carbmee, a Berlin-based startup offering AI-powered carbon management software, has secured €20 million in funding. The round was led by CommerzVentures, which invested in Climate X and FINBOURNE Technology supported by Fly Ventures. Over 15 high-profile angel investors also supported carbmee and these include Noah Eisner (co-founder of Coupa), Gisbert Rühl (CEO of Klöckner & Co.), and Pat McCarthy (VP at Google), among others.
It will also accelerate the development of carbmee’s EIS platform with a focus on features like Carbmee Studio – a customisation tool for creating AI-driven reports and dashboards. Additionally, the company plans to expand its global footprint, with offices already established in Berlin, Munich, and New York.
How was the idea born?
The idea for carbmee was born from the frustrations of businesses grappling with carbon accounting processes that were siloed, inefficient, and heavily reliant on tools like Excel. As organisations faced increasing pressure from regulators, investors, and consumers to adopt sustainable practices, a clear gap emerged for an intelligent solution that could simplify and streamline carbon management. The founders saw an opportunity to create a platform that not only tracked emissions but also empowered companies to take meaningful action in their decarbonisation efforts.
Founded in 2021 by Christian Heinrich and Robin Spickers, carbmee is driven by the mission to future-proof the world’s largest companies by enabling them to reduce carbon emissions. The duo envisioned a centralised platform that leverages advanced AI and data analytics to tackle one of the most complex challenges facing enterprises today – effective carbon management.
Carbon management for enterprises
Traditional carbon accounting tools often fail to deliver the accuracy and granularity required for enterprises to comply with increasingly complex regulatory frameworks. carbmee addresses this gap with its AI-powered platform, enabling businesses to centralise their carbon data, manage emissions across the value chain, and create tailored reports. The platform’s ability to collect granular life cycle assessment (LCA) data is particularly valuable for tackling scope 3 emissions, which are indirect emissions that occur within a company’s supply chain and are notoriously difficult to measure.
Companies using its EIS have reported transformative results, with many achieving a significant reduction in emissions while improving operational efficiency. By simplifying carbon accounting, the platform allows businesses to focus on strategic sustainability goals rather than being bogged down by technical complexities.
Stellar customer success
Since its inception, carbmee has worked with a roster of high-profile clients, including Lufthansa Technik, Maersk, Kärcher, Hilti, Miele, Coca-Cola, Schaeffler, and Anglo American. These organisations have leveraged the platform to navigate their decarbonisation journeys, demonstrating its effectiveness in real-world scenarios.
Several clients, such as Coca-Cola and Hilti, have been with carbmee since its early days, further validating the platform’s long-term value.
Sustainable growth and recognition
The German startup has achieved sustainable, capital-efficient growth, with revenues tripling each year. The company’s impact and innovation have been recognised by leading analysts such as Gartner, Spendmatters, and Verdantix.
What’s next for carbmee?
As regulatory and political pressure to combat climate change intensifies, carbmee is positioned to help enterprises meet these challenges head-on. Its advanced AI tools, combined with a robust customer base and a team of over 60 international professionals, make it a formidable player in the carbon management space.
The company’s journey underscores its role in shaping the future of sustainable enterprise operations. With its €20 million capital influx and a clear roadmap for growth, the company is poised to lead the charge in global decarbonisation efforts.
CEO and co-founder Christian Heinrich said: “This funding round is a validation of the innovative work we’ve done so far, but it’s also a launching point for what comes next. It’s a clear confirmation that we made the right decisions already 4 years ago anticipating the importance of scope 3 emissions in manufacturing industries. With over 80% of emissions being rooted in the supply chain, we have built a platform that not only meets the evolving needs of complex industry enterprises but also plays a critical role in the global shift toward sustainability.”
Co-founder Robin Spickers added, “We address one of the biggest challenges faced by the manufacturing industry. Currently, teams in large organisations work in data silos – procurement, R&D, finance, production – and rely on manual Excel spreadsheets to calculate carbon footprints, causing data inaccuracy and ineffective processes. Our platform provides a centralised platform for all enterprise users to manage CO2 emissions at the corporate, product, supplier, and SKU levels—enabling CO2 data to be managed as accurately as financial data in an ERP system.”
Paul Morgenthaler, Managing Partner at CommerzVentures commented: “Christian and Robin have already achieved phenomenal growth since founding carbmee. They are at the forefront of a vital industrial step-change as businesses around the world demand the knowledge and support to manage their carbon emissions. Their powerful software breaks down the complexity of decarbonising global supply chains, solving a key problem for industries. We share in the team’s exceptional ambition for the future and look forward to helping them deliver on this journey.”
Ralf Hässig, senior materials management sustainability expert at ZF Group commented: “As a global technology company (…) we sought a software-driven solution for modeling, supply chain collaboration, and CBAM compliance. carbmee EIS
provided an all-in-one solution, coupled with a dynamic, results-driven team committed to our success. The expertise and support of the carbmee team has been instrumental in our journey and is a must for companies seeking to decarbonise.”
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