Solar window company bringing its US headquarters to California

A solar company that aims to use the sun’s power to make buildings more energy efficient has chosen San Jose as its headquarters for its United States operations.

ClearVue PV has developed a cutting-edge “solar window” that can be used as a facade for buildings to make the structures more energy-efficient and capable of generating electricity.

As part of that ambitious effort, Australia-based ClearVue is hoping to parlay the green energy push — in particular the Bay Area and California —  into success for its solar window products.

ClearVue has developed specialized glass technologies that can keep a window fully transparent yet also able to generate electricity.

The company demonstrated its technology Monday during an event to officially open its operations and headquarters in San Jose.

“We picked San Jose because San Jose is leading the pack on green energy,” Charles Mowrey, president of ClearVue North America, said in an interview during the event.

The solar window invented by ClearVue allows light to pass through the glass. It then immediately redirects the incoming sun rays onto solar cells that can generate electricity for the building.

“ClearVue offers some really exciting technologies,” San Jose Matt Mahan said in an interview.

The company has a handful of employees and expects to expand to 20 workers at the headquarters in San Jose.

“Buildings should be able to produce energy on-site and not drag the electricity through miles of wires to the building,” said Victor Rosenberg, ClearVue founder and inventor of the solar window.

In September 2023, ClearVue revealed that it was finding success in mass production using a standard manufacturing line at a factory in China.

“If you decentralize the energy, you don’t have to spend as much money upgrading the grid,” said Martin Deil, ClearVue’s chief executive officer. “It’s easier to cope with peak demand” for electricity.

The prospect of cost-effective mass production could be a major boost for the company’s efforts worldwide and in the efforts that the San Jose headquarters will guide.

“Buildings should be net-zero, they should be generating their own power,” Mowrey said.

ClearVue also aims to scout for industrial space in the vicinity, executives said.

“We want to continue to be a center for innovation,” Mahan said. “We’re excited that ClearVue has decided to locate here.”