Schneider Electric's VC Arm: The AI Buildout Is Creating A New Industrial Investment Cycle
Crunchbase News recently spoke with SE Ventures managing partner Amit Chaturvedy about how the company is backing startups building the technologies that underpin the AI economy - everything from data center infrastructure and grid resilience to robotics and industrial AI. Gené Teare This is an ongoing series on investors focused on rebuilding the physical layer. Previous interviews in the series were with ex-Meta CTO Mike Schroepfer, founder of Gigascale Capital , and Peter Barrett, a decade-long investor at Playground Global .
Key Takeaways
- Schneider Electric has spent nearly two centuries adapting to successive industrial revolutions - evolving from a 19th century steel and heavy machinery company into a global leader in energy management and automation.
Now, through its $1 billion venture arm, SE Ventures , the company is betting that the next transformation will be driven by AI's collision with the physical world, from data centers and power grids to robotics and industrial automation.
- The significance of the energy and industrial sectors has grown with AI, and that has led even traditionally tech-focused venture investors to rush into the space.
"Today, the scarce resource in this entire space is the capacity to build - building, real estate, energy, power and electrification gear," Chaturvedy said.
- In our conversation, we spoke about power scarcity, the electrical grid, workforce training, reindustrialization and notable portfolio companies.
- Model training has upleveled to inference so you need AI infrastructure.
- Together AI and Hammerhead AI are very interested in partnering with Schneider Electric, because Schneider Electric is a leading electrification player in the data center space.
Stats & Key Facts
- #Now, through its $1 billion venture arm, SE Ventures , the company is betting that the next transformation will be driven by AI's collision with the physical world, from data centers and power grids to robotics and industrial automation.
- #SE Ventures counts eight unicorns in its portfolio , and has notched 12 exits including its most recent, Fabric8Labs , a 3D metal printing technology acquired by Tokyo-based electronic manufacturer TDK Corp.
- #Around 80% of the startups in its portfolio have some level of commercial relationship with a business unit of Schneider Electric.
Schneider Electric has spent nearly two centuries adapting to successive industrial revolutions - evolving from a 19th century steel and heavy machinery company into a global leader in energy management and automation. Now, through its $1 billion venture arm, SE Ventures , the company is betting that the next transformation will be driven by AI's collision with the physical world, from data centers and power grids to robotics and industrial automation. For Amit Chaturvedy , who joined SE Ventures in 2022 after leading corporate investments at Cisco , AI's biggest opportunities extend well beyond software.
As demand for compute strains energy infrastructure and accelerates reindustrialization, the firm is backing startups building the technologies that underpin the AI economy - investing in everything from data center infrastructure and grid resilience to robotics and industrial AI. Crunchbase News spoke with Chaturvedy about where those opportunities are emerging, why energy has become AI's defining constraint, and how industrial technology is being reshaped by the AI era. "We were set up with the intent to figure out where the market is headed," he said.
The significance of the energy and industrial sectors has grown with AI, and that has led even traditionally tech-focused venture investors to rush into the space. "Today, the scarce resource in this entire space is the capacity to build - building, real estate, energy, power and electrification gear," Chaturvedy said. SE Ventures counts eight unicorns in its portfolio , and has notched 12 exits including its most recent, Fabric8Labs , a 3D metal printing technology acquired by Tokyo-based electronic manufacturer TDK Corp.
For more details please read the original article at Crunchbase News.
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