Grace Ashiru
Wattnow, a Tunisian startup specializing in smart energy management solutions, has announced the successful closing of an undisclosed funding round aimed at supporting its plans for global expansion.
The newly acquired funding will allow Wattnow to penetrate new markets and enhance its services as it assists businesses in adopting more sustainable energy solutions.
The funding round was led by Lateral Frontiers and 216 Capital, with additional participation from Outlierz Ventures, Satgana, Octerra Capital, and a group of strategic angel investors, including Guillaume Amblard and InstaDeep founder Karim Beguir.
InstaDeep, a Tunisian AI startup, was acquired by a biotechnology company in 2023 and has since invested in other Tunisian startups, including Clusterlab in March 2024.
Issam Smaali, the CEO, emphasized this development as a significant milestone, noting that their key clients, initially onboarded in Tunisia, are now operating across multiple continents, which showcases the global appeal and effectiveness of their solution.
Founded in 2018 by Smaali, Wattnow provides businesses with tools to manage their energy consumption through easy-to-install hardware and software. The service enables companies to monitor energy usage in real-time, automate controls, and receive alerts when issues arise.
Wattnow offers services across various industries, including automotive, aeronautics, telecommunications, banking and insurance, transformative, oil and gas, construction, and retail.
In March 2022, Wattnow raised $1.3 million in pre-Series A funding. In the same year, cleantech startups in Africa reportedly secured $863 million in equity funding, placing them just behind fintech and accounting for 18% of the total capital raised across all tech sectors on the continent.
Furthermore, climate tech funding has seen remarkable growth, with investments rising from $340 million in 2019 to $344 million in 2020, $613 million in 2021, $959 million in 2022, and reaching $1.1 billion in 2023.
In August 2024, the African Development Bank (AfDB) announced its plans to invest $10 million in the KawiSafi II Fund to support African startups focused on renewable energy, clean mobility, and climate solutions.
This influx of investment underscores the region’s transition toward renewable energy, a transition that Wattnow is also capitalizing on. Climate tech startups, including Nigeria’s Arnergy and Kenya’s Bio-Logical, have recently garnered attention for securing funding .
