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Floating wind startup Aikido has closed a $4 million seed round to develop its platform tech and build out pilot projects. 

Why it matters: Floating offshore wind turbines could provide a valuable source of clean energy if the costs of the tech come down.

Zoom in: Aikido raised the round from lead investor Azolla Ventures. The round also included Propeller Ventures, Sabanci Climate Ventures, Cisco Foundation, Anthropocene Ventures, and others.

The company was previously funded by Breakthrough Energy Fellows, a program from Breakthrough Energy that funds early stage startups with non-dilutive capital. Aikido was also funded through an ARPA-E grant working with San Francisco-based Otherlab. 

Co-founder and CEO Sam Kanner created the company to make a lower-cost, faster way to install an offshore wind platform. Kanner previously developed floating wind tech at Principle Power. 

Aikido's offshore wind designs fold during assembly, taking up less space, use water ballast to up end, and use pin joints to hold their structure.

Catch up quick: Floating wind is an emerging type of offshore wind tech that "floats" near the surface of the water and is connected by one or more anchors to the bottom. 

Floating projects are used when the ocean floor is deep or has a complex structure, and projects have been developed in Norway, China, and Scotland.

The big picture: The floating offshore wind industry is at a nascent stage compared to the mature sector of fixed-bottom offshore wind. 

The offshore wind sector in the U.S. has recently struggled due to high interest rates, surging commodity costs, and scarcity of vessels. 

What's next: Aikido plans to show off its first pilot project off the coast of Louisiana later this year. 

The company says at 100kW, it will be the largest floating wind platform in the U.S. and will be the world's first upending semi-submersible platform.

Exclusive: Aikido raises $4M for floating wind tech

Aikido CEO Sam Kanner shows off a prototype of a platform for floating offshore wind farms

Aikido CEO Sam Kanner shows off a prototype of the company's platform for floating offshore wind during SF Climate Week at Otherlab in San Francisco. Photo: Katie Fehrenbacher/Axios

offshore wind

Floating wind startup Aikido has closed a $4 million seed round to develop its platform tech and build out pilot projects. Why it matters: Floating offshore wind turbines could provide a valuable source of clean energy if the costs of the tech come down.

Exclusive: Aikido raises $4M for floating wind tech

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