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Key people at Geli.
Geli is a San Francisco, California-based software developer that creates energy storage platforms specifically designed to automate, manage, and integrate smart renewable energy systems with the broader electrical grid. The company provides purpose-built applications enhanced by artificial intelligence and machine learning, including its recently launched Predict modeling software, to assist project developers, original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), and financiers in optimizing energy assets. Following its strategic acquisition in 2020, the organization now operates as a fully integrated subsidiary of Qcells, which is a major division of the South Korean multinational conglomerate Hanwha Group. Operating with a historical headcount of approximately seven employees, the firm licenses its technology to facilitate solar and storage hardware deployments across residential, community, commercial, industrial, and utility-scale energy markets. Geli was officially established in 2010 by co-founders Ryan Wartena and Crispell Wagner.
Key people at Geli.
Geli (Growing Energy Labs, Inc.) is a San Francisco-based software company that develops a hardware-agnostic platform for designing, automating, and managing energy storage systems, including battery energy storage solutions (BESS), microgrids, virtual power plants, and AI-driven applications like demand charge management and frequency regulation.[1][5] It serves project developers, OEMs, financiers, and operators deploying advanced energy projects worldwide, solving the challenge of integrating diverse energy assets for efficient, scalable renewable energy management.[1][3] Founded in 2010, Geli raised about $24 million in funding from investors including Shell Technology Ventures and Momenta Ventures before its acquisition by Hanwha Q Cells in 2020, after which Q Cells enhanced its capabilities with products like Geli Predict™, an AI-driven tool for clean energy forecasting in commercial, industrial, and utility markets.[3][7]
Geli was founded in February 2010 by Ryan Wartena and Crispin Criswell (also referred to as Crispell Wagner in some records) in San Francisco, with an early office in Melbourne, Australia.[1][2][6] The founders drew from industry experience to address the need for smart software in the emerging energy storage market, launching the Energy Operating System (EOS) as a prototype-ready platform to make storage systems grid-connected and optimized for renewables.[6] Early traction came through partnerships and deployments managing megawatts of projects globally; by 2014, Momenta Ventures invested and advised, followed by a $5.5 million raise in 2018 (part of an $8 million round, bringing total funding to $19.5 million) backed by Shell Technology Ventures to expand OEM partnerships into Japan and beyond.[1][2] This momentum culminated in its 2020 acquisition by Hanwha Q Cells for an undisclosed sum, marking a pivotal exit after a decade of innovation.[3]
Geli rides the global surge in renewable energy adoption and battery storage growth, enabling the shift to decentralized grids amid rising demand for clean energy reliability and decarbonization.[1][3] Its timing aligned with the 2010s BESS boom, scaling just as solar+storage became viable for commercial/industrial (C&I) and utility applications, amplified by policies favoring demand response and virtual power plants.[2][7] Market forces like falling battery costs, AI advancements, and electrification trends favor its model, influencing the ecosystem by powering Q Cells' North American expansion and setting standards for integrated solar-storage software.[3][7]
Post-2020 acquisition, Geli thrives as Q Cells' software arm, with recent launches like Geli Predict™ signaling deeper AI integration for CCI/utility forecasting amid booming clean energy demand.[7] Next steps likely include global scaling, more R&D in edge AI for industrial applications, and partnerships stacking storage with emerging renewables like hydrogen. As grids decentralize and AI optimizes energy markets, Geli's platform positions Q Cells to lead, evolving from standalone innovator to indispensable enabler in a multi-trillion-dollar sustainable energy ecosystem—maximizing the promise of storage that began in a San Francisco lab in 2010.[1][7]
