Tech startup achieves industry-leading efficiency ratings while introducing millimeter-wave occupancy detection and AI-powered climate control
In a market dominated by century-old incumbents, two-year-old climate tech startup Quilt is making waves with groundbreaking energy-efficient updates to its smart heat pump technology that promise to reshape how Americans heat and cool their homes.
The company, founded by veterans from Apple, Tesla, and Nest, has achieved what many industry observers deemed impossible: creating the most efficient 2-zone heat pump on the market while maintaining a sleek, consumer-friendly design that can blend seamlessly into modern home environments.
Table of Contents
Record-Breaking Efficiency Metrics
Quilt’s heat pump system boasts an industry-leading SEER2 rating of 25 and HSPF2 of 12, earning Energy Star certification — metrics that significantly outperform traditional HVAC systems and even most competitors in the emerging smart heat pump space.
To put these numbers in perspective, new 2024 residential efficiency standards increased minimum requirements by 8-10%, rendering roughly 70% of current products inadequate. Quilt’s ratings exceed these new standards by substantial margins, positioning the company well ahead of regulatory curves.
The system achieves a coefficient of performance (COP) of up to 4 while maintaining noise levels between just 27 dBA to 47 dBA, making it not only highly efficient but also remarkably quiet — addressing two of the most common consumer complaints about traditional heat pumps.
Revolutionary Occupancy Detection Technology
Perhaps most impressive among Quilt’s innovations is its integration of advanced sensor technology. Unlike most heat pumps that rely on passive infrared sensors prone to false vacancy signals when occupants aren’t moving, each Quilt head unit incorporates millimeter-wave occupancy sensors that can accurately detect human presence even during stationary activities like sleeping or working at a desk.
This technological leap enables occupancy detection, intelligent scheduling, and temperature preconditioning features that help save energy and lower monthly electric bills while providing room-by-room control and unmatched energy efficiency.
The system’s AI capabilities extend beyond simple occupancy detection. The Quilt App provides intuitive control from anywhere, seamless scheduling, and energy usage insights down to the hour and room level, giving homeowners unprecedented visibility into their energy consumption patterns.
Design Innovation Meets Practical Performance
Quilt’s engineering team has prioritized both form and function in ways that traditional HVAC manufacturers have historically overlooked. At only 7⅞ inches tall, the indoor units are designed to fit into more spaces and blend with home aesthetics while maintaining energy efficiency.
The outdoor unit delivers 18,000 BTUs and maintains 90% of its heating capacity down to -13 degrees Fahrenheit, with each indoor unit capable of 9,000 BTUs — performance specs that rival much larger, less efficient systems.
This combination of compact design and robust performance addresses a key market gap. Quilt promises its heat pump will offer a sleeker design that can be installed in more places around a room than competitors’ offerings, potentially expanding the addressable market for heat pump installations.
Market Timing and Industry Context
Quilt’s technology updates arrive at a critical juncture for the HVAC industry. The 2025 Energy Code expands the use of heat pumps in newly constructed residential buildings, encourages electric-readiness, and strengthens ventilation standards, creating significant tailwinds for innovative heat pump technologies.
The broader industry is experiencing unprecedented innovation pressure. Variable-speed compressors and smart thermostats have revolutionized the industry, setting new standards for energy efficiency and intelligent climate control, while the transition to low-GWP refrigerants and adoption of solar-powered HVAC systems reflects a broader shift toward sustainability.
Funding and Market Position
Quilt’s technological achievements are backed by substantial investor confidence. The company raised a hefty $33 million Series A earlier this year, providing capital to scale production and market reach.
This funding enables Quilt to compete directly with established players while maintaining the agility to innovate rapidly — a significant advantage in a market where many incumbent manufacturers have been slow to adopt new technologies.
Looking Forward
As the residential HVAC market grapples with rising energy costs, stricter efficiency regulations, and growing consumer demand for smart home integration, Quilt’s energy-efficient updates represent more than incremental improvements — they signal a fundamental reimagining of home climate control.
The company’s success in achieving industry-leading efficiency while maintaining consumer-friendly design and advanced smart features suggests that the traditional trade-offs between performance, aesthetics, and intelligence may no longer be necessary.
For homeowners considering HVAC upgrades, Quilt’s technology updates offer a glimpse into the future of home climate control: systems that are not only more efficient and environmentally friendly but also more intuitive and responsive to actual human behavior patterns.
The question now is whether traditional HVAC manufacturers can match this pace of innovation, or if Silicon Valley’s approach to hardware engineering will continue disrupting yet another established industry.