300PPM leads investment in the only proven solution to decarbonize process heat at scale

NEW YORK, July 31, 2023 — Today, GlassPoint, the leader in decarbonizing industrial process heat, closed an $8M series A investment led by 300PPM and joined by former Australian prime minister Malcolm Turnbull, former Alcoa COO Tomas Sigurdsson and several additional industrial leaders. GlassPoint will use the investment to expand operations to help industrial companies decarbonize and meet looming net-zero commitments with the only solution proven to decarbonize industrial process heat at scale.

This is the first investment by 300PPM, which was founded in 2023 to accelerate the path to net-zero by deploying climate infrastructure globally at speed and scale. Howar Talabany, 300PPM founding partner and head of business development, led the investment and will join GlassPoint’s board of directors.

“More than 40% of the Fortune 500 have set net-zero goals as leaders increasingly internalize the business and investor value that accompanies decarbonization,” said Talabany. “They’re also realizing that to deliver on these goals they need to scale viable solutions now. GlassPoint stands out in a sea of innovators as the only solution proven at scale to decarbonize the $444B industrial process heat market. With a robust customer pipeline and impressive executive team, GlassPoint is well positioned to lead essential decarbonization efforts across industries.”

The funding comes on the heels of GlassPoint’s groundbreaking memorandum of understanding with Ma’aden to develop the world’s largest solar process heat plant to convert bauxite into alumina and help Saudi Arabia meet sustainability goals. GlassPoint has deployed more than half of all the solar steam for industry in the world and the company has been reliably producing solar steam for over a decade.

New regulations from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission will soon require publicly listed companies to disclose climate-related risks as well as information around direct and indirect carbon emissions, increasing pressure on leaders to develop actionable carbon-reducing strategies. Moreover, a recent Fortune 500 CEO survey found that a strong majority of business leaders believe focusing on climate will help deepen relationships with employees and customers.

“We are seeing strong interest around the world as consumer demand for sustainable goods, soaring ESG goals and the Inflation Reduction Act drive unprecedented investment in carbon-reducing technologies,” said GlassPoint CEO and founder Rod MacGregor. “Every major industrial company is reassessing their supply chain, and GlassPoint provides the most cost-effective option to reduce carbon emissions immediately by delivering renewable heat at the scale they need. We look forward to putting this investment to work to help industrial leaders across the Middle East and North America decarbonize materials essential to the energy transition and combat climate change.”

GlassPoint’s solar steam solution is available for a range of hard-to-abate industries, including mining and metals. The company is accelerating adoption with a steam-as-a-service model that eliminates the need for capital allocation, streamlines customer decision making and reduces business risk.

About GlassPoint
GlassPoint decarbonizes the production of materials essential to the energy transition and makes a substantial impact on combating climate change. The company builds, owns and operates large-scale solar steam facilities to reduce carbon emissions in hard-to-abate industries such as mining and metals, chemicals, construction materials, desalination and more. GlassPoint is the only solution proven at scale to reduce carbon emissions from industrial process heat and has built more than half of the industrial solar steam capacity in the world. Learn more at glasspoint.com.

SOURCE GlassPoint

The report highlights emerging trends that will significantly impact the financial services industry over the next decade

NEW YORK, July 31, 2023 — Deloitte today announced its “2023 Financial Services Industry Predictions” report, which outlines emerging trends across the banking & capital markets, insurance, real estate, and investment management sectors. The report highlights the impact of data and emerging technologies, products and services, and climate change on the future of financial services – and as a result, on society and the economy.

“The reality is that emerging technological changes could be more pervasive and impactful going forward in ways that can be scarcely imagined today,” said Jim Eckenrode, managing director, Deloitte Center for Financial Services. Deloitte Services LP. “Financial services will likely play an important role in helping these breakthroughs emerge to the benefit of us all, while simultaneously opening up new avenues of revenue and profit.”

Some of Deloitte’s predictions for the financial services industry over the next decade:

Generative AI is expected to boost productivity: Generative AI is expected to have a significant impact on the investment banking industry and the financial services industry as a whole, as organizations explore ways to harness the power of the technology to improve productivity. Deloitte predicts the top 14 global investment banks could boost their front-office productivity by an average of 25% by using Generative AI (GAI), thereby earning potentially an additional revenue of $3 million per front-office employee in 2026, from an average of $11.3 million during 2020-22.

Demand for carbon credit offset financing: Deloitte predicts that global consumers will purchase $115 billion of carbon offsets a year by 2030. Carbon credits will likely be embedded in many of the purchasing decisions that consumers make in their day-to-day lives. The surge in demand for these credits could produce new trading networks that offer tailored, localized and niche options for climate change mitigation projects. Banks could be instrumental in developing and supporting the back-end infrastructure that connect brands’ payment processes to the carbon credit market. And banks can play an instrumental role in developing and supporting the carbon credit market.

Insurers prepare for driverless vehicles: Deloitte estimates advancements in self-driving technology may eliminate the need for around 380,000 long-haul truck drivers in the next five years. This alone would have a major impact on workers’ compensation insurers, with a potential loss of around $3 billion worth of premiums. But widespread adoption of autonomous vehicles could also result in a shift in premiums across multiple insurance lines, including commercial auto, product and professional liability, and cyber coverage.

Office space to fill the affordable housing gap: Deloitte predicts office-to-residential conversions could become profitable within the next five years, estimating that around 14,700 affordable units in central business districts across the country can be added by 2030, assuming approximately 20% of converted square footage can be earmarked for affordable housing.

“As financial services firms grapple with what’s on the horizon, they need to think about how the landscape is radically shifting,” said Monica O’Reilly, Vice Chair, US Financial Services Industry Leader, Deloitte & Touche LLP. “Market and economic pressures, emerging technologies, and new revenue opportunities will impact tomorrow’s business strategies, and financial services firms should prepare for that now.”

Additional trends included in the report that are expected to shape the financial services industry:

Democratization of financial advice: Financial advice shouldn’t just be for the wealthy anymore — and it doesn’t have to be. Financial firms can leverage robo-advisory platforms to bring much-needed financial advice to the global mass market and make it profitable. Deloitte estimates net financial wealth held by the mass retail population segment globally to almost double to $22 trillion by 2030.  

Synthetic identity fraud could trigger need for more sophisticated biometric security systems: Synthetic identity fraud—a hoax in which cybercriminals create new identities with some stolen or fabricated data — is the fastest growing financial crime in the United States,ⁱ and it shows no sign of abating. Deloitte expects it to generate at least $25 billion in losses by 2030, prompting banks to develop more advanced biometric security systems to weed out would-be perpetrators.

Higher deposit costs expected to challenge banks: Deloitte predicts the average cost of interest-bearing deposits for the U.S. banking industry in 2024 and 2025 to remain elevated at 1.7% and 1.5%, respectively, even as the fed funds rate declines from the recent peak. This may crimp bank profitability in the medium term.

Real-time B2B payments could take off: Deloitte expects real-time payments could tap an addressable market of $12 trillion in check-based business-to-business (B2B) transaction volume globally by 2028. Banks and payment firms could play a pivotal role in helping usher in a new era of more efficient and instant domestic and cross-border value exchange among businesses.

Rise of embedded insurance: Embedded finance, and particularly embedded insurance, is expected to continue to expand. Execution may not be easy for insurers, though, and it could take the rest of the decade for embedded finance to fully shake out.

Increased spending on quantum computing: Spending on quantum-related capabilities will likely grow quickly over the next few years as indicated by the increased capital investments and patent filings for the hardware technology. Globally, the financial services industry’s spending on quantum computing capabilities is expected to grow 233x from just US$80 million in 2022 to US$19 billion in 2032, growing at a 10-year CAGR of 72%.

Alternative data in investment management: Deloitte estimates the revenue for alternative data providers, earned from all industries globally with the majority coming from investment management firms, to grow 29x between 2022 and 2030. The new data largely consist of novel types and forms of data such as satellite images, social media posts, geolocation data, credit card transactions, and mobile application data that are starkly different from the traditionally structured financial data.

Funding for climate hardtech: An additional US$2 trillion in private hardtech investment is predicted to be needed to help effectively slow global warming. Most of total climate funding will likely need to come from the private sector — but so far, there isn’t enough. Financial services organizations can play a lead role in bridging the funding gap.

About Deloitte
Deloitte provides industry-leading audit, consulting, tax and advisory services to many of the world’s most admired brands, including nearly 90% of the Fortune 500® and more than 7,000 private companies. Our people come together for the greater good and work across the industry sectors that drive and shape today’s marketplace — delivering measurable and lasting results that help reinforce public trust in our capital markets, inspire clients to see challenges as opportunities to transform and thrive, and help lead the way toward a stronger economy and a healthier society. Deloitte is proud to be part of the largest global professional services network serving our clients in the markets that are most important to them. Building on more than 175 years of service, our network of member firms spans more than 150 countries and territories. Learn how Deloitte’s more than 415,000 people worldwide connect for impact at www.deloitte.com.

Deloitte refers to one or more of Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu Limited, a UK private company limited by guarantee (“DTTL”), its network of member firms, and their related entities. DTTL and each of its member firms are legally separate and independent entities. DTTL (also referred to as “Deloitte Global”) does not provide services to clients. In the United States, Deloitte refers to one or more of the US member firms of DTTL, their related entities that operate using the “Deloitte” name in the United States and their respective affiliates. Certain services may not be available to attest clients under the rules and regulations of public accounting. Please see www.deloitte.com/about to learn more about our global network of member firms.

ⁱFedPayments Improvement, “Synthetic identity fraud,” accessed June 8, 2023.

SOURCE Deloitte

PENSACOLA, Fla., July 28, 2023 — DecoSynth, a trailblazing company in the wall decor industry, is proud to announce the successful completion of a significant venture funding round led by Misfit Capital. This substantial investment marks a major milestone for DecoSynth and positions the company for rapid growth and innovation in the wall decor market.

“We are delighted to have Misfit Capital as our lead investor,” said Gunner Howe, President and CTO of DecoSynth. “Their belief in our vision and commitment to supporting groundbreaking startups aligns perfectly with our goals. This funding will propel us forward, allowing us to enhance our AI technologies, expand our offerings, and deliver unparalleled personalized wall decor solutions to our customers.”

DecoSynth.com, the company’s flagship product, leverages artificial intelligence and cutting-edge printing techniques to empower customers in bringing their artistic visions to life. The platform offers a seamless user experience, enabling individuals of all backgrounds and design expertise to effortlessly create stunning and customized wall decor.

Simply put, DecoSynth allows you to generate AI artwork and print your designs all in the same place.

“Why did we lead this funding round? We believe strongly in the potential of DecoSynth and its disruptive approach to wall decor,” said Cody Mathis, President and CEO of Misfit Capital. “DecoSynth’s innovative use of AI and personalized customer experience aligns perfectly with our investment strategy. We are confident that this partnership will fuel DecoSynth’s growth and establish it as a leader in the market.”

For more information about DecoSynth and its revolutionary AI-powered wall decor solutions, please visit DecoSynth.com.

For more information about Misfit Capital please visit Misfit.money

About DecoSynth:
DecoSynth is an innovative company that is disrupting the wall decor industry through its AI-powered platform. By leveraging cutting-edge technology and a seamless user experience, DecoSynth enables customers to bring their artistic visions to life, offering personalized and high-quality wall decor.

About Misfit Capital: Misfit Capital is a leading venture capital firm specializing in funding groundbreaking startups in the technology and e-commerce sectors. With a focus on supporting innovative companies, Misfit Capital provides strategic guidance and financial backing to fuel their growth and success.

SOURCE DecoSynth

Dr. Sandro Luna Will Use the $100,000 O’Shaughnessy Fellowship Grant to Develop an Application That Measures Vital Signs and Biomarkers Exclusively from Mobile Device Videos

GREENWICH, Conn., July 28, 2023 — O’Shaughnessy Ventures LLC (“OSV”), an investment firm that empowers creators, has awarded an O’Shaughnessy Fellowship to Dr. Sandro Luna.

Luna is the founder and CEO of Maiv Health Inc., which is developing an application that enables anyone to measure clinically important data such as heart rate, blood pressure and oxygen saturation using only their smartphone or mobile device. No sensors or other hardware will be required.

OSV’s founder and CEO, Jim O’Shaughnessy, commented:

“Enabling easily accessible, video-based collection of health information would represent a paradigm shift in healthcare delivery. We’re delighted to be able to support Sandro with his development of this remarkable application.”

Luna said, “I am honored to be a part of this Fellowship program and to have OSV’s support in my mission to provide patients and providers with access to clinically important data wherever they are and using the devices they already own.”

About Luna

Luna is a physician, founder, and health technology researcher who graduated from the M.D. / MBA program at Columbia University and the human biology honors program at Stanford University.

Over the course of his career, Luna has developed non-invasive posture correction software, led multiple research trials in artificial intelligence and telehealth, and produced international films on health and wellness.

He is driven to build health technology that prevents people from becoming patients in the first place.

More about Luna can be found on his LinkedIn page. For more information on Maiv Health Inc., sign up at maivhealth.com.

About the Fellowship Program

OSV launched the Fellowship Program in 2023. It is a one-year program for ambitious people who want to build something great. Fellows receive a $100,000 grant and access to OSV’s network of founders, investors and experts to support them in bringing their projects to life.

OSV will award twelve Fellowships in total. Applications for Fellowships are now closed and will reopen on January 1, 2024. Creators interested in learning more can do so via OSV’s website.

About O’Shaughnessy Ventures

OSV is a creative investment firm that empowers and inspires creators to bring their ideas to life. Founded by Jim O’Shaughnessy, a pioneer in quantitative investing, founder of O’Shaughnessy Asset Management, and author of four books on investing, OSV aims to provide financial support and to partner in growing the next life-changing creative ideas.

OSV combines Jim’s deeply rooted interest in all things art, science, investing, and tech with his long-held desire to establish scenarios designed to help promising creators and their inspiring ideas succeed, regardless of age, location, job history, or level of education. For more information, visit https://www.osv.llc.

Ena Gong
O’Shaughnessy Ventures LLC
(917) 355-7420
[email protected] 

SOURCE O’Shaughnessy Ventures

A standalone program and fund within Stage 2 Capital, the Stage 2 Capital Catalyst brings a hands-on approach to helping young startups build long-term, sustainable revenue engines. It’s backed by go-to-market (GTM) executives from top B2B software companies — like Datadog, Box, Gong, Snowflake, Twilio, Stripe, Tableau, Toast, Databricks, Zapier, WalkMe, Udemy and more — who also get directly involved in mentoring and advising the portfolio.

As part of the Stage 2 Capital Catalyst, companies receive investment and participate in the Catalyst Curriculum, an 11-week program focused on executing the full spectrum of go-to-market, including creating a customer success playbook, hiring the first marketer, creating compensation plans for the sales team, building a defensible moats, etc.

“We couldn’t be more excited to welcome a stellar group of founders to the Catalyst this year,” said Sean Po, Partner at the Stage 2 Capital Catalyst. “Each of our founders brings a unique vision and a keen interest in go-to-market and in repeatable, sustainable scaling which are at the core of what we do.”

David Smith, Co-founder & CEO of MLtwist, said, “As we focus on go-to-market and driving customer renewals, the Stage 2 Capital Catalyst is the perfect fit. We met with Sean and the Stage 2 Capital team and some of their go-to-market LPs, all of whom have been quality professionals with powerful insights. The depth of real go-to-market experience and techniques I can actually use in my business stuck out to me, and is a big reason why we went with Stage 2 Capital. We can’t wait to take our go-to-market execution to the next level.”

The Catalyst Curriculum breaks down Stage 2 Capital’s Science of Scaling methodology into actionable steps for companies to execute in their current contexts. The companies receive training from the Stage 2 Capital team and direct 1:1 implementation coaching from the Catalyst’s GTM executive LPs. Companies also get access to Stage 2 Capital’s proprietary templates and worksheets along with the broader Stage 2 Capital venture network.

“We chose to join Catalyst because the exposure and mentoring provided by a network of go-to-market experts is a key differentiator of the program. Growth planning and execution are critical to any startup’s success. Having meaningful 1:1 conversations with true industry leaders, many of whom have scaled enterprise B2B companies, is a huge benefit and will set us up to hit our milestones successfully.” said Maya Mikhailov, Co-Founder & CEO of SAVVI.AI.

About Stage 2 Capital:
The first go-to-market venture capital firm, Stage 2 Capital combines capital and GTM execution expertise, leveraging its elite LP base of 500+ senior executives from unicorns and Fortune 500 firms to help portfolio companies scale revenue and accelerate growth. Co-founded in 2018 by Jay Po, former investor at Bessemer Venture Partners, and Mark Roberge, founding CRO at HubSpot, Stage 2 Capital invests in B2B software companies between late seed stage and Series A. For more information, visit: http://www.stage2.capital

About the Stage 2 Capital Catalyst:
Designed exclusively around helping B2B software companies accelerate their go-to-market, the Stage 2 Capital Catalyst invests in and trains seed-stage founders on the tactics of go-to-market to build a revenue engine that drives sustainable revenue growth. For more information, visit: https://www.stage2.capital/catalyst

SOURCE Stage 2 Capital

Key Takeaways

• Footwork led the round; additional investors include Emerson Collective, Altman Capital, Gaingels, and a select group of angels.
• ReflexAI tools reduce training and quality assurance costs by over 50% for high-stakes call centers in industries including crisis response, 911 dispatch, and healthcare.
• ReflexAI previously announced a $1.25M partnership with Google.org as well as a $1.25M award from the Department of Veterans Affairs.

NEW YORK, July 27, 2023 — ReflexAI, the provider of AI-powered training and quality assurance tools for high-stakes call centers, today announced its first round of venture funding. Led by Footwork, the $3.3M oversubscribed round included Emerson Collective, Alt Capital, Gaingels, and angel investors with expertise across healthcare and technology innovation.

The cost of training and quality assurance for an individual phone responder can exceed $5,000 per year for high-stakes call centers in industries such as crisis response, 911 dispatch, and healthcare. Due to high turnover and a shortage of workers, a call center can spend hundreds of thousands (or millions) of dollars annually in these areas. In existing operations without ReflexAI, leaders often contend with significant operational complexities and unreliable data.

ReflexAI provides training and quality assurance tools for these centers, reducing costs by 50% while improving quality and outcomes. The dynamic, AI-powered training simulations are comparable to the use of flight simulators in pilot training. The customizable quality assurance tools enable 100% coverage across calls while providing feedback to responders for continuous improvement.

“We’re thrilled to announce our seed round, which represents not just a vote of confidence in ReflexAI, but also in the opportunity to support these mission-critical operations,” said Sam Dorison, Cofounder and CEO at ReflexAI. “We’ve seen first-hand how this technology can reduce costs by over 50% while improving measurable outcomes. We believe that every operation deserves access to these tools.”

ReflexAI focuses specifically on high-stakes call centers and their priorities. As a result, the organization invests heavily in areas such as data security, AI ethics, and clinical excellence. 100% of ReflexAI employees undergo both cybersecurity and AI ethics training. And the organization works closely with independent advisors who are recognized leaders in clinical best practices and responsible artificial intelligence.

“Building for our target customers, we’re laser-focused on their specific needs and expectations,” said John Callery, Cofounder and Chief Product & Technology Officer at ReflexAI. “Our unique commitment is evident in the way our tools are designed, developed, and deployed.”

ReflexAI’s cofounders were previously executives at The Trevor Project, where they led the development of this technology. Their work was recognized on TIME’s “100 Best Inventions of 2021” and highlighted in MIT Technology Review.

“It’s rare to find a team that is so connected to the customer problem and has already demonstrated the impact of their technology as a solution,” said Nikhil Basu Trivedi, general partner at Footwork. “We’re excited to be part of ReflexAI’s journey from such an early stage.”

Since launching in 2022, ReflexAI has seen significant interest in their tools from crisis lines, healthcare systems, digital and behavioral health, and emergency dispatch. The organization is currently building a training tool for military veterans, which includes three AI-powered simulations. And the organization was recognized as top-5 winner out of 1,200 proposals in Mission Daybreak, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs’ innovation challenge.

“From the moment we met with Sam and John, it was clear that they inspire a sense of trust,” said Fern Mandelbaum, Managing Director at Emerson Collective. “ReflexAI has the vision and credibility to succeed in industries that save lives every day.”

About ReflexAI
ReflexAI provides training and quality assurance tools for contact center operations across crisis response, emergency dispatch, and healthcare. Our training simulations accelerate and improve agent preparation while reducing manual training costs by 50%. Our quality assurance tools enable 100% coverage, reducing costs while providing actionable insights to improve performance.

Responsible innovation
ReflexAI meets the highest ethical standards in the development and deployment of its products. Investments include extensive user research and product development anchored in user-centric design. The organization also works with independent experts including ethicists and clinicians at all stages of the product development cycle.

For more information, please contact: [email protected]

Related Links:
www.reflexai.com/
www.linkedin.com/company/reflexai/ 

SOURCE ReflexAI

RAU Capital led the funding round as the Digital Out of Home category continues to see record growth in the AdTech industry

MIAMI, July 27, 2023 — Beeyond Media, a leading programmatic Digital Out of Home (DOOH) advertising demand-side platform (DSP), today announced the close of a $10M Seed round led by Ricardo Uribe of RAU Capital and Beeyond Media board member. The latest funding will be used to scale the Beeyond business in the United States and Latin America and help Beeyond Media expand their vast connected inventory in other markets throughout 2024. This latest round of funding brings total dollars raised to $12.5M. 

Beeyond Media is offering a solution that enhances campaign reach with their unique approach to DOOH, that merges programmatic technology with a layer of curated services to maximize the results and return on ad spend of large campaigns for brands. The technology company excels in delivering high-quality out of home (OOH) advertising across a wide range of digital screens for maximum advertising impact. This seed investment will play a vital role in financing ongoing campaigns and enabling the business to grow its team in the US. In 2022 Beeyond Media’s sales increased 12X and the business projects a 10X increase from the previous year.

“As the DOOH industry grows and we continue to expand our business, the ongoing support from our investors is increasingly valuable,” said Alejandro Donzis, CEO and co-founder of Beeyond Media. “The opportunity in digital advertising is massive and Beeyond is demonstrating to the industry that there is a superior way to manage DOOH campaigns, and our growing partnerships and client base serve as proof of our success. Together, we are advancing towards a future where we redefine excellence in the industry.”  

“Beeyond Media has exceeded expectations over the last year,” said Ricardo Uribe, investor at RAU Capital and Beeyond Media board member. “We believe the company is strategically positioned to stand out as a provider of a highly valuable global solution in an industry growing at double-digit rates year over year.” 

Beeyond Media has an inventory of over 600,000 devices and screens including billboards, street furniture, airport media and more spanning across 17 countries. The company is on a mission to become the premier global DOOH company in a growing market. Most recently, the company announced a strategic partnership with Place Exchange, a supply-side platform (SSP) for programmatic OOH, extending Beeyond Media’s extensive DOOH inventory. Earlier this year, the business launched its audience segmentation tool, Beeyond TrueReach, which sources data and information from leading providers, arming clients with the insights to execute highly effective and targeted DOOH campaigns.

If you’d like to learn more about Beeyond Media, please visit: www.beeyondmedia.com 

About Beeyond Media
Beeyond Media was founded in 2019 by CEO Alejandro Donzis in an effort to bring transparency, efficiency and innovation to the classic advertising channel. After consolidating operations throughout Latin America, the DOOH company expanded into the U.S. and Canada in 2023 where they saw large opportunities for growth. This year, DOOH is projected to grow, capturing 37.2% of all OOH revenue. With access to over 600,000 devices throughout the Americas, Beeyond Media continues to usher DOOH advertising into the future and help brands like Chanel, L’oreal, American Express, and Heineken inspire people wherever they go. 

Contact: [email protected]

SOURCE Beeyond Media

Firm surpasses $1.2 billion in assets under management; changes name to Energize Capital to reflect go-forward investment strategy 

CHICAGO, July 27, 2023 — Energize Capital (formerly Energize Ventures), a leading climate software investor, today announced the close of its second growth fund, bringing the firm’s total capital commitments for its growth equity platform to $300 million. This close brings Energize’s assets under management to $1.2 billion, surpassing $860 million in total committed capital from LPs. To reflect this extension of strategy into growth equity and to position itself for future growth, the firm has changed its name to Energize Capital. Under the expanded strategy, the investment firm will continue to support enduring climate software businesses as they scale amidst significant economic tailwinds.

The official close of Energize’s growth platform comes at a time when growth capital is in high demand – especially for the climate market. According to CTVC data, more than 2,000 early-stage^[1] climate companies received institutional funding in the last 24 months. If even just 10% of those companies reach the growth stage, that means roughly 200 climate companies will be looking to raise growth capital in the next 24 months – but growth capital providers are in short supply. According to Pitchbook^[2], the demand-supply ratio of late-stage funding is at a decade high, with just $1 of funding available for every $3.24 demanded.

“As the market for climate software matures and companies grow into billion-dollar valuations, growth equity investors have access to an abundant pipeline of enduring businesses in climate for the first time,” said John Tough, managing partner of Energize Capital. “At Energize, we intend to be the go-to partner for entrepreneurs as they scale – from venture capital to growth equity and beyond.”

“Our belief when founding Energize was that access to Invenergy, its entrepreneurial culture, assets and people create a strategic advantage for an investment platform in the rapidly scaling energy transition space,” said Michael Polsky, chair of Energize’s investment committee and CEO of Invenergy, the leading sustainable energy and infrastructure developer and an anchor investor in Energize. “The expansion of Energize’s strategy validates this approach, and we look forward to continued partnership in this next phase of growth.”

Energize’s expertise is scaling asset-light digital climate solutions that enable the new energy economy. With its new growth equity strategy, Energize can continue providing capital and operational support to enduring late-stage climate software companies. To date, Energize has made seven investments out of its growth funds, including a recently announced investment in PVcase’s $100 million round, as well as follow-on investments in its venture capital portfolio companies Sitetracker, DroneDeploy, and Aurora Solar, which is one of the most valuable climate software companies today.

“When Energize was founded in 2016, our guiding thesis was that the transition to a sustainable economy represents a generational transfer of capital, and that it would require digital technologies to enable and accelerate scale,” said Tough. “Seven years later, our ambition remains unchanged, but the opportunity for climate software has skyrocketed beyond expectations. For example, our portfolio’s software revenue has grown from $100 million to nearly $400 million over the past three years. Unveiling our growth strategy and announcing the shift to Energize Capital represents our commitment to scale our strategy to grow with our entrepreneurs and the maturity of the space.”

Across its four funds spanning venture capital and growth equity, Energize is backed by a diverse set of LPs representing strategic, institutional, impact and family office investors. In addition to Invenergy, Energize LPs include CDPQ, CAPROCK, Credit Suisse, HASI, Xcel Energy, and other institutional capital providers.

To date, Energize has invested in 26 climate software companies accelerating the transition to sustainable energy through its venture capital and growth equity strategies. Energize closed its first $165 million venture fund in 2018, followed by a $330 million vehicle in 2021. In 2022, the firm added 12 new team members and deployed $260 million across its portfolio.

About Energize Capital
Energize Capital is a leading climate software investor focused on scaling sustainable innovation. Founded in 2016 and based in Chicago, to date Energize has funded 26 companies and deployed more than half a billion through its venture capital and growth equity strategies. Anchored by founding partner Invenergy, the firm is backed by strategic, institutional, and impact LPs including CDPQ, Credit Suisse, SE Ventures (corporate venture arm of Schneider Electric), GE Renewable Energy, Xcel Energy, Caterpillar, HASI and more. For more information on Energize, please visit www.energizecap.com.

Media Contact
Kelly Lassing, Head of Marketing & Communications
[email protected] 

^[1] Seed through Series B
^[2] Pitchbook-NVCA Venture Monitor Q1 2023

SOURCE Energize Capital

First light field-enabled surgical technology company secures additional institutional capital to drive adoption of its AI-driven platform

SEATTLE, July 27, 2023 — Proprio, a Seattle-based surgical technology company, today announced that it has secured $43 million in Series B funding from new and existing investors. The capital fuels commercialization to address significant demand for Proprio’s AI-driven surgical navigation platform in the US and overseas.

Proprio’s flagship surgical navigation platform, Paradigm™, achieved a significant milestone this year by obtaining 510(k) clearance from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Paradigm harnesses the power of light field technology and artificial intelligence to generate a real-time 3D visualization of surgery. Paradigm provides surgeons with Volumetric Intelligence™, which uniquely combines medical images with live data from Paradigm’s sensor suite.

The Paradigm system delivers many advantages for surgeons and patients. It eliminates the need for intraoperative scans, reducing radiation exposure to the patient and surgical staff. This saves up to 30 minutes per procedure, increasing the availability of care to patients. By quickly registering imaging data to the anatomy within surgical workflows, Paradigm delivers a high degree of accuracy and enables surgeons to maintain focus on the patient.

Proprio’s live, 3D, multi-modal data represents a significant upgrade over current static approaches to surgical navigation and the company plans to apply its technology to many surgical specialties beyond its first targets in spine procedures. Proprio’s Paradigm system is capable of collecting a tremendous amount of surgical data that can be utilized for the development of many applications beyond status quo approaches to surgery.

“We are just beginning to reveal the potential applications of Proprio’s technology and data,” said Gabriel Jones, CEO and co-founder of Proprio. “This investment arrives at a pivotal moment, as we perform our first-in-human cases and bring Paradigm to patients around the world. Together, these milestones are a testament to the unparalleled capabilities of the Proprio Paradigm and its potential to revolutionize surgery.”

“For some time, we have been searching for a company that has the potential to disrupt traditional medical device businesses at scale with data. Proprio represents that kind of opportunity and we are honored to join the investment group,” said Alf Grunwald, Executive Advisor of Bird B. AG, a global investment partnership with significant surgical software and medical device investments in both public and private markets.

To learn more about Proprio, visit: https://www.propriovision.com/.

ABOUT PROPRIO 

Proprio is a leading surgical technology company creating The New Way of Seeing™ in surgery. Using advancements in light field computer vision and AI, the Proprio Paradigm system synthesizes data from multiple inputs for navigating anatomy and surgical environments in 3D. Proprio’s mission is to dramatically improve clinical and economic outcomes by leveraging advanced AI and data collection capabilities with the potential to provide predictive intelligence in surgery. Proprio is backed by leading healthcare and technology investors, including DCVC, BOLD Capital Partners, Bird B. AG, Cota Capital, Intel and HTC.

SOURCE Proprio