The investment will propel the OSO’s continued growth and development

DALLAS, July 19, 2023 — Smile Doctors, the largest and fastest-growing orthodontic support organization in the U.S., is excited to announce the successful completion of a capital raise of over $550 million. The capital, which was funded by doctors along with several large domestic and international healthcare investors, will support the network in continuing its industry-leading affiliation growth, enhance its strategic investments in technology, and continue to expand its support staff capabilities. This investment comes as the company has just completed a strong quarter, adding several new partnerships.

“We’ve generated significant growth over the last three years, and we’re excited to be at a point where we have partnered with such incredible and innovative doctors. We continue to attract new doctors and invest in technology that contributes to the patient-first culture we are committed to at our organization,” said J. Hedrick, CEO of Smile Doctors. “The strong reaction from the investment community – especially during the current economic environment – is an indication of the strength of our business, and through our capital partners and doctors, we believe can keep up the momentum and continue to shape the future of the orthodontic industry.”

Blackburn Family Orthodontics (Texas), Weaver Orthodontics (Arkansas), Smith Smile Orthodontics (Georgia), Weissman Orthodontics (Alabama), and Smiles of Ohio (Ohio) are the newest partners to join the Smile Doctors family. The Smile Doctors network now includes more than 400 affiliated locations.

Affiliated practices have access to a variety of services including human resources, onboarding, marketing, accounting and finance, revenue cycle management, supply chain, legal, and operations. They also benefit from Smile Doctors’ turnkey relationships with leading vendors and gain access to the latest cutting-edge technology, which will be enhanced across the patient and provider experience.

“Since starting my practice seven years ago, I’ve had awesome mentors help me along the way,” said James Blackburn, D.D.S., M.S.D. of Blackburn Family Orthodontics in Katy, TX, who became part of the Smile Doctors network in Q2.  “Over the past four years, each of my mentors has joined Smile Doctors. After numerous conversations, I realized that to take both my practice and my personal life to the next level, partnering with an OSO was the next logical step and it was very apparent that Smile Doctors was a perfect fit for me and my team.”

Smile Doctors is on a mission to positively impact the lives of their patients, their team members, and the communities they serve, one smile at a time. To learn more about becoming a Smile Doctors partner, visit smiledoctorspartners.com.

About Smile Doctors, LLC
Smile Doctors, LLC, is the largest ortho-focused dental support organization (OSO) in the U.S. The organization has the fastest-growing network of leading orthodontists. With more than 400 convenient locations in 28 states, Smile Doctors has a rich history of developing and growing affiliated practices by providing tools and technology that allow their orthodontists to focus entirely on patient care. Smile Doctors is the largest network of Diamond Plus Invisalign® providers. Smile Doctors’ orthodontists are proud members of the American Association of Orthodontists, and American Dental Association, and host for the Lecture Center for Orthodontic Excellence. Smile Doctors’ mission is to create confident smiles that inspire the best in their patients, each other, and the communities they serve. For more information, please visit: www.smiledoctors.com.

Contact:
[email protected]
The Zimmerman Agency

SOURCE Smile Doctors

“Imagine a world where data privacy, security, and trust are no longer concerns, where software supply chains are transparent and verifiable, and where a new generation of applications can harness the power of zero-knowledge computing to solve some of the most pressing challenges of the digital age. This is the promise of zero-knowledge computing and the reason we are investing in RISC Zero” – Bart Stephens, Founder and Managing Partner at Blockchain Capital

RISC Zero’s ZK Virtual Machine (zkVM) enables developers to build ZK-powered applications with the convenience of conventional programming languages such as Rust and C++. Utilizing advanced features such as continuations, RISC Zero’s zkVM can run programs of arbitrary complexity and scope while utilizing off-the-shelf computing platforms — a first in the blockchain industry.

“We’re honored to be supported by all of our incredible capital partners and the visionary leaders and teams that have signed on to help us build this revolution in computing capability. We’re excited to play our part in building a more open and trusted foundation for the future of the internet.” – Brian Retford, CEO & Co-founder

This funding round will enable RISC Zero to bring its Bonsai computing platform to market, supporting rapid application development and deployment in both cloud and decentralized environments. With Bonsai, developers can focus on writing their application instead of worrying about the complexities of proof orchestration and server infrastructure.

Bonsai will bring massively parallel ZK-proving functionality to any developer, in any language, on any chain.

RISC Zero is building a diverse, talented, and global team dedicated to exploring the frontiers of computing — join us at jobs.lever.co/risczero.com

SOURCE RISC Zero

Report findings reveal that, despite increased industry attention to DEI, investors continue to seek guidance on making effective and lasting change

OAKLAND, Calif., July 19, 2023 — Illumen Capital, an impact fund of funds addressing systemic inequity by reducing racial and gender bias in investing, released its Annual Impact Report today, as part of a larger effort to understand the influence of the firm’s bias reduction programming and stewardship efforts. Collected quantitative and qualitative data showcases the impact of the firm’s unique approach to supporting fund managers in their efforts to build a more optimal and inclusive asset management industry.

As the US financial markets experienced economic volatility over the past two years, prioritization in investing in funds and companies led by diverse managers has dwindled: financing for Black startup businesses fell by over 50% from 2021 to 2022¹. Further, startups with all-women teams received just 1.9% in venture funding, also down from the previous year². At the same time, Illumen Capital has deepened its strategy of investing in funds led by underrepresented people of color and women and supporting fund managers in scaling in a diverse and inclusive manner. As of the end of 2022, with over $169 million of capital committed across its portfolio, Illumen Capital’s portfolio has 9.5x women partners, 6x underrepresented partners of color, and 7x underrepresented women of color in venture capital compared to industry benchmarks³.

“As I reflect on the past few years and the strides we’ve made as a nation and an industry in tackling racial bias, I’m aware there is still much work to be done to achieve greater equity in asset management,” said Daryn Dodson, Managing Director of Illumen Capital. “By releasing the Annual Impact Report, we hope to hold a mirror to an evolving industry, allowing it to see that uplifting underrepresented people of color is not a checkpoint along our journey to a more optimal future but an ongoing commitment to addressing industry inefficiencies.”

Illumen Capital’s Annual Impact Report utilizes a novel approach of enriching quantitative portfolio reporting with qualitative survey data on the mindsets of portfolio fund managers and staff. This qualitative data allows Illumen Capital to contextualize portfolio demographic data on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) barriers and opportunities at both the individual and organizational level. Key takeaways include:

• Compared to 2021, there is an increasing alignment in the moral and financial reasons to improve the representation of underrepresented people of color (URPOC) in investing. This indicates a growing belief that DEI is not just the right thing to do, it’s also good for the bottom line;
• According to 55% of respondents, not knowing what to do was a top barrier to making progress on diversity of URPOC and women at investment firms;
• Despite increased attention to DEI and racial equity work since 2020, even when respondents indicate a want to contribute as individuals, they still do not feel either autonomy or power to act. This shows an increased need for customized training and support to empower effective institutional change at the individual and firm level;
• Lack of network access was identified by over half of respondents as contributing a great deal to disparities in URPOC recruitment by over 50% of respondents;
• Nearly 95% of respondents believe they should act to increase DEI at their firm, yet only 60% indicate they have changed their behavior to increase DEI in investing in the last year.

Led by Illumen Capital’s Joanna Kuang and Leila Mengesha, the firm uses a theory of change to remain thesis-driven in the firm’s diversity, equity and inclusion work. Unique aspects of the firm’s model include a proprietary toolkit of templates and examples to support fund managers in reducing individual and organizational biases in processes, such as hiring and promotion, and personalized coaching of fund manager staff and leadership. Illumen Capital uses data to inform how bias reduction programming is implemented and seeks to share best practices and learnings within the field to drive further DEI progress. Selected key learnings from Illumen Capital’s bias reduction partnership with portfolio fund managers include:

• There has been an increased focus on inclusion work, with a number of firms requesting support in building holistic firm changes, as well as addressing individual biases.
• Fund managers are leveraging their non-investment capital creatively to reduce bias in the ecosystem. Illumen Capital has seen an increased interest in diverse vendor suggestions from investors and managers alike, indicating a growing awareness and acknowledgement of the sphere of capital influence outside of traditional investments.
• Even with a growing portfolio, this is the first year that Illumen Capital has had each fund return complete and high-quality quantitative reporting, indicating an increased industry interest and expectation for demographic and impact reporting data.

Recently, Illumen Capital successfully raised a $168 million Fund II, allowing the firm to further scale these efforts. Additionally, the fund of funds has a long-standing relationship with Stanford SPARQ and has launched a new project to expand on their joint foundational study published in PNAS. Illumen Capital is excited to continue using their financial capital to create accountability and trust-based support for fund managers.

For additional information, or to view the full report, please visit https://www.illumencapital.com/.

ABOUT ILLUMEN CAPITAL
Illumen Capital is a Black-owned and led manager dedicated to achieving racial and gender equity across investing. Illumen Capital invests in venture, growth, and private equity funds, and then works closely with fund managers to install a set of strategies and tools designed to reduce racial and gender bias in the hiring, investment, and company support processes. This research-informed bias reduction program – supported by a strategic relationship with Stanford SPARQ – empowers fund managers to expand their investable landscape and better support entrepreneurs who have historically been overlooked and underestimated.

¹ Special Series: VC Dollars To Black Startup Founders Fell More Than 50% In 2022 /
² Women-founded startups raised 1.9% of all VC funds in 2022, a drop from 2021 | TechCrunch /
³ VC Human Capital Survey ,Women-founded startups raised 1.9% of all VC funds in 2022, a drop from 2021

MEDIA CONTACTS
Catherine Toor
5W Public Relations
[email protected]

SOURCE Illumen Capital

Verse’s Aria platform leverages generative AI to make buying and managing clean power simpler, faster, and more affordable for organizations

SAN FRANCISCO, July 19, 2023 — Verse, a company founded to help organizations everywhere unlock the benefits of clean power, today announced it has closed a $5.75 million seed funding round. Led by Coatue with participation from Twine Ventures, MCJ Collective, firstminute capital, Collaborative Fund, Future Positive, and Incite.org, among others, the investment will enable Verse to help organizations procure, manage, and report on carbon-free energy assets faster and more cost-effectively than they can today.  

“Reshaping the emission intensity of our electricity system is a key step in getting to net zero. At the same time, for organizations that have outlined net zero goals, there isn’t an easy or transparent way to procure electricity from renewable sources,” said Jaimin Rangwalla, Senior Managing Director at Coatue. “Verse has built a proprietary software platform to manage this process from end-to-end, which we believe is primed to redefine how businesses procure and manage clean energy. We are excited by the potential for Verse’s technology to support corporate sustainability and emissions reduction goals.”

Organizations across industries are increasingly committing to reducing their carbon emissions, not only to combat climate change but also to reduce costs and mitigate the risks associated with volatile wholesale power markets. But with a lack of dedicated tools and infrastructure, much of the process remains confined to spreadsheets that are ill-suited to making robust, data-driven decisions. Furthermore, the expertise and resources required to procure clean power are prohibitive and out of reach of all but the biggest organizations.

This month, Verse launched Aria, the enterprise platform for buying and managing clean power, to address these pain points. Leveraging generative AI, Aria will allow organizations to define their clean power goals, design and procure a portfolio of clean energy assets, manage those assets, and report on portfolio performance. By empowering companies to reduce costs, de-risk energy procurement, and expedite transactions, Aria will help accelerate and scale organizational adoption of clean energy.

Verse has also signed a customer agreement with Climeworks, a pioneering company offering high-quality carbon removal services via direct air capture (DAC) technology. Partnering with Verse will allow Climeworks to design and procure future-proofed, risk-optimized portfolios of clean energy assets to power their CO₂ removal operations.

“Widespread access to clean power is a fundamental need for our industry to deliver high-quality carbon removal at gigaton scale,” said Climeworks COO Douglas Chan. “As a global leader spearheading DAC technology, Climeworks looks forward to partnering with Verse for a new, easier approach to the process of buying and managing clean power.”

“We’re incredibly grateful to Coatue for leading this round, and to all our investors for supporting our efforts to help companies reduce their carbon emissions,” said Verse CEO Seyed Madaeni. “This funding enables us to further our mission of unlocking the benefits of clean power for organizations everywhere. We are also very excited to have signed our first commercial contracts, including with an industry leader like Climeworks. Clean power procurement will be a strategic imperative for every sector, and we look forward to helping Climeworks and other companies reduce the cost and complexity of buying and managing clean power.”

About Verse
Founded in 2022, Verse’s Aria software platform leverages generative AI to help companies quickly, easily, and cost-effectively transition to clean power. Aria empowers companies to define, design, manage, and report on optimal portfolios of clean energy assets to meet their financial and emissions-reduction targets. Verse was founded by Seyed Madaeni and Matt Penfold, who previously held leadership roles at Fluence, where they oversaw its digital business unit and played a central role in the company’s successful $5B+ IPO. Prior to Fluence, Seyed and Matt led AMS, where they pioneered and commercialized the world’s leading AI-enabled wholesale market bidding software for utility-scale clean energy assets. For more information, visit www.verse.inc.

SOURCE Verse, Inc.

Danny Trejo and Rebecca De Mornay Among Notable Talent Attached, Blending Hollywood Iconism and Dog-Centric Appeal for Wefunder Campaign

LOS ANGELES, July 19, 2023 — AKT Pictures is announcing newly attached A-list talent, including Danny Trejo and Rebecca De Mornay, for today’s launch of the second funding round for their film When I Was a Human, based on the critically acclaimed short film of the same title, written, and directed by Akemi Kozu Tosto. The Wefunder campaign is now open and accepting stakeholder investor contributions. A growing trend, filmmakers are finding enthusiastic partners around the globe interested in this model, different from traditional crowdfunding. Investors purchase a stake in the funding of the project to receive a share of the company’s profits, rather than a traditional return on their investment. This format is in response to the desire for fresh, original entertainment with substance – a void many feel in contemporary movie offerings. A study based on 3,000 titles shows the most profitable family films feature uplifting stories with dogs.

Building on the successful first round on Wefunder, the production now features name talent including Hollywood icon & rescue dog activist Danny Trejo (Machete, Spy Kids, Desperado), Rebecca De Mornay (Risky Business, Backdraft, The Hand That Rocks the Cradle), Molly Quinn (We’re The Millers), Adam Hagenbuch (Fuller House), Alex MacNicoll (Transparent), and Ken’ichi Endo (voice of Groot, Guardians of the Galaxy in Japan). 

The short film version of When I Was a Human, also written and directed by Akemi, is currently available worldwide through Shorts International, the official short film distributor of the Academy of Motion Pictures and Sciences. Akemi is the first female filmmaker from Japan to have an original short film distributed by Shorts and is dedicated to continuing the pursuit of more diverse talent both in front of and behind the camera.

Akemi shares, “Investing in this project means supporting the importance of equality and inclusion in the world of production. This truly original independent film has built-in universal appeal and a dedicated fan base. Dogs are staples of family films, and it has been proven time and time again that movies with dogs in leading roles are not only successful but also enjoy popularity for a very long time.” 

Akemi has been involved in over 100 films and TV productions for over 20+ years since moving to the US. She’s also the first filmmaker from Japan to successfully raise capital on Wefunder for a film project.

In a similar vein to box office successes including Big, Freaky Friday, The Peanut Butter Falcon, 13 Going on 30, and Yesterday, classic examples of the “fish out of water” trope, and dog-centric films such as Air Bud, My Dog Skip, and A Dog’s Journey, When I Was a Human is the story of an adopted pup that magically turns into a young man and discovers himself and his love for his owner along the way.

A joint Hollywood/Japan production with existing distribution relationships, Akemi is partnered with Tyler Condon, founder of CinemaWays, with a career spanning work for Discovery, Nat Geo, Animal Planet, and Comedy Central. He joined Sneak Preview Entertainment, known for 500 Days of Summer, as Director of Development, co-producing films like the Valley Girl remake and The Prank. Maho Morita is Akemi’s trusted right-hand person and a producing partner in Japan. Maho had an early introduction to the film industry growing up as a favorite niece of world-renowned film director, the late Nagisa Oshima. Her networking skills and the work as a film journalist and critic are also essential to the film’s success. 

To learn more and get involved please visit: wefunder.com/wiwah

Media Contact:
Andrea McKinnon
818-415-9442
[email protected] 

SOURCE AKT Pictures

Expansion in Core Categories & New Product Lines Fuel Growth Strategy

SAN FRANCISCO, July 19, 2023 — Super7, the premier pop-culture design house and producer of lifestyle-oriented collectibles, toys and apparel, today announced an investment of up to $25M from The Newcastle Network. Newcastle made an initial investment of $12M with plans to invest more in support of Super7’s long-term strategy. The announcement is being made in conjunction with the start of San Diego Comic-Con where the collectibles producer will release 18 exclusive toys and launch a crowdfunded ThunderCats’ Cat’s Lair Playset campaign.

Born from the desire to fill a void in the marketplace, Super7 designs and produces collectibles that capture emotional connections to pop culture’s most loved brands and moments. Since launching in 2001, Super7 has achieved success with product genres including 80s & 90s pop culture, from designer vinyl to deluxe action figures inspired by comics, animation, video games, Hollywood, horror, music, monsters and more. With their strategic partnership with The Newcastle Network, Super7 will continue to focus on its core categories while expanding into new categories and developing new product lines unseen in the current market.

“Super7’s goal has always been to deliver the most unique and sought after high-quality toys, products and experiences, while making them available to as many people as possible,” said Brian Flynn, Founder of Super7. “When exploring investment to fuel our growth, the most important thing was that we stayed true to this ethos. The Newcastle Network is an ideal partner to help us achieve our goals for expansion into new categories for our loyal customers and introduce others to the exciting world of collecting across the globe.”

“Super7 provides a unique and unrivaled customer experience in the collectibles sector,” said Chris Casgar, Managing Partner at The Newcastle Network. “As true fans of pop culture and creative stewards of this explosive category, Brian and the Super7 leadership team are poised for continued growth. We’re thrilled to be their strategic partner, leveraging our expertise in data science, creator & social media marketing, innovation and entrepreneurship to help accelerate their ability to achieve these goals with this beloved business.”

Beginning tomorrow at San Diego Comic-Con (booth #2543), attendees will have access to 18 exclusive new toys including ReAction Figures™, Super Cyborg™ and ULTIMATES!™ Super7 is also kicking off an exciting early bird incentive for ThunderCats’ Cat’s Lair at Comic-Con. The goal is to reach 3,000 backers by July 30^th for fans to receive a Key to Thundera with their Cat’s Lair playset. A complete rundown of San Diego Comic-Con exclusives, pop up shops and activities can be found on Super7.com, @Super7 on Instagram / Threads, Super7 on Facebook and @Super7store on Twitter.

About Super7
Founded in 2001, Super7 is the premier pop-culture design house and producer of lifestyle-oriented collectibles, toys and apparel based in San Francisco. Led by designer Brian Flynn, Super7 has harnessed the graphics, aesthetics and energy of his youthful obsession with science fiction, giant monsters, comic books, punk rock, skateboarding, robots and rebellion to build a unique and innovative business that crosses all categories and is not bound by traditional manufacturing boundaries. In addition to its owned branded products, Super7 also designed, manufactured and distributed officially licensed programs for G.I. Joe, Transformers, Disney, Powell-Peralta and Peanuts as well as for music legends Iron Maiden, the Misfits, O.D.B, Beastie Boys, and more. For more information, visit www.super7.com.

About The Newcastle Network
The Newcastle Network is a private equity firm pushing the frontiers of collaboration with its partner companies. We are a passionate group of investors and operators with expertise in data science, creator and social media marketing, innovation, and entrepreneurship that helps companies unlock new levels of growth. Focused on established and performing consumer businesses, we seek to partner with companies where we can provide meaningful value that realizes a team’s most ambitious visions.

SOURCE Super7

The strategic acquisition by ResMed has propelled Somnoware’s expansion in the sleep, respiratory care, and additional healthcare markets, solidifying its position as a key player in transforming chronic respiratory disease healthcare.

COSTA MESA, Calif., July 19, 2023 — CerraCap Ventures, a leading venture capital firm specializing in early-stage investments, is excited to announce the successful exit of their fund’s portfolio company, Somnoware Healthcare Systems Inc., through its acquisition by ResMed, a global leader in sleep and respiratory care. This significant milestone marks a new chapter in Somnoware’s journey as it continues to accelerate its expansion in sleep, respiratory care, and additional healthcare markets.

Under the strategic guidance and support of CerraCap Ventures, Somnoware has experienced remarkable growth and expanded its footprint in the respiratory healthcare space. The acquisition by ResMed represents a tremendous opportunity for Somnoware to further advance its mission of assisting physicians in the critical task of chronic care management.

“We are thrilled to announce the successful exit and acknowledge the crucial role played by CerraCap Ventures in accelerating our growth and expanding our presence in the respiratory healthcare sector,” said Subath Kamalasan, CEO of Somnoware. “This acquisition presents an incredible opportunity to continue our mission of improving patient outcomes in chronic care management.”

“We take great pride in being part of Somnoware’s journey and extend our congratulations on their successful exit,” said Saurabh Ranjan, Founder & CEO of CerraCap Ventures. “Somnoware’s visionary approach to respiratory healthcare aligns with our investment philosophy, and we have full confidence that they will continue to significantly improve patient outcomes and transform the industry alongside ResMed.”

CerraCap, as a venture capital firm, offers a structure that empowers early-stage companies to achieve excellence. By providing Sales, Marketing, Talent, and Technology enablement, CerraCap guides & drives companies to accelerate sales, enhance customer acquisition, and optimize scalability. Our model equips companies with tools, best practices, and processes to proactively measure, analyze, and optimize their business performance, enabling them to adapt to market changes and customer demands efficiently.

About CerraCap Ventures:

CerraCap Ventures is an Orange County, California-based early-stage venture capital firm specializing in cyber security, advanced analytics, and health-tech investments. With a focus on B2B enterprise companies, CerraCap Ventures empowers high-growth innovative companies through its unique “Sales & Scale” approach, leveraging partnerships with Fortune 500 companies to drive growth and success.

About Somnoware:

Somnoware is a leading web-based platform transforming respiratory healthcare and revolutionizing chronic care management. By enabling early diagnosis, unifying data, and providing powerful analytics, Somnoware improves patient outcomes and reduces chronic respiratory disease healthcare costs. With a strong focus on seamless patient care, Somnoware is dedicated to transforming the way chronic respiratory diseases are managed.

Media inquiries:
[email protected]
www.CerraCap.com

SOURCE CerraCap Ventures

Generative AI Investments Underscore SAP’s Aim to Create an Open Enterprise AI Ecosystem for the Future

WALLDORF, Germany, July 18, 2023 — SAP SE (NYSE: SAP) today announced the next step in its commitment to deliver Business AI that’s relevant, reliable and responsible, making strategic investments in three leading generative AI companies. The investments in Aleph Alpha GmbH, Anthropic PBC and Cohere reinforce SAP’s open ecosystem approach to AI, leveraging the best technology to embed AI across the SAP® portfolio. They build on a series of AI partnerships and enterprise use cases announced in May. They complement a US$1+ billion commitment to invest in AI-powered enterprise technology startups from Sapphire Ventures LLC announced last week.

“We are at a watershed moment, with generative AI poised to fundamentally change how businesses run,” said Sebastian Steinhaeuser, Chief Strategy Officer, SAP SE. “SAP is committed to creating an enterprise AI ecosystem for the future that complements our world-class business applications suite and helps our customers unlock their full potential.”

SAP’s Approach to AI — Built for Business
SAP delivers Business AI that’s relevant, reliable and responsible. The SAP Business AI portfolio is relevant because it’s already embedded into the SAP product portfolio. More than 26,000 customers of cloud solutions from SAP now use SAP Business AI across multiple scenarios and partner solutions. SAP Business AI is relevant because it’s available on day one and built into the mission-critical business processes customers run on SAP software. It’s reliable because it’s built on decades of extensive business data and relevant business content. It’s responsible because it’s delivered with the highest levels of concern for security, privacy, compliance and ethics. This is the AI foundation powered by SAP Business Technology Platform that enables us to innovate and deliver Business AI leveraging SAP’s AI investment and an open ecosystem of AI partners.

SAP’s AI strategy includes direct investments, a significant increase in research and development for additional AI use cases and third-party partnerships, such as those with Microsoft, Google Cloud and IBM announced in May. With the investments announced today, SAP deepens its commitment to generative AI built responsibly and designed to help businesses run better. SAP also accelerates AI innovation by integrating startups into SAP’s partner ecosystem through the SAP.iO Foundries program, its in-house accelerator. Sapphire Ventures, a global software venture capital firm, is backed by SAP and is dedicating over US$1 billion to fund AI-powered enterprise technology startups.

Investment in generative AI innovators
Aleph Alpha, Anthropic and Cohere are generative AI market leaders with unique potential to transform entire industries.

Aleph Alpha GmbH is a Germany-based company that has built a sovereign, full-stack, generative AI solution focused on complex and critical enterprise use cases. Aleph Alpha was the first company to offer multimodal, next-generation large language models and achieve state-of-the-art results with a model trained equally on several European languages. The company focuses on interoperability, data privacy and security, offering both AI as a service as well as multi-cloud and on-premise installation. SAP previously announced Aleph Alpha as an SAP partner participating in the SAP PartnerEdge® program on the “Build” track.

Anthropic PBC is a San Francisco-based AI safety and research company developing AI systems that are helpful, honest and harmless. Anthropic’s AI assistant, Claude, uses a “constitutional” approach – it interacts with users based on a set of Anthropic-designed principles centered on reliability and safety. Claude helps users with a range of tasks, including generating answers, coding, automating workflows and processing text – from editing and rewriting to summarizing, classifying and more – within the context of natural conversations. Anthropic is focused on ensuring technology such as Claude benefits society.

Cohere is a leading enterprise AI company headquartered in San Francisco and Toronto, with a key research center in London. Its world-class technology is tailored for business needs, with a focus on ease of use, accessibility, security and data privacy. The technology unlocks a more intuitive way to generate, search and summarize information. Cohere’s platform is cloud-agnostic to give companies choice in cloud providers, is accessible through API as a managed service and can be deployed on virtual private clouds or on site to meet companies where their data resides.

Sapphire Ventures
SAP-backed Sapphire Ventures LLC is a global software venture capital firm that partners with visionary teams and venture funds to build companies of consequence. As a limited partner in Sapphire Ventures, SAP customers benefit from early access to innovations from the startup ecosystem. Last week, Sapphire Ventures announced a commitment of over US$1 billion to invest in the next generation of AI-powered enterprise technology startups in addition to existing investments in AI-powered enterprise startups like Clari Inc., DataRobot Inc., MoveWORK International and ThoughtSpot Inc.

Visit the SAP News Center. Follow SAP on Twitter at @SAPNews.

About SAP

SAP’s strategy is to help every business run as an intelligent, sustainable enterprise. As a market leader in enterprise application software, we help companies of all sizes and in all industries run at their best: SAP customers generate 87% of total global commerce. Our machine learning, Internet of Things (IoT), and advanced analytics technologies help turn customers’ businesses into intelligent enterprises. SAP helps give people and organizations deep business insight and fosters collaboration that helps them stay ahead of their competition. We simplify technology for companies so they can consume our software the way they want – without disruption. Our end-to-end suite of applications and services enables business and public customers across 25 industries globally to operate profitably, adapt continuously, and make a difference. With a global network of customers, partners, employees, and thought leaders, SAP helps the world run better and improve people’s lives. For more information, visit www.sap.com.

This document contains forward-looking statements, which are predictions, projections, or other statements about future events. These statements are based on current expectations, forecasts, and assumptions that are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results and outcomes to materially differ. Additional information regarding these risks and uncertainties may be found in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including but not limited to the risk factors section of SAP’s 2022 Annual Report on Form 20-F.

© 2023 SAP SE. All rights reserved.
SAP and other SAP products and services mentioned herein as well as their respective logos are trademarks or registered trademarks of SAP SE in Germany and other countries. Please see https://www.sap.com/copyright for additional trademark information and notices.

For customers interested in learning more about SAP products:
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United States Only: 1 (800) 872-1SAP (1-800-872-1727)

Please consider our privacy policy. If you received this press release in your e-mail and you wish to unsubscribe to our mailing list please contact [email protected] and write Unsubscribe in the subject line.

SOURCE SAP SE

Maryland-based business offers financial modeling software

COLUMBIA, Md., July 18, 2023 — TEDCO, Maryland’s economic engine for technology companies, announced a recent State Small Business Credit Initiative (SSBCI) investment of $1 million into Cerebro Capital, Inc.

“As a former banker, I knew how tedious the traditional process is to access debt capital; this results in too many companies not getting the capital they need to grow. I know that everyone can name the top five commercial banks, but no one can name the top non-bank lending institutions,” said Matthew Bjonerud, founder and CEO of Cerebro Capital, Inc. “Through Cerebro Capital, we have used technology and data to make accessing debt capital easier, faster, and more equitable.”

Cerebro Capital, Inc., based in Baltimore, Md., is a business that offers a marketplace for commercial borrowers and lenders allowing for a faster, more efficient process of finding and closing loans. Through their patented software platform, Cerebro Capital, Inc. is unleashing debt capital by removing the limitations of personal networks so corporate borrowers have a data-drive perspective on the market, allowing them to make informed decisions.

“Cerebro Capital is helping businesses stay open through their innovative thinking,” said Katherine Hill Ritchie, TEDCO’s senior director, Venture Funds. “It’s exciting to see companies working to support other entrepreneurs and businesses in Maryland—together, we can create a better, more diverse entrepreneurial ecosystem.”

TEDCO’s SSBCI funds are divided into four programs—the Venture Equity Fund, the Social Impact Equity Fund, the Seed Equity Fund program, and the Venture Capital Limited Partnership Equity program. For more information about our funding opportunities, visit https://www.tedcomd.com/funding.

This SSBCI investment was provided through TEDCO’s evergreen Venture Funds. These funds are dedicated to funding and growing the next generation of venture-backed businesses in the State. Entrepreneurs in the technology and life sciences sectors looking for more information about TEDCO’s funding opportunities should visit https://www.tedcomd.com/funding.

About TEDCO
TEDCO, the Maryland Technology Development Corporation, enhances economic empowerment growth through the fostering of an inclusive entrepreneurial innovation ecosystem. TEDCO identifies, invests in, and helps grow technology and life science-based companies in Maryland. Learn more at www.tedcomd.com.

Media Contact
Tammi Thomas, Chief Development & Marketing Officer, TEDCO, [email protected]

SOURCE TEDCO