Tendril Launches Energy Management Ecosystem

Gadget geeks can now manage the energy consumption of their home and gizmos with a new set of tech toys from energy management startup Tendril. Tendril’s suite of hardware and software, called the Tendril Residential Energy Ecosystem (TREE), records your home’s electricity use and tracks individual appliances, all of which is viewable through the startup’s web portal. The startup says their system allows two-way communication in real time between an energy provider and the consumer.

The system includes an energy display, wall-plugs to manage individual appliances, a smart thermostat and a web site where users can track their use. The entire system is pulled together wirelessly, operating over a ZigBee network.

There are a number of energy startups working on similar services and devices. Tendril’s TREE represents one of the more sophisticated consumer-facing energy dashboards we’ve seen. The communication between the consumer and energy provider can help deliver a lot of transparency for the consumer’s energy bill.

The startup is located in Boulder, Colo. and raised $12 million in series B funding earlier this year from RRE Ventures, Vista Ventures, Access Venture Partners and Appian Ventures.