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Makani Power has raised $5.0M across 1 funding round.
Key people at Makani Power.
Makani Power has raised $5.0M in total across 1 funding round.
Makani Power developed airborne wind turbines, known as energy kites, engineered to harvest high-altitude wind energy. These autonomous, tethered wings flew in circular paths, generating electricity through integrated turbines. This technical approach aimed to capture stronger, more consistent winds found at higher altitudes, presenting an innovative method for renewable energy production.
The company was founded in 2006 by Saul Griffith, Don Montague, and Corwin Hardham. Their foundational insight centered on the potential to drastically reduce the cost of renewable energy by tapping into abundant, untapped wind resources above conventional turbine reach. This vision attracted early support, including funding from Google.org’s Renewable Energy cheaper than Coal initiative.
Makani's technology was designed for utility-scale renewable energy generation, ultimately contributing to a future with more affordable and accessible clean power. Their long-term vision involved deploying energy kites globally to significantly lower the unsubsidized cost of wind energy, offering a scalable alternative to traditional power sources.
Makani Power (later Makani Technologies LLC) was a technology company that developed airborne wind turbines in the form of autonomous energy kites to harness high-altitude winds for clean, affordable renewable electricity.[1][2] These kites flew in loops, using onboard rotors as mini wind turbines to generate power transmitted down a conductive tether to the grid, targeting wind resources inaccessible to traditional tower-based turbines.[1][2][3] The company served utilities and energy providers by solving the problem of high costs and limited reach of conventional wind power, which comprised only about 5% of global electricity at the time.[1] Early prototypes showed promise, including a 600 kW model with a 28-meter wingspan tested in California, Hawaii, and Norway, but commercialization challenges led to its shutdown in 2020 after 13-14 years of development.[1][2][3]
Founded in 2006 in Alameda, California, by a group of kite surfers inspired by kiteboarding gear, Makani ("wind" in Hawaiian) aimed to replace massive steel wind towers with lightweight kites accessing untapped high-altitude winds.[1][2][7] Early fabric prototypes evolved into rigid-wing designs with onboard rotors after testing revealed inefficiencies in soft kites.[1] Key milestones included an 8-meter, 20 kW prototype demonstrating autonomous launch, flight, and power generation.[6] Acquired by Google in May 2013 and integrated into its X moonshot factory (later Alphabet X), it advanced to the M600 prototype (92-foot/28-meter wingspan, ~600 kW).[2][3][4] In 2018-2019, it partnered with Shell for offshore tests in Hawaii and Norway, became an Alphabet subsidiary, but shut down in February 2020 due to commercialization risks.[1][2][3]
Makani rode the trend toward innovative renewables to combat climate change, pioneering airborne wind energy (AWE) to slash costs and environmental impact of wind power amid growing demand for scalable clean energy.[1][3] Timing aligned with rising wind adoption (from 5% global electricity in 2006) and Alphabet's moonshot investments in high-risk tech, influencing competitors like KiteGen and startups such as kiteKRAFT that built on its open-sourced knowledge.[1][2][3] Market forces favoring it included untapped high-altitude winds and offshore potential, but challenges like commercialization risks highlighted AWE's maturity gap versus mature solar/wind tech; its tech transfer spurred ecosystem progress in eVTOL-adjacent autonomy and tether systems.[3][4]
Though shuttered in 2020, Makani's open-sourced innovations position it as a foundational catalyst for AWE, enabling faster advances toward MW-scale kites by agile startups amid accelerating renewables demand.[1][3] Next steps for the field involve overcoming commercialization hurdles through partnerships like Makani's Shell collaboration, with trends in AI-driven flight control, advanced materials, and offshore deployment shaping viability.[3][4] Its influence may evolve by powering hybrid renewable grids, proving moonshot failures can seed breakthroughs—echoing how kite surfers' bold 2006 vision unlocked wind's untapped skies.[1][7]
Key people at Makani Power.
Makani Power has raised $5.0M across 1 funding round. Most recently, it raised $5.0M Series B in August 2008.
| Date | Round | Lead Investors | Other Investors | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 1, 2008 | $5M Series B | — | — | Announced |
Makani Power has raised $5.0M in total across 1 funding round.
