# D-Prize

> D-Prize is a VC fund in San Francisco backing Solar, Energy and Renewable Energy. See 2 investments, check sizes, portfolio. Updated Aug 2026.

- Type: VC Fund
- Location: San Francisco, United States
- Total investments: 2
- Last investment: Mar 2022
- Lead investor: 50%
- Last updated: Aug 2026
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/d-prize 
- X (Twitter): http://twitter.com/nickofusso
- Website: http://www.d-prize.org/
- Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Pay2Africa/484315691640353

D-Prize is a VC fund in San Francisco focused on Solar and Energy. D-Prize is dedicated toward expanding access to poverty-alleviation solutions in the developing world. Many solutions to poverty already exist; the challenge is distributing these solutions to the people who need it most. We tackle this by challenging social entrepreneurs to develop better ways to distribute proven life-enhancing technologies, andfunding early-stage startups that deliver the best results.

## Investment focus

### Industry

| Industry | Investments | Share |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Solar | 2 | 100% |
| Energy | 2 | 100% |
| Renewable Energy | 2 | 100% |
| Clean Energy | 1 | 50% |
| Energy Efficiency | 1 | 50% |

### Stage

| Stage | Investments | Share |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Seed | 1 | 50% |
| Pre-Seed | 1 | 50% |

### Country

| Country | Investments | Share |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Zimbabwe | 1 | 50% |
| United States | 1 | 50% |

## Investments

| Company | Description | Amount | Stage | Date | Website |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Sun Plugged Energy | Sun Plugged Energy provides solar solutions to its customers through Pay-As-You-Go and Lease-to-Own Models in Southern Africa.. The business distributes its solar solutions to the last mile users. The business also finances, builds and operates C&I Solar systems in Southern Africa. Since inception the company has distributed over 3 000 solarsolutions with the goal of reaching 100 000 solution distribution by the year 2030. | $20K | Pre-Seed | Mar 01, 2022 |  |
| Qorax Energy | To find out more about the distribution companies Qorax incubated, please visit: Altech - https://www.altech-rdc.com (DRC), HelloSolar - https://www.hellosolarint.com (Ethiopia), Enersom - https://www.enersom.us (Somalia), | $250K | Seed | Sep 01, 2014 |  |

2 of 2 investments shown.

## Co-investors
- [Echoing Green](https://shizune.co/investors/profile/echoing-green) — VC Fund, 1 deal together
- [THE WORLD BANK](https://shizune.co/investors/profile/the-world-bank-group) — VC Fund, 1 deal together
- [United States Agency for International Development](https://shizune.co/investors/profile/usaid) — VC Fund, 1 deal together

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## FAQ

### What does D-Prize invest in?

D-Prize invests primarily in Solar, Energy and Renewable Energy startups, most often at Seed and Pre-Seed stage. Most of the 2 investments tracked by Shizune back companies in Zimbabwe. The Investment Focus section breaks down every industry, stage and country in the portfolio.

### When did D-Prize last invest?

The most recent investment recorded for D-Prize closed in Mar 2022. Shizune tracks 2 investments in total for this profile, including round sizes, stages and portfolio companies, all sourced from confirmed public funding rounds and refreshed monthly.

### Is Shizune's investor data accurate?

Yes — every stat on this profile is calculated from confirmed public funding rounds monitored across hundreds of sources since 2020. This profile was last refreshed in Aug 2026 and is updated monthly. Spotted something off? Use the “Suggest an edit” link near the top of the page.

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