There’s a nip in the air.
But the future of power isn't seasonal.
Summer’s over, routines are back, and the hardtech scene is shifting gears. This week’s feature dives into Elvy Energy, where CEO Johan Outinen is betting big on flat-rate and 15-year subscriptions, and believes that Spotify-for-energy is more than a metaphor.
Alongside, we spotlight SNRGY’s $500K raise for consumer hardware and new pushes in defense energy. The message is clear: Nordic founders aren’t waiting for the future. They’re building it now.
Nordic Hardtech Partners 🤝
Nordic Hardtech is a community for builders of complex tech companies based on physical products. Here are some of our outstanding partners.
- Lightbringer: AI-powered patent platform helping tech companies protect their edge fast, with in-house legal expertise. Watch our recent IP webinar.
- Recuro: Growth partner for hardtech and deeptech. Book an intro.
- SISP (Swedish Incubators & Science Parks): The network for 60+ incubators and science parks in Sweden. Find yours here.
- The Yard: Gothenburg’s hub for co-working, community, and serious hardware. Explore their memberships.
Nordic Hardtech Podcast
This week: Flat-Rate Energy and The Future Default.
Betting the House on 15-Year Subscriptions
"We push the risk back to where it belongs"
The energy transition needs bold bets. Few are bolder than asking households to commit for 15 years of heating, electricity, and peace of mind. Johan Outinan, co-founder and CEO of Elvy Energy, argues that it’s the only way to scale clean energy fast.
Johan Outinen grew up in northern Sweden, where –46 °C isn’t just a number but a lived reality. Heating wasn’t optional, it was survival. That shaped his conviction that energy should be both practical and transformative.
– Heating is important. Seventeen years ago, I installed my first heat pump with my father. The tech worked then, and it’s even better today. So why aren’t we scaling it? The problem isn’t the solutions, it’s the complexity, says Johan.
Launched in 2023, Elvy sells flat-rate subscriptions for household energy. Customers sign a 15-year agreement, and Elvy takes care of everything: installation, insurance, maintenance, and even market trading.
– People don’t want to buy a heat pump or a battery. They want the outcome: cheaper and cleaner energy without stress. That’s why we built Elvy on radical simplicity, Johan explains.
That simplicity is harder than it looks. The company takes on risks ranging from hardware failures and volatile energy prices to extreme weather and customer defaults. Johan’s background in law and finance has been critical.
– We push the risk back to where it belongs. If an OEM says they build the best assets, they should guarantee it. If an installer claims quality, they should carry the responsibility. The rest we hedge through financial structures and trading.
Growth has been rapid: Elvy reports 30% month-over-month expansion in 2025, aiming for $30–40 million in revenue this year. Still, Johan insists that the hardest part isn’t engineering or finance, but trust.
– We could grow faster, but trust is the bottleneck. Signing a 15-year contract with a startup is a big ask. Customers need to see us in the press, recognize our partners, and feel we’ll be around. That’s the hurdle we work hardest on.
Investors call us the holy grail of energy
Expansion plans are already on the table. Germany and the UK, with millions of gas boilers slated for replacement, are prime targets. And incumbents have noticed.
– Experts said what we’re doing was impossible. But physics doesn’t say it’s impossible. It’s all about execution. Now the incumbents are calling us instead.
Elvy’s financial model is just as ambitious. By leveraging long-term contracts, the company has secured $165 million in credit facilities and is now raising a Series A.
– Investors call us the holy grail of energy. I just call it hard work, Johan laughs.
That hard work points to a different philosophy than hype cycles and subsidy chasing.
– Don’t build for subsidies. Build for reality. If your product is better, people will adopt it. That’s the only way to make something lasting, says Johan.
From ice-cold nights in northern Sweden to contracts stretching into the 2040s, Johan Outinen is betting that Spotify-for-energy isn’t just a metaphor. It’s the future default.
Lately ⏮️
Selected news from the hardtech ecosystem
- Robots are now folding laundry. Figure’s new model offers a glimpse of life with assistant robots — watch it in action.
- Silicon Valley has left the beanbags behind. The Web 2.0 perks are out, real hardware is in. New York Times’ Mike Isaac charts the shift, echoing all the way to the Nordics for sure.
- Sweden’s unicorn herd is worth $52B. Fintech and consumer-tech still dominate the leaderboard, but deep tech and climate innovation are quietly gaining ground.
- Nordic AI is heating up. Investors picked 15 early-stage Nordic startups to watch, and captures a snapshot of the region’s edge.
Up next ⏭️
What's brewing in the community?
- FMV TechDay is calling. Innovative solutions to strengthen the Armed Forces’ access to reliable energy are wantede just days left to apply. 8 spots available and 5 days left to apply!
- Startup season in Sweden kicks off Sept 9, when KTH Innovation Collide gathers 300+ founders, students and ecosystem players. Sign up to join the clash.
- "Right team, right time." On Aug 28, Hardware Velocity returns with a session on hiring and manufacturing readiness. Sign up to avoid costly missteps.
SNRGY is raising $500K — take a look
Gothenburg-based SNRGY Studios claims to have cracked the code for building consumer hardware fast, lean, and beautiful. With crowdfunding hits like Glorb already shipped and Soldr now live on Kickstarter, they’ve shown that quirky ideas can move from prototype to product without the usual pain.
Now they’re raising a $500K seed round to scale their studio model and launch more consumer-ready devices.
And yes — founder Alexander Osika (interviewed by us earlier this year) is the “hardware brother” to Lovable's co-founder Anton Osika. And yes, SNRGY's investor deck is made in Lovable (access below).
Looking for funding? Start here.
We’ve curated the investors who actually get hardtech — so you can skip the noise and focus on the right doors.
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