Octopus: Technology and Trust Transforming the Energy Sector

As outlined plenty previously here at Energy Digital, the energy sector is undergoing a significant transformation, driven by technological innovation and the need for a greener, more sustainable future. 

One of the companies at the forefront of this change is Octopus Energy. Although a relatively new provider compared to oil and gas giants — having only been established in 2015 — Octopus has been a revolutionary in the energy space in the UK, it’s home country, and the 27 other countries it operates in, eight of which have an energy retail business.

Speaking on the Stripe Tour, Octopus’ CFO and Co-Founder Stuart Jackson shared how payments underpins the brands’ customer experience and how the company has rapidly expanded its footprint by leveraging cutting-edge technology to enhance operational efficiency.

What is the Stripe Tour?

Irish-American multinational financial services and Software-as-a-Service company Stripe was founded 15 years ago. In the years since, it has grown to become a platform that revolutionises how businesses process payments thanks to its string of innovative solutions. 

Irish entrepreneur brothers John and Patrick Collison founded Stripe in Palo Alto, California, and have taken the brand on the road to major cities with the established annual Stripe Tour, with hubs including Tokyo, Paris, Sydney, Singapore and New York.

Octopus Energy: Technology driving the green revolution 

Octopus set out to overhaul the energy industry to make it sustainable and customer experience friendly by leveraging innovative technology.

As Stuart explained at Stripe, many energy suppliers have a reputation for poor customer service, propelling Octopus to change this by creating a seamless, low-friction customer interaction model.

“The core for us has been building trust, and that trust with the customer needs consistent proof points,” he said. “That means you have to have it right across the business model in the way we price the communications we send to customers.

“Of course, the way we handle exceptions and issues — what our teams do through methods of interaction with the customer — and the way that our tech in the background can actually preempt issues. This has been really important to us, and payments is definitely no exception. It really is an important part of the business model.”

Addressing payment challenges as Octopus grows

One continued sticking point, Stuart addressed, is the way in which customers choose to pay. As they are seen to typically favour fixed monthly payments — a challenge as the amount of energy people typically consume year-round fluctuates — Octopus has implemented Stripe technology to enable a seamlessly smooth integration with payments, which Staurt says is a really important part of the model.

And while addressing what initially were thought to be UK-centric energy challenges, Stuart and Co-Founder and CEO Greg Jackson realised that their approach and solutions were applicable, and had a high chance of success, in other geographies.

“There were something like 35 deregulated energy retail markets in the world and the sort of challenges that we'd seen in the UK were also relevant in those countries,” Stuart said.

“An opportunity came up to acquire a business in Germany and we learnt a huge amount — that started to create the blueprint for going to other places.” 

In its expansion, Octopus took inspiration from some of the world's largest and greatest tech companies, like Google and Uber, who have created consistent service around the world. Their applications, like Octopus’ built thereafter, are recognisable wherever you go, regardless of different regulations from place to place.

“In fact, we often marvel at Uber because not only do they have different regulations in different countries, but they have to deal with regulations in cities as well,” Stuart concluded. “It’s a hard problem. Our platform Kraken sets out to have that level of consistency in the different places we operate.

“I think what's important, in retrospect, is moving quickly into other countries. If you're able to solve a problem consistently, it’s about not prevaricating or overthinking it, getting on the ground and learning fast. That is really important.”

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