SANTA FE, N.M., Aug. 30, 2023 — Mercury Bio, (www.mercurybio.com) a Santa Fe, NM-based biotech company working in the area of targeted molecular drug delivery, achieved two financial milestones in the first half of August as it concluded a $2M seed funding round, and welcomed John Tomes as Finance Director for the growing company.

The seed round, which commenced in January of this year, was swiftly subscribed to by investors from across the nation, both corporations and individuals alike. Additionally, the company has signified its intent to promptly initiate efforts towards a Series A investment round due to the surge in activity. Before January 2023, the company had been funded through pre-seed investments primarily sourced from individuals and organizations based in New Mexico.

“Mercury Bio really transitioned out of a period of discreet technological development when we unveiled our groundbreaking technology at the recent 3rd-Annual mRNA Therapeutics conference in Boston,” says current CEO, Bruce McCormick. “That presentation by our CSO [Richard Sayre Ph. D.], showed just what our yEV technology is capable of, and based on the terrific feedback gained at that conference, we’re now looking at how to strategically structure growth over the next three years.”

Enter John Tomes, who brings valuable experience in capital markets and successful company building. Tomes most recently served as a Senior Partner with Hawthorn Equity Partners (Toronto & Chicago), and has more than 25 years of private equity and early-stage investment experience across four funds managing in excess of $450M of capital. Prior to that, he was a Managing Director at GE Capital and responsible for sourcing and managing over 70 leveraged lending and equity investments totaling $5.5 BN of capital and managing offices in Chicago, San Francisco, Los Angeles and Seattle. Tomes also has served on more than 15 boards, and been involved in multiple company sale events, IPOs, restructurings, and mergers. He holds a BA from Kenyon College in Biology, and an MBA from the University of Chicago.

“John Tomes joins us at a time when we are scaling to meet current and anticipated technology development agreements for our delivery system with pharma and biotech companies,” says McCormick. “He will be a valuable asset to our team as we amplify awareness of the many potential applications of chimeric yEV technology in the biopharma industry.”

About Mercury Bio: Sparked by scientific breakthroughs in genomic research, Mercury Bio is developing a next-generation biomolecular drug delivery platform. Using a novel system for drug encapsulation in natural vesicles, their technology enhances drug efficacy while reducing side effects by employing cell-specific targeting. The result is a next-generation drug delivery system in a scalable, low-cost production platform that will unlock the potential of RNA therapeutics and small molecule drugs.

Contact: Kaelie Barnard | Director of Marketing, Barson Corp.
[email protected] | +1 (516) 712–6050

SOURCE Mercury Bio Inc.

Atento Capital Leads Series A Round for Tulsa-based Medication Adherence Company to Fuel National Expansion

TULSA, Okla., Aug. 30, 2023 — PatchRx, a medication management startup based in Tulsa, OK, has announced that it has raised $8 million in a Series A funding round. The first-of-its-kind smart pill bottle cap prioritizes patient well-being by using data-driven technology to enhance prescription adherence and support patients in their medication management.

The round was led by Atento Capital joined by Vast Ventures, Cortado Ventures, Forum Ventures, and Plains VC. It brings the total capital raised to date to $15 million as part of an accelerated period of growth in which PatchRx expanded from a team of 10 to 80+ employees and reached $4 million in revenue in just 12 months.

PatchRx’s patented technology has been deployed in over 40 clinics across the US from Alaska to New Jersey. In 2022, PatchRx became the first vendor to offer a medication adherence platform under new Medicare RTM billing codes, creating a unique opportunity to engage various stakeholders of healthcare simultaneously. PatchRx is on track to also deploy its technology beyond pain management: in clinical trials, where drug efficacy results are often inadvertently distorted by unreported non-adherence, and in psychiatric markets, an area in which high-risk medications taken off schedule can often have severely detrimental effects on patient outcomes.

PatchRx was co-founded in 2018 by Andrew Aertker and Gavin Buchanan, then students at Trinity University in San Antonio, each motivated by personal connections to medication adherence: Gavin’s grandfather died due to non-adherence, and Andrew’s firsthand experience managing medication after his cancer diagnosis. The events, in the wake of a national opioid addiction crisis, led to a recognition of the scale and stakes of non-adherence and a need for substantially better technology and innovation in the space.

“It’s likely due to our own experiences that our focus has always been patients first, and we’re fully committed to innovating and designing technology to ensure their well-being,” said Aertker, CEO of PatchRx. “At the end of the day, our goal is to fundamentally advance innovation in patient care in a way that creates better mechanisms to support patients and offer providers tools and insights to care for their patients more effectively.”

The problem PatchRx addresses is widespread and growing. According to the World Health Organization, poor medication adherence can account for up to 25% of hospitalizations and approximately 125,000 deaths every year in the United States. PatchRx’s unique technology has gained widespread adoption quickly and has earned high levels of patient engagement. The company offers the only smart pill bottle cap that is universally fitted, while also providing top quality and affordability. It fits on the underside of any size pill bottle, meaning no change in operation or workflow for any provider partner.

“With PatchRx, pain management physicians now have the opportunity to leverage new types of objectives, behavioral data that will better enable us to track medication-taking behaviors. It will also provide early-warning alerts for patients at risk of an opioid or other drug overdose,” said Dr. Peter Staats, Chief Medical Officer of National Spine & Pain Centers and one of the country’s foremost interventional pain management doctors. Dr. Staats is also a member of PatchRx’s Scientific Advisory Board.

PatchRx expects exponential growth in the areas of healthcare where patients are on chronic medication and where non-adherence is most damaging –heart disease, mental health, and oncology plus a range of other diseases and conditions such as high blood pressure and diabetes. The company moved last year to Tulsa, Oklahoma, joining the growing number of startups that have relocated to the city in recent years.

“We are energized by PatchRx and the business traction that the company is generating in a fast-growing digital health category,” said Michael Basch, managing partner at Tulsa-based Atento Capital, the VC arm of the George Kaiser Family Foundation. “This kind of breakthrough technology is a great illustration of the ingenuity that is emerging from the heartland.”

PatchRx joins a growing cohort of early-stage virtual health companies in Tulsa, including, Sway Medical, which captures patient’s balance and cognitive data to help healthcare professionals make decisions, and TeleVet, a telemedicine platform for veterinarians.

About PatchRx:

PatchRx is a patient-focused medication management platform improving outcomes through connected technologies. Understanding the complexities of prescription regimens, PatchRx provides personalized support through a unique service that combines a patented universal smart pill bottle device with a provider web app and on-staff nurses. We help patients and their providers find the most effective treatments.

Media contact:
Caroline Glennon, Thunder11
[email protected]
(516) 941-8802

SOURCE PatchRx

• Investment led by Esperante Ventures and Ferring Ventures: Additional funding to support expanded SPT-2101 clinical trial.
• Progress with SPT-2101 for Meniere’s Disease: Encouraging data from the Australian clinical trial validates Spiral’s proprietary drug delivery platform, with plans to submit its US IND by late 2024.

SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif., Aug. 30, 2023 — Spiral Therapeutics, Inc. (“Spiral”), a clinical-stage company focused on delivering therapies for inner ear disorders, today announced a new round of financing led by Esperante Ventures and Ferring Ventures SA. This infusion of capital will propel the company’s innovative approach to treating inner ear disorders, including the collection of additional clinical data for its lead program SPT-2101 for Meniere’s Disease, and the continued development of its hearing loss pipeline. As part of this financing, Spiral welcomes the addition of Dean Slagel, Managing Director of Esperante Ventures, to its Board of Directors.

SPT-2101 is a sustained-release steroid formulation designed for minimally invasive, precise and durable administration to the inner ear using Spiral’s novel drug delivery platform. Last year Spiral completed enrollment of an open label clinical study of SPT-2101 in patients with Meniere’s Disease. Data from this study confirmed the favorable safety profile of SPT-2101, as well as marked improvements from baseline in the frequency and severity of patient-reported vertigo episodes at 3 months and in other key efficacy outcome measures. Further, pharmacokinetic data provided confirmation of the superiority of Spiral’s drug delivery platform.

A randomized, placebo-controlled clinical trial expansion was initiated earlier this year and will further investigate the safety and efficacy of SPT-2101 given as a single administration. Up to 30 subjects with unilateral Meniere’s Disease are being enrolled across multiple sites in Australia.

Building upon the recently acquired data from Otonomy, Spiral expects to submit an Investigational New Drug (IND) application for SPT-2101 to initiate its pivotal trials in the US by late 2024.

Hugo Peris, CEO of Spiral Therapeutics, said, “This fresh round of investment reflects the confidence in our unique drug delivery approach and technology, and strengthens our resolve to innovate in the field of neurotology. With the recent acquisition of Otonomy assets and our growing therapeutic pipeline, we are positioning Spiral as a forerunner in the field.”

About Spiral Therapeutics
Spiral Therapeutics is a clinical-stage company focused on delivering therapies for inner ear disorders. Spiral’s novel drug delivery platform allows for minimally invasive, precise and durable exposure of drugs to the cochlea. Spiral is advancing a therapeutic pipeline with focus on hearing loss and balance disorders. Spiral’s lead program, SPT-2101, is a sustained-release steroid formulation for the treatment of inner ear inflammation. For more information, visit: www.spiraltx.com.

Media Contact
For Spiral:
Hugo Peris, CEO ([email protected])
(650) 453-0893

SOURCE Spiral Therapeutics, Inc.

Demand for risk and compliance management continues to be fueled by novel threats and risks, new global regulations, and enhanced scrutiny from regulatory bodies worldwide.

With advanced enterprise risk management and compliance workflow automation, companies ranging from mid-market to large enterprises can use Hyperproof’s comprehensive and customizable solution to track and mitigate risk and automate complex, collaborative workflows, turning risk and compliance mandates into differentiators.

BELLEVUE, Wash., Aug. 30, 2023 — Hyperproof — an innovative SaaS-based risk and compliance management company, announced today the close of a $40 million growth investment led by Riverwood Capital, a global investor in high-growth technology companies, with participation from existing investor Toba Capital.

Demand for risk and compliance management continues to be fueled by novel threats and risks, new global regulations, and enhanced scrutiny from regulatory bodies worldwide. With FedRAMP, CMMC, and state privacy regulations being defined, companies are working quickly to adapt the necessary changes. Recently, the SEC approved new disclosure requirements to hold companies accountable for reported material breaches. In a fast-changing regulatory landscape, companies are therefore looking for strategic technology that enables them to manage risk and compliance at scale. Hyperproof solves these challenges by providing 360-degree visibility into a company’s risk and compliance posture while ensuring stronger collaboration across teams and reducing inefficiencies that plague companies as they grow. The Hyperproof platform supports over 85 broadly applicable and industry- and state- specific frameworks, such as SOC 2, ISO 27001, NIST 800-53, NIST CSF, FedRAMP, CCPA, GDPR, HIPAA, among others.

Hyperproof will use the funding to expand its enterprise-grade offerings and develop new technologies with advanced heuristics and artificial intelligence to automate tedious manual processes and scale compliance and risk workflows. Hyperproof has tripled its customer base since 2022 and signed key partnership agreements with global firms like Grant Thornton. As Hyperproof has grown, its customer list has evolved to include industry-leading companies such as  Reddit, Motorola, Nutanix, Applovin, and Veeva Systems. Hyperproof’s customer base is wide-ranging with companies in technology, financial services, healthcare, manufacturing, and other verticals and increasingly combines both high-growth mid-market organizations and large enterprises due to the platform’s flexibility and risk-forward approach. Underpinning the significance of the need for modern, sophisticated compliance technology at the enterprise level, Hyperproof has seen 260% in revenue growth since 2022.

“The Hyperproof platform delivers the flexibility, customization, powerful reporting, scalability, and workflow optimization our customers need to get ahead of compliance requirements and stay relevant,” said Craig Unger, CEO and Founder of Hyperproof. “We at Hyperproof are tireless champions of our customers, prioritizing their needs in every decision we make. This round of funding will empower us to grow alongside our customers and continue to offer them innovative new capabilities to meet their ever-evolving enterprise needs.”

“In response to changing global dynamics, companies are subject to an evolving roster of compliance requirements. Enterprises that can anticipate and streamline their compliance protocols will be better equipped to rapidly and seamlessly adapt to current and future scenarios, unburdening them from costly and time-consuming processes and freeing up professionals to focus on their core business functions,” said Jeff Parks, Co-Founder & Managing Partner at Riverwood Capital. “The incredible ROI of implementing Hyperproof’s platform is immediate and undeniable, and we are thrilled to partner with Craig and the impressive team he has built at Hyperproof as they mitigate this universal pain point and help companies transform compliance and reporting into a unique advantage.”

“As regulatory requirements are becoming increasingly rigorous, driving a need for continuous monitoring across departments, we are also seeing that compliance certifications are now a standard requirement in RFP processes to win new business,” said Ramesh Venugopal, Partner at Riverwood Capital and new member of Hyperproof’s Board of Directors. “Hyperproof’s cloud-based platform is well positioned to replace outdated enterprise infrastructure that drains a company’s time and resources, has limited integrations, and doesn’t provide the workflow optimization tools companies need to stay compliant. We are excited to partner with Hyperproof on their mission to help companies differentiate themselves with complete visibility into their compliance postures.”

About Hyperproof

Hyperproof is a SaaS platform that empowers compliance, risk, and security teams to automate and scale their workflows without the burden of jumping between multiple legacy platforms and spreadsheets. The Hyperproof platform enables teams to get complete visibility into their organizational risks, streamline the audit process, and reduce their ever-growing compliance workloads in one seamless platform. Hyperproof is trusted by leading organizations like Veeva Systems, Fortinet, Motorola, Outreach, and 3M. To learn more about Hyperproof, visit https://hyperproof.io  

About Riverwood Capital

Riverwood Capital invests in high-growth companies in the technology and technology-enabled industries. Riverwood offers a unique combination of operational, strategic, technology, and financial insight to portfolio companies that typically need growth capital and expertise to scale on a global basis. The firm seeks to invest in established businesses with a proven technology and business model, and the proper fit in terms of culture and values. Riverwood was founded in 2008 and has had the opportunity to invest in and support over 70 companies since inception, which have grown revenues at 45% per year on average during that period. The Firm has offices in Menlo Park, CA; Miami, FL; New York, NY; and São Paulo, Brazil. For more information, visit www.riverwoodcapital.com.

Media Contact:

Erin Nelson
Sr. SEO & Content Marketing Manager, Hyperproof
[email protected]

SOURCE Hyperproof

SHANGHAI, Aug. 29, 2023 — Epigenic Therapeutics, a leading biotechnology company dedicated to developing next-generation gene modulation therapy utilizing epigenome regulation to treat prevalent diseases, today announced that it has raised $32 million in Series A round of financing co-led by Qiming Venture Partners and OrbiMed, with participation from existing investor Morningside Venture Capital. This round of financing will support the preclinical development and early clinical validation of two leading programs, discovery of future pipelines, expansion of the leadership team, and continued investments in the company’s core technology platforms.

Epigenic’s EPIREG™ technology offers a compelling alternative to the traditional cleavage-dependent gene editing tools by which altering the DNA sequence would raise safety concerns. By precisely modulating gene expression(s) at epigenetic levels, EPIREG™ is expected to achieve potent and durable silencing of target gene(s) to provide revolutionary and novel solutions to patients with chronic diseases.

“In two years since the inception, Epigenic has made significant progress towards transforming cutting-edge science into life-saving epigenome medicines. Now we have developed targeted therapeutic strategies.” said Bob Zhang, co-founder and CEO of Epigenic Therapeutics. “We are honored and grateful to have the support from top-tier global investors as we continue our mission to pioneer innovations in epigenome medicines to be ultimately implemented in patient care.”

“Gene therapy is one of the most exciting areas of biotechnology in recent years.” said Dr. Kan Chen, Partner of Qiming Venture Partners. “Qiming has been closely following the latest technology development and breakthroughs, and how they can be applied to meet unmet medical needs of more patients. Epigenic Therapeutics leverages globally leading epigenetic modulation technology to develop innovative therapies for various chronic diseases. With a passionate and experienced team, the company has been steadily and efficiently moving forward with the development of technology platforms and pipelines. We look forward to Epigenic Therapeutics bringing hope and treatments to global patients soon.”

“Epigenetic modulations have shown remarkably superior efficiency, durability, as well as safety profile compared to other genetic tools. Epigenetic Therapeutics is a leader in this space and has leveraged the unique advantage of the platform to produce potentially best-in-disease product profile.” said Steven Wang, Partner of OrbiMed Asia Partners. “We are impressed with the preclinical data and the execution capability of the Epigenic Therapeutics leadership team. We look forward to supporting the company to bring the two development candidates to clinic.”

About EPIREG™ Platform

Epigenic Therapeutics’ proprietary technology platform EPIREG™ employs its own artificial intelligence (AI) algorithms to explore and obtain an optimized CRISPR-Cas component to regulate target gene(s) or govern the expression of one or multiple gene(s) at once without changing the sequence of the DNA. Among peer technologies, our platform is capable to overcome the potential risk rising from DNA cleavage including but not limited to off-target effect, short half-life and challenging patient compliance issues. Combining a proprietary lipid nanoparticle (LNP) medicine delivery system, our platform has been proven to precisely and efficiently deliver medicine to target cells and tissues ex vivo and in vivo in metabolic, cardiovascular, viral hepatitis, ocular and rare disease models.

About Epigenic Therapeutics

Epigenic Therapeutics is a frontier biotechnology company dedicated to developing next generation gene editing therapy utilizing regulation of epigenetic genome for a variety of diseases. Founded in 2021 by leading scientists focused on discovering gene editing technologies and developing gene editing therapies, the company has multiple product candidates in the pipeline, including treatment for metabolic, cardiovascular, viral hepatitis, ocular and rare diseases. For more information, visit www.epigenictx.com

About Qiming Venture Partners

Founded in 2006, Qiming Venture Partners is a leading China venture capital firm with offices in Shanghai, Beijing, Suzhou, Hong Kong, Seattle, Boston, and the San Francisco Bay Area. Currently, Qiming Venture Partners manages eleven US Dollar funds and seven RMB funds with $9.5 billion in capital raised. Since our establishment, we have invested in outstanding companies in the Technology and Consumer (T&C) and Healthcare industries at the early and growth stages. Since our debut, we have backed over 530 fast-growing and innovative companies. Over 200 of our portfolio companies have achieved exits through IPOs at the NYSE, NASDAQ, HKEX, Shanghai Stock Exchange, or Shenzhen Stock Exchange, or through M&A or by other means. There are also over 70 portfolio companies that have achieved unicorn status. For more, please visit www.qimingvc.com

About OrbiMed

OrbiMed is a leading global healthcare investment firm, with $17 billion in assets under management across a range of private equity funds, public equity funds, and private credit/royalty funds. It invests across the healthcare industry, from start-ups to large multinational corporations. OrbiMed’s team of over 100 scientific, medical, investment, and other professionals are based in key markets around the world. For more information on OrbiMed please visit www.orbimed.com

About Morningside Venture Capital

Morningside Ventures was founded in 1986 by the Chan Family of Hong Kong. Since its establishment, Morningside has been focusing on trends of the forefront life science and healthcare industries over the world, spreading its business scope and investment footprint over North America, Europe, and Greater China. Morningside comprises a group of investment professionals who are entrepreneurial, have deep industry knowledge and profound experience in venture capital management. For more information, please visit http://www.morningside.com

SOURCE Epigenic Therapeutics

Round includes Amity Ventures, Tokio Marine Future Fund, S3 Ventures, GTM Fund, Alpha Square Group and FJ Labs

AUSTIN, Texas, Aug. 29, 2023 — ControlRooms.ai, the leading provider of AI-assisted troubleshooting for heavy industry, today announced that it has closed an oversubscribed $10 million Series Acontrfinancing round. The round was led by Origin Ventures, with participation from Amity Ventures, Tokio Marine Future Fund, S3 Ventures, GTM Fund, Alpha Square Group, and FJ Labs among others.

The funding will be used to accelerate ControlRooms.ai’s product development and go-to-market in the chemical, energy, and materials segments of heavy industry. ControlRooms.ai is live at industry leaders such as OCI Global and Ardagh Group.

With the ControlRooms AI-assisted troubleshooting application, teams enhance productivity, minimize downtime, and optimize resource allocation. ControlRooms.ai does not rely on pre-programmed, static rules to identify operational problems. Instead, its AI dynamically learns plant behavior on its own and surfaces issues before humans or alarms can detect them.

ControlRooms.ai is quick to set up and easy to use. Manufacturers can start seeing the value of its turnkey troubleshooting platform within a week–without changes to their current systems or lengthy consulting engagements.

“We are pleased to announce this significant funding round, which will help us make heavy industry safer, cleaner, and more productive,” said Monte Zweben, CEO of ControlRooms.ai. “We look forward to working with our new investors to execute on this mission.”

“ControlRooms.ai is a pioneering solution for heavy industry operators who have historically relied on archaic systems and processes that depend on human intuition, leading to higher-than-necessary expensive downtime and flaring,” said Prashant Shukla, partner at Origin Ventures. “We are excited to partner with Monte and Omar as they bring AI sophistication to the heavy industry software stack.”

“Troubleshooting is an all-day, every-day task for manufacturers, yet remains nearly as manual and laborious today as it was in 1980,” said Omar A. Talib, President of ControlRooms.ai. “ControlRooms.ai offers a game-changing solution that can help heavy industry reduce surprise events, minimize emissions and maximize efficiency.”

“We are excited to partner with ControlRooms.ai,” said Yuto Nash Nakanishi, Corporate Venturing Partner at Tokio Marine Future Fund. “We believe that ControlRooms.ai has the potential to revolutionize the way that energy producers operate and mitigate risk.”

“As an Austin-based fund, we’re excited to help ControlRooms.ai expand its team and customer base in Texas and the surrounding area,” said Eric Engineer, Partner at S3 Ventures.

For more information, please contact: [email protected] 

About ControlRooms.ai:
Detect Sooner, Troubleshoot Faster. ControlRooms is the AI Troubleshooting company. Our SaaS application is the first AI-assisted troubleshooting platform for heavy industry. With ControlRooms, operators and engineers can improve troubleshooting and see around corners. ControlRooms uses advanced AI to shine a light on the trends that matter and identify anomalies across plant systems. ControlRooms is headquartered in Austin, TX. Learn more at controlrooms.ai.

SOURCE ControlRooms.ai, Inc.

SAN FRANCISCO, Aug. 29, 2023 — Ballistic Ventures, the venture capital firm dedicated exclusively to funding and incubating entrepreneurs and innovations in cybersecurity, today announced it was named Investor of the Year in the 2023 SC Media Awards.

The SC Awards recognize leaders in cybersecurity, with the Investor of the Year category spotlighting VC firms that demonstrate unwavering support for product development and growth, steadfast commitment to the market, and deep understanding of gaps in existing technologies and services. SC Media noted the Ballistic Ventures team as “industry veterans who have a combined experience of over 40 years in the cybersecurity VC industry and have founded, funded, and operated more than 90 successful cybersecurity firms.”

Led by Founding Partners Kevin Mandia, Barmak Meftah, Ted Schlein, Jake Seid, and Roger Thornton, Ballistic Ventures announced the close of its inaugural fund in May 2022, which was capped at $300M. The firm has invested in innovative companies that challenge traditional categories of cybersecurity, including Aembit, Alethea, ArmorCode, Concentric AI, Nudge Security, Oligo Security, Pangea, Perygee, SpecterOps, Talon Cyber Security, and Veza.

“This recognition reinforces our passion for building an enduring firm that safeguards businesses and national security, while also empowering portfolio founders in realizing their ambitions,” said Ted Schlein, Co-founder and General Partner of the firm. “And we’re just getting started, which makes this recognition all the more exciting for our plans ahead.”

Portfolio Testimonials:

Lisa Kaplan, Founder and CEO of Alethea: “Ballistic has been a true partner in helping Alethea mature to provide scalable technology across a variety of sectors. The next set of threats security professionals will have to worry about is not from those who are attacking to get inside of a company’s systems, but from those who are weaponizing information to break into customer, investor, and stakeholder minds. Ballistic understands that security is more than just a firewall, and has supported Alethea’s growth through being a trusted advisor, leveraging its network to help us get our solution into the hands of clients, and helping us make sure we have the best possible team to solve one of the world’s biggest challenges.”

Oliver Friedrichs, Co-founder and CEO of Pangea: “Ballistic’s strength comes from the deep cybersecurity roots that the partners possess. Coming from a blend of both operational and experienced venture backgrounds, the team has touched almost every major innovation in the cybersecurity field over the past three decades. It’s hard to find a comparable set of investors in our space.”

Tarun Thakur, Co-founder and CEO of Veza: “Going with Ballistic will lead to a massive winning combo for any founder. Coupled with their high work ethics, the Ballistic partners and team have a founder’s mindset and are there for us every step of the way. They’ve been operators themselves, so they understand what it takes to build a company. Their depth of the cybersecurity industry cannot be beat. They also have a huge network with experienced leaders who act as coaches to founders, CEOs and their teams.”

To learn more about Ballistic Ventures, visit www.ballisticventures.com.

About Ballistic Ventures

Ballistic Ventures is a venture capital firm solely dedicated to early-stage cybersecurity and cyber-related companies. The partners have spent their entire careers defending against every cyber threat conceivable. Members of the firm have founded, operated, and funded over 90 successful cybersecurity firms – including Abnormal Security, AlienVault, Arbitrum (Offchain Labs), ArcSight, Arkose Labs, Fortify, Interos, ISS, Mandiant, and Shape Security – led over 10,000 security professionals globally, and have 40+ years of experience in venture capital. The Ballistic portfolio includes Aembit, Alethea, ArmorCode, Concentric AI, Nudge Security, Oligo Security, Pangea, Perygee, SpecterOps, Talon Cyber Security, and Veza. Our experience provides entrepreneurs impactful support from people focused on the same mission. Our networks and relationships open doors for our founders. Learn more at ballisticventures.com.

SOURCE Ballistic Ventures

UT Austin’s Discovery to Impact Program invests in Group1, a company developing advanced cathode materials that enable critical mineral-free, domestically sourced Potassium-ion batteries.

AUSTIN, Texas, Aug. 29, 2023 — Discovery to Impact at The University of Texas at Austin has invested $250,000 in Group1, a UT Austin-affiliated startup aiming to revolutionize the energy industry by developing Potassium-ion battery (KIB) technology. The investment will help Group1 increase its workforce, expand production capacity of their product potassium cathode material, Kristonite^™, to pilot-scale, and forge business partnerships with Tier1 cell and automotive manufacturers that wish to establish a domestic, “lithium alternative” solution.

This is the fourth investment made by UT Austin’s $10 million Seed Fund, which is managed by Discovery to Impact, the University’s research commercialization team. The fund invests in the most promising new startups built on university-owned intellectual property emerging from UT Austin’s $845 million research enterprise. It invested in Group1, an Austin-based technology company born out of the late 2019 Nobel laureate Professor John Goodenough’s lab, because of its commitment to commercialization of ground-breaking research and belief that KIBs are a credible, sustainable, and cost-effective alternative to Lithium-ion batteries (LIBs).

“This investment in Group1 is a testament to the University’s dedication to expanding research commercialization across campus and leveraging the immense and growing intellectual talent of UT Austin and its affiliates,” said Christine Dixon Thiesing, Associate Vice President of Discovery to Impact. “We are a world class university located in the heart of Austin, Texas—a booming technology and innovation hub and a vibrant and dynamic city—at the forefront of the 21st century’s emerging knowledge-based economy. We are excited about our partnership with Group1, and wish the Group1 team continued success.”  

Group1 will commercially produce KIBs, an energy storage solution free of critical minerals such as Lithium, Cobalt, Nickel, and Copper, while facilitating domestic manufacturing and further strengthening U.S. energy security. Its product, Kristonite^™, a 4V cathode material — Potassium Prussian White (KPW) — enables KIBs that can deliver faster charging with enhanced safety and higher energy density when compared to Lithium Iron Phosphate (LFP)-based LIBs or Sodium-ion batteries (NIB), making them the future of the energy industry. To date, Group1 has raised $7.5 million to bring KIB technology to market and is currently in the early phases of engagement with leading supply-chain partners and several of the largest and most reputable cell manufacturers, domestic and globally.

“Group1 is pleased with UT Austin’s investment into Group1. It will enable the commercialization of ground-breaking battery technology that reduces U.S. reliance on critical minerals that are chiefly sourced from conflict regions or countries suffering geopolitical unrest,” said Alex Girau, CEO and Co-founder of Group1 and an Energy Transition Fellow at the Energy Institute. “We are proud to be based in the battery capital of the world, Austin, Texas, and to further strengthen our ties with world renowned institution such as UT Austin.”

Group1 employs several UT Austin alumni and affiliates – including employees who worked at Professor John Goodenough’s famed lab, where many of today’s LIB innovations, such as LFP, were invented. Leigang Xue, Group1 Chief Product Officer and Co-Founder, invented the core KPW technology during his time at UT Austin as a Postdoctoral researcher in the Goodenough lab. In addition, he is also a Visiting Scholar at the Texas Material Institute. Group1 has further developed KIB core technology and has established a world leading IP position, which includes exclusive license from UT Austin.

“As an investor in Group1 and having been a member of the Board of Directors of the University of Texas/Texas A&M Investment Management Company (UTIMCO) for ten years, I believe deeply in this partnership’s potential to transform the U.S battery supply-chain and help solve the looming Lithium shortage,” said Kyle Bass, Founder and Chief Investment Officer of Hayman Capital. “UT has long been a world leader in developing battery technology and I am excited that Group1 will commercialize this technology in Texas.” 

For more information about Group1, visit www.group1.ai. For more information about Discovery to Impact, visit https://discoveries.utexas.edu/.

About Group1

Founded in 2021 and based in Austin, TX, Group1 is the world’s first engineered materials company focusing on the rapid commercialization of Potassium-ion batteries. The company is revolutionizing the energy industry by enabling sustainable, efficient, and cost-effective energy storage — expanding beyond the limitations of Lithium-ion batteries while building on the best of Lithium-ion technologies.

About Discovery at Impact and The UT Austin Seed Fund

Discovery to Impact at The University of Texas at Austin brings research discoveries to the marketplace to impact the world. Working with world-class inventors, investors, creators, and entrepreneurs, the Discovery to Impact team launches startups and collaborates with established businesses to accelerate new products, services, solutions, and cures. The $10 million UT Austin Seed Fund is managed by Discovery to Impact. The fund invests in the most promising new startups built on university-owned intellectual property emerging from UT Austin’s $845 million research enterprise.

Media Contact:
Helen McCarthy
[email protected]
202.420.8449

SOURCE Group1

CH4 Global will meet growing global demand for enteric methane mitigation solutions in animal agriculture.

HENDERSON, Nev., Aug. 29, 2023 — CH4 Global, Inc., a climate tech company on the path to radically reducing GHG emissions in animal agriculture, today announced it has raised US$29 million in Series B funding. The company will use the funds to build and validate the CH4 Global EcoPark™, an aquaculture and production facility that will make CH4 Global’s signature product, Methane Tamer™, at scale. 

This round, led by DCVC, DCVC Bio, and Cleveland Avenue – with participation from other investors with a strong interest in climate change – brings the total raised to date to nearly US$47 million. It also underscores market demand for safe, viable solutions to vastly reduce enteric methane from ruminant livestock.

When added to cattle feed, Methane Tamer—which uses a red seaweed (Asparagopsis)—reduces the animals’ methane emissions by up to 90% while also reducing the feed energy lost to methane emissions. With the development of its CH4 Global EcoPark, the company is poised for expansion in key markets and with key partners throughout all six inhabitable continents.

This is a key development in the fight against climate change. The 1.5 billion cows on the planet produce more than 150 million tons of methane annually — the largest single source of methane globally. At more than 12 billion tons CO₂-e per year (at an average of 100 kg methane/cow), this is a larger GHG output than from the US, the EU, and India combined. Moreover, the UN cites methane as over 80 times more impactful than CO₂ on global warming over the next 20 years. 

“We are receiving massive interest from governments, food producers and farmers of all sizes, fueling our sense of urgency that we must act now to avoid a climate tipping point. The pressure is on with new regulations and the desire to produce at a measurably lower impact. What we’ve developed at CH4 Global is what we call a CH4 Global EcoPark, which enables low-cost growth and processing of Asparagopsis,” said Steve Meller, PhD, co-founder and CEO, CH4 Global. “We are formulating our unique feed supplement products, Methane Tamer, to meet the specific needs of each cattle market segment, starting with feedlot operations, beef and dairy, as well as for grazing dairies. Eventually, we will also formulate for remote and generally unattended cattle around the world.”

“CH4 Global’s secret sauce is its product, plain and simple: the feed additive it has expertly formulated stands apart from other seaweed-based offerings,” said John Hamer PhD, Managing Partner at DCVC Bio and a member of the CH4 Global board of directors. “DCVC Bio is thrilled to back Steve and his exceptional team: they are ready to scale up a critical solution to climate change.”

“CH4 is exactly the kind of deep tech company the world urgently needs,” said Zachary Bogue, DCVC Co-founder and Managing Partner. “Their natural and proprietary solution to the vexing global problem of methane from cattle can have a material environmental impact quickly and at scale.” 

As part of this funding round, Cleveland Avenue, LLC will join the CH4 Global Board of Directors. “We are excited about the opportunity that CH4 Global represents in addressing the major global problem of methane gas emissions. Cleveland Avenue looks forward to supporting CH4 Global’s world-class team in this endeavor,” said Randall Lewis, Managing Partner at Cleveland Avenue, LLC.

Over 150 countries have signed the Global Methane Pledge, which aims to reduce methane emissions by 30%. This followed the IPCC’s May 2021 report that stated that “methane is the single biggest lever for climate change impact in the next 25 years.” According to the IPCC, methane emissions must be reduced by 45% by 2030 relative to projected levels in order to put the world on a path consistent with the Paris Agreement 1.5˚C target.

About DCVC and DCVC Bio (https://www.dcvc.com)

DCVC backs entrepreneurs using deep tech to solve problems and multiply the benefits of capitalism for everyone while reducing its cost. DCVC Bio invests in early-stage life science companies driven by deep-tech approaches.

About Cleveland Avenue (https://www.clevelandavenue.com)

Founded by Don Thompson, the former President & CEO of McDonald’s Corporation, Cleveland Avenue is a Chicago-based venture capital firm that invests in lifestyle consumer brands and technology companies that positively disrupt large and growing markets. To learn more, visit www.clevelandavenue.com.

About CH4 Global (https://www.ch4global.com)

CH4 Global, founded in 2018, is on an urgent mission to bend the climate curve, through collaboration with strategic partners worldwide. Led by a world-class team of senior business builders, scientists and entrepreneurs, the company delivers market-disruptive products that enable the food industry value chain to radically reduce GHG emissions. The company’s first innovation, Methane Tamer™ feed additives for feedlot cattle, harnesses the power of Asparagopsis seaweed to reduce enteric methane emissions by up to 90%. CH4 Global is headquartered in Henderson, NV, with current subsidiaries in Australia and New Zealand. Learn more about CH4 Global and our recent news.

Media Contacts – CH4 Global, Inc.
For press inquiries in North America, Latin America, and Europe
Charlene Moore, Public Relations Officer, and Communications Counsel
[email protected] | P: +1 725 272 5732 | M: +1 831 331 5332

For press inquiries in Asia, Australia, and New Zealand
Verity Edwards, Hughes Public Relations and Communication Counsel
[email protected] | P: 08 8412 4100 | M: 0412 678 942

SOURCE CH4 Global, Inc.