BP enters China AI sector

BP Ventures is leading a round of unconfirmed size with support from Japan’s Jafco Asia and CLP Innovation Ventures, a subsidiary of Hong Kong-based CLP Holdings. BP Ventures’ contribution amounts to $3.6 million.

This is the UK energy giant’s third VC investment in China. Previous activity includes a $10 million contribution to the debut fund of NIO Capital, a unit of electric vehicle (EV) maker Nio, and participation in an early-stage round for EV charging technology provider PowerShare. 

R&B specializes in systems that predict, control and improve energy use in buildings. The company applies AI to energy diagnostics and optimization in the commercial and industrial (C&I) sector, processing data to generate insights and recommendations on reducing carbon emissions and enhancing maintenance. Buildings are said to account for one-third of global energy consumption.

“Improving the energy efficiency of buildings will be crucial for the transition to a lower-carbon world. The C&I buildings sector in China is large and still expanding, so the potential to affect change is significant,” Graham Howes, a managing director at BP Ventures Asia, said in a statement. “R&B’s technology is aimed firmly at this important opportunity.”

BP Ventures claims to have invested more than $500 million in technology companies across about 45 entities since being launched in 2007. In China, it is targeting opportunities under five core strategic areas, including advanced mobility; power and storage; carbon management; bio and low-carbon products; and digital transformation.

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• Topics
• Greater China
• Cleantech
• Technology
• Early-stage
• China
• JAFCO
• artificial intelligence
• energy