Matt Penfold’s Post

Unprecedented growth in demand for power, spurred by high-performance computing, deglobalization, and decarbonization, presents complex challenges for today’s businesses. Rising electricity costs and stringent regulatory requirements add to the urgency for efficient energy management. Enter Verse. Founded by Seyed H. Madaeni, Ph.D.. and Matt Penfold, Verse offers a groundbreaking solution with their AI-enabled platform, Aria™. This software helps organizations manage and optimize clean energy portfolios, reducing both costs and emissions. Aria™ provides real-time analysis and supports businesses from setting net zero goals to managing hourly matched carbon-free energy (CFE). At CIV, we invest at the intersection of energy, industry, and civilization. We are delighted to announce our investment in Verse, joining GV (Google Ventures), Coatue, and MCJ Collective in an oversubscribed $20.5M Series A funding round. This capital will enable Verse to enhance Aria’s capabilities, expand their team, and scale their business, making clean energy the most economical and accessible option for all. We are proud to partner with Verse in their mission to unlock the benefits of clean power for organizations everywhere. Let's go!!! #Verse #CIV #Energy #Innovation Jeff Rosenthal Abhijoy Mitra Andrew Zuckerman Stephanie F. Donner Talia Jurkowitz

I’m thrilled to announce that Verse has closed our $20.5M Series A fundraise led by GV (Google Ventures)! The only way we can quickly scale decarbonization is to make it easy and economical. That’s why Verse is focused on building an intuitive software platform (Aria) that leverages the power of AI to make it faster, easier, and less expensive for organizations to understand, plan, and manage clean energy. Many people still mistakenly believe that decarbonization cannot also be economical – but that is simply no longer the case. Scalable solutions will also be inclusive and applicable to a broad audience. Aria supports customers who are just setting clean energy goals as well as those building complex portfolios of assets to meet hourly matching goals. And we do it at a fraction of the cost of legacy solutions. Our oversubscribed Series A round is led by Andy Wheeler at GV (Google Ventures), with participation from Abhijoy Mitra , Andy Chen, Jaimin Rangwalla at Coatue, Patrick Maloney and Jeff Rosenthal at CIV, and Cody Simms at MCJ Collective. Huge thanks to the folks at GV and to all our investors – I’m looking forward to working with you to accelerate and scale corporate decarbonization. Series A raise is a big milestone for any startup, and we were able to attract significant investor interest and close the round in record time thanks to the incredible work of the entire Verse team. I’m so proud of what we’ve already accomplished and what I know this team can achieve. Onward and upward! #sustainability #renewableenergy #venturecapital #startups #energy #ai https://lnkd.in/dX-f99Hd

Making sense of the PPA market through generative AI. Super stoked to continue our support of Seyed H. Madaeni, Ph.D. and the #Verse team. Verse has created a SaaS platform called Aria that uses generative AI to ensure companies get their desired mix of carbon-free energy round-the-clock in just minutes. Aria lets companies define, design, manage, and report on optimal portfolios of clean energy assets to meet their financial and emissions-reduction targets. To achieve this, Verse's tool matches companies with clean power plants and digitally controls them through AI and machine learning. To making decarbonization economical!

Every #startup founder needs to be more like Scrooge McDuck. Knowing when and how to spend money to maximize yield. As a startup founder with a shoestring budget it's important to be frugal. We engineers naturally gravitate towards utilizing SaaS and serverless solutions, enabling us to embrace a pay-as-you-go approach. This mentality shouldn't just stop at technology—it should permeate every aspect of our startup journey. It's disheartening to witness founders squandering precious VC funding on extravagant offices and media operations rather than focusing on their core mission: crafting solutions that simplify and delight their customers. Instead of splurging on lavish offices, why not operate from the humble confines of your basement? Rather than pouring funds into Forbes for PR, let your product speak for itself. And those extravagant offsites? How about swapping them for outdoor adventures that foster team cohesion and creativity? Let's refocus our efforts on what truly matters—building something extraordinary that enhances the lives of our customers. Embrace the Scrooge McDuck spirit!

On Dec 19th Adrian Iredahl & Hannah Meiton will join Naimul Abd & Startup Grind for a fireside chat that is all about SaaS 🚀 We will cozy up next to the fire 🔥 and focus our talk on: ⭐️ Why we are focused on and passionate about SaaS companies? ⭐️ How our focus helps Ampli Ventures deliver more value for SaaS companies? ⭐️ How do we assist our portfolio companies in scaling their SaaS businesses? ⭐️ What does an ideal investment case look like for Ampli Ventures? ⭐️ What are some recent SaaS investments we have made? (ping Startdeliver & CarCare!) ⭐️ What are the key metrics or KPIs we think you should look at when assessing scalability of a SaaS startup? ⭐️ What are typical challenges of scaling a SaaS business? ⭐️ How to stay updated on the latest trends and innovations in the SaaS industry? ⭐️ What industries or niches within the SaaS space are particularly interesting right now? ⭐️ How is Nordics positioned as a region for SaaS? When: Dec 19th, 17:00-19:00 Where: The Park Södra, Stockholm Register here: https://lnkd.in/dNd_dPrq

I am super excited to share that I’m embarking on a new, yet familiar, journey: the founding of my third startup, Rhythms. I am delighted to announce that we have raised $26m in seed funding co-led by Greenoaks and Madrona, with participation from Accel, Cercano (formerly Vulcan) and Founders Co-op. I am grateful for the continued partnership with these amazing investors, who were also part of my previous venture, Ally.io, acquired by Microsoft in 2021. The past two years at Microsoft were phenomenal. The integration of Ally.io into Microsoft exceeded expectations, hitting key milestones ahead of schedule. The team and product have settled well at Microsoft, and are on a strong trajectory. I want to thank Satya, Rajesh, and Kirk for this amazing experience. My passion has been about improving happiness and productivity of teams and organizations. This pursuit was at the heart of my two previous startups as well. Today, we are at a pivotal moment: the rise of generative AI, the prevalence of hybrid workplaces, and the imperative to do more with less are reshaping how organizations function. This new landscape demands a fresh approach to organizational productivity, and that's where Rhythms, comes in. Our core thesis at Rhythms is that the success of teams and organizations is governed by their internal rhythms – the fundamental processes that drive every aspect of their operation. Yet, these rhythms are poorly understood and managed in most organizations, resulting in chaotic, siloed, frustrating, unpredictable and uneven performance. We are building an AI-powered operating system to enable enterprises to understand, streamline, and orchestrate their rhythms, enabling every team to become a super team. Our mission is to transform how teams and businesses operate everyday - to drive higher performance and bring joy into work. We have a long road ahead of us with inevitable twists and turns. I could not be more excited to start that journey with Madhan and Hasan, and to have Neil and S. Somasegar as partners. Big thanks to Matt McIlwain, Maria Gilfoyle, Ted Kummert, Neil Mehta, Abhinav Chaturvedi, Aviel Ginzburg, Sriram Krishnan, Sunil Chhaya and YB Choi for their support! Stay tuned for updates, insights, and milestones as we progress with Rhythms.

Jamin Ball's latest Clouded Judgment with some hard truths: "In venture markets, I think we’re only 10% into the pain that we’ve delayed given the large cash balances of startups. 2025 is probably the year of max pain in the venture ecosystem." Clouded Judgment is my weekly blog reading on cloud software in public markets. In Jamin's words: "The public markets are the great equalizer, and founders should always keep an eye on how public markets value companies like theirs. And I do see investors and founders repeating a lot of the mistakes from 2021 today, especially in the AI domain. I hope this post provides a bit of a cautionary tale of raising a mega round ahead of your metrics." https://lnkd.in/e9uJisht

What's the one thing that can kill even the most promising startup? You might have a killer product, masterful marketing skills, and even the backing of investors. But here's the harsh truth: if the market doesn't crave what you're offering, you're doomed. Understanding and fulfilling market demand isn't optional – it's the lifeline of your business. Ignore it at your own risk.

From Startup to Centaur: The founder’s roadmap to $100 million ARR What entrepreneurs need to know when building, scaling, and leading their startups to $100M ARR, by Bessemer Venture Partners 👇 On building: - Four questions to ask before building - The power of the cloud model - Building from $1 to $10 million ARR On scaling - Ten lessons from a decade of vertical software investing - Six product strategies to catalyze your Second Act - Scaling to $100 million On Centaurs - The age of Centaurs: Case studies featuring - Cloudinary: Bootstrapping to $100M ARR - Axonius: Reaching Centaur status in four-and-a-half years On leading - Resiliency lessons for doing business in any market - A CEO’s tactical guide to driving profitable growth - The Rule of X - Parting thoughts — How to help your teenage startup thrive I hope you find it useful! Check my free newsletter for more insights: https://lnkd.in/da_7Pbkv

What I Learned from Sequoia Capital's Jess Lee on Product-Market Fit (PMF): Yesterday, an article was published on TechCrunch about the 3 key archetypes startups typically fall into regarding product-market fit: 1. Addressing urgent problems. 2. Solving existing problems more effectively than current solutions. 3. Emphasising a future vision, particularly for ventures focused on deep tech, moonshots, and futuristic products. Each archetype comes with its unique set of challenges, opportunities, and market dynamics. While all archetypes offer potential, the fundraising landscape can vary, with deep tech startups facing distinct challenges in today's climate. After reading, I realised that this aligns perfectly with what we at Utopia Pitch have been advising our customers for years: It all boils down to founder-market fit. As a founder, you must align with your chosen category, demonstrating a deep understanding of both the problem and the solution. I’ll put the link in the comments section