Octopus Energy has moved to acquire Manchester software company Upside Energy.
Upside is a cloud-based platform which connects with clean energy technologies such as electric vehicles, heat pumps and batteries, allowing it to manage those devices to match real-time energy demand and supply.
The tech unicorn, headquartered in London, said the move for city centre-based Upside will add AI and data science capabilities to its existing cloud platform Kraken and enable it to automatically manage energy devices.
“I’m hugely impressed by Upside’s team and efforts in building a deep-tech platform that does fantastic things with real-time energy, connected home devices and renewables,” said Octopus CEO Greg Jackson.
“Forward-thinking businesses like Upside are one of the reasons why I’m convinced that we can make the UK the ‘Silicon Valley of Energy’.
“We’re delighted to welcome these brilliant minds into our team to drive the green EnTech revolution here in the UK and abroad.”
Octopus, which provides gas and electricity to 1.7 million homes in the UK, is targeting 100m energy accounts by 2027.
The firm, which became a unicorn in May after Australian energy company Origin acquired a 20% stake, claims to be the UK’s largest investor in solar generation.
It recently revealed plans to make the UK the ‘Silicon Valley of energy’, announcing 1,000 new jobs across England at multiple sites.
Upside Energy CEO Devrim Celal added: “I’m really excited for Upside as we become part of Octopus Energy Group and take advantage of the opportunities this acquisition will bring.
“We are joining forces with a like-minded team who share our ambitions to play a major role in achieving the transition to a net-zero world.
“Together, we have the opportunity to drive global growth and continue to develop our brilliant team to solve the complex challenges ahead.”
Energy