Zanskar Raises $115M to Accelerate AI-Powered Geothermal Exploration in the United States

Zanskar, specialized in geothermal exploration, has closed a $115M Series C funding round, according to a company statement. The round, led by Spring Lane Capital, brings together more than fifteen investors from the energy and technology sectors. Among them are Obvious Ventures, which led the Series B, as well as Union Square Ventures and Lowercarbon Capital, co-lead investors of the Series A. The company's total funding would now reach $180M. An AI-Assisted Exploration Platform The Salt Lake City-based company develops a platform combining artificial intelligence and fieldwork to identify untapped geothermal resources. According to Zanskar, this approach would reduce exploration costs and timeframes compared to traditional methods. The company claims to have discovered several large-scale geothermal systems in the Western United States, resources it describes as hidden rather than rare. Carl Hoiland, CEO and co-founder of Zanskar, states that the company has confirmed the existence of multiple previously unknown geothermal resources. According to him, deeper drilling would have validated energy potential exceeding initial estimates. Joel Edwards, co-founder and CTO, emphasizes that the use of big data and modern computing would have accelerated the pace of discoveries. Gigawatt-Scale Production Ambitions The funds raised would be used to develop a project portfolio that the company describes as having multi-gigawatt potential capacity. Zanskar plans to begin construction of geothermal power plants in the Western United States, with commissioning announced before 2030. The company indicates it also wants to expand its exploratory drilling programs and establish new strategic partnerships. Jason Scott, Partner at Spring Lane Capital, justifies this investment by what he considers near-infinite demand for clean baseload electricity. According to him, Zanskar would have identified more geothermal anomalies in North America than any other company in decades. Andrew Beebe, Managing Director at Obvious Ventures, describes the team as fast, disciplined and effective. Context of Growing Demand This funding round comes amid strong demand for baseload electricity in the United States, particularly from data center operators. Geothermal energy, a continuous and dispatchable power source, is attracting renewed interest from investors. The transaction would represent, according to Zanskar, the largest venture capital investment to date in AI-assisted geothermal resource discovery.

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