Helix Earth's NASA Tech Aims to Halve Commercial AC Energy Costs

HOUSTON, TX – March 26, 2026 – Houston-based hardware startup Helix Earth has secured $12 million in an oversubscribed Seed 2 funding round to scale a technology born from NASA life support systems, with the goal of revolutionizing the commercial air conditioning market. The company’s innovative retrofit promises to cut HVAC energy consumption by over 50% by fundamentally changing how buildings manage humidity.

The investment round was led by Veriten, an energy research and investment firm, which tripled its initial stake in the company. The significant backing, which also drew participation from firms in Silicon Valley, Boston, New York, and Saudi Arabia, signals powerful investor conviction in Helix Earth’s solution for a problem plaguing commercial building owners everywhere: soaring energy costs and inefficient, aging infrastructure.

“This investment will empower the Helix Earth team to scale manufacturing and accelerate deployment of our first hardware product,” said Dr. Rawand Rasheed, co-founder and CEO of Helix Earth. “Building owners are dealing with rising energy costs, uncontrolled humidity, and aging infrastructure with no viable, cost-effective path forward. We are in the field today solving these problems for commercial customers, and this capital puts us on an aggressive path to scale.”

From Spacecraft to Skyscraper: A New Approach to Air Conditioning

At the heart of Helix Earth’s innovation is a proprietary liquid-gas chemistry system, dubbed Helix MICRA™, that addresses a core inefficiency in traditional HVAC. For decades, air conditioners have used a single, energy-intensive process to both cool and dehumidify air. In humid climates, removing moisture can account for up to half of an AC unit’s total energy consumption. Helix Earth’s technology bifurcates these tasks.

The system is a compact, solid-state add-on that pre-dehumidifies air before it enters the main AC unit. It routes air through helical channels, using centrifugal force and capillary action to efficiently strip out moisture droplets. This process, which can accelerate liquid-gas reactions by up to 1,000 times compared to conventional methods, dramatically reduces the workload on the existing cooling coils. The result is a potential 50% reduction in energy use, healthier indoor air quality, and less strain on equipment.

The technology’s origins are in the demanding environment of space travel. Dr. Rasheed, a Rice University alumnus with a PhD in Mechanical Engineering, developed the foundational principles during his five years as a Life Support Systems Engineer at NASA. His work focused on creating compact, highly efficient systems for water recovery and air purification on spacecraft—environments where energy and space are at an absolute premium. Helix Earth has now exclusively licensed this NASA-derived technology to tackle problems on Earth.

Disrupting an Innovation-Starved Industry

Helix Earth is entering a massive and growing market. The global commercial HVAC industry is valued at over $150 billion, yet it is often characterized by incremental advancements rather than transformative leaps. Building owners and facility managers face a constant battle against rising operational costs, with aging HVAC systems being a primary culprit. The typical solution—a full “rip-and-replace” of rooftop units—is prohibitively expensive, disruptive, and often unfeasible.

This is where Helix Earth’s retrofit model offers a compelling alternative. By designing an add-on that integrates with existing infrastructure, the company provides a path to dramatic efficiency gains without the massive capital expenditure of a full system overhaul. The company projects an unsubsidized payback period of three years or less, an attractive proposition for any business focused on its bottom line.

“We've spoken with hundreds of building owners representing tens of thousands of locations, and the message is consistent,” Dr. Rasheed noted. “They want more comfortable spaces, better air quality, lower energy bills, less product spoilage from uncontrolled humidity, and longer life out of their existing AC equipment. Helix Earth gives them exactly that.”

A Vote of Confidence in Practical Innovation

The strength of the $12 million funding round underscores the market’s appetite for such a practical solution. For lead investor Veriten, the decision to triple its investment was based on a combination of breakthrough technology and disciplined execution.

“The team has built breakthrough technology with real applicability across multiple industries,” commented Maynard Holt, Veriten’s founder and CEO. “Their first product will have an immediate and measurable impact on our energy system, and they are already pursuing adjacent innovations to help heavy industries operate more efficiently and with less waste. This is a well-rounded team with a proven track record of strong execution and disciplined capital management.”

This confidence is bolstered by a string of accolades that highlight the company’s momentum since its founding in 2022. Helix Earth, which was incubated at Houston’s Greentown Labs, has been named to the Cleantech 50 to Watch list, won first place in the prestigious 2025 SXSW Pitch competition, and received grants from both the National Science Foundation and the U.S. Department of Energy. This blend of private venture capital and public institutional support validates the technology's potential from both a commercial and scientific standpoint.

Aligning Profit with Planetary Health

Helix Earth’s market entry is timed perfectly with a wave of environmental regulations reshaping the HVAC industry. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is aggressively phasing down hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), common refrigerants with high global warming potential. Simultaneously, the Department of Energy is mandating significant increases in energy efficiency for new commercial units.

While Helix Earth’s technology does not replace refrigerants, its ability to slash energy demand by over 50% allows building owners to far exceed these new efficiency standards. By reducing the operational strain on existing units, the system can also extend equipment lifespan and lower maintenance costs, contributing to a more circular and sustainable approach to building management.

The environmental impact is potentially enormous. With HVAC systems projected to account for nearly 10% of global CO2 emissions by 2050, a technology that can halve that energy consumption offers a powerful tool in the fight against climate change. With its new funding, Helix Earth is now poised to move from pilot projects to broad commercial deployment, aiming to make a measurable dent in the carbon footprint of the built environment.