Pecan Street

Solving the climate crisis will demand a mixture of new technologies and policies. But it first requires a detailed understanding of energy use behavior.

Pecan Street collects and provides access to the world’s best data on consumer energy consumption behavior, testing and verification of technology solutions, and commercialization services to help bring breakthrough ideas to market faster and guide policy decisions.

Unlike any other organization, Pecan Street’s research addresses technology, behavior, and how the two interact. Our ambition is to provide the innovators and entrepreneurs who will lead the way toward a more sustainable energy and water system with the research, analysis, and insights they need to be successful.

Our real-world testbed of volunteer research participants is the first of its kind on the planet and has become an international model for how to develop and conduct energy and resource research and product testing. Our commercialization lab is an affordable, world-class proving ground for major corporations and startups alike. And our database, the largest source of disaggregated customer energy data, is used by university researchers and industry-leading companies around the world.

Headquartered in Austin, Pecan Street Inc. is a 501(c)(3) research and development organization.

What’s in a Name?

Pecan Street began as an economic development effort between the City of Austin and the University – an idea to leverage local talent in energy, technology and environmental protection into national leadership on clean energy and the grid. Our agenda and aspirations got lofty enough that we decided the project needed a name. Pecan Street emerged because of its symbolic link between Austin’s economic past and future.

Located in the heart of the city, Pecan Street and Congress Avenue were (and still are) the city’s primary downtown commercial arteries. Pecan Street was eventually renamed 6th Street, which is now synonymous with Austin’s self-proclaimed title of “Live Music Capital of the World.”

It seemed appropriate to keep “Pecan Street” at the heart of what could drive the next 150 years of Austin’s economy.