Building at the Intersection of Housing and Energy

Housing affordability and grid instability are often treated as separate crises. Matthew Sachs sees them as one opportunity.

A former Co-Founder of Peak Power and former GM in homebuilding at Urbandale Construction, Matthew joined the REALFounders program, where the idea for Calyx took shape. The venture integrates residential energy assets into new home construction in a way that lowers upfront housing costs while strengthening the grid.

We spoke with Matthew about why he chose to build again, and why he chose to build with R-LABS.

You’ve built before. What drew you back to building – and to the REALFounders Program?

After eight years helping scale Peak Power from early stage through pre–Series B, I stepped back from day-to-day operations but remained involved as an advisor. I had space to think about what I wanted to build next.

When I saw R-LABS was looking for experienced real estate founders, it felt directly aligned with my background in both energy markets and homebuilding. Knowing I would need a concept, I began developing what became Calyx – and the REALFounders program provided the structure to refine it quickly.

What is Calyx solving?

Calyx addresses two systemic pressures at once: housing affordability and grid stability.

We integrate solar, battery storage, efficient heating and cooling, and EV charging into new home construction, but instead of increasing the home price, we reduce it. The energy assets are aggregated and compensated by utilities for providing grid services. That future energy revenue is converted into an upfront reduction in the purchase price of the home. Homeowners benefit from the lower purchase price, lower monthly energy bills, backup power resilience, and access to clean energy.

At scale, distributed residential batteries can respond to grid demand almost instantly, strengthening reliability while modernizing infrastructure. It aligns homeowner economics with energy system needs.

Why partner with a venture builder this time?

It comes down to leverage. Building independently is possible. Building with the right platform accelerates everything.

REALFounders provided structured pressure to refine and validate the concept, access to a deeply relevant real estate and utility network, and a community of experienced operators working at the same level of ambition.

Even experienced founders benefit from guardrails and thoughtful challenges. R-LABS is selective, they look for investible founders with sector depth and execution capability. When that alignment exists, the venture builder model becomes powerful.

What advice would you give to a founder considering partnering with R-LABS right now?

REALFounders is not for someone casually exploring an idea. It is built for experienced operators who understand the sector they want to change and are prepared to execute at scale.

R-LABS looks for founders with domain depth, people who have lived the problems they are trying to solve and can translate that insight into a credible venture. When that experience aligns with a systemic opportunity, the platform becomes a multiplier.

With capital, structure, and a deeply relevant network, REALFounders accelerates what would otherwise take years to build independently. For the right founder, at the right moment, that leverage can be decisive.

Thinking about building your next venture?

REALFounders is designed for experienced operators ready to build scalable ventures in real estate and the built environment. Calyx moved from concept to structured execution because the right founder met the right ecosystem at the right time.

R-LABS is actively building new ventures and hiring founders now.

If you are ready to tackle complex, system-level challenges in housing, infrastructure, sustainability, or urban innovation, explore the REALFounders program or view current founder opportunities to see where your experience could translate into impact.

The next generation of housing innovation will be built by founders who understand both the problem and the system. REALFounders exists to help them do exactly that.