Powerhouse

What Powerhouse does

Powerhouse Ventures is a privately held, seed-stage venture capital firm founded in 2013 and headquartered in the San Francisco Bay Area (Oakland, CA per firmographic data; San Francisco per company data). The firm invests exclusively in founding teams building technologies for the "future power system" across the energy, infrastructure, and AI sectors, with a stated focus on seed-stage, market-ready companies and follow-on participation through Series A, B, and C. The firm's core offering is venture capital — equity capital in exchange for ownership stakes — supplemented by mentorship, network access, and follow-on financing support across multiple rounds.

The underlying "product" is the firm's investment platform and ecosystem rather than a software product: the portfolio includes grid intelligence and AI-orchestration tools (ThinkLabs AI), utility-scale solar development platforms (Terabase), power-flow modeling and simulation (Pearl Street Technologies), satellite-imagery-based vegetation monitoring (Overstory), solid-state transformers (Heron Power), energy storage modeling (Tyba), real-time grid intelligence (Amperon), solar asset lifecycle systems of record (Raptor Maps), EV fleet charging software (Presto), and home-incentive distribution (Rock Rabbit). At least one portfolio company (Pearl Street Technologies) has been acquired, providing a realized exit.

Powerhouse's revenue mechanics are characteristic of a venture fund: management fees on committed/ invested capital from undisclosed limited partners, plus potential carried interest from successful portfolio exits. The firm does not publicly disclose AUM, fund size, or revenue. Its go-to-market is sales-led founder engagement, augmented by brand-building channels including the annual New Dawn conference (1,000+ attendees), the Watt It Takes podcast, a YouTube channel, an active LinkedIn presence, and a newsletter. The firm operates a sub-brand, Powerhouse Innovation, extending its energy-innovation engagement beyond the core fund. Leadership includes Founder and CEO Emily Kirsch and VP of Strategy Liz Ramsay Dalton.

Name

Powerhouse

Legal name

Powerhouse Ventures

Website

https://powerhouse.fund

Company type

Private

Founded year

2015

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Powerhouse Ventures is a privately held seed-stage venture capital firm that backs founders building the future power system across energy, infrastructure, and AI, providing equity capital, mentorship, and network access from seed through Series C.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Venture Capital / Climate Tech Investing

NAICS

Funds, Trusts, and Other Financial Vehicles (525)

SIC

Investment Advice (6282)

akta.pro primary industry

Sector-Focused Venture Capital (Vertical Specialists) (FSANAAAD)

Keywords

• Seed-stage venture capital
• Clean energy investing
• Climate tech startups
• Power system innovation
• Infrastructure venture funding

Headquarters

HQ city

Oakland

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Portfolio Company Equity Returns: Powerhouse Ventures generates returns through equity stakes in seed-stage companies. The firm supports portfolio companies through multiple financing rounds and benefits from exits when companies grow and reach maturity. Notable example: ThinkLabs AI raised a $28M Series A, validating the investment thesis.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Powerhouse Ventures is a seed-stage venture capital firm that backs founding teams scaling technologies across energy, infrastructure, and AI to accelerate energy abundance. The firm invests in market-ready startups building the future power system and provides multi-round capital and network support from seed through Series C.

Product overview

Powerhouse is a venture capital firm that backs seed-stage founders building the future power system across energy, infrastructure, and AI. The firm does not appear to offer a distinct product or service offering in the traditional sense; rather, it provides investment capital, mentorship, and network access to early-stage companies in the power/energy sector. The firm's primary offering is its investment platform and portfolio support services for startups.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Powerhouse Innovation: A separate entity from Powerhouse Ventures, focused on innovation initiatives in the energy sector.

Products and services

• Seed-stage venture capital investment in clean energy, infrastructure, and AI startups

Quantifiable outcome

• Powerhouse Ventures played a pivotal role in Terabase's scale-up, providing exceptional support through three financing rounds.

Named customers5 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Energy Impact Partners: Growth-stage climate and grid-focused VC that led ThinkLabs AI's $28M Series A — a direct co-investment counterparty of Powerhouse. Comparable strategy and overlap in the AI-for-grid thesis.
• Prime Movers Lab: Seed-stage investor in breakthrough scientific ventures including energy, infrastructure, and climate. Comparable in seed-stage sector specialization.
• Breakthrough Energy Ventures: Bill Gates-backed seed-to-growth climate VC investing across energy, transport, buildings, and agriculture. Most directly comparable peer as a sector-focused, multi-stage climate investor.
• Congruent Ventures: Early-stage investor focused on infrastructure decarbonization, including grid, mobility, and buildings. Comparable stage, sector, and founder-support model.
• Prelude Ventures: Seed-stage venture firm investing in climate-tech and advanced materials with a focus on early commercial traction. Highly comparable by stage and sector.
• Clean Energy Ventures: Seed-stage climate-tech VC investing across energy generation, storage, mobility, and buildings. Highly comparable in stage and sector focus.
• DCVC: Deep-tech venture firm with a substantial climate and energy practice, often co-investing in grid and energy software. Comparable in deep-tech/sector focus.
• Lowercarbon Capital: Seed-to-growth climate VC investing across energy, industry, and carbon removal. Closely comparable in stage focus and sector specialization.

Broad incumbents

• Khosla Ventures: Large, broad-stage VC with a significant climate-tech and energy practice. Competitor for deals and follow-on capital but at meaningfully larger fund scale.
• Andreessen Horowitz (a16z): Major multi-stage VC with a dedicated American Dynamism practice that includes grid, energy, and climate infrastructure. Competitor for later-stage rounds and follow-on capital.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@powerhouse2399?si=zU61BCk55Uf-Wxo6
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/joinpowerhouse
• Xx.com/joinpowerhouse

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Powerhouse