Runwise co-founders (LRs) Jeff Carleton, Lee Hoffman and Mike Cook.
Courtesy of Runwise
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Cooling has become increasingly important across the commercial real estate portfolio as cruelly hot temperatures burn the country this summer. Landowners balance rising demand with rising costs, with energy efficiency at the forefront and center.
The problem is that most large building systems run inherently blind. The temperature is set in the center, so we don’t know if certain parts of the building are too hot or too cold. So in the summer, so many office workers sit at desks wearing sweaters and overheat in the winter.
New technology is currently being challenged. Runwise, a New York-based technology company, has invented its own hardware/software platform to eliminate overheating in large buildings. Recently, I expanded it to cooling.
“We are trying to meet these climate goals, but literally, buildings are throwing away money every time we run a boiler when we don’t have to run, wasting money, producing carbon emissions that no one can feel comfortable with.
RunWise desktop app.
Courtesy of Runwise
The company combines future weather algorithms with a wireless temperature sensor network that notifies you of the Runwise Central Control System. That control analyzes data and makes the system operate more efficiently.
For example, a 100,000 square foot building may have only one boiler, but multiple temperature inputs are required. Runwise holds 20-25 sensors. This will require an average based on user settings and future weather, indicating how often the boiler will run.
The technology is currently installed in over 10,000 buildings in 10 states, with around 1,000 customers including related, equity housing, FirstService Residential, MTA, Port Authority, National Grid, Rudin, Lefrak, UDR, Douglas Elliman and Akam. Runwise claims it has collectively saved more than $100 million in energy costs so far.
The startup recently announced a $55 million Series B funding round led by Menlo Ventures, bringing total funding to $79 million. Other supporters include Nuveen Real Estate, Munich Re Ventures, MassMutual Ventures, Multiplier Capital, Soma Capital and Fifth Wall.
Carlton said Runwise will use the additional funds to grow businesses across the country and of course incorporate artificial intelligence into its systems.
“It’s just becoming more and more immersed in what we build as we build more and more models of how we collect data from more and more buildings and run it more efficiently,” he said. “We’re planning to use AI to make our algorithms more efficient.”
