Irish HVAC giant Trane Technologies has completed its purchase of Montréal-based clean tech startup BrainBox AI for an undisclosed amount. Trane hopes to help reduce the carbon footprint of commercial buildings with BrainBox’s artificial intelligence (AI) tools.
The bolt-on acquisition, which closed yesterday after being announced in mid-December, will allow Trane to integrate BrainBox AI’s suite of automated building management tools to monitor and operate heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems.
“Combining BrainBox’s advanced technology with Trane Technologies’ leading digital platform and best-in-class global direct sales capabilities will accelerate the deployment of smart building solutions worldwide and achieve greater outcomes for our people, customers, and the world,” BrainBox CEO Sam Ramadori said in a statement.
The bolt-on acquisition will allow Trane to integrate BrainBox AI’s suite of automated building management tools to monitor and operate HVAC systems.
BrainBox will maintain its operations in Montréal and all 190 employees will stay on. Neither company has disclosed the terms of the transaction, but Ramadori told The Logic that all of BrainBox’s investors will profit from the deal.
Founded in 2017, BrainBox launched its HVAC monitoring AI software in 2019 to help lower energy consumption in buildings such as apartment complexes, office buildings, and hotels.
Through deep learning and cloud computing, BrainBox’s product aims to maintain building space at a comfortable temperature while optimizing energy usage. The company claims its AI solution can reduce carbon emissions by up to 40 percent and utility costs by up to 25 percent.
Since then, the company has attracted attention from both the private and public sectors as businesses aim to align with carbon emissions targets and the Canadian government rushes to meet its net-zero commitment by 2050. Natural Resources Canada has said that reaching this target is dependent upon “deep decarbonization” of buildings. Heating, cooling, and maintaining buildings accounts for nearly 40 percent of the world’s energy use, according to the UN Environment Programme.
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BrainBox confirmed that it has raised over $80 million USD from both private and institutional investors such as Investissement Québec, Export Development Canada, and Sustainable Development Technology Canada.
In 2023, the startup acquired previous investor ABB’s multi-site retail (MSR) energy management system. At the time, BrainBox said the deal would allow ABB’s MSR technology to liaise with BrainBox’s automated tech to optimize HVAC energy usage, reducing emissions and utility costs for retailers.
Swords, Ireland-based Trane Technologies is an HVAC systems giant with nearly 40,000 employees globally. Trane had already been collaborating with BrainBox for three years through the rollout of its Trane Autonomous Control product.
“Advanced AI technology is supercharging what’s possible as we reduce energy and emissions from the built environment,” Riaz Raihan, chief digital officer at Trane Technologies, said in a statement.
This year, BrainBox has expanded its offerings to building managers through an AI-powered virtual assistant called Artificial Responsive Intelligent Assistant (ARIA). The assistant, developed using Amazon Bedrock, allows users to remotely monitor building energy usage with text and voice control.
BrainBox’s acquisition represents a break in Québec’s drought of tech exits over the past year. According to a joint Canadian Venture Capital Association and Réseau Capital report, the province did not see a publicly disclosed exit by the end of Q3 2024, a trend which Réseau Capital CEO Olivier Quenneville called “very concerning.”
Feature image courtesy BrainBox AI.