RSI (Reel Solar Inc)

What RSI (Reel Solar Inc) does

RSI (Reel Solar Inc) was a privately held, for-profit company founded in 2009 and headquartered in San Jose, California, that provided technology, tools, and materials to the photovoltaic (PV) manufacturing industry. The firm operated with a small team (11-50 employees) and a leadership group consisting of a President (Gerald Li), a VP of Corporate Development (Paul Fox), a VP of Operations (Tom Long), and an independent director (Peter Darbee, former PG&E CEO). RSI's positioning was as a B2B supplier into the solar cell/module manufacturing value chain, though no specific products, proprietary technologies, pricing, customer references, or go-to-market mechanics are disclosed in the available data.

RSI raised approximately $19 million in aggregate across two documented funding rounds: an initial $15,000,000 round on November 30, 2011, followed by a $4,000,000 round on March 28, 2013, backed by CalCEF Clean Energy Angel Fund, CMEA Capital, Mayfield Fund, and Pangaea Ventures. No subsequent funding events, product launches, acquisitions, or partnerships appear in the data, and the corporate domain (ReelSolar.com) is currently listed for resale on the Atom.com domain marketplace, indicating the company has not maintained an active web presence.

The absence of disclosed products, technology descriptions, customers, revenue, headcount trend data, or any post-2013 operational signal strongly suggests the firm is dormant or has ceased commercial operations. Investors evaluating RSI today should treat the entity as a non-operating, likely wound-down solar-industry asset rather than an active business, with the primary residual value (if any) sitting in residual IP, brand, or domain that the principals may choose to monetize.

Name

RSI (Reel Solar Inc)

Website

https://reelsolar.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2009

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

RSI (Reel Solar Inc), founded in 2009 and based in San Jose, California, was a private B2B supplier of technology, tools, and materials to the photovoltaic manufacturing industry; the firm appears dormant, with its corporate domain listed for resale and no active products or revenue disclosed.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Photovoltaic Manufacturing Equipment

NAICS

Electrical Equipment, Appliance, and Component Manufacturing (335)

SIC

Electronic & Other Electrical Equipment (No Computer Equip) (3600), Measuring & Controlling Devices, Nec (3829)

akta.pro primary industry

Solar Plant Components Supply & Manufacturing (Modules, Cells, Wafers, Mirrors, Heliostats) (EUACAGAK)

akta.pro secondary industries

Solar Design, Engineering & Performance Software (PV Modeling, Digital Twins, Monitoring) (EUAMABAH), Solar Distribution & Wholesale Supply (Channel, Procurement, Logistics) (EUAMABAK)

Keywords

• Photovoltaic manufacturing equipment
• Solar cell production
• Thin-film solar technology
• PV manufacturing tools
• Solar materials supply

Headquarters

HQ city

San Jose

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

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

Pricing tiers

Core offering

RSI provides technology, tools, and materials to the photovoltaic manufacturing industry, supplying process equipment and consumable materials used by solar cell and module producers. Its offerings support PV fabrication workflows aimed at improving yield, throughput, and cost-efficiency for thin-film and crystalline silicon solar manufacturers.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Photovoltaic Manufacturing Technology Proprietary process technology used by photovoltaic cell and module manufacturers to support solar cell production workflows. Targeted at solar fab operators seeking improved yield and throughput.
• PV Manufacturing Tools Process tools sold to photovoltaic manufacturers for use in solar cell and module fabrication lines. Targeted at fab engineering and operations teams at solar manufacturing companies.
• PV Manufacturing Materials Specialty materials supplied to photovoltaic manufacturers for use in solar cell and module production. Targeted at process engineering and procurement teams at solar fabs.

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Recent moves4 records

Expansion highlights2 records

Direct peers

• Veeco Instruments: Supplies MOCVD, ion beam deposition, and wet-processing tools used in PV, LED, and semiconductor manufacturing. Comparable as a specialized equipment supplier to PV/fab customers, with overlapping process-tool technologies.
• Sinton Instruments: Boulder-based supplier of lifetime and quasi-steady-state photoconductance measurement tools used in PV cell and module manufacturing QC. Comparable as a small, specialized PV manufacturing tools supplier serving the same OEM customer base as RSI.
• 1366 Technologies: Developed direct-wafer silicon manufacturing technology for solar cells. A Boston-area, venture-backed PV manufacturing technology developer addressing c-Si cost reduction — overlapping with RSI's PV manufacturing tools/materials value proposition.
• Centrotherm International: German-headquartered specialist in thermal processing tools and turnkey production lines for crystalline-silicon solar cells and modules. Closest direct peer to RSI's stated PV manufacturing tools/materials focus, serving the same c-Si PV OEM customer base.
• RENA Technologies: German supplier of wet-chemical processing and surface-treatment equipment for solar cell, semiconductor, and glass manufacturing. Directly comparable as a PV manufacturing equipment supplier, particularly in wet-processing tools and chemistry.

Broad incumbents

• First Solar: Largest U.S.-headquartered thin-film PV module manufacturer with vertically integrated manufacturing-process IP. Comparable as a U.S.-based PV manufacturing technology leader, though operating downstream as a module OEM rather than upstream as a tool supplier.
• Applied Materials: Dominant supplier of PV and display manufacturing equipment (SunFab, Baccini, AKT PECVD lines) and a global semiconductor tool incumbent. Directly comparable as a peer PV manufacturing equipment/materials supplier, though at vastly greater scale and with a much broader portfolio.

Regional players

• Suniva: U.S.-based c-Si PV cell and module manufacturer focused on domestic production. Comparable as a U.S.-headquartered PV manufacturing participant, though as a downstream cell/module producer rather than a tools/materials supplier.
• Motech Industries: Taiwan-based PV cell and module manufacturer with in-house equipment integration capabilities. Comparable as a PV manufacturing supply-chain participant, though primarily Asia-focused and vertically integrated into cell/module production rather than pure equipment supply.

Emerging players

• Natcore Technology: Early-stage developer of black silicon and passivation technologies for PV cell manufacturing. Comparable as a small, IP-focused PV manufacturing technology supplier targeting cost-reduction levers in cell processing.

Market position

Strengths3 records

Weaknesses3 records

Competitive moat2 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights4 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/reelsolar

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds2 records

Investors4 records

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 RSI (Reel Solar Inc)