A16z Crypto leads $9 million investment in DePin Project Daylight

Venture capital firm, A16z Crypto, just announced a significant investment in Daylight, a company focused on decentralizing energy management through distributed energy resources (DERs). This comes as a part of a broader trend towards the deployment of DERs like solar panels, batteries, and smart thermostats, which are seen as a crucial part of a modernized energy grid. Led by 16z Crypto, with participation from Framework Ventures, Lattice Fund, Escape Velocity, and Lerer Hippeau, Daylight managed to secure $9 million in funding.

As the energy sector continues to experience explosive growth, Daylight energy is a project that is developing a decentralised physical infrastructure network (DePIN) for energy distribution. According to a report by the International Energy Agency, global electricity demand between 2024 to 2026 will continue to rise by 3.4%, influenced by the rising adoption of electrical vehicles and the expansion of data centres.

Daylight Energy CEO Jason Badeaux told Cointelegraph that the International Energy Agency (IEA) predicts a staggering $600 billion annual investment is required to upgrade the power grid to meet net zero and energy security goals.But the Daylight team is building a first of its kind platform through the use of the Web3 market model to create a more efficient power infrastructure without having to spend a huge sum of money.

Daylight's testnet went live on July 31, enabling users to connect distributed energy devices to its mobile app and receive rewards. Daylight envisions various use cases for its protocols. For example, a home powered by solar panels, an electric vehicle, and a smart thermostat that has the ability to generate, store and discharge energy as needed. Daylight is openly collaborating with energy companies who can purchase data generated by these devices to enhance their grid management capabilities.

Daylight’s decentralized marketplace will allow homeowners and building owners to collectively offer their excess energy for sale. Virtual power plant operators can then bid on these pooled energy resources. This sets a scene for a competitive market where homeowners and businesses can sell their energy assets to the interested buyers in real time. This would also potentially lower the cost spent on wasted excessive energy.

Team of experts driving the energy revolution

Daylight is helmed by CEO and co-founder Jason Badeaux, a seasoned energy industry veteran with a passion for cryptocurrency. His co-founders, Udit Patel and Evan Caron, bring complementary expertise in grid management and power trading respectively. Together with a team of grid specialists, blockchain developers, and industry experts, they form a powerhouse driving Daylight’s mission.

Joining other giants

In the DePin sector, energy-focused Depin projects like Daylight are attracting significant attention from investors. Other established DePin players like Helium have also announced plans for subnetworks that might involve decentralized computing and energy management. But Daylight will continue its vision to contribute to the modernization and decentralisation of the American energy grid through the use of blockchain technology to enhance grid management and efficiency.