Welcome back to The Energy Brief. In this bi-weekly series, we explore the latest funding, collaborations, product updates, and funding news from cutting-edge smart building, energy, and cleantech companies in the US, Europe, and APAC.

 

 

Spotlight on: Aira

What they do: Aira is a Swedish startup focused on selling and installing heat pumps directly to consumers, aiming to accelerate the shift away from gas boilers in European homes. They offer a fully digital customer journey, from remote energy audits to financing and installation.

Recent Funding: In May 2024, Aira raised a €145 million Series B round led by Altor, Kinnevik, and Temasek, bringing their total funding to over €300 million.

Why it’s interesting:

They’re scaling aggressively across Europe, including Germany, Italy, and the UK.

Their model tackles two major market bottlenecks: consumer awareness and the shortage of trained installers.

Tied directly to electrification and decarbonization policies across the EU, plus benefiting from generous heat pump subsidies.

Plans to launch proprietary heat pump hardware for higher margins and differentiated features.

 

Latest market developments & funding updates:

Dachao Carbon Energy has raised CN¥250,000,000 in Series B funding.

Tibo Energy Management Software raised EUR 6 M to scale its AI energy management platform.

UnpluxEra has raised EUR300,000 in Seed funding.

Deeptech startup Sthyr Energy Private Limited raised $1M in Seed funding.

Asia Core raised CN¥10,000,000 in Seed funding.

pHydrogen raised ¥300,000,000 in Seed funding.

Insight M raised $30M to detect and manage methane emissions in the energy sector.

NovaSpark Energy Corporation raised an undisclosed round of Pre-Seed funding.

Xingeng Xuanguang raised an undisclosed amount of Seed funding.

Voltfang secured EUR15 M Series B funding and launched Europe’s largest second-life battery factory.

Dutch energy startup HeatLeap secured EUR1M to bring gas-free heating to social housing.

LG Electronics signed an agreement to acquire a 100% stake in OSO, one of Europe’s leading providers of water heating solutions.

Trinity Hunt Partners announced a majority investment in Blackhawk Supply. This investment establishes the foundation for Trinity Hunt’s HVAC distribution platform, which will draw on the firm’s extensive industry experience and proven buy-and-build strategy to create a national leader in the highly fragmented HVAC distribution sector.

The construction of the high-voltage alternating current (HVAC) infrastructure has begun with a first steel cut ceremony at the HSM Offshore Energy BV yard in Schiedam, the Netherlands.

Aggreko added to its industrial HVAC and process temperature control services with the appointment of Chris Smith as head of Temperature Control for the UK and Ireland.

Bosch has acquired Johnson Controls international HVAC business.

Sync Energy launched ‘Flow’, their next-generation, fully integrated home energy system that unites hybrid inverters, modular battery storage, solar power diverters, and EV chargers, all intelligently connected via the intuitive Sync Energy app.

 

Air cooled water chillers hvac

 

“The future of HVAC is automated”

Contracting Business contributor Tersh Blissett lays out a compelling case for why AI and automation are already transforming HVAC businesses. With automation replacing repetitive tasks, the article sends a clear warning — lagging means risking obsolescence. Blissett offers a simple 5‑step roadmap that readers can easily follow. You can read the article here.

 

Upcoming events and conferences:

Attending a conference this year or planning to for 2026? Let’s connect and catch up!

HARDI Annual Conference – Phoenix, AZ (Dec 7–10, 2025) – A fantastic conference for distributors, networking, and economic forecasting sessions.

AHR Expo 2026 – Orlando, FL (Feb 9–11, 2026) – My team and I visited the expo earlier this year, so we’re excited to begin prepping for the next one! AHR is one of the biggest HVACR shows globally. Next year, expect major product launches around heat pumps, smart controls, and refrigerants. Registration opens in September!

ACCA IE3 Conference & Expo – Dallas, TX (March 3–5, 2026) – Great sessions for residential and light commercial contractors on electrification, marketing, and workforce development.

 

 

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