We are excited to announce Twelve Below’s recent investment in Coral, an AI-powered platform that finances energy-efficient building upgrades. We are thrilled to have led the pre-seed with Floating Point at the end of 2024, and also excited to have recently participated in their $7.5M seed round from ResilienceVC, Accion Ventures, Blackhorn Ventures, Remarkable Ventures, and New Climate Ventures. The round also includes a strategic investment from Watsco Ventures, a business unit of Watsco, the largest HVAC distributor in North America.
A Broken Rebate System
Sustainable building upgrades represent a massive $450 billion market in the US. While products like heat pumps can dramatically lower long-term heating and cooling costs, their high upfront prices keep them out of reach for the average American. At the same time, utilities, governments, and equipment suppliers offer billions of dollars in incentives for these energy-efficient upgrades. Yet despite these subsidies making heat pumps much cheaper than legacy systems, overall adoption sits at just 15%. The massive roadblock here is the sheer complexity of the rebate system itself. Homeowners simply don’t know which credits they qualify for, how to actually claim them, or when they will see the money.
Contractors are dealing with the same uncertainty, making it nearly impossible for them to confidently adjust quotes or offer financing options that include these amazing rebates. Even though many heat pump purchases are financed today, existing third-party lenders are unequipped to handle the complex, granular data collection required to finance these specific incentives. This creates a frustrating gap in which contractors miss out on the higher margins associated with heat pump installations.
Financing the Electrification Revolution
Coral steps in to eliminate this friction completely by automatically applying government incentives directly to point-of-sale financing upfront. Once a system is installed, Coral verifies eligibility and sends funds to the contractor within 24 hours. The contractor can then seamlessly file for the rebate using Coral’s automation tools.
This allows contractors to apply the rebate directly to the customer’s quote, offering significantly lower monthly payments and instant access to financing options up front, to dramatically increase sales. With local and state rebates reaching up to $10,000 and more, this upfront capital is a total game-changer for homeowners.
The momentum is already building. Coral is now powering over 100 leading installers across the Northeast. They are also working closely with industry leaders like Watsco and leading equipment manufacturers like Mitsubishi Electric Trane to bring their solution nationwide.
The Right Team
When we met co-founders Samir and Nizar, it was immediately clear they brought the perfect mix of business and product expertise needed to tackle this highly fragmented market. Samir previously was a Project Leader at The Boston Consulting Group, while Nizar brings nearly 15 years of experience scaling engineering teams at CareOf, Rent the Runway, and Betterment.
Over the long term, we truly believe Coral will become the definitive financing platform for the trades industry, powering the massive home electrification revolution. We couldn’t be happier to partner with Samir, Nizar, the entire Coral team, and a new group of incredibly strategic investors on this amazing journey!