Lunar Energy has raised $232 million across multiple funding rounds to accelerate the deployment of its residential clean energy systems across the United States. The California-based startup builds integrated solar, battery, and software solutions that allow households to generate, store, and manage electricity while reducing emissions and energy costs.

The company was founded in 2020 by Kunal Girotra, formerly the head of Tesla Energy, with the aim of combining hardware and software into a single platform capable of supporting large-scale home electrification.

Virtual Power Plants at the Core of the Strategy

At the center of Lunar Energy’s model is its Virtual Power Plant (VPP) software platform, which connects hundreds of thousands of distributed energy devices across U.S. homes. These include home batteries, rooftop solar systems, EV chargers, and smart thermostats, which are coordinated to operate collectively as a virtual power plant.

According to the company, participation in these VPP programs generated average earnings of $464 per customer over the past year. Customers also saved an additional $338 compared to operating a standard standalone home battery, reflecting the financial upside of coordinated, grid-connected energy management.

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Capital to Expand Batteries and Software Platform

Lunar Energy said the new funding will be used to expand deployment of its battery systems nationwide while further scaling its distributed energy software platform, Lunar Gridshare. The platform enables utilities and grid operators to tap residential energy assets for demand response, grid balancing, and resilience during peak demand or outages.

Founder and CEO Kunal Girotra said the company was built on the belief that the energy transition requires tight integration between physical infrastructure and intelligent software, rather than reliance on either in isolation.

Investors Back Integrated Hardware-Software Model

The financing includes a $102 million Series D round led by B Capital and Prelude Ventures, alongside a previously undisclosed $130 million Series C round led by Activate Capital. Additional participants include DCVC, Piva Capital, Leitmotif, Sunrun, Itochu Corporation, and Q Capital Partners.

Jeff Johnson, a General Partner at B Capital, described the residential battery storage sector as being at an inflection point, noting that Lunar’s approach differentiates itself by combining modular battery hardware with AI-driven optimization software that adapts to individual household energy patterns.

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Residential Energy as Grid Infrastructure

Lunar Energy’s expansion comes as utilities and policymakers increasingly view residential energy systems as critical infrastructure for a more flexible and resilient power grid. By aggregating thousands of home-based systems, VPPs can provide grid services traditionally supplied by centralized power plants, while allowing homeowners to actively participate in the energy transition.

As electrification of homes, vehicles, and heating accelerates across the U.S., companies like Lunar Energy are positioning residential consumers not just as energy users, but as contributors to a smarter and more distributed electricity system.

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