Runwise, a tech firm in New York, created a system to stop buildings from overheating. They recently added cooling features. This system uses weather forecasts and wireless temperature sensors. These sensors connect to a central Runwise control. The technology is in over 10,000 buildings in 10 states. Runwise serves about 1,000 clients. Many are large property owners.
Extreme heat makes building cooling vital. Owners face high demand and rising costs. Energy use is a key focus. Most building systems operate without precise control. Temperatures are set for the whole building. This ignores specific areas that might be too hot or cold. People often feel uncomfortable indoors year-round.
New technology is addressing this problem. Runwise developed its own hardware and software. It aims to prevent overheating in large buildings. They have now extended this to cooling systems.
Jeff Carleton, Runwise co-founder and CEO, stated their goal. “We want to meet climate targets,” he said. “But in our own buildings, we waste money.” He explained running boilers when not needed wastes money and creates pollution. This makes people uncomfortable.
The Runwise software works with weather predictions. It also uses a wireless sensor network. These sensors communicate with a central Runwise system. The system analyzes data. It then runs building systems more efficiently.
A large building might have one boiler. It still needs many temperature readings. Runwise installs 20 to 25 sensors. These sensors average readings. They consider user settings and weather forecasts. This data helps decide when to run the boiler.
Runwise technology is in over 10,000 buildings. These are spread across 10 states. They have around 1,000 customers. This includes major real estate firms. Runwise reports saving clients over $100 million in energy costs.
The company recently secured $55 million in funding. This brings their total funding to $79 million. Runwise plans to use this money for nationwide growth. They will also integrate artificial intelligence into their systems.
Carleton noted AI’s growing importance. “As we gather more building data, we create better models,” he said. “AI will improve our algorithms continuously.”