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Estonian AI startup Gridraven unlocks new funding and goes for US expansion

Estonian AI startup Gridraven can squeeze 30% more power from existing transmission lines — and they just landed €4M to bring this smart grid tech to the US market.

Another Estonian company is heading to the New World with innovations for smart industry. Gridraven, which develops AI technology to maximise power line capacity, has registered its American subsidiary and secured €4M in fresh funding from leading European venture capital firms, including 42CAP (Germany) and Icebreaker.vc (Finland).

The company’s Dynamic Line Rating technology uses artificial intelligence to predict hyper-local weather conditions, allowing power utilities to push up to 30% more electricity through existing transmission lines each year. This matters because grid constraints have become a major bottleneck in many regions, limiting the deployment of renewable energy and straining power delivery during peak demand.

What makes Gridraven’s approach especially interesting is its focus on squeezing more capacity from existing infrastructure rather than building expensive new power lines. By incorporating detailed weather data and AI analysis, utilities can dynamically adjust how much power they send through transmission lines based on real-world conditions instead of relying on static, conservative limits.

“The US and especially Texas are seeing significant load growth from electrification and data centres. More grid capacity is needed on day-ahead energy markets to power this growth. Our software solution boosts grid capacity with zero additional hardware, helping utilities service this load growth. We’re setting up in Austin, Texas, to be close to our customers,” said Gridraven CEO Georg Rute.

The move into the American market comes at a prime time. According to recent research, 70% of US transmission infrastructure is over 25 years old, and estimates suggest the country needs to triple its transmission capacity by 2050 to meet climate goals.

The US also faces mounting grid challenges as it works to integrate more solar and wind power while managing increased demand from electric vehicles, AI data centres and other electrification. Being able to safely push more power through existing lines could help utilities better handle these transitions without massive infrastructure builds, argues Gridraven.

The company has already seen success, having completed initial testing with Estonian utility company Elering and accurately forecasting power flow on a 110 kV transmission line in forested terrain. The validation compared predictions against eight measurement points over 48-hour periods, outperforming existing wind forecasting methods in the area. Enterprise Estonia also awarded Gridraven €1.5 million under the Programme for Applied Research.

 

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