Quaise Energy Pitch Deck Teardown: Deep Geothermal and Millimeter-Wave Drilling

Quaise Energy’s pitch deck is a masterclass in technical storytelling for hard-tech startups. By framing the global energy crisis not just as a carbon problem, but as a scalability and power density problem, the company positions its millimeter-wave drilling technology as the missing link for net-zero goals. The deck effectively bridges the gap between high-level climate targets and granular engineering solutions, such as vitrified well walls and gyrotron-guided waves. While the deck lacks a traditional team slide or detailed unit economics in the provided selection, it successfully communica…

Key takeaways

• The deck frames geothermal potential as a 100x scalability play, targeting depths of 20 km to reach the entire world population (Slide 5).
• Technical proof is provided through images of a 5 cm hole in hard basement rock drilled at the MIT Plasma Science Fusion Center (Slide 7).
• The technology claims to create a vitrified wall that is 10x the strength of the surrounding rock (Slide 7).
• The business model leverages existing oil and gas industry practices, specifically air drilling and direct circulation drilling (Slide 9).
• Intellectual property is anchored in two specific patents: US 8,393,410 (MIT) and 11,028,648 (Quaise) (Slide 9).
• The roadmap outlines a clear capital requirement path, starting with $10M for lab scale-up and peaking at $250M for the first repowered power plant (Slide 11).
• The ultimate goal is 1 TW of geothermal capacity by 2050, which would eliminate half a Gigaton of CO2 emissions annually (Slide 13).
• The deck omits a dedicated team slide, competitive landscape analysis, and specific financial projections beyond milestone funding needs.

Frequently asked questions

What is the core technology behind Quaise Energy?

Quaise uses millimeter-wave drilling powered by gyrotrons. Unlike mechanical drill bits that wear out in hard rock, this technology uses high-power electromagnetic waves to vaporize rock. This allows for drilling much deeper (up to 20 km) where temperatures reach 500°C, providing a power density comparable to fossil fuels.

How does Quaise plan to scale its geothermal solution?

The company intends to repower existing coal and gas power plants. By drilling deep geothermal wells at these sites, they can use the existing steam turbines and grid connections, significantly reducing the infrastructure costs typically associated with transitioning to renewable energy.

What are the key milestones in the Quaise roadmap?

The roadmap (Slide 11) targets a 100m field scale-up in 2023, a 1km scale-up in 2024, the first supercritical enhanced geothermal field in 2026, and the first 250 MWe repowered fossil fuel plant by 2028.

What intellectual property does the company hold?

Slide 9 explicitly cites two patents: US Patent 8,393,410, which is licensed from MIT, and US Patent 11,028,648, which is held by Quaise. The IP covers the combination of gyrotrons, waveguides, and gas injection to create a functional drilling system.

How much capital does Quaise need to reach commercialization?

According to Slide 11, the company projected a need for $20M in 2023, $30M in 2024, $50M in 2026, and $250M in 2028 to reach the milestone of the first repowered power plant. The reported $52M Series A in 2022 provided the initial runway for these early scale-up phases.

You’ve studied Quaise Energy’s deck. Now score yours.

Upload your pitch deck and get AI-powered feedback to strengthen your pitch.

• Overall score
• Slide-by-slide feedback
• Prioritized fixes

Get My Pitch Score

Quaise Energy pitch deck: the facts

Company

Quaise Energy

Year

2022

Stage

Series A

Slides

15

Sector

Energy / Geothermal

Deck type

Fundraising

Outcome

$52M Raised

Headquarters

North America

Quaise Energy pitch deck PDF

The full Quaise Energy deck is embedded on this page and can be read slide by slide in the browser — no download or account required. Each slide is covered in the breakdown above.

What the Quaise Energy pitch deck was used for

This deck is Quaise Energy’s 15‑slide **Series A** presentation used in 2022 to raise a total of **$52M** for its deep geothermal drilling technology based on millimeter‑wave (gyrotron) rock vaporization.[1][6][10][12] The company, an MIT spin‑out founded in 2018 and headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts, positioned the round as capital to unlock terawatt‑scale superhot geothermal by adapting oil and gas infrastructure.[1][6][8][11] The deck focuses on a technical drilling breakthrough to reach 6–12 miles underground and tap very high‑temperature geothermal resources that could provide baseload, clean electricity globally.[4][6][14][15]

Business model: Quaise Energy is developing gyrotron-powered millimeter‑wave drilling technology to vaporize rock and access ultra‑deep, superhot geothermal resources, aiming to unlock terawatt‑scale baseload renewable power by repurposing existing oil and gas infrastructure.[1][4][11][14][15]

Round

Series A[1][6][7][10][12]

Investors

Safar Partners (lead for initial $40M Series A)[6][7], Prelude Ventures[1][2][6][7], Fine Structure Ventures[6][7], The Engine[6][7][9][11], Collaborative Fund[6][7][9], Nabors Energy Transition Ventures / Nabors Industries[6][7][9], TechEnergy Ventures (lead for $12M Series A expansion)[1], HostPlus[1]

Founded

2018[3][8][9]

Founders

Carlos Araque, Matthew (Matt) Houde, Aaron Mandell, Paul Woskov (scientific co‑founder)[3][8][9][11]

Headquarters

Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA[1][6][7][9]

Industry

Energy / Geothermal / Clean energy technology[1][4][6][9][11]

Year: 2022[1][6][7][10][12]

Raising: Series A growth capital to develop and scale gyrotron‑powered millimeter‑wave drilling technology and advance toward terawatt‑scale superhot geothermal deployment.[1][6][7][10][14]

Raised: $52M Series A total: $40M announced February 8, 2022, plus $12M expansion announced June 8, 2022.[1][6][7][10][12]

Lead investor: Safar Partners led the initial $40M Series A; TechEnergy Ventures led the $12M Series A expansion that brought the round to $52M.[1][6][7][10]

Total funding: More than $100M raised prior to the 2025 Canary Media report, including seed, Series A and strategic financing, and later a $180M Series B announced in 2026.[3][5][6][7][9]

Use of funds as presented: To further develop millimeter‑wave drilling systems, conduct field demonstrations, integrate with conventional drilling infrastructure, and progress toward commercial deployment of deep superhot geothermal power at terawatt scale.[1][6][7][10][14]

What happened after the Quaise Energy deck

The 2022 Series A deck supported Quaise Energy in securing an initial $40M Series A and a subsequent $12M expansion to $52M, enabling the company to advance its gyrotron‑based millimeter‑wave drilling technology from lab and early field demonstrations toward commercial‑scale superhot geothermal projects, and setting the stage for a much larger $180M Series B to commercialize the technology.[1][3][

• Closed a $40M Series A financing in February 2022 led by Safar Partners, with investors including Prelude Ventures, Fine
• Expanded the Series A by an additional $12M in June 2022, bringing the total Series A funding to $52M; the incremental c
• Continued developing and field‑testing millimeter‑wave drilling technology to demonstrate deep rock vaporization and pro
• By 2026, closed a $180M Series B round to commercialize superhot geothermal, indicating meaningful progress beyond the i

What the Quaise Energy deck got right

• Compelling, clearly differentiated deep‑tech solution. Quaise’s core value proposition is a **distinct technical breakthrough**—gyrotron‑powered millimeter‑wave drilling that vaporizes rock and can theoretically reach 6–12 miles deep, directly addressing the key barrier to accessing superhot geothermal resources.[1][4][5][14][15]
• High‑credibility scientific and industry pedigree. The company is positioned as an **MIT spin‑out** with a scientific co‑founder (Paul Woskov) and a founding team experienced in oil and gas drilling and geothermal, which strongly reinforces technical credibility and execution capacity.[3][5][8][9][11]
• Large, global, climate‑relevant market framing. Quaise’s narrative emphasizes **terawatt‑scale baseload clean energy** by tapping a ubiquitous resource beneath the Earth’s surface, framing the opportunity as both enormous and globally scalable rather than site‑limited conventional geothermal.[1][4][5][6][14]
• Smart leverage of existing industrial infrastructure. Public descriptions of the company’s plan highlight **repurposing existing oil and gas infrastructure and supply chains**, which can lower capex and make the path to deployment more believable for investors familiar with drilling.[4][5][9][11][14]
• Robust and diversified investor backing. The staged fundraising—initial $40M Series A followed by a $12M expansion to $52M—demonstrates **strong investor appetite**, including climate‑focused VCs, deep‑tech investors, and strategic energy corporates, which is a powerful validation signal likely reflected in the deck’s framing.[1][2][6][7][10][12]
• Series A story later validated by substantial follow‑on capital. Subsequent funding rounds, including the $180M Series B in 2026, show that the Series A story translated into continued execution and capital access, retrospectively validating the ambition presented in the 2022 deck.[3][5][14]

What could have been stronger

• Limited visibility on near‑term commercial milestones and economics. Public sources describing Quaise’s 2022 Series A emphasize the technological vision and terawatt‑scale potential but provide little detail on near‑term commercial milestones, timelines to first revenue, or specific project economics, suggesting the deck may have under‑emphasized concrete commercialization steps relative to the technical breakthrough.[1][6][7][14]
• Lack of verifiable customer traction at Series A stage. Available descriptions of the Series A round and company materials highlight field demos and technical development but do not mention signed customers, power purchase agreements, or contracted pilot plants at the time of the raise, implying that the deck likely could not show strong market traction or customer commitments yet.[1][5][6][7][14]
• High technical and regulatory complexity with limited de‑risking detail visible externally. Quaise’s approach requires integrating gyrotron‑based millimeter‑wave drills with existing oil and gas drilling infrastructure and operating at extreme depths and temperatures; external reporting notes these engineering challenges but does not detail how the Series A plan de‑risked each major technical and regulatory hurdle, a gap likely reflected in the deck.[4][5][11][14][15]

How an investor would read this deck

What draws attention

• Validation that millimeter‑wave drilling can reliably vaporize rock at relevant depths and temperatures, including results from lab and early field demonstrations.[4][5][14][15]
• The credibility of Quaise’s founding team and scientific roots in MIT research, including prior experience in oil and gas drilling and geothermal projects.[3][5][8][9][11]
• Evidence that existing oil and gas rigs and supply chains can be repurposed cost‑effectively for superhot geothermal wells using Quaise’s technology.[4][5][11][14]
• Capital efficiency of the Series A plan: how far $52M can move the company toward commercial pilots and grid‑connected power.[1][6][7][10]
• Regulatory and environmental considerations of drilling 6–12 miles deep, especially permitting, induced seismicity risk, and community acceptance.[4][5][14]

Risks that stand out

• Core millimeter‑wave drilling technology may face unexpected limitations in rock types, depths, or operating environments, delaying or constraining access to superhot geothermal resources.[4][5][14][15]
• Repurposing oil and gas infrastructure for ultra‑deep geothermal might encounter engineering integration challenges or higher‑than‑expected costs that impact project economics.[4][5][11][14]
• Regulatory, permitting, and public‑acceptance hurdles associated with drilling many miles into the Earth’s crust could slow deployment, particularly in populated or seismically sensitive areas.[4][5][14]
• The long development timelines for first commercial projects may create financing and execution risk, requiring multiple funding rounds before meaningful revenue.[1][5][6][7][14]

Questions this deck invites

• What specific performance metrics (depth, rate of penetration, energy use, rock types) had Quaise’s millimeter‑wave drilling achieved in lab and field tests by the time of the Series A?[4][5][14][15]
• How does the levelized cost of electricity from Quaise’s envisioned superhot geothermal plants compare to wind, solar, and conventional geothermal under realistic assumptions?[4][5][14]
• What concrete milestones (e.g., first commercial pilot well, first grid‑connected project) were budgeted within the $52M Series A, and on what timeline?[1][6][7][10]
• Which oil and gas partners or drilling contractors were already engaged in formal collaborations, and what commitments existed for equipment, rigs, and field sites?[4][5][9][14]
• How is Quaise managing permitting, seismic risk, and environmental impact assessments for drilling to 6–12 miles in different geologies and jurisdictions?[4][5][14]

What founders can take from the Quaise Energy deck

• A highly technical deep‑tech energy company can successfully raise a large Series A by clearly articulating how a specific scientific breakthrough—in this case millimeter‑wave rock vaporization—translates into a globally scalable, terawatt‑level clean‑energy opportunity.[1][4][5][14][15]
• Anchoring a fundraising narrative in repurposing existing industrial infrastructure (oil and gas rigs and supply chains) can make an otherwise radical technology path more credible and capital‑efficient in investors’ eyes.[4][5][11][14]
• Demonstrating strong institutional roots (MIT research, scientific co‑founders) and a team with domain experience in oil and gas and geothermal can significantly de‑risk a frontier energy technology story for investors.[3][5][8][9][11]
• Sequencing rounds—initial $40M Series A followed by a $12M expansion to $52M—can help a company bring in strategic corporate investors and broaden its base once the core round is established.[1][2][6][7][10][12]
• Clear long‑term ambition (terawatt‑scale, world‑powering geothermal) combined with near‑term demonstration milestones can attract both climate‑focused and strategic investors to a high‑risk energy technology.[1][4][5][6][7][14]

Quaise Energy pitch deck: common questions

What does Quaise Energy do?

Quaise Energy is a clean‑energy technology startup developing millimeter‑wave drilling systems powered by gyrotrons to vaporize rock and reach ultra‑deep, superhot geothermal resources, with the goal of unlocking terawatt‑scale baseload renewable power.[1][4][11][14][15]

How much did Quaise Energy raise in its Series A round and who invested?

In February 2022, Quaise announced a **$40M Series A** led by Safar Partners with participation from Prelude Ventures, Fine Structure Ventures, The Engine, Collaborative Fund, Nabors Energy Transition Ventures and others.[6][7] In June 2022, the company expanded that Series A by **$12M** to a total of **$52M**, in an incremental round led by TechEnergy Ventures with participation from HostPlus, Prelude Ventures, Safar Partners and Xplorer Capital.[1][10][12]

What was Quaise Energy raising money for in its 2022 Series A?

According to funding announcements, the **$40M + $12M Series A capital** was raised to develop and scale Quaise’s millimeter‑wave drilling technology, advance field demonstrations, and move the company toward commercial deployment of superhot geothermal power at terawatt scale.[1][6][7][10][14]

Who founded Quaise Energy and when?

Quaise was founded in **2018** after MIT engineer Paul Woskov’s millimeter‑wave drilling experiments attracted the interest of Carlos Araque and Matt Houde; Aaron Mandell helped bring them together, and all three are cited as co‑founders, with Woskov as a scientific co‑founder.[3][8][9][11]

What happened after Quaise Energy’s Series A—did the company make further progress?

After the 2022 Series A, Quaise continued developing and demonstrating its technology in the field and, by 2026, had closed a **$180M Series B** to commercialize superhot geothermal, indicating ongoing investor confidence and progress beyond the original Series A plan.[3][5][14]

Sources

Funding and outcome facts on this page were researched on 2026-08-30 from the pages below.

• Quaise Energy Expands Series A to $52M to Unlock Terawatt-Scale ...
• Quaise: Funding, Team & Investors | Startup Intros
• Quaise Energy closes $180M Series B to commercialize superhot geothermal
• Digging deep for super hot geothermal
• The smell of toasted rock could spell victory for geothermal energy
• Geothermal startup nabs $40M for deep drilling push
• Quaise Raises $40M Series A Financing
• Tapping into the million-year energy source below our feet | MIT News

Quaise Energy pitch deck slides

What each slide of the Quaise Energy pitch deck says

Slide 1

Scaling Geothermal An essential primary energy source to reach net zero Carlos Araque Founder and CEO carlos@quaise.energy QVA QUAISE ENERGY

Slide 3

Share of fossil fuels in the energy mix in 2050 The world is off track to net zero 100% 0% -{ l’ 3 | 60% + i A% 20% o Pacific Northwest Paul Seherrar Enerdata Energy Information Intl Renewabie The Glabal International National Lsg Institute Adrministration Energy Agenzy Calculator Energy Agzncy ©2021 Quaise, Inc

Slide 5

The potential of geothermal energy is enormous Hotter and deeper geothermal provides the most powerful and scalable renewable 500 C = 100X more powerful Hotter geothermal can provide 1to 10 TW by 2050 -~ 100X 20 km = 100X more scalable Deeper geothermal can reach the entire world population

Slide 7

A drilling breakthrough is required Our millimeter wave drilling technology opens a new frontier in geothermal / You may also wateh this video directly in YouTube. Drilling into hard basement rock with millimeter waves at The resulting 5 cm hole with uniform circular cross section the MIT Plasma Science Fusion Center has a highly competent vitrified wall (10x strength of rock)

Slide 9

How does millimeter wave drilling work? Source A gyrotron generates millimeter waves at power densities higher than the surface of the sun. These waves are guided into the downhole environment using waveguides. Gyrotrons and waveguides have been around for decades. Gas We inject air, nitrogen or argon into the downhole environment and use this gas as our ‘drilling mud’ to remove the rock cuttings. This is called air drilling, a well-established practice in the oil and gas industry. Pipe The waves and the gas travel together inside the pipe. At the bottom of the well, the waves vaporize the rock and the gas takes these ‘rock cuttings’ back to surface. This is called direct circulation drilli…

Slide 11

Value inflection points Building the most valuable geothermal company in the world 2024 Field scale-up by 2023 10000x (1 km) Field scale-up by 1000x (100 m) 2022 2028 Lalbozca:i:p by First coal/gas power X m) plant repowered with 2026 geothermal steam arsay funced First supercritical enhanced (250 Mwe) geothermal field in the world (100 MWt) $50M

Slide 13

Cumulative geothermal capacity in GW Achieving massive impact Scaling geothermal towards 1 TW by 2050 1000 900 800 700 600 500 400 300 200 100 0 1 2030 2035 2040 2025 2050 WRepowering coal and gas plants with geothermal steam M8uilding brand new geothermal plants ©2021 Quaise, Inc Power density matters We can repower existing coal and gas plants because our geothermal fields have power densities comparable to that of fossil fuels. We can also build new geothermal power plants as powerful as fossil-fired plants. Activating the oil and gas industry to scale The subsurface development work implied in this chart is a fraction of what the oil industry is currently capable of doing. And we intend…

Slide 15

QUAISE ENERGY Carlos Araque Founder and CEO carlos@quaise.energy

Slide text above is read directly from the Quaise Energy deck PDF embedded on this page.

Related fundraising guides (24)

• Domino Data Lab Pitch Deck Teardown: A Masterclass in Enterprise Social Proof
• Circles Pitch Deck Teardown: A $16.5M Series A Bet on Scalable Peer Support
• Brag House Pitch Deck Teardown: Targeting the Casual Collegiate Esports Market
• Anja Health Pitch Deck Teardown: A Narrative-Led Approach to Cord Blood Banking
• 10KC Pitch Deck Teardown: A $56M Growth Round Built on Enterprise Social Proof
• Curio.io Pitch Deck Teardown: Selling High-Engagement Audio Journalism
• Leonardo.ai Pitch Deck Teardown: A Product-First Showcase of Generative AI Traction
• HiBob Pitch Deck Teardown: A Narrative-Driven $150M Series D Masterclass
• Florence Pitch Deck Teardown: Scaling a Healthcare Staffing Marketplace to £9bn Market Potential
• ElasticStage Pitch Deck Teardown: Solving the 12-Month Vinyl Supply Chain Bottleneck
• CMR Surgical Pitch Deck Teardown: A $600M Masterclass in Ecosystem-Led Medical Robotics
• Bravo Sierra Pitch Deck Teardown: Leveraging Military Community for CPG Scale
• Arize AI Pitch Deck Teardown: A Masterclass in Category Creation and Market Timing
• Affini-T Therapeutics Pitch Deck Teardown: A $175M Masterclass in Biotech Platform Credibility
• Swipes Pitch Deck Teardown: A Minimalist Approach to Productivity Fundraising
• micro1 Pitch Deck Teardown: Leveraging Growth Momentum and AI Vetting for Global Engineering
• HMNC Brain Health Pitch Deck Teardown: A Precision Psychiatry Play for Depression
• Gelt Pitch Deck Teardown: The Protocol-to-Consumer Play for DeFi Savings
• Empion Pitch Deck Teardown: A Culture-First Approach to Automated Recruitment
• Condense Pitch Deck Teardown: Solving the 'Pre-Recorded' Problem in Metaverse Live Events
• CAMP4 Therapeutics Pitch Deck Teardown: A $100M Masterclass in Biotech Platform Validation
• authID.ai Pitch Deck Teardown: A Post-IPO Roadmap for Biometric Identity Verification
• AgomAb Therapeutics Pitch Deck Teardown: A Masterclass in Biotech Pipeline Visualization
• Limetree Pitch Deck Teardown: A Case Study in Early-Stage Family Media Preservation

Decks from the same year (1)

• 2022 pitch deck examples

Decks with a similar raise (1)

• Pitch decks that raised $50M to $250M

Browse companies alphabetically (1)

• Pitch decks from companies starting with Q

More pitch deck teardowns (16)

• QIDS Pitch Deck Teardown: Targeting the High-Noise Parent Group Chat Market
• Qme Pitch Deck Teardown: A Product-First Look at Virtual Queue Management
• QoC Health Pitch Deck Teardown: A Platform Approach to Post-Surgery Patient Monitoring
• Qonsent Pitch Deck Breakdown: A Product-Heavy Seed Deck Focused on Data Privacy Compliance
• Qortex Pitch Deck Breakdown: Monetizing In-Video Moments with AI Intelligence
• QOTEQ Investment Pitch Deck Teardown: A Vision for Hyper-Automation Operating Systems
• Qover Pitch Deck Breakdown: A Masterclass in B2B Social Proof and Infrastructure Framing
• AudioFav Pitch Deck Teardown: A Multi-Sensory Approach to Mobile Photo Sharing
• Qualio Pitch Deck Breakdown: A Minimalist Approach to High-Stakes Compliance SaaS
• QualSights (formerly Georama) Pitch Deck Breakdown: A Minimalist Approach to Series A
• Quambase Pitch Deck Teardown: A Hybrid Service-Product Play in Deep Tech Education
• Quantexa Pitch Deck Breakdown: A Masterclass in Late-Stage Social Proof and Market Dominance
• Quarantyne Pitch Deck Teardown: A Lean Pre-Seed Approach to Bot Detection
• Quartus AI Fund Pitch Deck Teardown: A Growth Equity Strategy for AI-Based Software
• Qubit Security Pitch Deck Teardown: A $3M Series A Bid for Cloud Log Analysis
• Queerie Pitch Deck Teardown: A $300k Pre-Seed Play for Community-Driven Connection

Recently published pitch deck teardowns (12)

• Posh Pitch Deck Teardown: Scaling IRL Social Communities to a $22M Series A
• WageFi Pitch Deck Teardown: A Lean 10-Slide Approach to Earned Wage Access
• Voxel Pitch Deck Teardown: A Masterclass in Visualizing Invisible Industrial Risk
• ALTUM Pitch Deck Teardown: A State-Owned Development Finance Institution Strategy
• Aphelion Orbitals Pitch Deck Teardown: Targeting the Nanolauch Market with $750k Launches
• 4DStory Pitch Deck Teardown: Navigating the 'Aethereal Realm' of Web4 and Kinetic Avatars
• Dynamic Materials Pitch Deck Teardown: A Public Industrial Giant's 2012 Growth Strategy
• Eco World Pitch Deck Teardown: A Visionary Eco-Theme Park Without a Business Model
• Educate-Me Pitch Deck Teardown: A Marketplace Play for Education Service Providers
• Distrifoods Nigeria Pitch Deck Teardown: Hyper-Local CPG Strategy in the Mass Market
• Altum Pitch Deck Teardown: A State-Backed Debt Issuance for Economic Development
• TranslateKarate Pitch Deck Teardown: A Minimalist Approach to Localization Workflow

Fundraising library · Pitch deck examples · Investor directory · Founder database