Today, machine-learning start-up Verv announced that it has raised £827k on Crowdcube, more than doubling its initial target of £350k as it embarks on the next phase of its growth. The company has brought on board an incredible 1030 investors as it gains support for international growth in the Middle East, Far East and Europe.

Speaking of the crowd raise, Verv CEO & Founder Peter Davies said, “We are thrilled to have support from 1030 new crowd investors as we embark on a journey from start-up to scale-up. Since our Crowdcube raise in 2017, we have gained interest worldwide for our smart hub technology and blockchain-based energy trading platform and we are excited to take on new markets and customers with propositions which span energy efficiency, insurance, elderly care and renewables.”

The raise comes hot on the heels of a £500k investment from innogy International Middle East (IME) which has added Verv to its portfolio in order to further bolster the smart living transformation in the Middle East. The investment is the latest in a series of disruptive technologies secured by innogy IME as they support the UAE government’s vision to take a leading role in smart cities and the application of cutting-edge technology.

With its powerful analysis tools and unique machine learning abilities, Verv is giving users greater insight into their household electricity consumption, displaying the real-time cost and consumption for each of your key appliances via a smartphone app. This information, coupled with personalised insights, can enable users to reduce electricity use, minimise their carbon footprint and bring down bills. Verv also provides safety alerts when certain heated appliances like hair straighteners have been left on for too long, adding to its smart home functionality.

Furthermore, by incorporating blockchain technology into the hub, Verv has created an energy trading platform that’s looking to tackle climate change by incentivising the uptake of renewables, whilst improving access to cheaper, green energy via community sharing schemes.

Last year, Verv executed the UK’s first peer-to-peer trade of energy on blockchain at its trial site in Hackney, London which UK energy giant Centrica (British Gas) has recently joined in order to trial the impact of energy trading on customer bills, as well as establish what bills would look like in the era of peer-to-peer energy trading.

Source: Company website