Continuum raises £8m for AI energy transition platform

Image credit: Continuum

Continuum Industries, an Edinburgh-based startup using AI to help infrastructure developers transition to greener energy, has raised $10m (£8.1m).

Founded in 2018, Continuum has developed an AI platform, called Optioneer, which is used by power, utility and renewables companies to assess routing options for energy types.

The Optioneer platform analyses the considerations for power lines, onshore and offshore cables, and pipelines for hydrogen, water and CO2.

Continuum claims that by using AI, its platform can condense the lengthy process of energy transition from an average length of a year down to just eight weeks.

“If we are going to deliver the energy transition required in time to meet global climate goals, we need to completely rethink worldwide energy infrastructure,” said Continuum co-founder and CEO Grzegorz Marecki.

“The best way to do that is to work smarter, not harder – as highlighted by the UK Electricity Networks Commissioner, automated infrastructure planning processes, such as those that we provide, have a big part to play.”

Customers of Continuum include National Grid, SSEN Transmission, National Gas Transmission and Iberdola Group.

The Series A round was led by Singular and featured participation from previous investors Credo, Playfair, Techstart Ventures and a handful of angels.

“Infrastructure is a vital, but under-discussed, aspect of the energy transition. Without robust, future-fit infrastructure to transport the growing amount of energy and utilities we need, all the innovation that goes into new generation and storage solutions will be wasted,” said Singular partner Henri Tilloy.

Continuum said it hopes to use the new funding to double the team size and expand into new territories across Europe and the US over the next year.

The company previously raised £1.5m in a seed round in May 2020.