COI Energy Solves a Dilemma: Allowing Businesses to Sell Unused Electricity – Get it at TechCrunch Disrupt 2025

When it comes to supplying electricity to large institutions with multiple buildings, the allocation system is considered outdated. Unlike homeowners, who pay for what they actually use, universities purchase standard monthly capacity. This capacity must, by common sense, be based on maximum usage needs. This is true even if the company has this maximum usage rarely, such as in one busy season.

This was the situation that disturbed Hell COI energy Founder and CEO, Saliza Perrin. After earning her degree in mechanical engineering (and later an MBA), she spent 25 years as an energy engineer at major utility companies such as PECO, Con Edison, and Exelon, as well as a few clean energy startups.

Perrin chose this field because, when she was a child, there were times when her parents could not pay the electricity bill. “We were in the dark a lot. When I was a child, my self-esteem was low,” she told TechCrunch. Other kids who knew her situation teased her.

So when she got her degree and got a job at an electrical company, “all my friends said, ‘You’re crazy.’ This is a stagnant field. It is a white, male-dominated, older male field. Why are you doing this?’ And for me, it was personal, because I knew what I felt as a child.” Perrin wanted to make electricity more efficient, affordable, and more available so that no child would ever go without it.

She has worked in customer operations, smart grids, and clean energy programs.

“As an engineer, I would like to go in and make recommendations on how they can improve the energy performance of their buildings, how they can eliminate bottlenecks in the production lines,” Perrin said.

I learned how to use big data to improve energy efficiency. But no one was addressing the underlying problem: companies were booking and paying for much more energy than they were using.

Commercial clients were constantly asking her why they were being overcharged. “I agree,” she said. “Why can’t you pay on demand for what you use?”

Berrien’s answer resulted in three patents (and counting) and the founding of COI Energy on that technology, assembling a team that included building management, energy engineers, and a former energy executive. I’ve hired people who are skilled at everything from organization to pricing.

A COI solution is a marketplace where organizations within the same utility company can sell some of their energy allocations when COI data predicts they won’t need it. COI is The emerging battlefield The top 20 finalists will have their technology on display TechCrunch disabled 2025this week in San Francisco.

COI installs a patented energy portal at each customer site to measure energy use. It is associated with building systems and SCADA systems. It’s hardware-agnostic, meaning it can work with any existing facility or building power system, Perrin said. After collecting data for a period of time, the platform predicts how much electricity the company will really need. “We can predict 90 days out,” she said.

The organization can then decide how much unused energy it wants to release. COI pays companies for that capacity, and buyers in the market pay COI to get it. “If a customer gives us 100 kilowatts, we will pay them for that 100 kilowatts, and then the buyers will buy it from us.”

COI is still in the pre-seed phase, having raised $3.5 million from investors like Paul Farr, former CEO of Talen Energy, Morgan Stanley Inclusive and Sustainable Ventures, Kachuwa Impact Fund, Chloe Capital, and some crowdfunding on Republic.

However, the startup is already generating revenue through five pilot customers, all of whom have at least 50 buildings. It operates in California, Florida, Massachusetts, and New York, and has a waiting list. In addition, COI is in talks to be a solutions provider for Switzerland as it enacts a national energy policy where businesses and households can share capacity, starting in 2026, Perrin said.

On top of that – and she recalled her ordeal as a young girl – Perrin’s startup allocates 1% of the savings that businesses earn on the platform to donate to non-profit organizations that help the disadvantaged with their energy needs. These are organizations that help pay bills, provide weather protection, and offer energy programs like solar.

“We pay these costs forward through what we call kilowatts for good,” Perrin said.

Its goal is to deliver technology that helps our now stressed energy systems. “Instead of wasting power, you share it,” she said. “So, we are making the planet better. We are improving our outcomes. At the same time, we are helping and uplifting our communities.”

If you want to learn more about COI Energy from the company itself — while also checking out dozens of other companies, hearing their ideas, and hearing from guest speakers on four different stages — join us at Disrupt, Monday through Wednesday, in San Francisco. Learn more here.