It’s a thermostat revolution
IBM Information Technology Architect Jeff Mausolf points out a computerized electric meter (C) and a “smart thermostat” (L) that can communicate with each other to more efficiently use power, at the IBM’s Solutions Experience Lab in Austin, Texas, on March 18, 2009. Nest is a smart thermostat that learns when you wake up, when you go to sleep and what temperature you like the room during the day — all while retailing for $250.
In late 2011, a company called Nest Labs launched a product the tech world couldn't stop talking about. But the product isn't something that normally gets people excited.
Nest is perfecting the thermostat. And it's been such a big hit, investors have decided to pour a boatload of money into the company. According to GigaOm's Katie Fehrenbacher, Venrock, Google Ventures and others have given Nest $80 million at an $800 million post-money valuation. Fehrenbacher says Nest is shipping between 40,000 and 50,000 thermostats per month. A good number of those items are being shipped to Europe, and Nest's devices are sold in Lowe's, Best Buy and on Apple's website. It retails for $250.
Nest is a smart thermostat that learns when you wake up, when you go to sleep and what temperature you like the room during the day. Each time you twist the dial, it remembers and adjusts itself accordingly. The temperature can also be adjusted from a smart phone app. Nest was built and designed by the same man who built Apple's iPod, Tony Fadell.
Not sure how a thermostat company could be worth so much money? Watch the video demonstration of Nest, below:
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