Boldr, a United Kingdom-based cleantech company, has closed a $5 million pre-Series A funding round to accelerate its technology platform that transforms residential energy equipment into flexible grid capacity resources.
The round was led by Unconventional Ventures, with participation from Ada Ventures, Tetard Ventures, Davidovs Venture Collective, Roxbury Asset Management, and the Inclimo Climate Tech Fund. The funding also included backing from Prosegur, Techstars, S20 Fund, and North American HVAC industry strategic investors, bringing Boldr’s total funding to $8.2 million.
Boldr has developed a platform designed to connect home heating and cooling systems, batteries, electric vehicle chargers, and solar assets to aggregate their flexible capacity. The startup positions itself as a bridge between residential energy consumers and grid operators, enabling distributed assets to provide demand flexibility when needed.
Expanding Beyond Ductless Systems
The fresh capital will support several strategic priorities, including expanding Boldr’s technology beyond its initial focus on ductless HVAC controls into residential and light-commercial central HVAC systems. The company plans to accelerate product development efforts while strengthening its network of contractor partnerships and distribution channels throughout North America.
This expansion reflects a shift in Boldr’s go-to-market approach, which relies on existing HVAC contractors and service professionals rather than direct consumer channels. The company believes these established service networks represent the most effective pathway to scaling residential grid flexibility.
Madi Ablyazov, founder of Boldr, articulated this strategy in a statement: “The next power plant won’t be one building. It will be millions of homes working together. But you don’t get there through a consumer app alone. You get there through the contractors who already install, service and replace the equipment that controls energy inside the home. Our job is to give them the technology to make that future possible.”
Addressing Grid Flexibility at Scale
Boldr operates within the growing home energy management and grid flexibility sector, which has attracted increasing attention as electricity grids transition toward renewable energy sources. The demand for flexible capacity—the ability to adjust power consumption or supply in response to grid needs—has become a critical component of modern energy infrastructure.
By aggregating small loads across millions of residential units, distributed energy resources can collectively provide the kind of flexible capacity that historically came from large power plants. This approach potentially allows grid operators to defer or avoid expensive infrastructure upgrades while improving overall system resilience.
The mix of traditional venture capital and strategic HVAC industry investors on Boldr’s funding round suggests confidence both in the business model and in the contractor-led distribution strategy the startup is pursuing.
As European startups increasingly focus on climate-related solutions, Boldr’s approach to grid flexibility through distributed residential assets represents one model being tested across the continent. While the company is UK-based and targeting North American markets, similar platforms and business models are emerging throughout Europe, addressing comparable challenges in grid modernisation and decarbonisation across different regulatory and market environments.