Austin AI company SparkCognition grows renewables offerings through acquisition

Austin-based artificial intelligence company SparkCognition has acquired Ensemble Energy to expand its technology offerings in the energy sector.

The company said the acquisition will help it create an AI-enabled management platform focused on clean energy. Terms of the deal weren't disclosed. 

SparkCognition was founded in 2013 and makes machine-learning and AI technology. The company said it has more than 100 clients in a variety of industries, including defense, finance, manufacturing, automotive, telecommunications and energy.

California-based Ensemble Energy was founded in 2017 and makes software and services for the renewable energy sector. Its software is designed to monitor and track analytics for renewable systems, as well as report issues and prevent failures.

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The acquisition adds to SparkCognition’s growing range of energy-related technology, which includes offerings for customers in the power generation and oil and gas sectors. SparkCognition said the addition of Ensemble will help it create products used by the energy industry to transition to renewable sources.

In a statement, Amir Husain, founder and CEO of SparkCognition, said the deal fits his company's mission to solve difficult problems using artificial intelligence. There is “no bigger problem than building a more sustainable future," he said.

"Major energy companies have already been making great strides to adopt more renewable practices and technologies — and through the acquisition of Ensemble Energy, we look forward to continuing collaboration with energy organizations to help them reduce environmental impact, ultimately creating a better, smarter, and more sustainable world," Husain said. 

The platform will help customers save money, maximize energy production and predict, detect and automate logistics for the entire range of renewable sources, the company said, including wind, solar, hydro and storage. It will be aimed at streamlining processes and helping businesses manage trading and financial performance.

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Sandeep Gupta, CEO of Ensemble Energy, said the two companies have a shared mission, so the combination will allow for faster development of technology.

“As the world transitions to clean and greener energy, AI-enabled asset management will be key for the seamless integration and optimization of energy assets,” Gupta said in a statement. “With today’s announcement, we will dramatically increase the depth and breadth of capabilities that we bring to our customers across wind, solar, storage, hydropower, and hydrogen verticals." 

SparkCognition has expanded quickly in recent years. In 2019, the company raised $100 million to grow its AI platform in one of the largest funding rounds that year. Last year, the company created a subsidiary, SparkCognition Government Systems, that focuses on government and national defense products.  

The Ensemble deal is SparkCognition's second acquisition of 2021. In February, it bought Austin-based financial technology company AIM2. It said at the time that the acquisition would expand its existing offerings in the financial sector.

SparkCognition acquired AIM2 from hedge fund Brevan Howard and global investment bank Nomura, and it also formed contracts with both firms to expand further into financial services.