Yield Energy
Yield Energy is a San Diego-based company operating an agriculture-focused distributed energy resource management system (DERMS) that turns on-farm energy assets such as irrigation pumps into virtual power plants for utility grid services, serving utilities, farmers, and AgTech partners.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2015
- HeadquartersVisalia, United States
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingSoftware
What Yield Energy does
Yield Energy (formerly Polaris Energy Services) is a San Diego-based private company that has built an agriculture-focused distributed energy resource management system (DERMS) called the Yield Edge platform. The system uses real-time control and AI to orchestrate on-farm distributed energy resources — primarily irrigation pumps, with planned extension to solar, battery storage, EV chargers, and cold storage — into virtual power plants that participate in utility demand response and grid flexibility programs. The hardware-agnostic, BYOD architecture integrates with partner devices via API and supports standard grid protocols (OpenADR, DNP3, IEC 61850) as well as utility systems (AMI/MDM, billing, CRM, Green Button). Yield Energy reports managing 200 MW of agricultural load across 10,000+ enabled farm devices, with 100+ MW enrolled in PG&E's Hourly Flex Pricing pilot and demonstrated 100% demand response performance plus 67% peak load shift capability.
The company's business model combines direct enterprise sales to utilities (with PG&E and Valley Clean Energy Alliance as named customers) and a channel-partner model via an AgTech ecosystem that includes WiseConn, Netafim, Nelson, Verdi, Farmblox, Lumo, and others. Yield Energy earns revenue as a grid services aggregator, while participating farmers generate $20,000–$50,000 in annual revenue per site with no upfront cost. The company received nearly $3 million in California Energy Commission grant funding and announced a $500 million farmland fund in January 2026 alongside its platform launch and rebrand. Geographic expansion is targeted into Texas, Arizona, Colorado, and Washington, contingent on utility program availability.
Yield Energy operates with a small team (1–10 employees) and is positioned at the intersection of agricultural technology and grid services, targeting the addressable market of over 10 GW in U.S. irrigation alone. Its competitive positioning rests on being the only Edge DERMS purpose-built for agriculture, validated through multi-year pilot deployments and CEC funding rather than yet demonstrating material commercial revenue.
Yield Energy firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Yield Energy
- Legal name
- Yield Energy, Inc.
- Website
- https://yieldenergy.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2015
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Yield Energy is a San Diego-based company operating an agriculture-focused distributed energy resource management system (DERMS) that turns on-farm energy assets such as irrigation pumps into virtual power plants for utility grid services, serving utilities, farmers, and AgTech partners.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Yield Energy industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Distributed Energy Resource Management
- NAICS
- Electric Power Generation, Transmission and Distribution (2211), Soil Preparation, Planting, and Cultivating (115112)
- SIC
- Agricultural Services (700)
- akta.pro primary industry
- DER Management Systems (DERMS) & Virtual Power Plants (VPP) (EUADAPAD)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- DERMS Platforms & Utility Integration (ADMS/SCADA Integration, Hosting Capacity) (EUAFAHAF), Farm Technology Enablement & Data Integration Advisory (FMIS/ERP, IoT, Decision Support) (AFACAJAG), Irrigation, Water & Energy Efficiency Operations Advisory (AFACAJAM), DER Aggregation & Virtual Power Plants (VPPs) (EUAMAJAC)
Keywords
Where Yield Energy is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Visalia
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Yield Energy business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Grid Flexibility Services to Utilities: Yield Energy aggregates on-farm energy assets (primarily irrigation pumping) to provide grid flexibility services to utilities. Farmers earn revenue through demand response participation with no upfront cost, generating $20,000-$30,000 annually for average operations and $40,000-$50,000 for larger operations. The company acts as an aggregator, earning fees from utilities for delivering reliable demand response capacity.
- Agricultural Demand Response Programs: Launched agriculture-specific demand response programs with utilities like PG&E, enabling farmers to earn revenue by shifting electricity use during peak demand periods. Revenue is generated per participating farm device enrolled in grid flexibility programs.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Usage-based | Annual | Average Farm Operations |
| Usage-based | Annual | Large Farm Operations |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels5 records
Yield Energy product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Yield Energy provides the Yield Edge DERMS, an agriculture-focused distributed energy resource management system that uses real-time control and AI to orchestrate on-farm distributed energy resources (irrigation pumps, solar, storage, EV chargers, cold storage) into virtual power plants. The platform aggregates farm energy assets to deliver grid flexibility services to utilities and enable farmers to earn revenue through demand response programs, with no upfront cost to participants.
Product overview
Yield Energy offers a unified platform-plus-ecosystem architecture centered on the Yield Edge DERMS platform. The Edge DERMS is the core product—a purpose-built agricultural distributed energy resource management system that orchestrates on-farm DERs (irrigation pumps, solar, battery storage, EV chargers, cold storage) using real-time control and AI optimization. This core platform is complemented by an AgTech Partner Ecosystem, where third-party hardware providers integrate their devices with the DERMS via API to enable automatic participation in utility demand response and grid-service programs. The platform currently manages 200+ MW of agricultural load across 10,000+ enabled farm devices, primarily serving utilities and growers in California with expansion planned.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Yield Edge DERMS: Agriculture-focused distributed energy resource management system (DERMS) that connects on-farm equipment to utility grid programs and demand response services.
- Edge Distributed Energy Resource Management System (DERMS)
Products and services
- Yield Edge DERMS An edge-optimized distributed energy resource management system (DERMS) purpose-built for agriculture. Uses real-time control and AI to orchestrate on-farm DERs including irrigation pumps, solar, battery storage, EV chargers, and cold storage, enabling farms to participate in grid services and demand response programs while generating recurring revenue.
- Farmland Fund A $500 million farmland fund announced by Yield Energy aimed at integrating energy and agriculture to improve sustainability and value creation across agricultural land assets.
Quantifiable outcome
- 100% demand response performance across enrolled devices
- +4 more outcomes
Companies that use Yield Energy
Customer profileNamed customers2 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Yield Energy technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- Yes
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration12 records
AI capability2 records
Feature6 records
Yield Energy partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E)corePG&E is Yield Energy's flagship utility partner for the Hourly Flex Pricing pilot program, with over 100 MW of agricultural load enrolled. This partnership enables Yield to demonstrate its agriculture-focused demand response capabilities and validate the platform's performance for grid services.
- Valley Clean Energy AllianceminorRegional utility alliance partner shown in company customer/trust logos, representing potential expansion into additional California community choice aggregators.
- WiseConncoreWiseConn is an irrigation automation company whose controllers integrate with Yield's DERMS platform, enabling growers to participate in utility demand response events automatically. Case study shows $112,000 total revenue earned through flex programs by WiseConn growers. WiseConn's integration enables automated load-shift windows with minimal operational impact.
- NetafimcoreNetafim is a global irrigation company whose logo appears in Yield's AgTech partner ecosystem, indicating integration of Netafim irrigation equipment with the Yield DERMS platform.
- Nelson IrrigationcoreNelson Irrigation logo appears in Yield's AgTech partner ecosystem, indicating partnership for irrigation automation integration with the DERMS platform.
- VerdicoreVerdi logo appears in Yield's AgTech partner ecosystem, indicating integration partnership for agricultural technology solutions.
- FarmbloxcoreFarmblox logo appears in Yield's AgTech partner ecosystem, indicating partnership for farm automation integration with the DERMS platform.
- LumocoreLumo logo appears in Yield's AgTech partner ecosystem, indicating partnership for irrigation/farm technology integration.
Scale indicators9 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Yield Energy competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- EnergyHub: EnergyHub provides a DERMS platform that utilities use to manage residential and commercial demand response and DERs. It is the closest direct competitor to Yield Energy's utility-side DERMS offering, though EnergyHub is not agriculture-specialized.
- Virtual Peaker: Virtual Peaker sells a DERMS platform to electric utilities for managing distributed energy resources and demand response programs. It directly competes with Yield Energy for utility aggregation contracts, but serves a broader set of end-customer types.
- Leap: Leap is a VPP and DER aggregation platform that connects distributed energy assets to wholesale and utility markets. Like Yield, it positions itself as a software platform turning distributed assets into grid services, though Leap focuses on residential and commercial rather than agriculture.
Broad incumbents
- AutoGrid (Schneider Electric): AutoGrid, now part of Schneider Electric, is one of the longest-established DERMS platforms serving utilities with VPP, forecasting, and dispatch. It is a broader incumbent that competes with Yield for utility DERMS contracts at scale.
- Stem Inc: Stem provides AI-driven energy storage and DERMS software for utilities and C&I customers. It competes with Yield for utility-side grid-flexibility programs but is anchored in storage rather than agricultural load.
- Uplight: Uplight provides an energy management and customer-engagement platform sold to utilities, including DER orchestration and dynamic pricing modules. It overlaps with Yield's utility-facing DER and demand-response capabilities, though it operates much more broadly across the utility value chain.
- Tesla Energy (Autobidder): Tesla's Autobidder platform orchestrates distributed batteries and solar into wholesale and utility markets. It competes with Yield at the VPP and grid-services layer but is anchored to Tesla hardware rather than agriculture.
- Enphase Energy: Enphase provides solar-plus-storage hardware with an energy management software layer (including grid services). It is comparable to Yield as an energy-management and grid-flexibility platform but is hardware-tied and not agriculture-specialized.
- Generac Grid Services: Generac has built a grid services arm leveraging its distributed residential generators and batteries into utility VPPs. It overlaps with Yield on the aggregator side of utility grid-flexibility programs but focuses on backup generation rather than agricultural loads.
Emerging players
- OhmConnect: OhmConnect is a residential demand-response and VPP operator that pays end customers to shift load. It is comparable to Yield as a DER aggregation business but targets residential rather than agricultural loads.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Yield Energy social profiles
Digital presenceYield Energy financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Yield Energy leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles12 records
Yield Energy funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds1 record
Investors1 record
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Yield Energy M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Yield Energy
What does Yield Energy do?
Yield Energy provides the Yield Edge DERMS, an agriculture-focused distributed energy resource management system that uses real-time control and AI to orchestrate on-farm distributed energy resources (irrigation pumps, solar, storage, EV chargers, cold storage) into virtual power plants. The platform aggregates farm energy assets to deliver grid flexibility services to utilities and enable farmers to earn revenue through demand response programs, with no upfront cost to participants.
Is Yield Energy a public or private company?
Yield Energy is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Yield Energy founded?
Yield Energy was founded in 2015. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Yield Energy based?
Yield Energy is headquartered in Visalia, United States, in the North America region.
How does Yield Energy make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Grid Flexibility Services to Utilities are the primary driver. The others are agricultural Demand Response Programs.
Who are Yield Energy's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are EnergyHub, Virtual Peaker and Leap. Broad incumbents are AutoGrid (Schneider Electric), Stem Inc, Uplight, Tesla Energy (Autobidder), Enphase Energy and Generac Grid Services. OhmConnect is listed as an emerging player.
Does Yield Energy have an API?
Yes. Yield provides a modern API enabling AgTech partners to integrate their devices into utility and wholesale power market programs. The API supports device onboarding, telemetry exchange, and two-way control for demand response and grid-service programs. Supports OpenADR, DNP3, IEC 61850 protocols, and Green Button for secure data exchange. Integration connects partners to multiple utility programs, eligible growers, and grid-service revenue opportunities.
What industry is Yield Energy in?
Yield Energy's product category is Distributed Energy Resource Management. Its primary akta.pro industry code is EUADAPAD, DER Management Systems (DERMS) & Virtual Power Plants (VPP), with a secondary code of EUAFAHAF, DERMS Platforms & Utility Integration (ADMS/SCADA Integration, Hosting Capacity). Its NAICS code is 2211 and its SIC code is 700.