Best Energy Efficiency Tech Companies in Illinois, United States
The 66 best Energy Efficiency Tech companies in Illinois, United States in 2026, ranked by funding and momentum. Funding, investors, founders, valuation, tech stack and live signals. Top: SMS Assist.
Our analysis of 50 Energy Efficiency Tech companies
$7.8b in tracked funding; 86% of the stack-profiled cohort runs cloud-native; funding activity peaked in 2025.
Ranked: Best Energy Efficiency Tech companies in Illinois
| # | Company | Disclosed funding | Last round | Stage | Founder | Founded | Tech stack | Patents & IP focus | Recent signals |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | SMS Assist 🦄 Provider of SaaS-driven maintenance management solutions for commercial spaces | $255M | 120 mo ago | Acquired | Jay McKee CEO | 2003 | Apple iCloud MailEnvoyBootstrap+8 | 4 patents Software algorithms for defining and managing geographic service area boundaries | — |
| 2 | Azumo Manufacturer of front-lit liquid crystal technology for displays | $56M | 49 mo ago | Series B | — | 2004 | WordPressMySQLPHP+24 | 43 patents Film-based lightguide backlighting and edge‑light management for displays and privacy modes | — |
| 3 | Univa Data center optimization and HPC workload management solution | $46M | 107 mo ago | Acquired | — | 2004 | — | — | — |
| 4 | Cohesion Provider of a platform for smart building management and operations 48Growth top 20%Funding top 35%Tech top 37%Talent top 38% All 12 signals ▾Growthtop 20% Fundingtop 35% Techtop 37% Talenttop 38% Moattop 41% Producttop 47% Globalbottom 40% Innovationbottom 36% Marketbottom 35% Patentsbottom 34% Newsbottom 21% Customersbottom 9% Growth: Headcount 21 → 44 (+110%) across vintages · 1 acquisition/expansion move in 24 mo Funding: Raised $30.2M across 4 rounds · 4 rounds over 6 yrs (0.7/yr) rank vs industry peers · Fliar Intelligence Index 48/100 | $30M | 7 mo ago | Series A | Nick Lawrence Co-Founder | 2018 | WebflowZohoZepto+25 | 3 patents Patents concentrated in computing, sensing & instrumentation | — |
| 5 | RedWave Energy Provider of energy generation solution from IR | $19M | 84 mo ago | Series B | — | 2011 | — | — | — |
| 6 | FreshAir Sensor Developer of an air-sensor device to detect tobacco and marijuana smoke 55Talent top 22%Moat top 31%Innovation top 35%Growth top 35% All 10 signals ▾Talenttop 22% Moattop 31% Innovationtop 35% Growthtop 35% Fundingtop 38% Patentstop 38% Producttop 40% Techtop 48% Marketbottom 32% Globalbottom 31% Talent: Analyst team rating 5/5 · 3 named leaders on record Moat: Editorial + unicorn rating 7/10 · IP moat: 15 patents rank vs industry peers · Fliar Intelligence Index 55/100 | $12M | 19 mo ago | Series B | John O'Toole Co-Founder | 2013 | WordPressMySQLPHP+30 | 15 patents Selective VOC and gas sensing using molecularly imprinted polymer sensor technologies | — |
| 7 | Buildings As Batteries Developer of thermal energy storage system for commercial building applications | $8M | 95 mo ago | Series A | Gregor Henze Co-Founder | 2007 | — | — | — |
| 8 | Goby SaaS-driven platform offering energy management solutions | $7M | 64 mo ago | Acquired | — | 2008 | — | 2 patents Modular hygienic inductive charging stands for handheld electronic devices | — |
| 9 | Mezo Provider of AI-powered property maintenance software | $6M | 42 mo ago | Acquired | Mike Travalini Co-Founder & CEO | 2020 | SentryFirebasestyled-components+15 | 4 patents AI-powered conversational diagnostics for industrial equipment maintenance and repair | — |
| 10 | Sigora International Provider of smart micro grid platform and smart meters | $3M | 102 mo ago | Seed | Andy Bogdan Bindea Founder & CEO | 2015 | — | — | — |
| 11 | Indie Energy Provider of geothermal heating and cooling solutions | $2M | 199 mo ago | Funding Raised | Eric Schrock CEO | 2006 | — | — | — |
| 12 | Eta Vision Offers data center energy management solutions | $2M | 95 mo ago | Seed | Michael Lingle CEO & Cofounder | 2015 | — | — | — |
| 13 | iTRACS AI-enhanced DCIM solution for smarter, data-driven infrastructure management | $2M | 194 mo ago | Acquired | James Sherrin CEO & Director | 1987 | WordPressMySQLPHP+11 | 33 patents Monitoring and diagnosing data port connection patterns in hardware interfaces | — |
| 14 | SmarterShade Developer of user-controlled, powerless, affordable smart glass for privacy and energy | $200K | 158 mo ago | Seed | Will McLeod Founder | 2007 | — | 14 patents Smart adaptive windows using mechanically actuated variable light transmission technology | — |
| 15 | Route SaaS-driven business management platform for the building services industry | $100K | 47 mo ago | Funding Raised | Ricardo Regalado Founder & CEO | 2007 | WordPress Site EditorElementorWordPress+32 | 5 patents Remote desktop access solutions and email message rerouting technologies | — |
Top 12 Energy Efficiency Tech companies in Illinois
#1
Series A · Chicago, Illinois · founded 2018 · 44 employees$30.2Mraised▾
Provider of a platform for smart building management and operations. The platform offers solutions for access control, experience enhancement, and maintenance. It consolidates data from building systems, software, and sensors into a unified platform. The platform also provides advisory services for planning, solution design, and system integrations.
- Nov 2025Series A$250K
- Nov 2021Series A$15M
- Jul 2021Seed$7M
- Jul 2020Seed$8.2M
#2
Series B · Lebanon, Illinois · founded 2013 · 36 employees$11.8Mraised▾
Developer of an air-sensor device to detect tobacco and marijuana smoke. It provides a two-plug adapter that fits over existing wall outlets and leverages Wi-Fi to send infraction information to a central monitoring system, which results in an email to the admin. Its device comprises polymer sensors that detect specific airborne chemicals like the biological receptors in the human body that is by binding only with the target molecule, making them sensitive and specific and resetting when the target molecules are cleared. It also provides an app that allows users to monitor the detection of smoke.
- Nov 2024Series B$3.7M
- May 2023Series A$1M
- Sep 2019Grant (prize money)$1.5M
- Jan 2019Series A$3.5M
#3
Series B · Chicago, Illinois · founded 2004 · 41 employees$56.1Mraised▾
Manufacturer of front-lit liquid crystal technology for displays. It develops front-lit reflective LCDs that consume low power. Its features include a thin display stack, power efficiency, ambient light utilization, colour enhancement, and low-powered light-emitting diodes. It has applications in medical, educational, industrial, wearables, automotive, consumer electronics, and IoT systems.
- May 2022Series B$30M
- Dec 2020Series B$9M
- Nov 2018Series B$9M
- Aug 2017Series A$3.1M
#4
Acquired · Chicago, Illinois · founded 2003 · 782 employees$255Mraised▾
Provider of SaaS-driven maintenance management solutions for commercial spaces. It integrates clients, affiliates, and employees in one online tech-enabled platform. It offers various managed like vendor management, facility management, work order management, call center management, quality assurance, and asset management. It also offers training and education programs to its technicians.
- Jun 2016Series D$150M
- May 2015Series C$45M
- Oct 2013Series B$45M
- Jun 2011Series A$15M
#5
Acquired · Hoffman Estates, Illinois · founded 2004 · 12 employees$46.4Mraised▾
Univa offers data center optimization and HPC workload management solution. The company's product offering is gridEngine, an HPC workload management solution. Also offers tools to provide optimization and management software for traditional, dynamic and cloud data centers. The products are used to improve resource sharing, amplify the efficiency of people and processes, and increase application and license utilization. The company offers an integrated product set for managing shared, high-demand data center resources ranging from workload management to policy-driven provisioning across physical, virtual and cloud resources.
- Jun 2017Series C$3.5M
- Oct 2015Series C$250K
- May 2014Series C$500K
- Feb 2012Series C$10.4M
#6
Acquired · Chicago, Illinois · founded 2020 · 29 employees$6Mraised▾
Provider of AI-powered property maintenance software. This software integrates with existing property management systems to improve communication between residents and maintenance teams. It facilitates faster issue resolution through resident coaching and provides technicians with detailed information before arriving on-site. The platform leverages data to anticipate maintenance needs and optimize resource allocation, ultimately reducing costs and enhancing efficiency. The software offers features such as intelligent intake, asset tag matching, and real-time problem classification.
- Dec 2022Seed$6M
#7
Series B · Glen Ellyn, Illinois · founded 2011 · 13 employees$18.7Mraised▾
RedWave is developing unique technology to generate renewable energy from the untapped infrared (IR) and near IR spectrum and harvest electricity in the visible range. This development is made by licensed nano-antenna technology. Electricity can be generated from heat lost by industrial processes.
- May 2019Series B$5.2M
- Jul 2016Series B$5.5M
- Aug 2015Series A$1M
- Mar 2015Series A$1M
#8
Acquired · Chicago, Illinois · founded 2008 · 33 employees$7.4Mraised▾
SaaS-driven platform offering energy management solutions. The platform helps building owners, architects, management companies, tenant representatives, tenants, and contractors integrate green thinking into their decision-making processes and policies. It facilitates owners to manage their entire portfolio on the cloud, turning data into actionable information.
- Jan 2021Series A$1.9M
- Sep 2019Series A—
- Dec 2015Series A$5M
- Aug 2014Seed$500K
#9
Series A · Chicago, Illinois · founded 2007$7.6Mraised▾
Developer of thermal energy storage system for commercial building applications. The system utilizes building materials as a thermal energy storage medium. It manages thermal load profiles to reduce energy consumption. The system aims to reduce carbon emissions as a byproduct.
- Jul 2018Grant (prize money)$1.1M
- Jul 2011Series A$7.2M
- Oct 2010Seed$450K
#10
Seed · Chicago, Illinois · founded 2015 · 36 employees$2.9Mraised▾
Sigora International has developed a smart microgrid management system enabled with smart meters for rural households and microgrid areas. It offers proprietary pre-pay enabled smart meters and cloud-based network system which can identify thefts, demand control with secure RF communications. Its subsidiary Signora Haiti has developed a smart micro utility system in Haiti to demonstrate its technology.
- Dec 2017Seed$2M
- Oct 2016Seed$649.7K
- Dec 2015Conventional Debt$50K
- Seed$200K
#11
Seed · Chicago, Illinois · founded 2015 · 8 employees$2Mraised▾
Offers data center energy management solutions It works with data centers and utilities to maximize infrastructure flexibility, reliability, and efficiency and improve operator visibility through a smart zero management sensor network and control system. Their system offers real-time physical visualization, monitoring, and also cloud and API connectivity.
- Jun 2018Seed$2M
- Seed—
#12
Funding Raised · Evanston, Illinois · founded 2006 · 8 employees$2.5Mraised▾
Provider of geothermal heating and cooling solutions. It provides smart geothermal heating and cooling technologies for commercial and public buildings.
- Nov 2009Grant (prize money)$2.5M
Funding & investor landscape
Notable founders
Market landscape — 10 sub-themes by coverage
Share of Energy Efficiency Tech coverage by sub-theme.
Regulatory-risk over time rising
Funding & growth over time
funding rising · growth rising
How research on Energy Efficiency in Illinois is moving
A read on the academic research around Energy Efficiency in Illinois — which themes are gaining ground, the institutions and researchers driving them, and how the tone is shifting. Based on 52 papers.
- University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign30
- Illinois Institute of Technology11
- Southern Illinois University Carbondale4
- University of Illinois System3
- University of Illinois Chicago2
- Energy management4
- Heat pump3
- Energy management system3
- Electricity2
- Model predictive control2
- Heat pump5→6
- Heat pump5
- Heat exchanger4
- Mechanical engineering2
- Cooling capacity1
- Current (fluid)1
Common questions
Rohit lives in the feed. He covers what's moving right now — the funding rounds, launches and shifts breaking across the trade press — and ties them back to where the sector is heading.