Sunfolding, a venture-backed solar tracker startup founded in 2012, has ceased operations after 11 years, resulting in the layoff of its entire workforce. The company, which once employed 44 people, faced insurmountable challenges primarily due to manufacturing issues and a lack of experience in executing solar projects. Despite developing an innovative pneumatic tracker system aimed at reducing costs and enabling installations on uneven terrain, Sunfolding struggled to compete in a market dominated by larger players like Array Technologies and Nextracker. The shutdown, confirmed in mid-2023, underscores the difficulties hardware startups face in the rapidly growing but competitive utility-scale solar industry, even after raising significant funding, including a $32 million round in 2019.
