- Render Networks acquires mPower to expand from fiber planning into energy projects
- CEO Stephen Rose says energy and connectivity rollouts are converging and the AI era demands faster execution
- Render raised $20 million AUD to fund the acquisition and upgrade its software suite
Render Networks has made a name for itself by building a software platform that helps operators and construction firms execute complicated fiber projects for both broadband and data center projects. Now, though, it’s expanding its purview into the electrical realm with the acquisition of U.S.-based mPower.
CEO Stephen Rose told Fierce the move isn’t just about expanding Render’s portfolio, but about reflecting the realities of where its primary market – the communications sector – is headed.
“There’s just an enormous amount of demand for energy and connectivity right now. Those things are concurrent. They’re interdependent,” he said. In some cases, he added, these assets are or will be owned by the same company.
He’s not wrong. In the telecom world, there’s plenty of precedent for electrical cooperatives to run both electrical and fiber infrastructure. And data centers could soon be in the same boat, given that many are eyeing on-site power generation. Google, for instance, just bought energy infrastructure company Intersect, which it had previously partnered with to co-locate its data centers with power sources.
The thing is, telecom and energy companies are both traditionally slow movers. And they need to drastically pick up the pace of project execution in the AI era.
“These interdependent industries need to operate with a level of speed and resiliency that they’ve never been able to up to now. They’re not designed for that,” Rose said. “So, the ecosystem and value chain – including the software systems to deploy, operate and maintain these networks – need to work with them.”
Deal details
Render raised $14.3 million ($20 million AUD) from existing shareholders to both fuel the acquisition of mPower and bolster its software to meet the moment, Rose said. The latter will include transitioning its spatial engine to Esri’s ArcGIS and advancing its agentic AI architecture for ClearWay on Databricks.
He added that mPower’s founders will assume senior leadership roles at Render, and the company will retain mPower’s staff and U.S. office in Wisconsin.
Rose said Render is already serving Tier 1 and 2 telco construction firms, while mPower’s base is more Tier 2, 3 and smaller firms on the electrical side. The goal, he added, is to level up on the electrical side to include Tier 1 firms and add new capabilities for telco firms that may also have electrical components to their jobs.
“These infrastructure rollouts are of critical national importance and it sets the stage for all other industries to be globally competitive. The funding is in place, but the execution of that is everything.”