Connected home startup Netatmo raises €30 Million from LeGrand

Connected home startup Netatmo raises €30 Million from LeGrand
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Netatmo has raised €30 Million, led by Industrial company & electric installation leader LeGrand, in order to expand its connected home products to bigger audiences. Netatmo has swept CES and the US market in the past few years, most recently launching a home camera which [finally] “gets facial recognition right” (source: ArsTechnica). The latest round of funding represents the biggest connected home investment in France, and places Netatmo as one of the most important players in the connected home ecosystem today.
Netatmo quickly gained fame with its weather station, which currently monitors indoor & outdoor weather in more than 170 countries in the world. While its foyer into the wearables market with June can’t exactly be called a success, where CEO & Founder Fred Potter has been most successful has been his ability to identify opportunities (or lack there of) and make quick decisions. In a crowdfunding-filled market where products are funded and then built, Netatmo takes big risks ( and reaps big rewards) by conceiving, funding, building & shipping products without asking for approval from those with disposable income who peruse KickStarter & Indiegogo at work.

LeGrand at the Intersection of Industry & Internet

LeGrand has been setting itself up for a monstrous entrance into the connected home this past year, and, for those who have been paying attention, it comes as no surprise. Along with fellow French industrial player Somfy, LeGrand was one of the first 10 companies to partner with Nest’s “Works With” platform, making any product in LeGrand’s ecosystem compatible with Nest, which admittedly offers competing home security & thermostat products. They also partnered with La Poste’s connected home initiative, and Eliot Program Marketing Manager Jeremy Boissou says that Interoperability is at the core of LeGrand’s strategy.
Photo Credit: CNET