Techstars Boston grad ecovent announced Tuesday it has raised $2.2 million in seed funding. With that, the smart thermostat company has begun accepting pre-orders through its website.
The MIT-spun startup gives owners room-by-room control over heating and cooling, as well learns from users' input over time and adjusts accordingly.
"When you look at the technology that goes into any other appliance, the way we heat and cool our homes today is just unacceptable," said ecovent Founder and CEO Dipul Patel in a statement. "We built ecovent to change that."
Semyon Dukach, managing director of Techstars Boston, invested in ecovent through Atlas Venture's AngelList Boston Syndicate, and was joined alongside noted angel investors Stewart Alsop, Julia Austin, Will Herman, Warren Katz and Michael Mark. Otter Consulting also participated in the round.
"Dip and the ecovent team have the experience, the passion and the perseverance to build a big business, save tons of energy and make millions of people significantly more comfortable in their homes," said Dukach in a statement.
ecovent raised $605,000 in angel funding in April, around the close of the Techstars Boston incubator program, according to the team. The startup has raised $2.8 million in total.
The company claims "anyone can install ecovent," describing the process as simple as plugging a sensor into each room, replacing existing vents with ecovents and connecting to a wireless network. ecovent has created an iOS and Android app to guide homeowners through the installation process, and then set the optimal temperature for each room. The smart system knows to automatically open and close vents to send airflow where it's needed.
On stage at Techstars Boston Demo Day this spring, the ecovent team said its HVAC monitoring system lowers utility bills by around 35 percent.
Image via ecovent
