Category Visionaries Marc Borrett, CEO & Co-Founder of Reactive Technologies: $80 Million Raised to Build the Future of Grid Measurement
Aug 18, 2024
25:39
Welcome to another episode of Category Visionaries — the show that explores GTM stories from tech's most innovative B2B founders. In today's episode, we're speaking with Marc Borrett, CEO & Co-Founder of Reactive Technologies, a grid measurement platform that's raised over $80 Million in funding.
Here are the most interesting points from our conversation:
- Semiconductor to Energy Transition: Marc leveraged his experience in semiconductors and telecoms to tackle the complex challenges of the energy transition, drawing parallels between the two industries.
- UK vs. US VC Landscape: The UK venture capital environment in the 90s was less sophisticated and visionary compared to Silicon Valley, focusing more on stable returns for pension funds.
- Creating a New Category: Reactive Technologies is pioneering real-time grid stability measurement, a category that didn’t previously exist, by leveraging telecom principles in the energy sector.
- Engineering Insights: The company discovered that grid stability affects signal transmission, leading them to repurpose their technology for measuring grid stability in real time.
- Building Trust in a Conservative Industry: Success in the risk-averse power industry required Reactive Technologies to demonstrate high technical credibility and prove that their innovations would not destabilize the grid.
- Long Road to Revenue: It took five and a half years for Reactive Technologies to generate meaningful revenue, highlighting the importance of patience and investor support in deep-tech startups.
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