The most expensive part of building a new power plant, solar farm, or data center is often the time spent before the first shovel hits the dirt. For developers, that means years of poring over zoning maps, environmental studies, and utility interconnection queues, a process so manual and failure-prone it can kill a project before it starts. In a Brooklyn office, a team of engineers from Meta AI, DeepMind, and NASA is trying to turn that slog into a software workflow, betting that the right map can unlock the right megawatts.
Paces, founded in 2022 by James McWalter and Charles Bai, sells what it calls a "development engine" for power projects [Paces | Home]. It is a GIS and data platform that aggregates zoning, permitting, grid, and environmental constraints, letting developers screen thousands of potential sites in minutes instead of months [Perplexity Sonar Pro Brief]. In May 2026, the company introduced Paces Agent, an AI tool designed to automate specific research and reporting tasks, moving from a static data layer to an active participant in the planning process [Data Center Dynamics, May 2026]. The goal is straightforward: cut project timelines, lower costs, and ultimately, get more clean energy built faster.
The Wedge Into a $200 Billion Problem
Paces enters a market defined by frustration. The U.S. needs to add massive amounts of new generation and transmission to meet decarbonization goals and power AI data centers, but development is bottlenecked by bureaucracy. The company's initial wedge is the early-stage site selection and feasibility study, a process that typically involves consultants manually pulling data from dozens of disparate county, state, and utility websites.
Their software consolidates that sprawl into a single map. A developer can draw a polygon around a region and instantly see overlays for flood zones, protected habitats, substation capacities, and local permitting timelines. The value proposition is not just speed, but derisking. By identifying fatal flaws early, developers can avoid sinking millions into options on land that can never host a project. The company says its platform helps customers "maximize megawatts per site" [Paces | Home].
A Team Built for Data, Not Dirt
The founders represent a classic tech-climate crossover. CEO James McWalter came from the data and machine learning world, with stints at FactSet and as an early employee at a Google-acquired AI startup [Meet The Paces Team]. CTO Charles Bai worked on large-model inference and led AI efficiency efforts at Meta AI [Meet The Paces Team]. They have surrounded themselves with a bench that mixes big-tech AI prowess with energy-sector domain expertise, pulling talent from Tesla, TotalEnergies, Nexamp, and Con Edison [Meet The Paces Team]. This blend is intentional. The problem is deeply rooted in the physical world, but the solution requires world-class software to tame chaotic, unstructured public data.
Traction and the $11 Million Accelerant
By September 2024, Paces reported having around 100 customers, including major players like EDF Renewables, AES, and Third Pillar Solar [Latitude Media, September 2024][Paces, July 2024]. The company operates on a subscription model [Latitude Media, September 2024]. This early traction helped secure an $11 million Series A round in July 2024, led by Navitas Capital with participation from Suffolk Technologies and MCJ Collective [Paces, July 2024]. This followed a $1.9 million pre-seed round in 2022 led by Resolute Ventures [Paces, June 2022].
| Round | Date | Amount | Lead Investor |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pre-seed | June 2022 | $1.9M | Resolute Ventures |
| Series A | July 2024 | $11M | Navitas Capital |
Where the Grid Gets Tricky
The bet is compelling, but the path is lined with specific, hard challenges. Paces must continuously prove its data is comprehensive and accurate across thousands of jurisdictions, a never-ending maintenance burden. Its move into AI agents with Paces Agent introduces a new layer of complexity and customer trust requirements. Furthermore, the company's success is tied to the pace of infrastructure development itself; a slowdown in new project starts would directly impact demand for its planning tools.
The most credible near-term risk is competitive. While no direct software competitor is named in sources, the space is attracting attention. Large engineering firms have in-house tools, and other GIS or data startups could pivot into the niche. Paces's answer appears to be depth and specialization. By focusing solely on power project development and layering in AI-native workflow tools, they aim to own a specific, high-value slot in the developer's toolkit that generalists cannot easily replicate.
The Next Twelve Months
The recent funding and launch of Paces Agent set the agenda. The company is hiring for key roles like VP of Product and Software Engineer, Geospatial Systems, indicating a focus on scaling both the business and the technical platform [Y Combinator]. The next milestones will likely involve expanding its dataset coverage, proving out the automation capabilities of its AI agent with customers, and potentially moving further downstream into the construction phase. Landing a flagship partnership with a top-tier utility or a national developer would be a strong signal of market validation.
Quantifying the impact is where the climate math gets tangible. If Paces can help a midsize solar developer shave just three months off the development timeline for a single 100-megawatt project, that's roughly 75,000 megawatt-hours of clean electricity generation brought online earlier (assuming a 35% capacity factor). At an average U.S. utility rate, that's about $7.5 million in revenue that isn't waiting on paperwork. The company's ultimate competitor isn't another software dashboard. It's the inertia of the old way,the filing cabinets, the PDF reports, and the years of delay that our grid can no longer afford.
Sources
- [Paces, June 2022] Green Infrastructure Data Platform Paces raises $1.9M Pre-Seed led by Resolute Ventures | https://www.paces.com/post/green-infrastructure-data-platform-paces-raises-1-9m-pre-seed-led-by-resolute-ventures
- [Paces, July 2024] Paces Raises $11 Million to Accelerate Clean Energy Development | https://www.paces.com/news/paces-raises-11-million-to-accelerate-clean-energy-development
- [Data Center Dynamics, May 2026] Paces Agent is here: An AI teammate for power development | https://www.datacenterdynamics.com/en/product-news/paces-agent-is-here-an-ai-teammate-for-power-development/
- [Latitude Media, September 2024] Can AI-fueled data research save clean energy developers precious time? | https://www.latitudemedia.com/news/can-ai-fueled-data-research-save-clean-energy-developers-precious-time/
- [Meet The Paces Team] Meet The Paces Team | https://www.paces.com/about
- [Paces | Home] Paces | Home | https://www.paces.com/
- [Y Combinator] Paces: Agentic AI for Power Projects and AI Infrastructure | Y Combinator | https://www.ycombinator.com/companies/paces