soladigm

Picture brightens on auto-tinting smart windows

Windows that shade automatically have been part of high-tech home demos for years, but there are signs that smart glass is leaving research labs and heading into more actual buildings.

Building-materials maker Saint Gobain earlier this week acquired Sage Electrochromics, and another smart glass startup, Soladigm, signed a distribution deal with Guardian Industries, one of the largest glass manufacturers.

Materials scientists have toiled for years developing glass that can automatically tint based on the amount of light coming in, but technical challenges have meant that the technology is hardly used.

The investment by large companies in tintable window glass signals … Read more

Soladigm lands cash for energy-saving 'smart glass'

Rather than rely on blinds, Soladigm has a glass product that uses sensors to tell windows how to adjust light.

The Silicon Valley-based start-up said Tuesday that it raised $30 million in private equity to move forward on its plan to manufacture auto-tinting windows for energy-efficient commercial buildings. The series-C round of funding was led by DBL Investors and Nano Dimension and includes money from General Electric and existing investors Khosla Ventures and Sigma Partners.

Earlier this year, Soladigm secured $44 million in loans and grants from the state of Mississippi to construct a factory to make its "smart … Read more

'Smart window' maker Soladigm to build factory

Soladigm, a start-up that makes windows that can adjust to block light and heat, plans to build a factory in Mississippi.

The company, which is bankrolled by Khosla Ventures and Sigma Partners, will make electrochromatic windows at the plant which will employ about 100 people in Olive Branch, Miss. in two years.

The three-year-old company has developed a material that is coated onto glass to block out light and heat, an effective way of insulating and reducing a building's energy load.

"The product is dynamic glass--it's like sunglasses that transition based on light," CEO and semiconductor … Read more