Trane Technologies has signed a definitive agreement to acquire BrainBox AI, a pioneer in autonomous HVAC controls and generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) building technology.
Headquartered in Montreal, Canada, BrainBox AI has developed an industry-leading enterprise autonomous building platform.
An estimated 15 per cent of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions are directly related to the heating and cooling of buildings.
BrainBox AI uses advanced deep learning algorithms to predict building energy needs, automate HVAC systems, reduce energy consumption by up to 25 per cent and reduce GHG emissions by up to 40 per cent.
BrainBox AI’s proven technology is deployed across more than 14,000 commercial buildings globally, including airports, office buildings, hotels, commercial retail and more.
Trane Technologies chief digital officer, Riaz Raihan, said advanced AI technology is supercharging what’s possible when reducing energy and emissions from the built environment.
“BrainBox AI and Trane Technologies share a passion for accelerating and scaling innovative, customer-focused AI solutions and smart building technologies that address the world’s pressing climate challenges. We look forward to welcoming the talented BrainBox AI team,” Raihan said.
The acquisition further augments Trane Technologies’ advanced building management and digital capabilities and represents a natural extension of the companies’ existing collaboration.
The companies have partnered over the past two years to help customers reduce their carbon footprint and meet business goals.
Trane Autonomous Control couples Trane’s cloud-based building automation system with BrainBox AI technology to analyse live data from multiple sources; accurately predict zone temperature and energy loads; and perform system improvements 24/7 to optimise energy usage.
Sam Ramadori, CEO, BrainBox AI, and Jean-Simon Venne, Co-founder and CTO of BrainBox AI, will continue to lead the BrainBox AI business and team of more than 190 associates, primarily based in Canada and the United States.
All BrainBox AI associates will join Trane Technologies upon close. Trane Technologies will maintain BrainBox AI’s existing operations in Montreal, contributing to the region’s rich AI ecosystem to accelerate AI innovation globally.
BrainBox AI CEO, Sam Ramadori, said the BrainBox AI team believe in the power of AI in addressing climate change.
“Combining BrainBox AI’s advanced technology with Trane Technologies’ leading digital platform and best-in-class global direct sales capabilities will accelerate the deployment of smart building solutions worldwide and achieve greater outcomes for our people, customers and the world. We look forward to an exciting new chapter for BrainBox AI as part of Trane Technologies,” he said.
BrainBox AI’s recently launched ARIA platform (Artificial Responsive Intelligent Agent), the world’s first virtual building engineer, which delivers precise and accurate data visualisation, sound reasoning, and informed actions for facility management professionals.
This bolt-on acquisition follows Trane Technologies’ proven model of adding leading technologies that augment its core business and scaling them to deliver strong returns over time, the company said.
The transaction is expected to close in early 2025.