Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) Invests In Carbon Accounting Software Startup Greenly

Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) has invested in Greenly, which develops carbon accounting software for small and midsize businesses. HPE sees Greenly's software as an opportunity to assist enterprise customers with sustainable IT infrastructure initiatives.

In a podcast with Sustainable Tech Partner, Greenly CEO Alexis Normand explained the $52 million Series B funding round -- and the software company's business strategy.  Fidelity International Strategic Ventures led the round, with new participation from BGV (Benhamou Global Ventures), Move Capital, HPE and HSBC; continued participation from XAnge and Energy Impact Partners; and angel investment dollars from HubSpot Co-Founder Brian Halligan.

Why HPE Invested in Greenly

So, what attracted HPE to Greenly's Series B funding round? In a prepared statement, HPE Executive VP Fidelma Russo said: “Achieving sustainability targets in hybrid IT environments can be complex and daunting endeavors for even the most sophisticated enterprises. HPE’s investment in Greenly aligns with the commitments we've made to our customers to help and support them on their sustainability journeys. We're excited to partner with Greenly in providing the tools necessary for businesses to monitor, track, and minimize their carbon footprint within their IT infrastructure.”

Demand for carbon accounting software is surging as businesses worldwide strive to track Scope 1, Scope 2 and Scope 3 carbon emissions. Regulations such as CSRD (Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive) in Europe and SB 253 in California will gradually require thousands of enterprise, midmarket and small businesses worldwide to calculate and report their carbon emissions.

Amid that backdrop, the carbon accounting software market will reach $64.39 billion in 2030, up from $15.31 billion in 2023, according to Fortune Business Insights. That's a 22.8% compound annual growth rate, the market research firm said.

Hewlett Packard Enterprise and Sustainability: Corporate, Customer and Partner Strategy

HPE is taking multiple steps to address sustainability within its own business, and across its customer and partner ecosystems. For instance, HPE Sustainability Insight Center and associated sustainability services are designed to help customers reduce their IT carbon footprints. 

The Greenly investment may allow HPE to extend its sustainability efforts from enterprise customers down into midmarket and SMB customer settings, Sustainable Tech Partner believes. Indeed, Greenly is designed for small and midsize businesses. And the startup is now seeking channel partners to deploy carbon accounting software for SMB customers -- while also scaling up to serve midmarket and larger enterprises.

Admittedly, numerous companies are pursuing the carbon accounting software market. For instance, Amazon Web Services and Sage Earth are partnering in a bid to transform small business accountants into carbon accountants. Also, Green Project Technologies, a carbon accounting platform for small businesses, became available via Microsoft AppSource in March 2024.

We'll be watching to see if or how HPE promotes Greenly to partners and customers.