Frankfurt-based smart city startup ENVIOTECH has secured €1 million in pre-seed funding to advance its intelligent retrofit solutions for public street lighting. The round was led by Jürgen Fitschen, with participation from Joachim Drees.
The company was founded by Adrian Rhaese alongside Linh Pham following a personal experience that highlighted the risks associated with outdated public infrastructure. After a close friend was injured in a cycling accident linked to streetlights being switched off due to rising electricity costs, Rhaese began questioning why critical systems such as public lighting are often among the first to be compromised under financial pressure.
What began as a personal concern evolved into ENVIOTECH, which develops retrofit kits that enable municipalities to upgrade existing street lighting without requiring full replacement.
We started ENVIOTECH after seeing firsthand the consequences of insufficiently managed infrastructure. Street lighting is fundamental to safety, quality of life, and public trust, and we believe it can be managed more intelligently,
said Rhaese.
The company’s technology can be installed in under 15 minutes and allows cities to monitor, dim, and manage lighting more efficiently. According to the company, this approach can reduce energy consumption by up to 80 per cent while improving safety and lowering operational costs.
ENVIOTECH has also received early recognition through its acceptance into the EWOR Fellowship, a competitive program supporting early-stage founders.
With the newly raised capital, ENVIOTECH plans to expand pilot projects with municipalities and infrastructure partners, further develop its technology, and prepare for its next phase of growth. Its broader objective is to improve the efficiency and manageability of urban infrastructure, beginning with street lighting.
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