Buildings account for nearly 40% of global energy use, with heating, cooling, and hot water production making up roughly half of total building energy consumption. These end uses represent major opportunities to reduce energy demand, enhance energy security, and cut COâ‚‚ emissions.
Energy conservation and efficiency remain the fastest and most cost-effective paths to decarbonizing heating and cooling for buildings. To achieve this, a new wave of Climate Tech startups is redefining how buildings manage thermal energy. Their innovations reduce energy consumption, eliminate harmful refrigerants, and enable scalable, low-carbon systems without increasing strain on power grids.
This article features five startups making heating and cooling of buildings more efficient through materials innovation, smart design, and electrification.
Conry Tech (Australia)
Air conditioning consumes up to 60% of a building’s power. Yet, the basic vapor-compression systems that dominate the HVAC industry have changed little in a century. Conry Tech, a Melbourne-based Climate Tech startup, is rethinking this design.
Founded in 2020 by Ron Conry, Sam Ringwaldt, and Brenda Ringwaldt, the company aims to build the world’s most efficient air conditioner which can dramatically reduce CO2 emissions while improving comfort and indoor air quality.
Conry Tech’s solution is a decentralized air-conditioning system that replaces traditional centralized chillers with a network of smaller, modular units distributed throughout the building. Each unit connects to a shared water circulation loop that transfers heat from one area to another, allowing energy to be reused for heating or cooling elsewhere. This design reduces dependence on external energy sources and refrigerants with high global-warming potential.
By combining modular design, intelligent controls, and adaptive operation, Conry Tech’s system lowers energy use, cuts greenhouse gas emissions, and enhances resilience across varied building layouts.
The company recently raised $3 million in Seed funding to advance its flagship “BullAnt” air conditioner. This innovation is expected to halve energy bills in commercial buildings and deliver substantial CO₂ savings.
Cooll (Netherlands)
Cooll is a Dutch company developing thermally driven heat pumps to replace conventional condensing boilers in residential buildings. Founded in 2009 as a spin-off from the University of Twente, the company focuses on reducing household emissions and energy use without adding strain to the electricity grid.
Its patented system uses a heat-driven adsorption compressor that operates on natural gas or hydrogen. The compressor alternately heats and cools an adsorbent material to pressurize and circulate the refrigerant. During operation, the system extracts heat from the outside air and transfers it to the building’s heating circuit, achieving a 25–40% reduction in gas use and CO₂ emissions compared to traditional boilers.
Cooll’s modular, wall-hung unit is designed as a direct one-to-one boiler replacement, compatible with both high- and low-temperature heating systems. It requires no outdoor unit and can integrate into existing infrastructure with minimal installation effort.
In October 2025, Cooll secured $5.2 million in Seed funding to support the production and deployment of 100 thermally driven heat pumps across the Netherlands. With over 6,000 homes already using its technology, Cooll is positioned to scale as a low-carbon solution for residential heating.
Magnotherm Solutions Gmbh (Germany)
MagnoTherm Solutions is a German company developing high-efficiency, sustainable cooling and heating systems based on the magnetocaloric effect (MCE). Founded in 2019 as a spin-off from Technische Universität Darmstadt, the company combines expertise in materials innovation and magnet technology to deliver refrigeration systems that eliminate the use of harmful gases.
MagnoTherm’s innovation is the application of magnetocaloric material like Lanthanum-Iron-Silicon (LaFeSi) alloy. This solid-state metal can change temperature when exposed to a magnetic field. By coupling these materials with water as the heat transfer medium, the system replaces conventional gas compression cycles. This solid-state design eliminates direct greenhouse gas emissions, achieves up to 40% higher efficiency, and ensures compliance with current and future fluorinated greenhouse gases regulations.
The technology can be applied across sectors such as retail, events, industrial cooling, and hydrogen liquefaction. The company’s materials-driven approach exemplifies how advances in magnetics and material science can accelerate decarbonization in thermal management.
MagnoTherm raised $7.8 million in Seed funding in May 2025 to scale production and advance its next-generation magnetic refrigeration systems.
Stone Mountain Technologies (USA)
Stone Mountain Technologies, Inc. (SMTI) is a U.S.-based company developing advanced gas absorption heat pumps under its Anesi® brand to decarbonize residential and commercial heating. Founded in 2008 by Michael Garrabrant, SMTI’s mission is to deliver efficient, low-emission heating solutions that integrate seamlessly with existing energy infrastructure.
The Anesi gas heat pump operates without a mechanical compressor or harmful refrigerants. Instead, it uses combustion heat from natural gas or propane to drive an absorption cycle that captures additional thermal energy from outdoor air. This process enables an exceptional Annual Fuel Utilization Efficiency (AFUE) of 140%, significantly reducing fuel consumption, energy costs, and COâ‚‚ emissions.
SMTI’s systems are designed for space heating and water heating in homes and small commercial buildings, providing steady performance even in cold climates. The technology’s compatibility with current gas networks allows for near-term deployment. Additionally, it supports a long-term transition to low-carbon fuels such as biogas or hydrogen.
Stone Mountain Technologies raised $14.5 million in Series B funding in July 2025.
Aira (Sweden)
Aira is a Swedish clean energy company driving the electrification of residential heating across Europe. Founded in 2023, the company provides air-source heat pumps and solar panel installations. It offers homeowners a complete clean energy solution to replace fossil fuel-based systems.
Aira’s air-water heat pumps use an electric compression cycle to capture heat from ambient air and transfer it indoors, providing efficient, zero-emission heating. When powered by clean electricity, this technology can cut CO₂ emissions by up to 100% and reduce household heating costs by as much as 40% compared to gas boilers. The systems are designed for seamless integration into existing home heating networks, enabling a fast and scalable path to decarbonization.
The company’s direct-to-consumer model combines vertical integration with flexible no-upfront-cost payment options. This initiative makes clean energy accessible and affordable for households across Europe.
In August 2025, Aira raised $174.9 million in Series C funding to expand production at its new facility in Poland and accelerate deployment of its heat pump systems across key European markets.
Scaling climate impact in heating and cooling of buildings
For the built environment to achieve meaningful decarbonization, heating and cooling systems must evolve beyond incremental efficiency gains. Urgent action is required if the building stock of the future is to consume less energy and generate lower COâ‚‚ emissions.
The startups in heating and cooling for buildings discussed above are driving significant decarbonization by replacing fossil-dependent infrastructure. The technology developed by these startups help in cutting emissions enabling large-scale retrofitting opportunities.
Sustained investment, targeted policy incentives, and continuous innovation will be essential to move these technologies from niche adoption to mainstream deployment. These measures can accelerate the transition toward a low-carbon, energy-efficient future.
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