Estonian Karma Ventures invested in an Austrian SaaS solution for hydropower plants HYDROGRID

Estonian Karma Ventures was a leading investor in a 7,7M round of Vienna-based startup HYDROGRID, which designed a SaaS solution for hydropower plants. The co-leader was Chezh Inven Capital with the participation of Austrian CNB Capital, Amsterdam-based SET Ventures, and business angels Wolfgang Sauerzapf and Gerhard Arminger. With the deal, Karma Ventures founding partner Tommi Uhari and investment director at Inven Capital Michal Mravec became board members at HYDROGRID.

Founded in 2016 in Vienna, HYDROGRID is led by Janice Goodenough, Ghislain Nicolas, Annette Mossel, and Matthew Hobbs. HYDROGRID offers hydroenergy producers a solution combining machine learning algorithms and meteorological data for water management, inflow, and power price forecasting. HYDROGRID's solution could be used for bondage, storage, and cascade hydro-assets. With the help of the company's technology, hydropower operators can control hydro-energy plant operations from any device with an internet connection. As a result, they can react faster to weather events, minimize water losses, and maximize their power market revenues. 

The startup will use the investment to accelerate its operations and expand into new markets.

Founded in 2016 by Kristjan Laanemaa, Margus Uudam, and Tommi Uhari, Karma Ventures is an early-stage venture capital firm that invests in late-seed and A-series European startups. The firm injects up to €5M in the initial round and also makes follow-on investments in later rounds.