Juno, a startup that uses proptech to create more affordable and sustainable apartment buildings, has raised $20M in a Series-A funding round.
Khosla Ventures, Comcast Ventures and Real Estate Technology Ventures led the financing. This brings the total amount raised by the company to $32 millions since its inception in 2019. The Series A investment was also made by Vertex Ventures and JLL Spark.
Jonathan Scherr, Juno's co-founder and CEO, stated that the startup is based in San Francisco and plans to create all electric properties through the creation of an OEM ecosystem.
TechCrunch spoke to him that housing development was treated like product development. This process is called productization. Tools and systems can be developed to improve efficiency and create buildings that can be repeated. Buildings should not be designed or considered in a singular context. The learnings from each project will be lost.
Junos productization can be compared to prefabrication in certain aspects. Katerra, a prefab construction company, went bankrupt in 2008. However, many other companies are still active in the sector, including Abodu, Mighty Buildings and Mighty Buildings. Khosla also backs Mighty Buildings but it is more focused on accessory dwelling units and single-family houses. Prescient is also located in North Carolina and is constructing multifamily homes and hotels using prefabrication.
Junos theory states that productization can produce the tools, systems, and processes that allow for a reduced design timeline, better estimations and scheduling, and significantly faster construction. Scherr stated that all of this can lead to more affordable housing options across the United States. Juno claims its design process is 60% faster than traditional real estate development.
Juno, like other players in this space, claims a more sustainable approach to construction than traditional methods.
TechCrunch was told by Scherr that today's construction refuse is 2x the amount of all municipal waste in the U.S. Juno's system reduces waste and energy consumption by reducing the supply chain and design of buildings.
Scherr stated that Juno's focus on all-electric buildings is helping it to reach a zero net target for embodied CO2 in its multifamily residential units.
Scherr co-founded Juno with BJ Sigel, who was the original Apple Store's designer, and Chester Chipperfield who serves as the company's advisor. Chipperfield was previously the global creative director of Tesla, head for special projects at Apple, and head of digital at Burberry. Scherr is a former venture investor and advisor to many companies.
BJ [Siegel], the original concept architect of Apple's retail program, had considered how to create a brand for the built environment. He and his Apple colleagues began to see Apple retail as Apple's products, with a decentralized supply system.
Juno was founded with a similar vision: Juno aims to design better housing and make it easy to replicate. This will allow Juno to create a supply chain that can be used to develop learning systems that are more efficient. Scherr's father was a real-estate developer.
Juno is building the first nationwide network of mass timber apartment blocks at scale, with all-electric buildings throughout the United States. It has partnered with Swinerton and Ennead Architects in order to put the model into action. The company has already begun construction on its first apartment building in East Austin. It currently has over 400 units under development. The East Austin building will open in 2022. Juno also plans sites for Seattle and Denver.
The company sees the future and plans to use its new capital for product development, first cohort projects, and collaboration with developers.
Junos investors are naturally positive about what the company does and plans to do.
Khosla Ventures partner Evan Moore said that he doesn't usually invest in real-estate development companies, builders, or architects.
He wrote via email that he was happy to support a team working on a completely different product in a crucial industry.
Moore said that apartment development was historically a finance-driven business, not product-driven. Despite the fact that apartments are consumer goods and derive their value through their use, Moore agreed.
He said that there is a huge opportunity to design buildings that put the customer experience first. Imagine if Apple made apartment buildings. This means that you work backwards from your desired experience, design the components, supply chain, and systems, and keep cost in mind. This is an ambitious idea and a worthwhile experiment.
Sheena Jindal is the principal of Comcast Ventures. She says that America's housing stock has become less and more old, making it harder for people to purchase homes. She stated that her firm believes everyone should have access to affordable housing.
Juno's first principles approach to building struck us when we first met them, she wrote via email. Juno understood the problems in multifamily housing production, and she tackled them head-on by focusing on the value chain and its design strategy. Juno works with existing players rather than trying to replace them.
