Base Power raises $1B at $13B valuation and launches Texas-built battery

Why it matters

Base's valuation increased 3.25 times in less than 10 months as it brought battery manufacturing in-house. The round backs distributed home storage as infrastructure that can be deployed faster than new power plants and transmission lines.

Base Power, founded by Zach Dell (@ZachBDell) and Justin Lopas, raised a $1 billion Series D at a $13 billion post-money valuation on August 3rd and launched Base Core, a home battery designed and manufactured at Base's Austin factory.

https://x.com/zachbdell/status/2084253366838870208?s=46

Dell announced the financing and product in a post on X, three years after he and Lopas started the Austin energy business. The founders built Base around a distributed storage model: place large batteries at customers' homes, use those systems to support the grid during periods of high demand, and provide automatic backup power during outages.

Dell previously worked at Blackstone and Thrive Capital, where he focused on energy and industrial technology. He met Lopas during a factory tour at Anduril, according to Forbes. Lopas brought the manufacturing background. Before Base, he worked on Falcon and Starship production at SpaceX and later ran manufacturing operations at Anduril.

That pairing shaped Base's strategy. Dell came from investing and energy markets; Lopas came from factories that had to turn complex hardware into repeatable production. Base Core takes that strategy further by bringing the central piece of Base's service, the battery itself, under the founders' control.

Base takes battery production in-house

Base Core stores 39.2 kWh and can provide an estimated 12 to 18 hours of backup under typical household usage, according to Base's specifications. Base estimates up to 36 hours with reduced consumption, or 72 hours with two units. Actual duration depends on the household's load, particularly energy-intensive equipment such as air conditioning.

Core uses lithium iron phosphate cells, supports 120/240-volt residential systems and switches a home to battery power in 50 milliseconds, according to Base. The operating range runs from -22 F to 122 F. Base says each unit can be installed in less than an hour and that Factory 1 in Austin is producing thousands of systems per month. Those manufacturing and installation figures are Base's own.

Base designs, builds, installs, monitors and maintains Core while retaining ownership of the hardware. When the grid is operating, Base can charge and dispatch the battery to manage demand and participate in utility programs. When an outage occurs, the battery isolates the home and supplies backup electricity.

That ownership structure lets Base charge customers substantially less upfront than companies selling home batteries outright. For an Oncor-area customer in Texas, Base currently lists a $695 installation fee, a $19 monthly membership and an all-in electricity rate of 14.3 cents per kWh. Pricing and availability vary by utility and state.

Core is available at launch in select regions of Texas and Illinois. Base says the new financing will fund a wider national rollout, additional manufacturing and hiring.

A $13 billion bet on distributed grid capacity

Ribbit, Addition, Valor Equity Partners and JPMorganChase's Strategic Investment Group led the Series D. Altimeter, D1 Capital Partners, Sands Capital, Coatue, Layer Global and Energy Impact Partners also participated. Returning investors included Thrive Capital, Andreessen Horowitz, Lightspeed, Trust Ventures and CapitalG.

The financing brings Base's stated capital raised to more than $2.5 billion. It follows a $1 billion Series C announced on October 8th, 2025, which valued Base at $4 billion post-money. The latest deal increases that valuation by 3.25 times in less than 10 months.

Investors are underwriting a deployment model that treats homes as sites for grid infrastructure. Centralized power plants and transmission projects can take years to permit and build. Base can add smaller units one address at a time, then coordinate them through software as a single grid resource.

Base says its deployed fleet has increased from more than 100 MWh at the Series C announcement to more than 500 MWh. Base also says utility agreements with El Paso Electric, Austin Energy and CoServ represent more than 200 MW of capacity. The two measurements describe different parts of the system: MWh measures stored energy, while MW measures the rate at which participating batteries can supply or absorb power.

The large financing gives Dell and Lopas the capital to expand a business that combines hardware manufacturing, field installation, electricity retail and grid services. Each layer introduces its own regulatory, supply-chain and operating demands. Base's response is deeper vertical integration, with the founders taking responsibility for the battery, the customer relationship and the software that decides when stored power moves back onto the grid.