Closed Loop Ventures Group joins Earthodic’s $4 million seed funding round alongside other leading investors, supporting the company’s expansion into the U.S.

NEW YORK, Nov. 13, 2024 — Closed Loop Partners‘ Ventures Group announces its follow-on investment in Earthodic, a Brisbane-based biotechnology company creating recyclable bio-based coatings for paper packaging. This is Closed Loop Ventures Group’s second investment in Earthodic, supporting the company’s expansion into the U.S. The $4 million seed funding round was led by FTW Ventures, with participation from existing investors Closed Loop Partners’ Ventures Group, Tenacious Ventures and Investible, and new investors Circulate Capital, Queensland Investment Corporation, UniQuest Fund, Significant Capital Ventures, Branch Venture Group and Redstick Ventures.

The investment is taking place as more corporations demand packaging alternatives that reduce waste while maintaining performance. Today, most paper packaging uses petroleum-based plastic liners that help prevent leakage and maintain temperature but are typically discarded as waste. Closed Loop Ventures Group saw an opportunity to advance bio-based coatings that can enable better performance of existing paper packaging or products and unlock opportunities to switch from non-recoverable single-use plastics to recoverable bio-based alternatives.

Earthodic’s Biobarc™ is a water-resistant, repulpable and recyclable coating for paper packaging, offering a solution for brands and packaging manufacturers looking to transition away from wax and polymer film coatings to reduce plastic waste. Earthodic uses lignin––a byproduct of paper manufacturing that is often discarded or burned for energy––and reintegrates it into Biobarc™ to create a recyclable solution for paper packaging. The company is also pursuing third party certifications to ensure Biobarc™’s compostability at industrial composting facilities in the U.S., creating more potential end-of-life pathways for the material.

“This is a key milestone for Earthodic as we expand our reach into new geographic markets, and new paper packaging applications. Advancing a bio-based coating for paperboard can have a significant impact on plastic waste reduction,” says Anthony Musumeci, Co-founder and CEO of Earthodic. “Closed Loop Partners’ Ventures Group has been a key partner in our growth since they first invested in Earthodic. We are thrilled to continue our partnership with their team as we scale our solution and advance the circularity of packaging.”

Closed Loop Ventures Group’s investment in Earthodic advances the group’s mandate to deploy early-stage capital to founders and companies who rethink how products are designed, manufactured, consumed and recovered. Since Closed Loop Partners’ venture capital group launched in 2016, it has invested in over 40 companies advancing solutions that optimize supply chains and reduce reliance on fossil fuel extraction and landfilling. These range from packaging & plastic alternatives to safer chemistry and supply chain transparency to waste reduction solutions for food & agriculture, retail logistics, renewable energy, water reclamation, built environment and distributed manufacturing.

“Packaging waste comprises 30 percent of materials sent to landfill today, creating a significant challenge for brands and packaging manufactures looking to meet zero waste goals. Earthodic’s coating offers a circular solution for paper packaging that can help divert materials from landfill while maintaining the same performance capabilities brands have come to expect from their packaging solutions,” said Aly Bryan, Investor on the Closed Loop Ventures Group team at Closed Loop Partners. “Closed Loop Ventures Group is proud to have been among the first investors in Earthodic and we look forward to supporting their growth as they scale throughout the United States with their solution.”

With capital from its seed funding round, Earthodic will establish a second headquarters at Western Michigan University Homer Stryker M.D. School of Medicine Innovation Center, situated near a pilot coating plant and testing facilities used extensively by the paper industry. Their main research & development hub will stay in Queensland, Australia. The company will deepen existing research & development partnerships with global leaders in paper packaging while continuing to sell Biobarc™ into non-food contact packaging at scale, as a superior solution to traditional wax and petroleum-based coatings. This will create more opportunities for circularity across the packaging, food and consumer goods industries.

If you are interested in learning more about Closed Loop Partners’ Ventures Group, please visit https://www.closedlooppartners.com/

If you are interested in learning more about Earthodic, please visit https://www.earthodic.com/

About Earthodic

Earthodic is on a mission to advance the global transition to a circular economy. We help companies within the paper industry and their customers adopt sustainable packaging solutions, mitigating packaging waste that ends up in landfill. Earthodic has created sustainable function barrier coatings that are certified 100% biobased carbon, to offer liquid water barrier and oil and grease resistance to paper-based packaging. Earthodic coatings utilize lignin, a by-product of the pulp and paper industry, and are a drop-in solution for existing coating infrastructure. Established in 2022, Earthodic has operations across Australia and the USA. To learn more, visit www.earthodic.com.

About Closed Loop Partners

Closed Loop Partners is at the forefront of building the circular economy. The firm is comprised of three key businesses that create a platform for systems change: an investment group, Closed Loop Capital Management; an innovation center, the Center for the Circular Economy; and an operating group, Closed Loop Builders. Closed Loop Capital Management manages venture capital, buyout private equity and catalytic private credit investment strategies.

The firm’s venture capital strategy, the Closed Loop Ventures Group, has been investing early-stage capital into companies developing breakthrough solutions for the circular economy since 2016. Closed Loop Ventures Group’s portfolio includes companies developing leading innovations in material science, robotics, agritech, sustainable consumer products and advanced technologies that further the circular economy. Closed Loop Partners is based in New York City and is a registered B Corp.

To learn about Closed Loop Ventures Group, visit www.closedlooppartners.com.

SOURCE Closed Loop Partners

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SAN FRANCISCO, Nov. 13, 2024 — OneSkin has closed its Series A investment round, bringing total funding for the brand to $20M.

Founded by four Brazilian PhD scientists in 2016, OneSkin has been a first-to-market category leader in science-led topical skin longevity treatments. The brand’s novel approach led to the patented peptide and core ingredient, OS-01. It is the first peptide scientifically proven to reverse skin’s biological age by preventing the accumulation of senescent cells, a major driver of aging, leaving skin looking and acting younger and healthier.

The brand will enter a new phase of growth and innovation in skin health thanks to an oversubscribed round led by Selva Ventures, alongside with PLUS Capital, Unilever Ventures, Able Partners, and former investors SOSV, and Meta Planet. Additional investors include Brazilian-American model and designer, Camila Alves McConaughey, from PLUS Capital’s collective of artist and athlete partners, and tech entrepreneur Kevin Rose.

“At OneSkin, we are excited to announce this new round of funding, which will further drive our mission to transform how we think about our skin, not only by optimizing our aesthetics using cutting-edge science, but also focusing on its functional role as our largest organ and the impact in our overall health and longevity,” said Carolina Oliveira, Co-Founder and CEO. “This investment will allow us to deepen our commitment to be the best in class in delivering efficacious peptides to modulate aging at the cellular level, ensuring that our science-backed solutions deliver measurable results in promoting healthier skin. We are dedicated to advancing the future of skin health with the most advanced longevity research and innovation,” shared Dr. Alessandra Zonari, Co-Founder and CSO of OneSkin.

Resources from funding will fuel accelerated research and novel formulas, delivering expanded longevity solutions and rewriting a new way forward for the anti-aging skincare industry. The funding will also power an increase in human capital focused on growth opportunities and new sales channels for the business, creating more accessible pathways for consumers to access OneSkin‘s advanced technologies.

Investor Camila Alves McConaughey aligns with OneSkin’s mission to redefine aging and enhance skin functions. “As a Brazilian woman, I am thrilled to invest in a brand founded by four Brazilian female scientists – my heritage is something I’m incredibly proud of, and I am honored to support those who are executing this work. The OneSkin team has built a line of products that hold a unique space in the massive skin care market. I fell in love with the products the moment I saw the results on myself, and I knew I had to be a part of it! I’m so looking forward to seeing their future innovations and continued success with the help of this funding.”

“After working with the OneSkin team over the past two years, we are thrilled to deepen our partnership by leading their Series A round. This is our firm’s largest investment, reflecting our high conviction in the company and the team, led by Carolina and Alessandra,” says Madeline Kaplan, partner at Selva Ventures. “We are seeing the beauty and wellness spaces converge as more consumers want efficacious products that make them look and feel their best. OneSkin is well-positioned at the intersection of beauty and wellness, delivering exceptional results that improve both skin appearance and skin health.”

Beyond industry investors, OneSkin has garnered the support of prominent individuals and organizations for its scientific breakthroughs. The brand was recently celebrated as one of Fast Company‘s Most Innovative Companies of 2024 for its dedication to advancements in skin health. Notable figures including Alana Hadid, Georgia May Jagger, and Katy Perry are loyal users of the product line, and skin longevity enthusiasts such as Dr. David Sinclair, Tony Robbins, Peter Diamandis, and more, have taken note of the brand’s work.

About OneSkin
OneSkin is a best-in-class biotech skin health brand on a mission to revolutionize how we age. Created by four pioneering female scientists – OneSkin believes in research first, products second. That’s why its founders spent five years analyzing over 900 peptides before discovering OS-01, the first ingredient scientifically proven to reverse skin’s biological age.*  (Zonari, A., et al. npj Aging, 2023) (Boroni, M. et al. Clinical Epigenetics, 2020)

OneSkin bottled up the groundbreaking proprietary peptide and designed the brand’s collection of skin health essentials, with a focus on boosting cells’ functionality to optimize skin longevity. OneSkin’s growing range of OS-01 Topical Supplements uniquely target damage and dysfunction on the molecular level to extend the lifespan of the skin.

The brand’s breakthrough age-decelerating science is backed by clinical testing and published in multiple peer-reviewed journals. In addition to procuring thousands of testimonials since launching in 2021, OneSkin is the first company to replicate skin aging in the lab to validate the skin’s biological age reversal of its proprietary peptide, OS-01, on the cellular level. Because OneSkin believes healthy skin shouldn’t just look and feel younger, it should act younger, too.

For more information, please visit oneskin.co.

About Selva Ventures
Selva Ventures is a venture capital firm established in 2019. The firm specializes in investing in health and wellness-focused consumer brands that promote healthier living. Selva Ventures is headquartered in Los Angeles, and currently manages approximately $50 million in assets.

For more information about Selva Ventures, investment opportunities, or becoming a brand partner, please visit www.selvaventures.com.

SOURCE OneSkin

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Collaboration focuses on studies of AZM-152 to enable submission of an Investigational New Drug (IND) application for the prevention of BPD in preterm infants

MALVERN, Pa., Nov. 13, 2024 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ — Azome Therapeutics, an early-stage drug development company, today announced that it has entered into a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) with the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS) to investigate AZM-152, the company’s novel inflammasome antagonist, in bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD).

Under the terms of the agreement, NCATS, part of the National Institutes of Health, will collaborate with Azome Therapeutics to perform preclinical development studies of AZM-152 to enable the submission of an Investigational New Drug (IND) application for the prevention of BPD in preterm infants. 

“We are honored to have been selected by NCATS for this important research collaboration, and excited that they share our vision for AZM-152 as a potential preventative therapeutic for BPD,” said Rashmin Savani, MBChB, Chairman of Azome’s Scientific Advisory Board. 

Bronchopulmonary Dysplasia (BPD) is a severe lung condition that affects 30-50% of preterm infants weighing less than 1000 grams. It develops due to ventilator and oxygen-induced damage to immature lungs, leading to an inflammatory response that results in abnormal lung development with decreased alveolarization. Approximately 15,000 infants develop BPD each year in the United States, and 10-15% of them die in the first year of life. In addition to the direct impacts on the infant and the toll this disease takes on families, healthcare expenditure has been estimated at $5B per year.

AZM-152 is a potent and specific antagonist that blocks activation of the inflammatory process that causes BPD. This inflammatory pathway, the NLRP3 inflammasome, is critical to the development of a wide variety of other diseases in addition to BPD. AZM-152 selectively blocks an essential component of the signaling pathway (the receptor for hyaluronan-mediated motility, or RHAMM) that results in aberrant NLRP3 inflammasome activation.

Previous preclinical studies in BPD have demonstrated that when AZM-152 is given as a single dose to neonatal mice exposed to hyperoxia, no inflammatory response is observed, and lung alveolarization is preserved. This preclinical finding has raised the possibility of the prevention of BPD.

“It is our hope that this novel, first-in-class therapy will one day help the thousands of families affected by this most common chronic lung disease of childhood, for which there are no current therapeutic options and no effective means of prevention,” added Azome Therapeutics CEO Elliott Gruskin, PhD.

About Azome Therapeutics

Azome Therapeutics is an early-stage drug development company focused on developing selective antagonists of the NLRP3 inflammasome, an inflammatory pathway critical to the development of a wide variety of diseases, including BPD, acute lung injury, acute respiratory distress syndrome, systemic sepsis, acute liver and kidney injury, and pneumonia.  The company’s lead candidate, AZM-152, is a RHAMM-derived antagonist that blocks key upstream priming and activation signals involved in the aberrant activation of the NLRP3 inflammatory cascade.

Media Contact:
Nimisha Savani
9402410083
[email protected] 

SOURCE Azome Therapeutics

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TORRANCE, Calif., Nov. 13, 2024 — GITAI USA Inc. (GITAI), the world’s leading space robotics startup, is pleased to announce that GITAI has raised an additional US$15.5M as part of its Series B Extension round in October 2024. This follows US$30M raised in May 2023 and US$15M raised in August 2023, bringing the total in the Series B Extension round to US$60.5M.

The lead investor in this round is Maezawa Fund Inc., a venture capital fund established and operated by Japanese billionaire entrepreneur and commercial astronaut Yusaku Maezawa. Yusaku Maezawa commented, “GITAI’s monumental challenge to reduce space development costs by 1/100 holds vast potential to expand the boundaries of our future. Achieving this will bring space closer to our daily lives and business, transforming it into a more accessible domain. We are genuinely excited to support GITAI in pioneering this new frontier.”

To reduce the cost of space operations by 100 times, GITAI is developing robotic satellites for on-orbit services, lunar robotic rovers for infrastructure construction, and inchworm-type robotic arms that can be used in both areas. All of these technologies are being developed in-house.

In late 2023, GITAI relocated its headquarters from Japan to the United States, with all non-U.S. national management team members obtaining permanent resident status, officially establishing GITAI as a U.S.-based company. Since then, we have expanded our space robotics business and production capabilities in the U.S. space and defense market, achieving key milestones such as selection for NASA SBIR, orders from DARPA, a successful technology demonstration outside the ISS, AS9100 and NIST SP800-171 certifications, and the expansion of our headquarters and production facilities.
With this additional funding, GITAI aims to further advance on-orbit services and lunar infrastructure construction in the U.S. space and defense market and will continue to pursue reducing the cost of space operations by 1/100th of the current cost.

List of Investors in this Funding Round:

Existing Investors:

• MSIVC 2023V Venture Capital Investment Limited Partnership (Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance Venture Capital Co., Ltd.)
• Mitsubishi UFJ Capital Ⅸ, Limited Partnership (Mitsubishi UFJ Capital Co., Ltd.)
• Green Co-Invest Investment Limited Partnership

New Investors:

• Maezawa Fund Inc. (Venture capital fund of Japanese billionaire entrepreneur and commercial astronaut Yusaku Maezawa)
• KCAP Venture Ⅰ Investment Limited Partnership (Kyoto Capital Partners Co., Ltd.)
• Tycoon Capital No. 4 Limited Partnership

For more information about this groundbreaking project and our future plans for lunar exploration, please visit gitai.tech.

< Press Kit >

About GITAI
GITAI aims to reduce the cost of labor in space by 100 times, thereby providing a safe and affordable means of work in space. GITAI operates in two business areas: on-orbit services and lunar infrastructure construction. For more on GITAI’s products, services, and upcoming missions, visit GITAI.tech.

Media Contact
Company: GITAI USA Inc. (Headquarters) / GITAI Japan, Inc. (Japan Subsidiary)
CEO: Sho Nakanose
URL: https://gitai.tech/
Email: [email protected]
Phone: (424) 587-1787

SOURCE GITAI USA Inc.

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The funding will enable Snap! Mobile to cement its market leadership position and expand its reach to support more schools and organizations in need of effective fundraising solutions.

MENLO PARK, Calif., Nov. 13, 2024 — Runway Growth Capital LLC (“Runway”), a leading provider of growth loans to both venture and non-venture-backed companies seeking an alternative to raising equity, announced today a $23 million growth capital commitment to Snap! Mobile (“Snap!”), a leading fundraising platform for schools and organizations to support their sports teams, groups, and clubs. The funding will enable Snap! to expand its innovative digital platform and empower more organizations to raise critical funds for high school athletics and other extracurricular activities.

“We’re thrilled to partner with Snap! to support their continued growth and help scale their impact on schools’ sports teams and clubs across the country,” said Jeff Goldrich, Managing Director at Runway. “Their platform and leadership team have transformed fundraising by making it safer and easier for communities nationwide to rally behind students and supplement budget shortfalls with private funding. We’re confident in Snap!’s ability to expand their reach, helping to deliver even more opportunities to more students, with this investment.”

Snap! has emerged as a market leader in the digital fundraising space, providing innovative solutions to students and organizations to help meet their financial needs safely and efficiently. To date, Snap! has helped raise over $900M for 125,000+ groups and teams, across 12.5M+ participants and donors. Beyond fundraising, Snap! also provides a full suite of software solutions to help manage the day-to-day needs of athletic directors, coaches, and other leaders, from account disbursements to scheduling, internal and external communications, fan engagement, and the team store. With a strong focus on supporting students, Snap! continues to develop seamless ways to foster community engagement while prioritizing the success of students and athletes.

“We’re incredibly grateful for Runway’s support and belief in our mission,” said Cole Morgan, CEO of Snap! Mobile. “This new capital will allow us to enhance our platform, broaden our customer base, and drive forward our vision of ensuring that every young person has access to the athletics and activities that are so crucial to their development.”

Runway’s investment underscores its commitment to backing high-growth companies with flexible financing solutions, enabling them to scale with minimal dilution.

About Runway Growth Capital LLC
Runway Growth Capital LLC is the investment adviser to investment funds, including Runway Growth Finance Corp. (Nasdaq: RWAY), a business development company, and other private funds, which are lenders of growth capital to companies seeking an alternative to raising equity. Led by industry veteran David Spreng, these funds provide senior term loans of a target of $30 million to $150 million to fast-growing companies based in the United States and Canada. For more information on Runway Growth Capital LLC and its platform, please visit www.runwaygrowth.com.

About Snap! Mobile, Inc.
Snap! Mobile has been proudly supporting programs around the country with simple and dependable services since 2014. Snap! Raise has raised $900 million dollars for over 125,000 groups and teams through over 12.5 million participants and donors. In addition to the Snap! Raise fundraising solution, Snap! Mobile further supports schools, groups, and teams with its other brands and products: Snap! Spend (transparent money management solution), Snap! Store (spirit wear), FanX, and Snap! Manage (integrated scheduling, communication, and registration solution). For more information on Snap!, visit snapraise.com.

Forward-Looking Statements
Statements included herein may constitute “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Statements other than statements of historical facts included in this press release may constitute forward-looking statements and are not guarantees of future performance, condition, or results and involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Actual results may differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements as a result of a number of factors, including those described from time to time in Runway’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Runway undertakes no duty to update any forward-looking statement made herein. All forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this press release.

SOURCE Runway Growth Capital LLC

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OTTAWA, ON, Nov. 13, 2024 – Corfix, a leading provider of all-in-one construction management software, today announced the close of its Series A funding round, securing investment from US-based Reformation Partners. This strategic partnership will enable Corfix to accelerate product development, increase presence in the US, and advance its mission to modernize construction project management through worker-focused technology.

Built by former construction workers, Corfix is designed for ease of use and quick adoption in the field. Corfix’s digital documentation model helps companies manage complex safety and compliance requirements in an increasingly strict regulatory environment. In addition to this core focus on safety, the software offers multiple feature modules that allow a construction company to grow their workforce and processes without outgrowing the product. It is highly configurable making it the software of choice for construction companies regardless of size, trade, geography, or regulatory environment. The feature modules include key elements of project management such as, safety documentation, timekeeping and scheduling in one software that also seamlessly integrates with tools like Procore and Acumatica.

“This investment is a major step forward for Corfix as we look to expand our footprint in the US market,” said Shawn Watts, CEO of Corfix. “We’ve built a platform that puts the worker first, offering construction companies an easy-to-use, modular solution that addresses every aspect of the jobsite. This funding will help us continue to innovate, hire key roles, and deliver an even better experience for our customers.”

Reformation Partners, known for its focus on capital-efficient companies with strong product-market fit, identified a strong demand for Corfix’s comprehensive, worker-friendly solution in the US market.

“We spoke with a variety of leaders in the construction industry, ranging from developers to subcontractors to GC site safety managers, and the message was clear: there is a real need for a worker-first solution like Corfix in the US market,” said Andrew Oved, Managing Partner at Reformation. “We’re excited to partner with Corfix as they expand in the US and continue to revolutionize the adoption of construction technology.”

Corfix’s user-focused design has garnered positive feedback from its customers. “Corfix is a game changer for us,” said Zach Burick, owner of D.S. Duggins Welding Inc., a North Carolina based construction firm. “The platform was designed with the worker in mind, which makes it incredibly easy to implement on-site. Our team has embraced it enthusiastically because it simplifies everything from safety documentation to time tracking, while improving overall communication. It’s rare to find a tool that’s this powerful and this easy to use.”

Ottawa-based Corfix was founded in a region long recognized as a global tech hub, with a track record of producing global industry leading companies. In recent years, software companies like Shopify, Kinaxis, and Fullscript have emerged from the region that includes nearly 100,000 employees in the technology ecosystem. Corfix is set to join this legacy by contributing groundbreaking technology to the construction industry.

For more information about Corfix or to schedule a demo of the platform, please visit https://www.corfix.com.

About Corfix 
Corfix is an all-in-one construction management software provider designed by former construction workers, with a focus on ease of use and field adoption. Its modular and flexible platform allows companies to manage everything from safety documentation to worker management and timekeeping, offering a complete solution that grows with your business. Corfix is committed to helping construction companies streamline operations, increase safety, and improve jobsite efficiency.

About Reformation Partners 
Reformation Partners is an early-growth equity firm focused on accelerating capital-efficient businesses. They specialize in supporting companies with strong product-market fit, proven momentum, and exceptional leadership teams. With a hands-on approach, Reformation helps portfolio companies scale by providing access to a vast network of advisors, talent, and strategic partners. Their investment philosophy centers on driving growth post-investment through proven go-to-market strategies.

Media Contact:

Corfix
Stef Downes, VP of Marketing
613 620 0724
[email protected]

SOURCE Corfix

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NEW YORK, Nov. 13, 2024 — Biolux Technology, a leader in advanced light-accelerated orthodontics, today announced a USD 4.5 M investment in its seed fund stage from leading European VC redalpine and Revere Partners, the only venture capital fund focused on oral health. Biolux will use the funds to launch a smart digital platform for its flagship product, OrthoPulse®, offering real-time monitoring and treatment optimization for both orthodontists and patients. This will further OrthoPulse®’s mission to enhance orthodontic treatments through cutting-edge technology and research-driven innovations. In 2023, orthodontic market valued at USD 9 billion (12 million cases) and expected to grow at 15% CAGR to reach USD 21 billion by 2030 (30 million cases).

Alongside these developments, Biolux Technology also announced the appointment of Raphael Pascaud as Chairman of the Board. Mr. Pascaud brings a wealth of leadership experience from his roles on various boards and executive positions in the dental industry, including at companies like DentalMonitoring and Align Technology. With his deep industry expertise, Mr. Pascaud will help in steering Biolux through its next phase of growth and innovation.

Marcel Pordes, CEO of Biolux Technology, said: “We are thrilled to partner with both redalpine and Revere Partners, and welcome Raphael Pascaud as our Chairman. This investment, along with our new digital platform for OrthoPulse®, represents a critical milestone in our journey to revolutionize orthodontics. We are committed to providing patients with faster, more efficient treatment options, and ensuring orthodontists have the tools they need to deliver exceptional care.”

Daniel Dillinger, Principal at redalpine, said: “Biolux is already transforming orthodontics and delivering exceptional patient outcomes with its FDA-cleared, patented, and commercially successful flagship product, OrthoPulse®. We’re delighted to partner with the Biolux team as they enter the next phase of growth, further enhancing the state-of-the-art user experience to support their rapid scaling and expansion in the U.S. market.”

The next-generation OrthoPulse® features an exclusive, patented light-accelerated technology and an exceptionally low failure rate for more reliable treatment. Using safe near-infrared light therapy, OrthoPulse® accelerates tooth movement, cutting treatment times by up to 50%. This game-changing approach not only shortens the orthodontic process but also tackles a critical issue in patient care – longer treatments often lead to reduced compliance and more expensive, time-consuming refinements. With this new funding, Biolux Technology will accelerate the development of OrthoPulse®, advance clinical research, and develop innovative solutions that improve patient outcomes and revolutionize orthodontic treatment worldwide.

Media Contact:

Michael Hendricks, Chief Business Officer at Biolux Technology USA LLC 917-340-1651 / [email protected]

About Biolux Technology

Biolux Technology is a leading innovator in light-accelerated orthodontics, dedicated to developing advanced technologies that improve patient outcomes and treatment experiences. The company’s flagship product, OrthoPulse® uses near-infrared light therapy to safely and effectively accelerate tooth movement, reduce treatment time and treatment discomfort. Thus, OrthoPulse® improves the predictability of aligner treatments, enhancing the overall orthodontic experience.

About redalpine

redalpine is the pan-European venture capital firm that empowers GameChangers. Founded in Zurich in 2006, with offices in Berlin, London, and a presence in San Francisco, redalpine brings together financial investment, operational expertise, and a vast international network to help ambitious entrepreneurs transform their vision into a reality.

redalpine has over $1bn in assets under management and has backed some of Europe’s most disruptive software and science companies, including N26, Taxfix, Mistral, 9fin, Carvolution, Klarna, and Infinite Roots. With a multi-stage investment approach, redalpine invests Europe-wide and counts over 100 companies in its portfolio. Find out more at www.redalpine.com  

About Revere Partners

Revere Partners is the first and only venture capital fund focused on oral health. Their mission is to identify and support innovative companies in the dental and orthodontic sectors, with a focus on improving patient care and outcomes through cutting-edge technology. Their experienced team of industry professionals ensures the success of their portfolio companies in a competitive market.

The investment was facilitated by Mark Van Weelde, a larger- than-life figure whose vision and dedication were instrumental in bringing Revere Partners and Biolux together. This partnership stands as a tribute to his remarkable legacy.

For more information, please visit: 
www.orthopulse.com
www.redalpine.com 
www.reverepartnersvc.com 

SOURCE Biolux Technology – OrthoPulse

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Zeplyn saves financial advisors an average of 10-12 hours per week while meeting security and compliance standards for financial industry

NEW YORK, Nov. 13, 2024 — Zeplyn, the AI assistant for financial advisors, today announced a $3M seed funding round. Led by Leo Capital, with additional investing from Converge and angel investors, the funding will be used to support the company as it rebuilds wealth management from an AI-native perspective.

Founded by two former Google engineers, Zeplyn reduces the administrative burden placed on financial advisors, improving the advisor-client experience by automating time-consuming tasks and making client intelligence more accessible. The company’s AI Meeting Assistant, designed specifically for financial advisors and wealth management firms, takes unstructured conversational data and turns it into highly accurate notes. Streamlining meeting prep, note-taking and post-meeting workflows while fulfilling compliance requirements, Zeplyn saves financial advisors an average of 10-12 hours per week.

“60% of client data gathering happens over meetings, yet less than 25% of client meetings are properly documented, because manual note-taking is time-consuming, distracting and prone to errors,” said Era Jain, CEO and Co-Founder of Zeplyn. “Financial Advisors spend anywhere from an hour to an hour and a half per client meeting consolidating their notes and doing follow-up work. Many bring an associate advisor to these meetings just to take notes. Despite spending several manual hours, incomplete client data still remains a challenge as details fall through the cracks.”

“Zeplyn enables financial advisors to streamline meeting admin from prep to follow-up, automatically updating client records while protecting PII,” added Divam Jain, CTO and Co-Founder of Zeplyn. “It is built to meet the unique workflow requirements and security and compliance standards of the wealth management community.”

Zeplyn provides a time-saving toolkit for advisory firms to prep for client meetings, accurately capture financial data and key client insights, and seamlessly trigger follow-up tasks – which, in turn, improves the client experience.

“Zeplyn enhances our ability to deliver personalization at scale by providing a time dividend advisors can reinvest in client service and growth,” said Trevor Chuna, CTO at Sequoia Financial Group. “Multiple team members have reported time savings of 30-60 mins+ on meeting follow-up activities. We selected Zeplyn not just for their omni-channel note-taking capabilities, but also for their long-term vision in supporting the over-all client meeting process—the most frequent and expensive activity of an RIA.”

Zeplyn is a platform-agnostic solution that can be used across virtual and in-person meetings, as well as for dictations. It has multiple out-of-the-box integrations, including Salesforce, and wealth-specific CRMs such as Redtail, and Wealthbox, enabling it to plug into existing infrastructure and integrate with the advisor technology stack.

“We are delighted to be partnering with Era and Divam as they build Zeplyn. Zeplyn brings the Wealth Management industry into the age of AI, enabling better outcomes for advisors, RIAs, wealth management firms and ultimately, investors,” said Shwetank Verma, Co-Founder and Managing Partner, Leo Capital. “Zeplyn allows advisors to spend more time advising and elevating their client experience.”

“Zeplyn is bringing AI into a real-world context and having a real-world impact,” said Nilanjana Bhowmik, Converge Co-Founder and General Partner. “Unstructured data has long presented problems for the heavily regulated financial world, providing limited or time-consuming insights and posing potential compliance issues. But with Zeplyn, financial advisors can quickly extract accurate information while staying in compliance.”

About Zeplyn
Built by former Google engineers, Zeplyn is an AI platform purpose-built for wealth management firms to streamline advisor workflows, cutting down manual work by more than 90%. Zeplyn is rebuilding wealth management from an AI-native perspective, automating time-consuming admin tasks and creating space for foundational work and relationship-building.

Co-Founders Divam Jain and Era Jain met at Google, where they spent a decade building AI before leaving to start Zeplyn. Passionate about the potential of AI to transform workflows and empower professionals, Era and Divam realized that AI could benefit the relationship-driven and largely still manual Wealth Management industry.

Zeplyn’s flagship product, Zeplyn Meeting Assistant, streamlines the time-consuming admin tasks of meeting preparation, note-taking, client follow-ups, managing tasks/workflows, and updating CRMs. With Zeplyn, advisors save 10-12 hours per week and invest time where they earn the highest return: building client relationships.

SOURCE Deep Insights Ai Inc

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HONG KONG, Nov. 12, 2024 — Recently, Song Xiangqian, founder of Harvest Capital, emphasized in an interview with Caixin that understanding cyclical changes deeply is crucial for predicting the future.

1. “Consumer Goods Are Not Fast-Moving but Have Cyclical Resilience”

Before founding Harvest Capital, Song Xiangqian accumulated extensive experience in the securities industry, holding senior positions at various financial institutions such as Everbright Securities and Guosen Securities. This background has provided him with a broad macro perspective and keen insight into economic trends and policy adjustments. Throughout his career, he has consistently focused on profound economic cycle changes.

Over the past decade, China’s consumer market has undergone multiple transitions—from consumption upgrades to the wave of new consumption, and now to the current phase of consumption downgrades. Song Xiangqian explained that the emergence of consumption upgrades and new consumption was driven by human needs, aligning with Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. In recent years, however, due to insufficient effective demand and declining marginal consumption propensity, people have gradually shifted to affordable daily essentials, moving away from a preference for premium consumption among the middle class.

Song Xiangqian predicts that while consumption upgrades and new consumer categories will continue to emerge in China’s market, they will not be as frequent as in the past. Since its inception, Harvest Capital has adhered to an investment philosophy centered on “essential, high-frequency, and livelihood-related” products. This trend-aligned strategy has enabled Harvest to develop a portfolio with numerous consumer brands, positioning itself as a prominent investor in national brands.

In today’s macroeconomic climate, Song Xiangqian revealed that Harvest Capital will continue to optimize its investment strategy, with a sharper focus on cost-effective consumer categories to remain in sync with the current economic cycle.

Song Xiangqian believes that to fully understand China’s economy and consumer market, one must venture into smaller cities and counties to grasp the needs of low- and middle-income consumers. As the consumption markets in first- and second-tier cities become saturated, the rise of county-level economies is becoming a new driver of consumer growth.

2. Finding Constants in a Changing Landscape

In 2017, Harvest Capital strategically invested in Eastroc Beverage. Four years later, Eastroc went public on the Shanghai Stock Exchange, hailed as the “first functional beverage stock.” This investment not only yielded significant returns but also demonstrated Harvest’s market insight in the consumer sector. Harvest supported Eastroc in expanding its market coverage and implementing digital transformation, enhancing the brand’s capabilities.

Harvest also invested RMB 200 million yuan in 2019 in Lao Xiang Ji, helping it grow into China’s largest Chinese fast-food chain by store count. Despite the vast size of China’s catering market, there have long been no chain giants comparable to McDonald’s or Starbucks globally. Song Xiangqian believes that China still has gaps in “industrialization, standardization, and modernization.” Achieving chain scalability requires aligning stakeholders’ interests and retaining strong management.

As China’s demographic structure ages, consumption patterns will shift accordingly. Song Xiangqian stated that Harvest Capital will increasingly focus on youth-driven consumer groups, even though the “silver economy” (targeting elderly consumers) holds great potential but lacks market maturity. Harvest’s investment strategy will continue to seek constancy amid changing fundamentals of human needs.

3. The Importance of Patient Capital

In recent years, Song Xiangqian has repeatedly stressed that consumer and tech investments are not mutually exclusive. Although tech investments are currently in high demand, he pointed out signs of overheating in the tech sector, while consumer investments have remained relatively calm. Technological advancement requires sustained, systematic investment, and Harvest Capital believes that the key to economic growth lies in the steady growth of companies’ cash flows.

In his August article on Caixin, “The Second Half of China’s Venture Capital Industry,” Song Xiangqian noted that China’s VC industry has entered a more meticulous, real-economy-driven era, moving away from a fundraising model based solely on storytelling. Going forward, Harvest Capital aims to further transition from “Harvest Capital” to “Harvest Industries,” as Song Xiangqian hopes to evolve from investor to industrialist, advancing post-investment services and corporate management within the firm.

About Harvest Capital

Founded in 2007, Harvest Capital is a professional fund committed to value investing with a focus on China’s consumer and service sectors. It is one of the few value-creating funds in China with the ability to make industrial investments, treating investment as an industry in its own right. The fund’s total assets under management exceed RMB 29 billion. Supporting Chinese consumption and empowering national brands is at the core of Harvest’s mission.

Representative investment cases include Jinmailang, Xiaocaiyuan, Eastroc  Beverage, Qiaqia Food, Jiajia Food, Laiyifen, Xiao Guan Tea, Aimer, ORG Technology, Babi Food, Home Original Chicken, Wenheyou, Taikang, Easyhome, Boloni,  Carpoly, Yenova Decoration, Newpearl Group, Meitu, Meituan, Didi, and more.

SOURCE Harvest Capital

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