GEORGE TOWN, Cayman Islands, Aug. 28, 2024 — Lemniscap, a global thesis-driven investment firm backing early-stage Web3 founders, has raised a $70 million fund to provide financial backing and strategic guidance to help nascent Web3 startups scale at pace.

The generalist $70 million fund will focus on a broad range of opportunities across the blockchain ecosystem, with some of the key areas of interest including Zero Knowledge Infrastructure, Consumer Applications, emerging Bitcoin Ecosystem, Security, Phygital and Decentralised Physical Infrastructure (DePin). The fund is anchored by Accolade Partners, one of the largest Fund of Funds in the US, specialising in early-stage VC, growth equity and blockchain fund investments.

Lemniscap was founded in 2017 by Roderik van der Graaf, whose strong financial background includes tenure at some of the world’s most renowned financial institutions such as Deutsche Bank, HSBC, Rabobank and Bear Stearns. Having provided strategic advisory to early-stage blockchain companies since 2014, Roderik was uniquely positioned to launch an institutional grade investment firm tailored to the then niche space. He set about assembling a cohesive team of crypto-native veterans with synergetic experience combining Finance, Economics, Computer Science, and Entrepreneurship. Since the firm’s inception, the core team has remained intact, firmly aligned on a long-term mission to power a decentralised and transparent future.

Roderik van der Graaf, Founder and Managing Partner of Lemniscap, said: “In the seven years since we launched, reputation has become one of our strongest brands among founders, who we genuinely treat as partners. They represent our strongest edge when it comes to sourcing rich intelligence, building lasting partnerships, and honing in on early-stage, high-potential opportunities. This new fund will give us significant financial firepower to support the next generation of ambitious industry pioneers.”

Having developed, launched and managed multiple funds to date, significantly outperforming industry benchmarks and market peers, Lemniscap has established impeccable credentials among Web3 founders across the industry spectrum. Its first fund was launched at the tail end of 2017, right before the sharp market decline of 2018. Throughout the downturn, Lemniscap continued sourcing quality projects, and the bets the firm placed in 2018 have yielded substantial gains. Lemniscap’s foundational market thesis and investment rationale have remained intact throughout periods of market volatility and regulatory uncertainty.

To date, Lemniscap has made over 130 investments, growing from a follow-on investor to one of the Web3 industry’s most prominent lead investors and high conviction allocators. The Lemniscap portfolio has expanded to include top protocols and some of the most critical infrastructural solutions powering the Web3 industry, with flagship investments including Avalanche, The Graph, Axelar, StepN, Paragraph, LN Markets as well as Aligned Layer, Axelar, Eigen Layer, Puffer, Monad, and Anoma.

Marcos Veremis, Partner of Accolade Partners said: “Having already launched multiple successful funds underpinned by methodical, battle-tested investment theses, the Lemniscap team has proven adept at sourcing exceptional founders and projects at the cutting edge of Web3 innovation. We are supremely confident in the fund’s strategy and management team, and look forward to a prosperous and collaborative working relationship.”

The Lemniscap team’s multidisciplinary experience and deep-level Web3 expertise have helped them develop a nuanced understanding of the needs of founders operating in today’s frenetic and regulatory-sensitive industry. Lemniscap’s holistic approach to portfolio management prioritises long-term success rather than short-term gains, ensuring that each investment is nurtured comprehensively. Through ongoing, extensive market analysis, the team has their fingers on the pulse of impending technological advancements and future investment opportunities therein, giving them a distinct edge in the competitive market.

Shaishav Todi, General Partner at Lemniscap, said: “At Lemniscap, we believe that fostering innovation at the grassroots level is essential for building a robust and resilient decentralised ecosystem. Lemniscap takes great pride in being able to identify and help define emerging verticals – underpinned by scalable solutions with well-defined product roadmaps. Today’s announcement is another step in that journey, and we’re excited to continue working with founders who share our vision of a decentralised, transparent, and equitable digital future.”

About Lemniscap

Lemniscap is an investment firm specialising in investments in emerging crypto assets and blockchain startups. Since its founding in 2017, Lemniscap has funded multiple investments in the crypto blockchain space, on the core belief that blockchain technology will upend traditional business models, resulting in profound changes in the world economy. The Lemniscap team consists of talented people with backgrounds in financial markets, Venture Capital, technology and entrepreneurship. For more information, visit https://lemniscap.com/.

Photo – https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2490526/Lemniscap_70m.jpg

SOURCE Lemniscap

New funding accelerates AI-powered platform to help bridge the gap in government acquisition for emerging technologies

BOSTON, Aug. 28, 2024 — Pryzm officially launched today to make it easier and faster than ever for technology companies to accelerate government contract capture with the help of AI. At the same time, it announced its $2 million funding round co-led by top defense tech investor XYZ Venture Capital — an early backer of Anduril — and Amplify.LA, with participation from First In and strategic individuals enthusiastic about Pryzm’s mission to disrupt public sector procurement.

Today’s government contracting toolkit is often reactive. Contractors either burn all their time exploring opportunities that come to them (many of which aren’t relevant), or tackling a fragmented, opaque process to get in front of the right government buyers without all the information they need. Pryzm, by comparison, takes a more proactive approach by delivering targeted, holistic data to drive users’ efforts to capture government business.

“The Pryzm team could not be more perfect to solve this problem — all their experience gives them a massive lead over any potential competitor,” says Ross Fubini, Managing Partner at XYZ Venture Capital. “They understand the needs here at such a detailed level, it’s no wonder they’ve already attracted many of the biggest name contractors who want to stay on the cutting edge.”

The Pryzm team is uniquely positioned to tackle these challenges because of their experience in both the worlds of public sector procurement and acquisition, as well as big data and artificial intelligence. Their deep industry knowledge was built in prior roles at Lockheed Martin, Palantir, Veridion, and Tesla, and is complemented by technical expertise that has resulted in significant market traction. Already, Pryzm has partnerships with notable companies such as Forterra, AFRL’s Griffiss Institute, and Decisive Point, among others. 

“Pryzm provides targeted intel at exactly the right time, along with the tools to operationalize it into real world actions.” says Pat Acox, Vice President of Defense Growth at Forterra, a Pryzm customer. “Data at the right time and place is what wins, and Pryzm excels at delivering that value to our team.”

This summer’s infusion of capital is accelerating Pryzm’s development and expansion, enabling the company to continue growing the product’s functionality while reaching more companies that can serve the federal government. Ultimately, such support bolsters Pryzm’s mission to make government contracting more accessible, transparent, and efficient, helping the best companies unlock their potential in the public sector.

“With Pryzm, we’re building the toolset we want ourselves as government contractors: proactive, rather than reactive, and designed for the nonlinear way that you actually win business.” says Nick LaRovere, co-founder and CEO of Pryzm. “We lean into simplifying what was once complex — connecting disparate information into one cohesive picture, specifically tailored towards your business.”

About Pryzm Dynamics Inc.
Founded by alumni of Palantir and Lockheed Martin, Pryzm is a leader in enabling technology companies to ‘connect the dots’ of complex public sector business development. The company provides its customers unparalleled access to the tools, data, and context required to proactively navigate the intricacies of government contracting.

More information is available at www.pryzm.io

SOURCE Pryzm Dynamics Inc.

Growth capital will accelerate investments in defense capabilities to the tactical edge

ALEXANDRIA, Va., Aug. 28, 2024 — Parry Labs, LLC, a defense technology company that develops next generation open architecture mission solutions, announced today the completion of an $80 million raise, the Company’s first institutional investment round. This strategic growth equity capital was led by Capitol Meridian Partners, and included participation from True Ventures, as well as 3Wire Partners and Teamworthy Ventures.

The growth capital will primarily be used to accelerate investments in the company’s core technologies and to bring new, advanced edge capabilities to the warfighter – including command and control, mission critical software, interoperability, and advanced AI computing. Parry Labs’ digital systems integration solutions improve combat readiness and defense capability – by enabling faster, more advanced, and cost-effective systems.

“The Parry team is leading the way defense customers can leverage digital engineering and open systems to provide new capabilities to the warfighter at the speed of need,” said Parry Labs Founder and CEO John Parkes. “We are excited to partner with Capitol Meridian Partners and this group of investors who have deep expertise in defense and technology, as well as proven track records of supporting high growth companies that will benefit the company in our continued growth as we lead the way in redefining the edge for combat effectiveness.”

“Parry Labs has rightly earned its reputation for innovation and quality. The company is a trusted partner to its defense customers and has quickly become a disruptive provider of next generation open mission systems, all under a forward-thinking open mission framework,” said Brooke Coburn, Founding Partner at Capitol Meridian Partners. “We are excited to partner with John and the rest of the management team as we invest in new technologies, accelerate the adoption of technology for the warfighter and drive innovation throughout the defense ecosystem. We believe our experience and founder-friendly investment approach well position Capitol Meridian Partners to support Parry Labs’ accelerating growth plans,” he added.

“Legacy and next generation defense systems need a technology partner to bring them into the era of tactical edge computing,” said True Ventures Partner Gus Coldebella. “Parry Labs’ growth to date is a testament to John’s leadership in the sector and, given our experience helping software and cloud infrastructure companies scale, we jumped at the opportunity to support Parry’s continued expansion. Parry’s solutions make defense platforms nimbler and more adaptable – and ensure the longevity and modernization of existing systems.”

Parry Labs is a digital systems integrator for modernizing legacy platforms and accelerating new platform development. The Company offers an open architecture software stack, known as Stratia, which serves as the digital backbone of its edge compute solutions, as well as electronic warfare products that enable defense customers to accelerate key national priorities.

About Parry Labs, LLC
Parry Labs redefines the edge for the modern battlespace with digital systems integration that delivers rapid capability deployment and a decisive combat advantage. The company combines open software architecture and mission-proven hardware to create a common framework that’s integrated, agile, and designed to deliver the most mission-critical technology at mission relevant speed. For more information visit Parry Labs and follow us on LinkedIn.

About Capitol Meridian Partners
Capitol Meridian Partners was formed in 2021 to invest at the nexus of government and commercial markets, targeting opportunities where the firm can invest and drive value creation through active engagement with management. The firm draws upon the deep network of industry veterans curated over 27+ years of its principals’ experience in the sector to bring thoughtful strategic resources to each investment opportunity. www.capitolmeridian.com.

About True Ventures
Founded in 2005, True Ventures is a Silicon Valley-based venture capital firm that invests in early-stage technology startups. With more than $3.8 billion under management, True provides seed and Series A financing to entrepreneurs in some of today’s fastest-growing markets. To date, True has helped more than 350 companies launch and scale their businesses, creating over 85,000 jobs worldwide. To learn more, visit www.trueventures.com.

SOURCE Parry Labs LLC

TAMPA, Fla. , Aug. 28, 2024 — Integrated Ventures, Inc. (OTCQB: INTV), a diversified portfolio holdings company, is excited to announce its strategic entry into the rapidly expanding health and wellness sector.

The initial phase of this transition will be led by the newly established subsidiary, MedWell USA, LLC, which will serve as a B2B Procurement Agent for a variety of pharmaceutical products, with a particular focus on the booming medical weight loss and GLP-1 markets.

MedWell USA will be focused on the development of innovative weight loss and wellness management solutions, targeting B2B clients such as medical offices, fitness facilities and wellness clinics. This approach is designed to meet emerging consumer demands and capitalize on the significant growth within the global health and wellness industry.

Steve Rubakh, CEO of Integrated Ventures, comments: “This strategic entry represents a significant evolution for our company. The health and wellness sector offers immense growth potential, and we are eager to bring unique and impactful solutions (B2B and B2C) to market that will meet the critical needs of consumers seeking to improve their health and well-being. According to UB Securities (*) forecast, the combined GLP-1 market for obesity and diabetes will reach $129 billion by 2029, with 40 million users (with 44% based in USA) and a robust compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 30%.”

In addition to launching MedWell USA, the Company is in the process of establishing two more subsidiaries, aimed at broadening its weight loss related operations. Furthermore, the Company is finalizing strategic joint ventures that will enable INTV to quickly and effectively penetrate the lucrative health and wellness market.

Integrated Ventures is committed to driving shareholder value by seizing high-growth opportunities within the health and wellness sector. The Company will provide regular updates as it advances its strategic plans and achieves key milestones.

(*) https://www.ubs.com/global/en/investment-bank/in-focus/2024/glp-1-a-medication.html

About Integrated Ventures, Inc:

Integrated Ventures, Inc. is a diversified holdings company that develops, acquires, operates, and invests in unique businesses. The Company’s current operations include digital currency mining and hosting.

About MedWell USA, LLC:

MedWell USA, LLC, based in Tampa, FL, is a B2B Procurement Agency specializing in the health and wellness sector, with a focus on medical weight loss and GLP-1 products. The company targets medical offices, wellness clinics, gyms, and online telemedicine companies.

Safe Harbor Statement:

The information posted in this release may contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of1995. You can identify these statements by use of the words “may,” “will,” “should,” “plans,” “explores,” “expects,” “anticipates,” “continue,” “estimate,” “project,” “intend,” and similar expressions. Forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected or anticipated. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, general economic and business conditions, effects of continued geopolitical unrest and regional conflicts, competition, changes in technology and methods of marketing, and various other factors beyond the company’s control.

Contact:

(215) 613-9898 [email protected]

SOURCE Integrated Ventures Inc.

Founded by Bay Area Veteran Investor, Matt Krna, Two Meter Capital is a Trusted and Experienced Partner for Growth and Venture Funds, Family Offices, Corporate Venture Groups, and Secondary Funds

MENLO PARK, Calif., Aug. 28, 2024 — Two Meter Capital announced today its launch of the first independent fund management services firm, designed to optimize returns and enable strategic decision making for growth and venture funds, family offices, corporate venture groups (CVCs), and secondary funds.

These investor types are facing multiple challenges in today’s market: consolidation of capital in the hands of fewer, larger firms and a more demanding fundraising environment overall; longer time to liquidity bumping up against limited partner pressure for distributions; and a growing and increasingly complex secondary market for VC and growth investments.  Two Meter Capital’s tech- and AI-enabled services model, combined with the firm’s ethos of accountability, competence, intelligence, and specialization, enables the firm’s investor clients to address these market-driven challenges.

Founded by veteran investor Matt Krna, Two Meter Capital combines deep industry knowledge, experience, and connections with a tech-forward approach to portfolio management to deliver substantial operational leverage to its investor clients in several core areas:

• Portfolio Tracking, Management, and Reporting: Two Meter acts as an engaged steward of portfolios, from monitoring passive positions to filling board seats.
• Follow-On Financing Support: The firm assesses follow-on financing rounds, combining investment experience and analytics to provide fresh, unbiased recommendations.
• Catalyzing and Evaluating Exits: Two Meter uncovers opportunities for liquidity and provides advice on exit timing and pricing.
• Service Provider Management: Two Meter oversees third-party fund administrators, auditors, and valuation firms to free its clients from time-consuming administration.

Two Meter Capital launches with an aggregate portfolio of over 180 early-to-pre-IPO stage companies already under active management.

“We’re excited to provide an industry-first level of support, sophistication, and optionality to fund and portfolio decision-makers whose returns are being impacted by an increasingly complex and evolving market,” said Krna. “Whether an established fund seeking help with its older vintages, a sunsetting firm needing an ongoing active day-to-day manager, a corporate VC or family office looking to outsource a specific set of their investments, or a secondary fund seeking an all-in-one solution for a complex acquired portfolio, we believe that Two Meter provides a compelling long-term solution.”

Two Meter Capital’s team brings a decades-long track record of success in growth and venture investing. The firm’s set of offerings can be thought of as a “General Partner (GP) on Demand”, which shoulders the responsibilities of portfolio management and enables investment managers to focus on their next endeavors.  For those managers desiring near-term liquidity, the Two Meter partners with secondary funds in the acquisition and management of large and complex growth and VC portfolios.

Before Two Meter Capital, Krna logged a successful career as a growth-stage investor at Alpha Partners, Princeville Capital (which he co-founded), SoftBank Princeville, Investor AB, and Canaan Partners. During this time Krna has raised over $1 billion and helped guide successful outcomes for companies including BigCommerce (BIGC), Criteo (CRTO), Fitbit (FIT; acquired by Google), Remitly (RELY), and Kabbage (acquired by Amex), while also backing successful digital health businesses including Akili (AKLI), Komodo Health, and Sword Health.

For more on Two Meter Capital, please visit www.twometercapital.com.

About Two Meter Capital
Two Meter Capital is a provider of strategic portfolio management services to venture/growth funds, family offices, and corporate venture groups, and collaborates with secondary funds to manage large and/or complex ventures and growth portfolios. Two Meter Capital’s core suite of services includes portfolio tracking, management, and reporting; follow-on financing support; exit origination; and service provider oversight. Two Meter Capital’s team leverages a deep network of connections, decades of portfolio management, and investment experience, and a sophisticated underlying technology platform to help its clients achieve their return and liquidity objectives. Two Meter Capital is based in Silicon Valley, California. For more information, please visit www.twometercapital.com.

SOURCE Two Meter Capital

NEWPORT BEACH, Calif., Aug. 28, 2024 — Wethos AI, the pioneering force in AI-driven team optimization, announced it has raised $7.5 million in a seed funding round led by Jeff Herbst at GFT Ventures. The investment underscores the growing recognition of Wethos AI’s innovative approach to reshaping workplace dynamics in an AI-centric world. Seasoned investors in the round also include Miramar Digital Ventures, UCI Cove Fund and Capellas Partners.

The future of work with AI is more than a possibility, it will need to be an operating system for collaboration and productivity. “Wethos AI stands at the forefront of a workplace revolution,” said Stuart McClure, CEO and Founder of Wethos AI, who started his prior company Cylance in 2012 and it was acquired six years later by Blackberry for $1.5 billion. “This funding isn’t just about capital; it’s rocket fuel for our mission to redefine how people and teams operate in the age of artificial intelligence.”

The fresh capital will be strategically deployed to:

1. Supercharge AI Advancements: Wethos AI will double down on cutting-edge AI technologies, pushing the boundaries of what’s possible in team analytics, optimization and, in the future, automation.
2. Pioneer the Future of Work: As AI reshapes industries, Wethos AI will lead the charge developing advancements that harmonize human potential with AI capabilities.
3. Accelerating Market Penetration: With a laser focus on selectively partnering with leading organizations that embrace AI as a catalyst for growth, Wethos AI brings ingenuity and innovation as a powerful force multiplier. This new funding will fuel go-to-market efforts to rapidly expand Wethos’ growing customer base.

Jeff Herbst of GFT Ventures commented, “Wethos AI isn’t just predicting the future of work – they’re actively creating it. Stuart and his team have a demonstrated track record of turning visionary ideas into market-defining realities, and we’re thrilled to fuel their next chapter of growth. At GFT Ventures, we relish opportunities to work with repeat, successful entrepreneurs deploying AI to solve the hardest problems for the world’s largest markets.”

As organizations grapple with the complexities of AI integration and evolving team dynamics, Wethos AI’s platform offers a beacon of clarity and actionable insights. By quantifying team ethos and leveraging AI-driven analysis, Wethos AI empowers businesses to unlock unprecedented levels of team performance and individual potential.

“We’re building a new AI operating system from the ground up for the workplace,” said Stuart McClure. “In a world where AI is becoming ubiquitous, understanding and optimizing human potential is the ultimate competitive advantage.”

About Wethos AI: Wethos AI is at the vanguard of the AI-driven workplace revolution. By harnessing the power of artificial intelligence and deep organizational psychology, Wethos AI provides businesses with unparalleled insights into team dynamics, enabling them to build high-performing teams that thrive in the AI era.

For more information, visit https://wethos.ai/
Contact: Saren Sakurai
[email protected]
Direct Line: 909-313-4677 

SOURCE Wethos AI

• Investment round in the women’s health space also includes investment from pharma and specialist investors
• Financing to support continued commercialization with health plans and insurers in the US, UK and India
• MamaLift Plus^TM is the first prescription digital therapeutic for the treatment of postpartum depression

LONDON, Aug. 28, 2024 — RYSE Asset Management, the healthcare investor supporting innovative early-stage companies transforming lives, announced it has participated in a double digit investment round for Curio Digital Therapeutics Inc., (Curio), an innovative US company treating postpartum depression (PPD) and other underserved women’s mental health conditions. Strategic investor ONCE, the nutraceuticals venture capital arm of Otsuka; Bridge Point Capital and Avestria also participated in the round.

New Jersey based Curio has received FDA approval for its lead product MamaLift Plus. MamaLift Plus is the women’s health first prescription digital therapeutic to receive SaMD Class2 approval. It treats postpartum depression, a complex mental health disorder affecting as many as one in seven women with a recent live birth experience.ⁱ  The FDA approved MamaLift Plus is a prescription–only digital therapeutic for patients aged 22 years and older in conjunction with clinician–managed outpatient care. It is intended to be administered over eight weeks for the treatment of mild to moderate PPD. MamaLift is underpinned by a Connected Care platform which assesses women’s risk of depression and integrates her treatment with her existing healthcare providers. This is particularly significant for providers who are required to report on levels of depression amongst their female populations.

Curio is currently working with health plans, insurers and corporate employee benefit plans in the US and India. They also work at a strategic level with pharma companies and others who seek to engage with Curio’s data and underlying connected care platform which spans post-natal depression, fertility and menopause.

The RYSE investment comes from its Special Opportunities Fund that focuses on the most promising early-stage investments globally between seed and series A. Dedicated to transforming lives through cutting edge digital solutions, the fund has an investment focus on digital diagnostics, digital therapeutics and medical devices that will help solve the challenges facing the NHS and other health and care delivery systems globally. The fund recently welcomed new investors including Future Care Capital, as a cornerstone investor, and established global endowments, family offices and sophisticated investors.

Vivien de Tusch-Lec, General Partner at RYSE said: “This financing is a significant milestone for RYSE Asset Management. As a clinically validated, fully scalable, revenue generating solution, Curio is taking a holistic approach to tackling women’s health by designing interventions that address behavioural management and physiological conditions across Women’s Life Cycle. We see a significant opportunity for Mama Lift Plus, and for the other products in the Company’s pipeline.”

Shailja Dixit, MD, MPH, MS, CEO & Founder of Curio Digital Therapeutics said: “Our goal has always been to provide innovative solutions for women’s health, specifically around the challenges they face with behavioral health. MamaLift Plus is the first and only digital solution that can help address the serious unmet need uniquely faced by women who have recently delivered, and help make a conscious shift in women’s health. We are grateful to have the backing of RYSE, and our committed new investors as we bring these products to new markets.”

ABOUT RYSE ASSET MANAGEMENT
RYSE Asset Management is a venture firm backing innovators in healthcare. RYSE was born out of  a unique relationship with the NHS to identify, support and invest in leading early-stage digital healthcare companies to help them scale globally. Based in London, the firm brings together a team of professionals from all over the world with strong scientific, medical and business expertise. RYSE has evolved to collaborate with health systems and partners globally – with private and public providers, pharmaceutical, insurance, medical device companies – to drive revenue and exit.

Through the team’s strategic partnerships with all sides of the healthcare ecosystem RYSE’s Special Opportunities Fund provides early-stage entrepreneurs with the resources and support needed to scale their ventures and make a meaningful impact in healthcare.
For more information, please visit https://www.ryseam.com/en/ and follow us on LinkedIn. 

ABOUT CURIO DIGITAL THERAPEUTICS, INC.
Curio Digital is a pioneer in developing digital therapeutics solutions and interventions across the behavioral health continuum for women throughout the cycle of life. Curio aims to create a world where every woman can access a behavioral health solution at her fingertips. Curio is reshaping maternal mental health care by leveraging proprietary algorithms, clinically validated screening tools, and personalized digital behavioral interventions to facilitate timely identification and care. Curio aspires to make women’s health products and solutions across their life cycle. MamaLift Plus is a prescription-only digital therapeutic intended to provide neurobehavioral interventions to patients 22 years of age and older, as an adjunct to clinician-managed outpatient care. Curio’s AI-driven predictive algorithm, Curio-I, identifies and risk stratifies women who would go on to develop common behavioral health conditions. For more information, visit Curio at www.curiodigitaltx.com.

ABOUT POSTPARTUM DEPRESSION
Postpartum depression is estimated to affect approximately one in seven women who have given birth in the U.S. or approximately 500,000 women annually.^{i ii} Postpartum depression (PPD) is one of the most common medical complications during and after pregnancy.ⁱⁱⁱ Clinical guidelines for treatment of postpartum depression recommend medication and cognitive behavioral therapy. However, many women may not be able to access these medications and treatments due to national shortages in mental health providers, insurance coverage, childcare challenges, transportation issues, or breastfeeding status. Hence, there is an unmet need for novel treatment modalities.

ⁱ March of Dimes. https://www.marchofdimes.org/find-support/topics/postpartum/postpartum-depression#:~:text=PPD%20is%20the%20most%20common,women%20(about%2015%20percent).
ⁱⁱ Bauman BL, et al. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, 2020;69(19):575-581.X
ⁱⁱⁱ “ACOG Committee Opinion No. 757: Screening for Perinatal Depression.” Obstetrics and gynecology vol. 132, 5 (2018): e208-e212. Doi:10.1907/AOG.0000000000002927.

SOURCE RYSE Asset Management

Sierra Ventures leads round with participation from leading construction investors Brick and
Mortar Ventures and Prudence VC

SAN JOSE, Calif., Aug. 27, 2024 — Planera, a construction CPM scheduling and planning solution, today announced that it has raised $13.5 million in a Series A funding round led by Sierra Ventures, with participation from Sorenson Capital, Brick and Mortar Ventures, Prudence VC and Firebolt Ventures. The funding will enable Planera to accelerate the development and deployment of its innovative, collaborative, and visual planning tools, addressing the growing needs of general contractors (GCs), specialty subcontractors, and the wider construction sector.

Traditionally, GCs have relied on a couple of legacy software systems for managing commercial construction projects. These platforms have become outdated and miss the critical shifts to the Cloud, Lean construction methodologies, and AI advancements. They also fall short of offering collaborative features and the visual elements essential for visual thinkers in the construction industry. This has created a significant gap in the market, one that Planera is uniquely positioned to fill.

The construction project management industry is undergoing a paradigm shift similar to the IT sector’s move from Waterfall to Lean methodologies. This shift from on-premises to Cloud-based intelligent applications, multiplayer collaboration, and visual planning has set the stage for Planera’s success.

“This funding milestone brings us closer to our vision of empowering teams with the technology they need to plan, schedule, and collaborate more effectively to deliver optimal outcomes for complex construction projects,” said Nitin Bhandari, CEO and co-founder of Planera. “We’re seeing strong demand for long term as well as weekly planning tools, and we are heavily investing in more advanced features like quality checks, performance analytics and construction-specific AI to better anticipate and manage unexpected project challenges. This oversubscribed Series A funding will allow us to accelerate product development, expand sales and marketing efforts, and expand our reach within the construction industry.”

Bhandari is a serial entrepreneur with two successful exits. This is his third startup, and he is joined by CTO Erik Swenson, his co-founder from their previous venture, bringing over 15 years of collaboration experience. They are joined by Saif Lodhi who has 30+ years of construction experience.

“Planera’s innovative approach to leveraging SaaS in the construction industry is a testament to the transformative power of intelligent applications,” said Shashank Saxena, managing partner at Sierra Ventures. “The industry is ripe for disruption with the shift towards collaborative, cloud-based, and visually-driven solutions. Planera’s team has the proven expertise and vision to lead this change and deliver immense value to general contractors.”

“The construction industry can drive better project outcomes only if the entire project team participates in creating, maintaining, and optimizing project schedules and plans on an ongoing basis,” said Troy Thompson, COO at Big-D Construction, one of the construction industry’s top 50 GCs. “Planera is the only platform that has allowed us to move our teams in that direction.”

“Planera is the only company that has successfully challenged the incumbents and gained impressive early traction in the project planning software space,” said Kaustubh Pandya, Partner, Brick and Mortar. “The company’s innovative solution, customer-centric approach, and world-class team make them poised for explosive growth.”

About Planera
At Planera, we believe that when all project stakeholders collaborate to create a high-quality schedule and plan, that results in better team alignment leading to higher margins and better workplace safety. Planera is a full CPM-based scheduling and planning platform for the construction industry. With an innovative multi-level whiteboard, Planera enables all stakeholders to create, review, and optimize schedules. Planera addresses scheduling needs in all three phases: pursuit, pre-construction, and project execution. Advanced features like built-in schedule quality audit, real-time progress tracking and Monte Carlo risk simulation set Planera apart from other legacy CPM scheduling software.

Media Contacts
Christian Morley/Michael Gallo
Lumina Communications
[email protected] 

SOURCE Planera

Rally Ventures Leads Investment Round; Former Google CIO Ben Fried Joins pgEdge Board of Directors

ALEXANDRIA, Va., Aug. 27, 2024 — pgEdge, Inc., the leading company dedicated to distributed PostgreSQL, today announced a $10 million investment to accelerate its growth and further its distributed Postgres technology. The investment round is led by Rally Ventures, with additional contributions from existing investors Sands Capital Ventures and Grotech Ventures.

pgEdge remains the only fully distributed PostgreSQL database that is both open-source and entirely based on standard PostgreSQL. According to a 2024 Stack Overflow survey, PostgreSQL continues to be the number one database choice among developers. pgEdge’s unique multi-master (active-active) replication technology, which can operate across geographic regions, significantly reduces latency and ensures ultra-high availability for mission-critical applications.

In addition to the investment round, pgEdge is announcing the joining of Ben Fried, former Chief Information Office (CIO) of Google, to pgEdge’s Board of Directors. Fried brings a wealth of experience from his 14-year tenure at Google, where he oversaw the creation and deployment of technologies that power Google’s global enterprise operations. Prior to his role at Google, Fried spent over a decade at Morgan Stanley, where he was the architect of the firm’s web technology platform and led teams responsible for software development infrastructure and business intelligence.

“pgEdge is at the forefront of innovation in distributed PostgreSQL, a technology that is increasingly critical for enterprises needing ultra-high availability and reduced latency across geographic regions,” said Ben Fried, Partner at Rally Ventures. “The company’s highly experienced leadership team, with a proven track record in scaling early-stage companies, coupled with the company’s industry leading and open distributed Postgres technology, made this a compelling addition to our portfolio.”

Phillip Merrick, co-founder and CEO of pgEdge, expressed his enthusiasm for the partnership with Rally Ventures and the addition of Fried to the board: “We are pleased to welcome Rally Ventures and Ben Fried to pgEdge. Their investment and expertise will be invaluable as we continue to scale our operations. pgEdge’s strong revenue growth and the onboarding of cutting-edge SaaS and enterprise customers such as the European Parliament, Jobot, Enquire.ai, Qube RT and Kobold Metals underscore our momentum in the market.”

About Rally Ventures

Rally Ventures invests exclusively in early-stage business technology companies, focusing on entrepreneurs creating major new markets or bringing transformative approaches to existing ones. Since 1997, Rally Ventures’ partners and venture capital industry veterans have invested in or run early-stage enterprise business-to-business technology companies with a proven ability to deliver superior returns regardless of the overall market environment. For more information visit rallyventures.com.

About pgEdge

pgEdge, the leading company dedicated to distributed Postgres, has made its mission to make it easy for developers to build and deploy highly distributed database applications across the global network. Founded by industry veterans who have championed enterprise usage of the PostgreSQL database for several decades and helped run the world’s largest managed database cloud services, pgEdge is headquartered in Northern Virginia. The founders have previously founded and/or led successful companies such as webMethods (NASDAQ: WEBM), EnterpriseDB (acquired by Bain Capital), SparkPost (acquired by MessageBird), OpenSCG (acquired by AWS) and Fugue (acquired by Snyk). pgEdge investors include Rally Ventures, Sands Capital Ventures, Grotech Ventures and Sand Hill East. For more information visit www.pgedge.com.

SOURCE pgEdge