Clémentine Lalande has a quick mind and a sharp work ethic. She gives the impression of having already lived a thousand lives (and it's not just an impression), and is driven by a single goal: to transform society towards sustainability. She is now tackling this as an entrepreneur. Since spring 2023, the CentraleSupélec alumna has been at the helm of kelvin, co-founded with Pierre Joly and Guillaume Sempé, whose SaaS software propels AI into the vast but compartmentalized energy renovation market. By giving a serious boost to the famous DPE (Energy Performance Diagnosis), the young startup aims to accelerate energy renovation for homes in France and Europe.
But before reaching that point, Clémentine Lalande built her professional career with determination, brick by brick, driven by the same insatiable appetite to understand, master, and dare. "I started at Boston Consulting Group (BCG) with the idea of taking a helicopter view that would allow me to observe all sectors at once," recounts the engineer. After 6 years of accumulating experience with major industrial players and the NGO Action Against Hunger, the "slide-making machine" aspect of the job eventually wore her down.
"Our solution can become a reflex, a standard, in the landscape, to help achieve the urgent scaling up of thermal renovation."
From Feminist Dating to Climate
In search of more meaning, public interest, and action, she joined Yunus Social Business in 2013, one of the first impact investment funds. "For some, at that time, it was as if I was announcing I was opening a cheese factory in the Larzac region!" she jokes. For five years, she accumulated new experiences, rubbing shoulders with a Nobel Peace Prize laureate, Bill Clinton, and Matt Damon at the UN. But once again, her desire for impact wasn't fully satisfied, and she sought a change. A few months later, an entrepreneur contacted her and convinced her to co-found a feminist and socially conscious dating app with him, an experience that allowed her to learn how to "build large tech products," she notes. This is her method: accumulate experience and knowledge, without losing sight of her fundamental goal.
In 2021, she sold the startup and took a break to prepare for what was next. One scorching hot day, "as I was taking my daughter to school, she asked me why it was so hot," she recalls. "The thermometer was already hitting 35°C!" Like a lightbulb moment, this new reality propelled her onto a path that would become her next professional chapter: "I realized that my next company would be a massive contributor to the climate issue."
"I spent time at dozens of construction companies"
Clémentine Lalande devoured all the studies on the subject and set out to find co-founders who were talented, experienced, and aligned with her values. With Pierre Joly (ex-Ermeo), "a professional crush," she then iterated, refined ideas, immersed herself in the building sector, and even became a diagnostician herself! "I spent time at dozens of construction companies," she recounts. The target was confirmed: energy renovation and its colossal challenges. The building sector accounts for 43% of France's energy consumption and 23% of its greenhouse gas emissions.
The problem: fewer than 10% of construction companies in France are reportedly competent to carry out energy audits and work, and worse, 75% of renovation projects on individual homes do not result in an improved DPE. "Today, energy renovation struggles to scale up. We lack methods, tools, systematization, and standardization. Furthermore, it's a technical, complex subject where expertise is poorly distributed," she explains. Kelvin is specifically addressing these weaknesses.
AI Visual Recognition
The startup targets contractors and real estate professionals, providing them with "a tool whose results are as reliable as those of a field audit," explains the entrepreneur. While the solution doesn't replace the official DPE, it offers precise and rapid insight into a dwelling's energy status without the cost of a field audit, thereby potentially accelerating decision-making. To achieve this, the software incorporates several technical components: geostatistics (tens of millions of real estate data points have been integrated); AI-powered visual recognition of images taken on-site via smartphone; remote 3D modeling based on satellite imagery and cadastral data; and an engine for personalized renovation recommendations.
With commercial momentum building after raising 5 million euros this year, Kelvin has big ambitions. "Our solution can become a standard, a reflex, in the industry, helping to achieve the urgent scaling up of thermal renovation," concludes Clémentine Lalande before heading off to her next meetings with the same boundless energy.
Currently, 75% of renovations on single-family homes do not result in an improvement in their DPE.
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