Thursday, February 3, 2011

Online energy tracker Earth Aid raises $4M, eyes New England expansion

By Michelle Lang

Earth Aid Inc., an online energy tracking system based in Washington, D.C., has raised just over $4 million in a Series A funding round led by Providence, R.I.-based Point Judith Capital, with additional backing from Clean Energy Venture Group and Capital-E. The company has offices in both DC and San Francisco, and it’s planning to use the funding to hire in both locations, and, according to Earth Aid co-founder and CEO Ben Bixby, it’s “looking strongly at Cambridge and Providence” for more expansion and hiring.

Earth Aid has developed a web-based platform that, without a need for software or hardware, links a customer’s electric, water and gas utility accounts, and enables users to monitor their energy usage, compare it to others’ energy use, receive tips and earn rewards for saving energy. The company was founded by Bixby and Greg O’Keeffe, the chief scientist, in 2007.

Bixby said he’s looking to hire in Cambridge and Providence immediately, to help double the the Earth Aid staff, which currently has seven staff members. “Top quality engineers, combined with some of the extraordinary investors and partners in the area makes it a logical place to grow,” he said.

Bixby and O’Keeffe have ties to New England, having attended high school together in Cohasset and having shared a similar devotion to the Red Sox, despite their DC base.

The $4 million Series A round, and subsequent plans for New England hiring, were in part the work of Zaid Ashai, a director on the Earth Aid board and partner at Point Judith Capital. Ashai joined the firm in May 2010 to help the venture capital firm add more cleantech companies to its portfolio.

Specifically, he said at the time the firm is looking to invest in companies offering IT solutions for achieving energy efficiency and clean energy goals.