California Data Collaborative

What California Data Collaborative does

California Data Collaborative (CaDC) is a 501c3 nonprofit organization founded in 2015 by Joone Kim-Lopez (General Manager & CEO of Moulton Niguel Water District) together with six California retail water suppliers, and operating since 2016 from Los Angeles. The organization is governed by its member agencies through a Steering Committee and is fiscally sponsored by Social and Environmental Entrepreneurs, Inc. CaDC produces data analytics software, applied research, and a peer community for water management, serving California's public water retailers and wholesale/regional agencies. As of 2024 the membership stood at 24 agencies collectively serving approximately 21 million Californians.

CaDC's product portfolio centers on a cloud-based analytics stack: the Wavelet platform (flagship analytics dashboard, version 2 launched in 2024) for consumption, efficiency, and benchmarking analysis; the AMI Query Engine, a high-performance database layer granting SQL and Power BI access to smart-meter data from integrated vendors Badger Meter, Sensus, Aclara, and Itron; the UWUO Easy Report, an automated compliance tool launched in 2023 that aided 150 water suppliers with California's Urban Water Use Objective regulations; and the Community Portal, an online collaboration environment launched in 2024. Underlying capabilities include predictive demand forecasting, anomaly detection in usage patterns, automated report generation, and applied AI in collaboration with UC Berkeley and the State Water Resources Control Board. Supporting offerings include Data Science Support Services and Data Consulting & Pilot Programs for custom analytics engagements.

CaDC operates a membership-based subscription revenue model. Retailer tiers span Community (free), Core ($4,600-$21,600/year by service connections), Analytics ($8,000-$52,700/year), and AMI ($17,000-$74,200/year); wholesalers pay $11,700-$23,300/year based on population served. Members retain 100% control over their data. The go-to-market combines community-led and event-driven motions: a flagship annual CA Water Data Summit, ongoing workshops and webinars, content marketing via Medium and YouTube, and direct engagement through the website and member portal. Distribution is direct to enterprise water agencies within California, with strategic partnerships (Arcadis, ACWA, CalWEP, DataKind, and major universities) extending reach and credibility.

Name

California Data Collaborative

Legal name

California Data Collaborative

Website

https://www.californiadatacollaborative.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2016

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

California Data Collaborative is a nonprofit organization that provides data and analysis services for water management.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Water Utility Data Analytics

NAICS

Professional Organizations (81392), Computing Infrastructure Providers, Data Processing, Web Hosting, and Related Services (518), Other Similar Organizations (except Business, Professional, Labor, and Political Organizations) (81399)

SIC

Services-Computer Programming, Data Processing, Etc. (7370), Services-Membership Organizations (8600), Services-Computer Processing & Data Preparation (7374)

akta.pro primary industry

Data Sharing, Data Exchange & Data Marketplace Platforms (HDAEABAH)

akta.pro secondary industries

Data Storytelling & Collaborative Analytics (HDAEAMAJ), Data Virtualization & Federation (HDAEACAH)

Keywords

• Water data analytics
• Utility data platform
• AMI smart meter software
• Water demand forecasting
• Regulatory compliance reporting

Headquarters

HQ city

Los Angeles

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Membership Dues: Annual membership fees based on organization size (service connections for retailers, population for wholesalers). Tiers include Community (free), Core, Analytics, and AMI memberships for retailers, and Core Analytics for wholesalers. Fees support community networking, education, software development, and maintenance.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels10 records

Core offering

California Data Collaborative is a 501c3 nonprofit that provides a cloud-based data analytics platform (Wavelet), AMI/smart meter query engine, compliance reporting tools, and applied research to California water retailers and wholesale/regional agencies. Members access these tools through tiered annual memberships, with the organization functioning as a member-governed data-sharing collaborative.

Product overview

California Data Collaborative offers a platform-plus-modules product architecture centered on Wavelet (formerly CaDC Analytics Platform v1, now v2), its flagship analytics and visualization platform for water retailers. The portfolio consists of four core offerings: the Analytics Platform for data collection and reporting, the AMI Query Engine for high-frequency smart meter data access, Data Science Support Services for extended staff augmentation, and Data Consulting & Pilot Programs for custom engagements. Supporting these is the Community Portal (launched 2024) for peer collaboration, and the UWUO Easy Report tool for regulatory compliance. Products are accessed primarily through tiered membership programs (Community, Core, Analytics, AMI for retailers; Core Analytics for wholesalers/regional agencies), with pricing scaled by service connections or population served.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Wavelet: Flagship data analysis platform for water retailers, providing advanced data analytics dashboard designed to help unlock valuable insights into customer consumption and efficiency trends.

Products and services

• Wavelet Analytics Platform Flagship data analysis platform for water retailers, providing advanced analytics dashboards that unlock insights into customer consumption patterns, efficiency trends, water use benchmarking, Water Use Objective calculations, customer segmentation, and automated report generation.
• AMI Query Engine High-performance database engine providing water utility data analysts instant access to AMI/smart meter data from major vendors (Itron, Sensus, Badger Meter, Aclara) with unlimited cloud storage, SQL query support, and integration with reporting tools like Power BI.
• Data Science Support Services Supplemental data analysis services that extend agency staff capabilities, offering specialized skills in demand forecasting, revenue recovery through meter analysis, policy impact analysis, conservation program evaluation, peak flow analysis, and data cleaning.
• Data Consulting & Pilot Programs Custom consulting engagements covering water budget development, Water Use Objective compliance, regional data collection and dashboards, custom workflow software, water shortage allocation modeling, and sewer flow factor calculations.
• UWUO Easy Report Urban Water Use Objective compliance reporting tool that helps water suppliers verify data accuracy, estimate CII landscape area, and classify customers to ensure compliance with California water efficiency regulations.
• Community Portal Online collaborative environment where members can ask questions, access resources, discuss water data topics, browse job postings, and grow their careers in the water sector.
• Membership Programs Tiered nonprofit membership (Community free, Core, Analytics, AMI for retailers; Core Analytics for wholesalers) providing access to software tools, committees, webinars, research, data science support, and steering committee participation.

Quantifiable outcome

• Moulton Niguel Water District saved $20 million in avoided infrastructure capital costs through better demand forecasting
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers10 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration5 records

AI capability7 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

14 partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• ArcadiscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFirst Innovation Ecosystem Partner bringing global perspective and powerful software tools to address California's unique water challenges.
• Association of California Water Agencies (ACWA)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerACWA has tapped into policy analysis by CaDC to help inform the legislative priorities of water suppliers across California.
• DataKindmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration with DataKind helped CaDC member Moulton Niguel Water District save $20 million in avoided infrastructure capital costs through better demand forecasting.
• Harvard Business School Community PartnersminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerHarvard Business School Community Partners selected CaDC for pro bono business strategy consulting by their network of experienced alumni business leaders.
• UC BerkeleymajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCreative collaborations with students and staff leveraging artificial intelligence to aid regulatory understanding. Trusted research partners use data shared by CaDC members to uncover root causes of industry challenges.
• Stanford UniversitymajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerTrusted research partner using data shared by CaDC members to uncover root causes of industry challenges and recommend solutions.
• UC DavismajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerTrusted research partner using data shared by CaDC members to uncover root causes of industry challenges and recommend solutions.
• California State Water Resources Control BoardmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborating with State Water Board staff on artificial intelligence initiatives to aid regulatory understanding.
• Water UCIminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerThrough Water UCI, CaDC taps into experience of world-leading experts in water quality, treatment, and computer science for data management.
• Consulate General of Denmark (Innovation Center in Silicon Valley)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerBrings fresh global perspectives and solutions to California's water problems through their Innovation Center in Silicon Valley.
• Internet of WaterminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerConnects CaDC's local data efforts with broader national initiatives to improve the quality and sharing of water data.
• California Water Efficiency Partnership (CalWEP)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerApplied research by CaDC and CalWEP led the Department of Water Resources to revise their regulatory recommendations which reduced compliance costs for suppliers.
• California Water ConsortiumminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerComplementing CaDC's focus on local water suppliers, the Consortium works across the state to make water data more open and transparent.
• Social and Environmental Entrepreneurs, Inc. (SEE)coreOthersCaDC is a fiscally sponsored project of Social and Environmental Entrepreneurs, Inc., providing organizational infrastructure and nonprofit administration.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• WaterSmart Software: WaterSmart provides customer engagement and consumption analytics for water utilities, including AMI data integration, customer segmentation, and efficiency program evaluation — directly overlapping CaDC's Wavelet and data science support offerings.
• Idrica: Idrica is a water data management and analytics platform that integrates AMI/smart meter data and supports utility operations — a direct competitor in the cross-vendor AMI analytics space where CaDC's AMI Query Engine operates.

Broad incumbents

• Xylem (VueWorks / Xylem Vue): Xylem is a major water technology incumbent offering Xylem Vue and VueWorks for utility analytics and asset management. While broader in scope than CaDC, it competes for the same AMI analytics and demand-management budgets at large utilities.
• Itron: Itron is one of the leading AMI/smart meter vendors already integrated with CaDC's AMI Query Engine. Its analytics suite (Itron Analytics) competes for the same utility budget line while also being a potential upstream partner.
• Badger Meter: Badger Meter supplies AMI smart meters that feed into CaDC's AMI Query Engine, and increasingly bundles analytics capabilities that compete with CaDC's vendor-agnostic analytics layer.

Emerging players

• Beacon AI: Beacon AI delivers AI-driven analytics for water utilities, including demand forecasting and consumption insights — overlapping with CaDC's predictive analytics and anomaly-detection capabilities but with a more commercial software focus.
• HydroPoint Data Systems: HydroPoint provides smart water management including irrigation analytics and AMI-driven consumption monitoring — adjacent to CaDC's Wavelet platform, with overlap in efficiency-program analytics for water agencies.
• Terranova Software: Terranova offers water utility analytics, customer engagement, and AMI-based consumption insights — comparable to CaDC's Wavelet and AMI Query Engine offerings but with a more commercial SaaS go-to-market.

Others

• Association of California Water Agencies (ACWA): ACWA is a major California water utility trade association and CaDC partner. While not a direct competitor, it is part of the same California water-governance ecosystem and offers overlapping policy-research and member-services functions.
• Internet of Water: Internet of Water is a national initiative to improve water data sharing and quality, listed as a CaDC partner. It is a thematic peer working on adjacent water-data infrastructure rather than a direct utility-software competitor.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/cadc_io
• GitHubgithub.com/California-Data-Collaborative
• YouTubeyoutube.com/@cadc
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/california-data-collaborative

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 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 California Data Collaborative