Buddy, a Seattle-based company that manages building energy, today announced its intention to acquire LIFX, a smart light maker based in Silicon Valley.
Buddy will pay $51 million in cash and stock to acquire LIFX, according to a press release. LIFX will continue to operate as its own entity and brand.
The companies both have U.S.-Australia connections. Buddy originally launched in Seattle eight years ago and went public in 2015 as part of an unusual deal described as a “reverse takeover” of a publicly-listed Australian mining and resources company. It remains headquartered in Seattle but its parent company is listed on the Australian Stock Exchange.
LIFX, meanwhile, launched in Melbourne in 2012 and later relocated to San Francisco. The company was the first to develop a multicolored LED WiFi light and sells an array of products at big retailers in more than 100 countries. It generated more than $25 million in revenue last year and had raised $16.3 million from investors such as Sequoia Capital, Qualcomm Ventures, and Blackbird Ventures according to Crunchbase.
Buddy intends to sell its Buddy Ohm real-time utility and environmental services to LIFX lightbulb owners, while LIFX will have a chance to expand into the commercial marketplace as a result of the pending deal.
“As the demand from both commercial and retail customers for energy monitoring solutions increases, it makes perfect sense that we look to combine our Buddy Ohm platform with a product that can be found in every building and every space in the world – lighting,” Dave McLauchlan, CEO of Buddy Platform, said in a statement.
Founded in 2011 by McLauchlan and Jeffrey MacDuff, two former Microsoft managers, Buddy previously provided backend services to mobile apps and later developed connected device infrastructure after working with connected vehicles. Its focus is now monitoring consumption of building resources. The company employs 25 people in Seattle and another 25 worldwide. MacDuff left in 2013 and just took a new job as director of engineering at OfferUp.
Buddy also announced an approximate $13 million placement led by Bell Potter Securities as part of the acquisition, which is contingent on the completion of that financing and a shareholder vote.
LIFX CTO and co-founder Marc Alexander will continue to lead his team with CEO Tim Peters. Alexander will join Buddy’s board of directors, replacing Alex Gounares, CEO of Seattle startup Polyverse.
