ICN2’s startup Cooling Photonics closes its first investment round to boost sustainable cooling technology

by Virginia Greco

Cooling Photonics has raised 630,000 euros of investment that will accelerate the entry into the market of its cooling technology, aimed at the energy, electrical charging, and aerospace sectors. The company has received support from ACCIÓ through the Startup Capital line, aimed at boosting the growth of emerging companies with high technological potential.

The startup Cooling Photonics, specialising in the development of cooling technology to reduce energy consumption, has closed its first round of investment worth €630,000. The company, which is a spin-off of the Catalan Institute of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology, has created a system based on deeptech technologies such as nanotechnology and photonics that decreases the temperature of any material, thereby also reducing its energy consumption and improving its efficiency.

Cooling Photonics has been a beneficiary of the Startup Capital grant from ACCIÓ, the agency for business competitiveness of the Department of Business and Labour of the Catalan Government, aimed at boosting the growth of technology and deeptech startups in their early stages.

According to the CEO of Cooling Photonics, Javier Achiaga, "Excess heat causes a loss of efficiency in devices, causes breakdowns that can disable them and increases their energy consumption." For this reason, the startup has developed "sustainable cooling technologies that prevent or reduce the overheating of any material."

The solutions proposed by Cooling Photonics allow any surface to be cooled in a sustainable way, without energy consumption or pollution, simply by maximising the material's natural ability to shed excess heat and reduce its temperature, all with the aim of improving the efficiency of devices. According to the startup's CEO, “this technology has great potential for application in sectors as diverse as thermal regulation, power generation, electronics, electrical charging and the aerospace industry, among others.”

With this investment round, led by ESADE BAN –i.e., the business angel network of the ESADE Business School’s Alumni— and the WA4STEAM investment group –which supports science projects led by women entrepreneurs—, the startup's valuation increases to 3 million euros. With the funds obtained, the company is already expanding its team to accelerate the introduction of its technology in the market. Specifically, they plan to start commercialising a thermal dissipation tape created by the company, as well as finalising the development of a coating that will increase the efficiency of photovoltaic panels.

Cooling Photonics was established in 2020 as a spin-off of the Catalan Institute of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology (ICN2). It has also had the support of The Collider, the innovation programme of Mobile World Capital Barcelona, which pushed its growth. It can currently count on a staff of 8 people and is based in Barcelona, at La Salle Technova.