The startup that collects electricity

Although it may seem like science fiction, it is not.

Thomas Osborne
Thomas Osborne
29 November 2022 Tuesday 23:45
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The startup that collects electricity

Although it may seem like science fiction, it is not. The Barcelona startup Energiot is capable of "converting vibrations and magnetic fields into electrical energy," says Gonzalo Murillo, the entrepreneur behind this company born within the Barcelona Microelectronics Institute (IMB-CNM CSIC).

Energiot's is a long history that begins with Murillo's doctoral thesis, dedicated to the development of devices for harvesting energy from environmental vibrations. "To put the knowledge of the doctorate into practice", the entrepreneur entered the MB-CNM CSIC, where he had "the opportunity to work in the only clean room in the country that uses silicon microelectronics", in the words of Murillo. Technological advances became a business idea after the Granada-born researcher took part in the Engega programme, organized by the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB) in collaboration with the Repsol Emprendedores Fund and KIC Innoenergy.

Murillo's business idea led him to win several awards, but the one that gave him the greatest visibility was being chosen by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) as one of the European leaders under 35 years of age. After this recognition, the entrepreneur and two more researchers from the IMB-CNM CSIC founded the startup Energiot, at the end of 2017. "Since then we have been working on scaling the product and fitting it into the market through four ongoing pilot projects with Iberdrola, EDP, Enercal and ASM Terni”, explains the co-founder.

Energiot focuses on the development of "devices with smart sensors that do not need a battery and that allow electricity companies to have greater knowledge of their assets and reduce their maintenance and operation costs," says Murillo. The savings can be 20%, according to the entrepreneur. These devices, which are the result of years of research and development, are scheduled to be commercially viable in 2023.

Before that, the startup seeks to close a financing round to hire more people and be able to carry out the aforementioned pilot projects, plus other proposals that come to the company from different countries around the world. Previously, Energiot received an investment of 120,000 euros from the European business accelerator EIT InnoEnergy, in addition to the money received in the various prizes won.