Moxion Power

Moxion Power was a mobile energy storage company founded in 2020 that developed battery-powered generators to replace diesel generators.¹²³⁵¹⁶ The company raised over $124 million in funding from investors including Amazon, Microsoft, and Sunbelt Rentals, and delivered over 400 units in 2023.¹²³⁵ Moxion Power filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy in August 2024 after failing to secure additional funding, with assets later acquired by Viridi.¹⁵⁹¹³

Timeline

Money raised

Moxion Power raised an $800,000 pre-seed round in January 2020 from Y Combinator.³⁴ Moxion Power raised a $2 million pre-seed round in January 2021 led by Tamarack Global and Y Combinator.³⁴ Moxion Power raised a $10 million Series A round in May 2021 led by Energy Impact Partners.¹²³⁴ Moxion Power raised a $100 million Series B round in September 2022 led by Tamarack Global with participation from Amazon's Climate Pledge Fund, Microsoft's Climate Innovation Fund, Sunbelt Rentals, and others.^1234515 Moxion Power raised an $11 million Series B-1 round in June 2023 at a post-money valuation of $745.74 million.²³ Moxion Power attempted to raise a $200 million Series C at a $1.5 billion valuation in February 2024, but the round did not close.¹⁵⁶ Moxion Power's total funding was reported as $124.2 million by Forge and $124 million by Multiples.²³ At the time of bankruptcy, Moxion Power had $201,980 in its checking account and liabilities between $100 million and $500 million.¹⁵

Investors named in the sources: Y Combinator³⁴¹⁶, Tamarack Global^1234515, Energy Impact Partners^1234515, Liquid 2 Ventures²³⁴, Amazon's Climate Pledge Fund¹²³⁵¹⁵, Microsoft's Climate Innovation Fund¹²³⁵¹⁵, Sunbelt Rentals¹²³⁵¹⁵, Enterprise Holdings Ventures²³⁴¹⁵, Marubeni Ventures²³¹⁵, Suffolk Technologies²³¹⁵, Rocketship.vc²³¹⁵, Bricks Capital Management³, Snowpoint Ventures³.

What happened

Moxion Power was founded in 2020 by Paul Huelskamp and Alexander Meek.¹²¹⁶ The company developed mobile battery energy storage systems to replace diesel generators in industries such as construction, events, film production, and utilities.¹²³⁵¹⁶ The company raised an $800,000 pre-seed round in January 2020 from Y Combinator.³⁴ Moxion Power raised a $2 million pre-seed round in January 2021 led by Tamarack Global and Y Combinator.³⁴ In May 2021, Moxion Power raised a $10 million Series A round led by Energy Impact Partners.¹²³⁴

The company launched its first rental location in the San Francisco Bay Area following the Series A round.³ In September 2022, Moxion Power closed a $100 million Series B round led by Tamarack Global with participation from Amazon's Climate Pledge Fund, Microsoft's Climate Innovation Fund, Sunbelt Rentals, and others.^1234515 Moxion Power entered into a multiyear commercial agreement with Sunbelt Rentals, a leading equipment rental company.¹¹⁵ Moxion Power delivered over 400 first-generation units to customers in 2023.¹³⁵ The company held a launch ceremony for a new manufacturing plant with 7 gigawatt-hours of capacity, attended by California Governor Gavin Newsom.³⁵

In June 2023, Moxion Power raised an $11 million Series B-1 round at a post-money valuation of $745.74 million.²³ Moxion Power grew rapidly, hiring approximately 400 employees by early 2024.¹⁵ In January 2024, Moxion Power signed a lease for a 100,000 square-foot expansion facility in Richmond, California.¹⁵ The company also faced logistics constraints due to the size and weight of its battery units, which increased delivered-energy costs.¹ In February 2024, Moxion Power attempted to raise a $200 million Series C at a $1.5 billion valuation.¹⁵⁶

The funding environment for climate tech had deteriorated, with mega-rounds declining 47% year-over-year in 2024.¹ In July 2024, Moxion Power furloughed most of its 400 employees.⁵ On July 26, 2024, CEO Paul Huelskamp announced the company would close its doors, effective immediately.⁵ Moxion Power announced cessation of operations on July 29, 2024.² The company filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy in Delaware on August 12, 2024.¹⁹¹³

At the time of bankruptcy, Moxion Power had $201,980 in its checking account and liabilities between $100 million and $500 million.¹⁵ Silicon Valley Bank was the largest secured creditor with a claim of more than $33 million.⁵ A former employee filed a lawsuit against Moxion Power alleging violations of the WARN Act.⁵¹¹¹² The lawsuit was stayed pending the bankruptcy proceedings.¹² Viridi acquired certain assets of Moxion Power through Asset Purchase Agreements dated September 27 and October 30, 2024.¹³

An online auction of Moxion Power's assets was conducted by Heritage Global Partners in October 2024.⁷ Moxion Power's former headquarters was later taken over by Viridi.³ Some customers, such as Overdrive Energy Solutions, reported that Moxion's units worked well and were profitable to rent.⁵ However, many of Moxion's other customers reportedly had problems with the units.⁵ The company's former senior manager said, "The company anticipated the market demand too early, without much validation."¹⁵

The company's assets, including its Richmond facility, inventory, IP, and equipment, were acquired by Viridi for $7 million.³ Viridi received a $9.3 million California Energy Commission grant in 2025 to bolster the acquired assets.³

Legal outcomes

• filedA potential class-action lawsuit was filed against Moxion Power accusing the company of violating the WARN Act after it abruptly laid off employees.¹¹¹²
• filedThe lawsuit, Dean v. Moxion Power, was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California on August 5, 2024.¹²
• pendingThe case was stayed on November 14, 2024, pending the bankruptcy proceedings.¹²

Where the founders are now

Paul Huelskamp was the co-founder and CEO of Moxion Power.¹¹⁴¹⁶ Alexander Meek was a co-founder and President of Moxion Power.¹⁶ According to a source, Paul Huelskamp later launched Anode Technology with an explicitly different playbook.¹

Lessons, as others put them

"The company anticipated the market demand too early, without much validation. We learned the hard way about delivered-energy costs, logistics optimization, and the complexity of serving dispersed customers with large, heavy equipment."former senior manager at Moxion Power¹

"I’m still a believer in this technology and product, if somebody is able to make it better with much more frugality and much more market validation."former senior manager at Moxion Power⁵

Sources

1. From $1.5 Billion Valuation to $201,980: When Investor Validation Isn't Market Validation, avanzaenergy.substack.com, 8 months a
2. Moxion Power IPO Timeline and Financing Details - Forge, forgeglobal.com
3. Moxion Power Funding, Investors & Competitors | Multiples, multiples.vc, Sep 18, 20
4. How Much Did Moxion Power Raise? Funding & Key Investors | Clay, clay.com, Apr 7, 202
5. Portable battery startup Moxion is bankrupt. What happened?, Latitude Media, 2024-08-16
6. Moxion Power Shuts Down; Mobile Battery Startup Layoffs Impact All Employees - Sustainable Tech Partner for IT Service Providers, Sustainable Tech Partner for IT Service Providers, 2024-07-30
7. Moxion Power Auction | Heritage Global Partners, Heritage Global Partners
9. Moxion Power Co. Bankruptcy (1:24-bk-11835), Delaware Bankruptcy Court, pacermonitor.com, Aug 12, 20
11. Moxion Power's abrupt closure sparks employee lawsuit, bizjournals.com, Aug 6, 202
12. Dean v. Moxion Power, 3:24-cv-04733 - CourtListener.com, CourtListener, Aug 5, 202
13. Moxion-Inquire – Viridi, Viridi
14. Co-founder and CEO, Moxion Power Co. | Aspen Ideas, Aspen Ideas Festival
15. Marubeni Ventures Announces Investment in Moxion Power, a Mobile Energy Storage Company in the US that is Improving Sustainability and Efficiency of Temporary Power - Marubeni Ventures Corporation, Marubeni Ventures Corporation, Sep 29, 20
16. Moxion Power Co.: Mobile Energy Storage Technology | Y Combinator, Y Combinator

How this case file was put together

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