenting on their investment, Dr Philip Boigner, CEO of IDO Investments said, “At IDO Investments we strive to partner with companies that pioneer innovative technologies. Energy efficiency and demand response are constantly gaining importance globally, and we see Sense Labs playing an important role in the energy space. Their product is intuitive and produces valuable data for homeowners and various stakeholders in the energy sector. We see great potential in Sense and the value it can bring to Oman and the region.”
Commenting on the occasion, Mazin Al-Naamani, the Portfolio Impact lead of IDO Investments said, “Countries around the world, including the Sultanate, are encouraging people to rationalise the use of non-renewable energy sources. Sense is a company that develops technologies and solutions in direct relation to this, enabling household owners to make informed decisions on energy usage in their homes by providing insightful data, device desegregation, and others. We look forward to introducing Sense’s cutting-edge technology to different stakeholders and homeowners in Oman.”
Sense’s earlier investors, which include Shell Ventures, Energy Impact Partners, Prelude Ventures, Capricorn Investment Group, and iRobot Corporation, all participated in the B round, which had a first close in October 2018.
Mike Phillips, CEO of Sense said, “These additional investments from MKB and IDO Investments reflect our shared vision of a smart, energy-aware home. From the company’s founding, we envisioned a future when homes would share information about themselves with their owners, who could make better decisions about how to live in today’s world. Our investors share this vision and are helping us create a powerful ecosystem that will accelerate Sense’s market growth.”
Investor Schneider Electric has integrated Sense technology into its Wiser Energy System by Square D, and Landis+Gyr has announced plans to add the Sense app to its next generation smart meter platform. Sense also partners with Dividend Finance in the solar market and has signed on more than 200 solar installer partners.
“Sense enables consumers to better understand their home energy use so they can reduce energy consumption and make more informed decisions about their increasingly smart and connected home. MKB is delighted to support Sense as it forges a new era of consumer energy awareness and action,” says Ken MacKinnon, Managing Partner at MKB.
This year, CB Insights ranked Sense among the top 100 most promising private artificial intelligence companies in the world, featuring Sense in their third annual AI 100 round-up. Sense was also chosen as a 2019 Red Herring Top 100 North America winner.
Global revenue attributed to consumer technology and services for home energy management is expected to grow from almost $2.3 billion in 2016 to $7.8 billion in 2025 according to Navigant Research.
About IDO Investments
IDO Investments is the Sultanate of Oman’s first strategic venture capital firm. The firm typically invests in established international and local companies in the following strategic sectors: Healthcare & Lifesciences, Energy, Agriculture & Food and related technologies. Their focus is to support disruptive and innovative technologies or solutions to address real-world challenges in Oman and beyond. www.ido.om
About Sense
Sense’s mission is to make all homes intelligent by keeping people informed about what’s happening in their homes, and helping to make them safer, more efficient, and more reliable. Founded in 2013 by pioneers in speech recognition, Sense uses machine learning technology to provide real-time insights on device behavior, even for those devices that are not “smart.” Customers rely on Sense for a wide range of uses including checking what time their kids get home, monitoring their home appliances, determining whether they left appliances running or doors open and identifying how to reduce their energy costs. Sense is headquartered in Cambridge, Mass. //sense.com
