- Solar PV technology company Swift Solar announced recently that it raised over $8 million in Series Seed 2 funding
Solar PV technology company Swift Solar announced recently that it raised over $8 million in Series Seed 2 funding with an additional $1.5 million expected to close soon for a total of $9.6 million. This round of funding was led by GitLab CEO Sid Sijbrandij and cryptocurrency expert James Fickel. Other participants in this round include climate tech and deep tech investors Good Growth Capital, Safar Partners, Climate Capital, Jack Fuchs, and Sierra Peterson, crypto and finance professionals Jonathan Lin, Grant Hummer, and Ethereum creator Vitalik Buterin along with a diverse group of angel investors. This funding round will be used to expand R&D capabilities, develop prototypes, and grow the Swift Solar team.
Recently, Swift Solar was recognized by a joint R&D 100 Award with the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) has raised over $16 million in equity financing to date. And the company is also supported by non-dilutive funding from the National Science Foundation, the U.S. Department of Energy, and the Office of Naval Research.
Swift Solar is working on developing a new solar PV technology — metal halide perovskites — which could fundamentally outperform today’s silicon and thin-film technologies. And within 10 years, perovskite tandems could be more efficient, more affordable, and more scalable than any PV product on the market.
Perovskite solar cells require less material than conventional technologies, and the raw materials are significantly more abundant and less costly. And manufacturing of perovskite PV modules involves simpler and higher-throughput manufacturing equipment and less energy than is needed for silicon PV manufacturing. Plus flexible perovskite solar panels can reach unparalleled power-to-weight ratios and can be rolled up like a tarp and laminated onto nearly any surface. And they enable multijunction, or tandem, cell structures that could reach power conversion efficiencies of over 40 percent, breaking through about a 30% limit of current technology and providing more watts per dollar spent on installation.
With a combination of higher efficiency, power density, and flexibility, Swift Solar’s perovskite PV technology could keep drones in the sky for months at a time, recharge electric vehicles, power homes, and provide supplemental and off-grid power in developing countries and disaster areas.
KEY QUOTES:
“Today’s industry leaders recognize that perovskite technology represents new possibilities for the future of solar. The Swift Solar team is working nonstop to make solar panels more affordable, more efficient, and easier to install. With this funding, we can move faster on our path toward powering tomorrow’s zero-emissions vehicles and power grids with high-performance solar.”
— Swift Solar Co-Founder and CEO Joel Jean
“We have to accelerate innovation to limit climate change. Swift Solar’s cutting-edge solar technology is an important piece of the puzzle, and the Swift team is second to none. I’m proud to help accelerate their work so it can meet the urgency of the moment.”
— GitLab CEO Sid Sijbrandij
“Swift Solar’s groundbreaking perovskite technology was created by incredible scientists who have deep expertise in how to make solar work better for cheaper. This is the company I trust to take solar power to the next level.”
— Cryptocurrency expert James Fickel
