Octopus Energy Group establishes new tech hub in Manchester with acquisition of Upside Energy

• Innovation centre to focus on EnTech, data science and AI
• Move is key part of Octopus’s plan to make UK the ‘Silicon Valley of Energy’

London, 3 November, 2020. Tech unicorn Octopus Energy Group today announces the acquisition of Upside Energy, a leading energy software company based in Manchester. The move establishes the base of UK energy pioneer Octopus’s new technology innovation centre, first announced during a visit by the Prime Minister and the Chancellor to the company’s London office at the start of the month.

The new energy technology (EnTech) hub will play a pivotal role in achieving Octopus Energy’s ambition of making the UK the ‘Silicon Valley of Energy’. It will help develop the smart grid technologies required for a green energy system and the electrification of transport and heating. Octopus Energy’s teams in Manchester, London and Silicon Valley will work closely together to help deliver digital solutions which automatically warm homes and charge cars when energy is greenest.

Upside Energy was founded in 2014 with a vision to enable people to make greener energy choices. Its cloud-based platform connects with clean energy technologies such as electric vehicles, heat pumps and batteries, allowing it to manage those devices to match real-time energy demand and supply. This helps to balance the grid and enables customers to capitalise on cheaper, greener power. Upside has established an impressive customer base with both utilities and asset owners across the energy industry which Octopus plans to build on whilst rapidly expanding Upside’s capabilities internationally and into the consumer sphere.

The integration of Upside’s data science and AI expertise will add further capabilities to Octopus’s proprietary cloud-based technology platform ‘Kraken’. The scalable platform, which is now contracted to serve 17 million energy accounts globally, is designed to drive the smart grid globally, giving customers access to cheaper electricity when the grid is greener. The new partnership will enable ‘Kraken’ to automatically manage energy devices, adding another layer to its tech stack offering. The fast-growth disruptor is targeting 100 million energy accounts on its platform by 2027.

Greg Jackson, CEO and founder of Octopus Energy Group, said:

“I’m hugely impressed by Upside’s team and efforts in building a deep-tech platform that does fantastic things with real-time energy, connected home devices, and renewables. Forward-thinking businesses like Upside are one of the reasons why I’m convinced that we can make the UK the ‘Silicon Valley of Energy’. We’re delighted to welcome these brilliant minds into our team to drive the green EnTech revolution here in the UK and abroad.”

Upside Energy CEO Devrim Celal said:

“I’m really excited for Upside as we become part of Octopus Energy Group and take advantage of the opportunities this acquisition will bring. We are joining forces with a like-minded team who share our ambitions to play a major role in achieving the transition to a net-zero world. Together, we have the opportunity to drive global growth and continue to develop our brilliant team to solve the complex challenges ahead.”

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Notes for editors:

Press Contact

Christina Hess

T: +44 7897 699 195

E: christina.hess@octoenergy.com

About Octopus Energy Group

Octopus Energy Group was launched in 2016 with a vision of using technology to make the green energy revolution affordable whilst transforming customer experiences. Its domestic energy arm already serves over 1.7 million customers with cheaper greener power, through Octopus Energy, M&S Energy, Affect Energy, London Power and Co-op Energy.

Octopus Energy for Business manages over 20,000 customers with proprietary energy offerings. Octopus Electric Vehicles is helping make clean transport cheaper and easier, and Octopus Energy Services is bringing smart products to thousands of homes.

All of these are made possible by OEG's tech arm, Kraken Technologies, which offers a proprietary, in-house platform based on advanced data and machine learning capabilities, Kraken automates much of the energy supply chain to allow outstanding service and efficiency as the world transitions to a decentralised, decarbonised energy system. This technology has been licensed to support over 17 million accounts worldwide, through deals with Good Energy, E.ON energy, 4hundred and Origin Energy.

The business is backed by Octopus Group, a financial services and energy firm, which manages more than £8.6bn of funds and has invested more than £2.7bn in renewable assets across Europe. In April 2020, Octopus Energy Group became a UK tech unicorn, valued at well over £1 billion following an investment from leading Australian energy company Origin Energy. With operations in Germany, Australia and the US, Octopus Energy Group's mission to drive the affordable green revolution is going global. 

For more information, check out our website. 

Upside Energy

Press contact:

Nick Johnson

T: 07827314731

E: nick.johnson@upside.energy

About Upside Energy:

Our pioneering cloud platform is the bridge between the physical and financial elements of the energy system, providing route to market opportunities and monetising distributed energy resources (DERs). We enable our customers to future proof their ability to capitalise on the energy transition.

For more information, visit www.upside.energy.