Our Vision
Cooling is set to become the world’s single largest use of electricity in buildings by 2050. The majority of new demand will come from emerging economies with hot and humid climates and a growing middle-class.
As a result, air conditioning represents one of the largest risks to our climate. Residential use alone is set to account for an increase of more than 0.5 ⁰C in global surface temperature.
Today’s air conditioners consume more energy in humid conditions. Transaera is developing one that doesn’t.
Our Technology
We use a novel sponge-like material that grabs moisture from the atmosphere enabling our air conditioner to cool the air more efficiently. Then we use the heat generated by the air conditioner – instead of wasting it – to dry the material for the next cycle.
Transaera was named one of eight finalists in the Global Cooling Prize, an international innovation competition to develop an affordable and sustainable residential air conditioner.
Transaera News
Transaera named one of eight Energy Innovation Pioneers at CERAWeek 2022
How to avoid the coming air conditioning crunch
Global Cooling Prize Recognizes Transaera’s Residential Cooling Technology
How to make air conditioning less of an environmental nightmare
How Greentown Labs became the epicenter of clean tech
The race is on to build an AC unit that doesn’t cook the planet
People at Transaera
Sorin Grama
Prior to Transaera, Sorin co-founded and served as CEO and CTO of Promethean Power Systems, a manufacturer and operator of cold-storage systems for preserving fruits, vegetables and milk in emerging markets. Sorin is one of the founders of Greentown Labs, a grassroots effort which has grown to become the nation’s largest cleantech incubator. He is trained as an electrical engineer and holds an MS in Engineering & Management from MIT where he co-teaches a product design course. He is originally from Romania.
Mircea Dincă
Mircea is the W. M. Keck Professor of Energy in the Department of Chemistry at MIT. He holds a PhD from University of California, Berkeley where the did his studies on metal-organic framework (MOF) materials under the supervision of Prof. Jeffrey Long. In 2010 he started his own lab at MIT to address research challenges related to the storage and consumption of energy and global environmental concerns. Mircea’s research focuses on metal-organic materials, with an emphasis on water adsorbing and energy storage materials.
Ross Bonner
Ross brings broad design experience from his background in aerospace. A graduate of GE Aviation’s Edison Engineering Development program, Ross has domain expertise in systems architecture, fluids, and heat transfer. Ross earned his Bachelor of Mechanical Engineering from Auburn University and a Master in Mechanical Engineering from MIT. His thesis work on novel energy efficient desiccant-based air conditioning systems brings valuable perspective to the team.
Mitch Tyson
Mitch Tyson is an experienced high-tech executive, entrepreneur, angel investor, mentor, and lecturer. He serves on multiple corporate, non-profit, and governmental boards and advises early-stage companies. He is a former CEO of tech and cleantech companies and earlier served as legislative assistant for energy and science advisor to US Senator Paul Tsongas. Mitch is the co-founder and former chair of the Northeast Clean Energy Council, a partner in the Clean Energy Venture Group, and serves on the boards of Greentown Labs and Acadia Center. He was an adjunct professor at Brandeis where he taught a course on corporate sustainability. Mitch is a graduate of MIT where he earned his BS – Physics, MS – Nuclear Engineering, and MS – Political Science.
Alec Stevens
Alec is the owner of Demand Management Institute (DMI), a Massachusetts-based engineering consulting company that specializes in energy efficiency in the built environment. Alec has over 20 years of experience in providing third party independent reviews of efficient equipment, new technology, and advanced control sequences. Alec’s knowledge of HVAC and refrigeration systems ranges from small packaged equipment to large central heating and cooling plants. Prior to DMI, Alec was a designer for a startup EV company and an engineer at Ford Motor Company. He has a mechanical engineering degree from Cornell University and is a licensed Professional Engineer in Massachusetts.
Jim Matheson
Jim is a highly respected clean technology visionary, business leader and active investor. He’s currently a Senior Lecturer at Harvard Business School where he teaches the Entrepreneurial Finance course. Jim served as President and CEO of Oasys Water, a pioneer in water filtration technology. Previously, as a General Partner at Flagship Pioneering, Jim spearheaded the venture capital firm’s sustainability practice. Before embarking on his second career in investing and entrepreneurship, Jim was a decorated Navy F-14 and FA-18 pilot and TOPGUN Instructor. Jim retired in 2008 as a Commander in the US Naval Reserves and earned his BS from the United States Naval Academy and his MBA from The Harvard Business School.
Careers Work with us
If you have the skills and patience for solving difficult problems,
please join us!
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