As European regulators ramp up pressure on businesses to assess and disclose climate risks, real estate owners face an increasingly complex landscape.
In response, Norwegian proptech startup Telescope is helping the European real estate industry move sustainability risk from a compliance checkbox to a strategic advantage.
Today, the company announced that it has raised €3.7 million Seed funding to expand its reach.
I spoke to co-founder and CEO Gustav Haaland to find out more.
Telescope is not the only company that monitors climate risks such as flooding, storm vulnerabilities, and fire-prone areas.
However, as Haaland shared, managing sustainability risks for real estate assets is traditionally complex and time-consuming.
“In every conversation I have, real estate owners tell me the same thing – they’re drowning in ESG reports, consultant slide decks, and EU acronyms, yet they’re still asking: ‘What does this actually mean for my buildings?’ We’re not here to add more paperwork.
Unlike existing solutions, Telescope turns sustainability from an abstract compliance risk into tangible, financially driven decisions.”
Telescope has developed a SaaS platform that enables real estate companies to manage sustainability risks efficiently and affordably, encompassing a variety of metrics.
Customers simply onboard their real estate assets by entering property addresses, and the platform gathers relevant geographical information to assess physical climate risks.
In real estate, extreme weather like flooding and fire not only cause structural damage to property within a real estate portfolio but also a drop in value and increases in insurance costs.
Telescope’s platform also monitors biodiversity. According to Haaland, biodiversity risk is an emerging focus in sustainability discussions around real estate.
“While climate and transition risks have been widely acknowledged, biodiversity considerations have only recently gained traction. Two or three years ago, they weren’t factored in at all."
Building or expanding upon existing properties can have a significant impact on local flora and fauna, especially endangered species. A case in point is the Tesla factory in Germany, whose expansion led to concerns over deforestation, water usage, and pollution. This not only led to expensive court cases and delays but also to reputational damage.
The Telescope platform is useful for companies looking to develop new properties, and could have been used to assess biodiversity in the area before the factory was built to reduce its impact on its surroundings.
According to Haaland, Governments impose strict regulations to protect natural habitats, wetlands, and agricultural land.
“Many real estate firms hold large land banks, but they often lack insight into how much of their land is actually buildable under environmental constraints.
Our technology aggregates data on red-listed species, vulnerable habitats, and protected areas.”
Users can self-assess whether their property operations impact local biodiversity.
The platform also encompasses industry-specific considerations,
“For example, a café in a botanical garden may rely on local biodiversity to attract customers, making sure conservation and compliance are crucial to the health of their business.”
And, as sustainability regulations and practices are always evolving, Telescope’s platform also includes energy monitoring within buildings and a comprehensive transition plan which outlines a company’s strategy for moving towards sustainability, detailing timelines, targets, and the steps undertaken to reduce its environmental impact.
Haaland detailed:
“A major challenge is ensuring that collected data leads to action. Traditionally, companies performed high-level assessments without enough detail to drive meaningful change.
Our platform increases granularity by using national data providers in addition to broad global data. This bottom-up approach allows companies to integrate sustainability considerations into their strategic and financial planning, ensuring risks are effectively mitigated.”
If not addressed, climate risks can lead to not only regulatory penalties but higher insurance premiums and increased maintenance costs.
Founded in 2022, the company has grown to serve several of Norway's largest real estate firms.
In 2024, Telescope signed multiple leading real estate firms in Norway with a team of just eight people and minimal marketing spend.
Now, the company is scaling its footprint, launching in Denmark, Sweden, and the Netherlands, while expanding its platform to serve financiers and investors in the real estate sector.
The funding round is led by Scale Capital and Dreamcraft Ventures, with participation from Curiosity VC and OBOS Oppstart.
The impressive growth in Norway is one of the things that has drawn a lot of attention from investors, according to Joachim Schelde, Senior Associate at Scale Capital.
“What caught our attention was the team’s deep understanding of real estate owners’ pain points in identifying, assessing, and managing the sustainability risks facing their assets, such as floods, wildfires, protected species, and polluted land,” says Joachim Schelde.
“Their momentum in Norway – closing multiple Tier 1 customers in record time – signals a massive opportunity to redefine how the industry approaches climate risk.”
Matilde Lyet, Principal at Dreamcraft Ventures, adds:
“In a market full of generic sustainability tools, Telescope stands out with its laser focus on real estate.
“Their platform quantifies both climate risks and upsides – like the threat of landslides or floods, and the ROI of energy upgrades for both owners and their tenants, enabling property owners to make financially impactful decisions, whether investing in renovations or securing green financing.”
With proven impact in Norway and fresh capital secured, Telescope is helping property owners across Europe turn climate readiness from a challenge into a strategic strength.
Lead image: Telescope. Photo: Christoffer Jellum.
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