all about that base

Austin electricity startup raises $1B with investment from NFL legend

Houston Texans legend J.J. Watt is an investor in and customer of Austin-based energy startup Base Power.

Courtesy of Base Power

An Austin company supplying residential batteries designed to strengthen the power grid is surging after a large round of funding, including a contribution by retired Houston Texans legend J.J. Watt. Base Power raised $1 billion in a Series D round, bringing the startup’s valuation to $13 billion.

Base Power, which provides residential battery backup systems that automatically turn on during outages and sells electricity to homeowners, says the funding will go toward hiring more people and expanding nationally.

In conjunction with the funding announcement, the startup launched Base Core, a home battery designed to support the power grid. Today, Base Core is available to homeowners in certain parts of Texas and Illinois, including the Austin and Houston areas.

This is Watts’ first investment in the energy sector.

“I like companies that solve real problems, and Base is lowering power bills, protecting families, and building the whole thing themselves right here in Texas,” Watt said in a company news release.

“What impressed me wasn’t just how fast they’ve grown,” he adds. “It’s that they’ve already saved Texans millions on their power bills and kept thousands of homes running when the lights went out. That’s why I invested.”

Base Power is building a distributed network of residential batteries that’s designed to strengthen the grid and lower electrical bills. The startup now powers more than 30,000 homes in Texas, including the Houston area, and recently expanded to Illinois.

Base Power’s $1 billion round lifted its valuation to $13 billion. Since being founded in 2023, the startup has raised more than $2.5 billion.

“JJ is a legend in this state, and he earned that as much for how he shows up off the field as for what he did on it,” says Zach Dell, co-founder and CEO of Base Power. "He spent a full day with us asking every hard question he could think of, and then he switched to Base himself. We’re glad to have him partnering with us.”

Zach Dell is the only son of Austin billionaire Michael Dell, chairman and CEO of Round Rock-based Dell Technologies. Michael Dell grew up in Bellaire.

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This story is excerpted from two articles (here and here) by our sister site EnergyCapitalHTX.

energy power grid startups business finance

Social Butterflies

New app sets Austin locals up with social gigs like tours and events

Photo by Justin Wallace on Unsplash

Finding a local for an informal bike tour would be a perfect use of Social Additions.

A new app is building a network of extroverted Austinites who are ready to act as guides in the city. Called Social Additions, the app has opened its waitlist for locals to become "Austin Social Ambassadors," for doing things like showing someone around town, co-hosting events, providing local services, and more.

Social Ambassadors are paid, making this a gig app above all. Ambassadors set their hourly rates; there are only 10 existing profiles on the site, with rates ranging from $30 per hour to $250 per hour.

The app appears to be like a social version of Fiverr, Taskrabbit, or Thumbtack, all marketplaces where independent contractors offer a range of services depending on their skillsets. A press release from Social Additions invokes Uber and Mary Kay as inspiration for the flexible service model.

The release also emphasizes that people can connect based on shared interests, personality, and relevant social experience, not just availability.

The website lists a number of roles Ambassadors can fill, including networking plus-ones, business assistants, brand ambassadors, accessibility support, study buddies, conversation pals in another language, and even someone to go to the gym or practice yoga with (notably, the site does not specify that it is searching for certified instructors). Some roles are expected one-off hires like photographers, makeup artists, and musicians.

On the more purely social side, it suggests Ambassadors for people who are new in town, seniors, or folks just want to go to an event that is less fun on their own, like an F1 race or karaoke. Though this is somewhat uncommon as a paid service in the United States, it isn't unheard of internationally.

"We built Social Additions to formalize work that has always existed informally," said founder Sandra Hucker in the release. Hucker has worked in service, retail, and event marketing. "Showing up for someone. Making introductions. Hosting an event well. Helping someone experience a city through a local's eyes. Those are valuable skills, yet there has never been a marketplace where people could build flexible income around them."

A few common sense measures are in place for safety and quality. Both parties need to approve the connection, and they are encouraged to meet once or at least talk before starting the gig. The platform also offers ID verification. Finally, clients can rate Ambassadors after the service is rendered to help other users choose.

Even if users don't end up hiring someone, the site offers a free local business directory, event listings, and a job board for local businesses to post on. The board is for "temporary staffing opportunities, event support, promotional work, hospitality positions, and community based gigs," the release says.

Interested Austinites can join the waitlist at socialadditions.com. Qualified early applicants will get limited waived membership fees and Stripe Identity verification, the release says.

This article is not a review. CultureMap has not tested Social Additions.

gigs freelance tours social apps tech