Phaidra, a Seattle startup selling a “virtual plant operator” that uses artificial intelligence to manage industrial operations, raised $12 million in a new round led by Index Ventures.
The startup, led by alum from Alphabet’s AI research hub DeepMind, launched in Seattle in 2019. Its technology helps facilities such as data centers improve energy efficiency by using an array of sensors that measure various metrics, and then analyzing that information with software.
The company pitches its product as a way for customers to generate more compute capabilities required by AI systems.
The rapid growth of AI is driving new demand for cloud computing infrastructure, which requires substantial energy. The amount of electricity used globally for data centers, AI and cryptocurrency could double from 2022 to 2026, according to the International Energy Agency. Google’s emissions grew nearly 50% over five years, in part due to AI use.
“Every data center operator knows they will need to be more efficient to meet this growing demand,” Phaidra CEO and co-founder Jim Gao said in a statement. “At Phaidra, we’re on a mission to revolutionize how data centers are managed with an AI-powered control system that not only adapts in real time, but also continuously learns and improves.”
Phaidra uses “agents” that monitor usage coming from a facility and can optimize cooling mechanisms, water conservation, power utilization, and more.
In addition to data centers, the company also sells to customers in the pharmaceutical and energy industries.
Gao founded Phaidra with fellow DeepMind alum Vedavyas Panneershelvam, along with Katherine Hoffman, a defense and HVAC industry veteran.
Gao previously led a 14-person team at DeepMind focused on building AI tech for the energy sector. It helped reduce Google’s data center cooling energy consumption by 40%.
Other backers include Starshort Capital, which led a $25 million Series A round in 2022; Helena; Flying Fish; Ahren Innovation Capital; Section 32; and Character. Mustafa Suleyman, co-founder of DeepMind who recently joined Microsoft, and Dallas Mavericks minority owner Mark Cuban invested previously.
Phaidra was a finalist for Startup of the Year at the GeekWire Awards in 2022. It recently was selected as part of an Amazon Sustainability Accelerator program.
Total funding to date is $60.5 million. The company has around 100 employees.
