Springbok is focused on further growth for its muscle analysis technology across human performance, longevity and life sciences

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va., April 25, 2023 – Springbok Analytics (www.springbokanalytics.com) announced today the closing of an oversubscribed $3m seed investment round led by Transition Equity Partners. Other investors in the round include the NHL’s Chicago Blackhawks, the FSHD Global Research Foundation, and follow-on investments from Titletown Tech, CAV Angels and early angel investors. This news follows Springbok’s recent selection into the NBA’s Launchpad program, the league’s initiative to source, evaluate and pilot emerging technologies that advance the league’s priorities, which include improving soft tissue injury prevention and recovery efforts.

“We are thrilled to welcome such a diverse group of strategic investors who closely align with our next stage of growth,” said Springbok CEO and Co-Founder Scott Magargee. “This investment allows us to further develop our technology to help improve precision health across human performance, longevity and life sciences. We are focused on building out our 3D muscle analysis capabilities to become the standard of care for injury management, performance and clinical research, a mission that this investor group fully supports.”

Springbok’s technology leverages AI and the accuracy of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to transform static 2D imagery into precise 3D muscle assessments. A Springbok scan takes less than 15 minutes and unlocks a new way to view and quantify muscle volume, asymmetries, and atrophy, as well as soft tissue injuries and scar tissue.

“Springbok has the potential to positively impact human performance in a significant way,” said Pat Eilers, Founder and Managing Partner of Transition Equity Partners. “We are equally impressed with the team behind it and are proud to support them as they build a company at the forefront of innovation in the world of muscle analysis.”

Trusted by performance specialists in the MLB, NFL, NBA, NHL, and collegiate athletics, Springbok is impacting athlete health management throughout sports. “We are eager to help Springbok in their pursuit of improving quality of life for all, including our players and prospects,” said Matt Gray, Vice President, Strategy & Analytics with the Chicago Blackhawks. “The insights generated from this never-before-seen musculoskeletal data could change the game for personalized injury management, performance optimization, and the treatment of injuries and training strategies in hockey and beyond.”

Springbok is also supporting the important research and care for a range of musculoskeletal and neuromuscular conditions, including facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy (FSHD). “FSHD Global is excited to support this innovative technology as we seek to revolutionize muscle analysis in the clinical trial and broader research fields to further understand disease progression and measure the effectiveness of future treatments,” said Emma Weatherley, Managing Director of FSHD Global Research Foundation. “Additionally, the technology will provide new clinical care tools that patients can see and then understand how their body is working. We are hopeful that this enables targeted therapy programs to improve quality of life through a more informed disease management plan.”

Transform your view of muscle with Springbok Analytics. To learn more, please visit www.springbokanalytics.com.

About Springbok Analytics:

Springbok’s technology transforms standard, 2D magnetic resonance image (MRI) data into personalized 3D muscle visualizations for athletic, performance and health applications. Springbok has created a new way to view and quantify muscle volume, quality and asymmetries for precision health insights and performance optimization.

SOURCE Springbok Analytics

Creating carbon intelligence from source to shipment, CarbonChain’s verified methodology tracks 80% of global emissions to inform and drive corporations’ supply chain decarbonization

LONDON, April 25, 2023 — CarbonChain, an AI-fueled carbon accounting platform using granular data to provide end-to-end visibility into the carbon footprint of a company’s supply chain, today announced its $10M Series A funding round, co-led by Union Square Ventures and Voyager Ventures. CarbonChain will use these funds to build new carbon accounting and reporting products, expand its customer base in the most carbon-intensive value chains (manufacturing, commodities, and heavy industry), and grow its team to meet increasing demand.  

Global merchandise trade exceeds $20 trillion a year, and the supply chains that feed that trade are responsible for 60% of global emissions. Despite global demand for quantifying and reducing carbon emissions to meet net-zero by 2050, many organizations struggle to accurately measure and report their carbon footprint.

“CarbonChain helps climate-critical sectors take action by filling the data gap for supply chain emissions tracking with accuracy and granularity,” said Adam Hearne, CarbonChain CEO and co-founder. “Our latest investment round kicks off a big year for CarbonChain: we are hiring for 30 new roles, and opening a New York office to better support the North American market. We are excited to expand our customer base and help move the global economy closer to net zero.”

CarbonChain provides companies and financial institutions with accurate accounting of Scope 3 and supply chain emissions. The World Economic Forum estimates Scope 3 emissions make up as much as 90% of a company’s carbon footprint. CarbonChain incorporates data from the point of resource extraction, from raw materials, all the way through to the point of consumption to create emissions insight across the entire supply chain. Through its verified and validated methodology and expansive database covering 80% of global emissions, CarbonChain enables carbon traceability, product carbon footprinting and the identification of real-time reduction opportunities.

CarbonChain has delivered tremendous value to companies with complex supply chains. By accurately quantifying the emissions intensity of globally-traded commodities, CarbonChain provides clear value to traders, manufacturers, and financiers who recognize the liabilities inherent in emissions-intensive supply chains, and see the business benefits from improving them. Major regulations from both the U.S. and European Union will only accelerate the value CarbonChain provides, while also increasing the demand from every major buyer and seller of emissions-intensive goods and services.

“CarbonChain has a team of passionate, expert engineers, data scientists, and sales leaders dedicated to tackling the world’s largest sources of GHG emissions,” said Rebecca Kaden, Union Square Ventures General Partner. “Their carbon accounting platform is becoming the go-to solution for leading companies in the commodities, metals manufacturing, trade finance, and logistics industries. We’re excited to have co-led this investment round enabling CarbonChain to continue expanding its customer base through these critical supply chains.”

“Integrating GHG transparency into the supply chains of thyssenkrupp is critical,” said Jörg Heiles, CEO Operating Unit Materials, thyssenkrupp Materials Services Eastern Europe. “By joining forces with suppliers like mills and using CarbonChain’s leading technical solution, the industry can start to build high fidelity emissions transparency, so that decarbonization decisions can be made at the supplier, product, and company levels. Engaging with our suppliers will help us prepare our supply chains for reporting and carbon pricing regulation, develop meaningful climate goals, and support our ongoing policy engagement.”

“The climate emergency is paramount for many of the Bank’s global trade commodity clients, helping them address these challenges is, therefore, one of our main priorities,” said Deia Markova, Head of Trade and Sustainable Commodity Finance and Sustainability Ambassador at Societe Generale in Switzerland. “In this respect, our partnership with CarbonChain further contributes to our clients’ decarbonization journey, in a very pragmatic and innovative way using technology, and to Societe Generale’s strong commitments to positive transformations of the world.”

“Enabling our clients to understand the emissions footprint of their transactions through CarbonChain’s reliable, robust, and transparent methodologies has been a distinct value-add to Macquarie’s Global Carbon business,” said David Schmidt, Senior Vice President in Macquarie’s Global Carbon group, a division within the Commodities and Global Markets business. “It has allowed us to execute a number of landmark carbon-offset commodity transactions.”

CarbonChain customers include thyssenkrupp Materials Services Eastern Europe, Societe Generale, Rabobank, Concord Resources, IXM, and Gunvor, among others. To learn more, please visit www.carbonchain.com.

About CarbonChain
CarbonChain empowers companies to make climate-conscious decisions to accelerate action toward a net-zero economy. Its AI-powered carbon accounting platform automates emissions tracking with accurate, granular, asset-level data for carbon-intensive supply chains, including metals, mining and manufacturing. CarbonChain’s methodology V0.94 has been validated by SGS and verified by Bureau Veritas for manufacturers, commodity traders, financiers and freight firms to unlock unrivaled insight into carbon-related risks and opportunities in near real-time.

Founded in 2019, CarbonChain is a CPD-accredited solutions provider, a Task Force on Climate-Related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) supporter and a proud member of ResponsibleSteel. CarbonChain is supported by the UK government’s innovation arm (Innovate UK) and was part of the Y Combinator Summer 2020 cohort. Visit carbonchain.com to learn more.

Media contact
BAM on behalf of CarbonChain
[email protected]

SOURCE CarbonChain

With lead funding from the Advanced Manufacturing Fund, the Cleveland-based company plans to scale production.

CLEVELAND, April 25, 2023 — Octet Scientific, Inc., a Cleveland-based maker of specialty chemicals for safe, sustainable batteries, has completed its seed-stage fundraising round, led by the Advanced Manufacturing Fund (AMF), powered by JumpStart Ventures with support from MAGNET. The AMF invests in early-stage physical-product and manufacturing-related ventures.

Octet is the world’s first developer of specialty chemicals for zinc-based batteries, an inexpensive, nontoxic, and sustainable alternative to lithium-ion and lead-acid. Zinc batteries are emerging in a variety of applications including backup power for data centers and grid storage to support renewable energy, and Octet’s proprietary chemicals will play a critical role in the continuing improvement of these promising young technologies.

“It’s becoming clear that zinc batteries have massive potential and that we’ve got the chemicals to get the most out of them,” said founder and CEO Onas Bolton. “We’ve got Octet in position to lead this new market and this funding puts critical wind in our sails.”

The investment will complement the $1.45 million in federal grant funding Octet received from the National Science Foundation SBIR Program, allowing the company to scale its current prototypes and develop others for broader markets.

“We’ve had the pleasure of engaging with Octet as they’ve grown and developed their product to this stage,” said Andrea Navratil, Director of New Ventures at MAGNET. “The AMF readily saw the value this technology could offer to sustainability efforts in the alternative energy industry and was thrilled to be an early-stage investor.”

The funding will support Octet’s non-grant activities through 2024 as it executes scale-up of its first large product line. Currently, Octet’s proprietary chemical products are being sold and tested at small volumes to battery manufacturers in the US, Canada, Japan, Europe and Australia.

“It’s a time of opportunity in the battery space.,” said Hardik Desai, JumpStart Ventures Managing Partner. “Octet has put itself in a position to be the specialty chemicals leader in an emerging market with huge potential. This investment allows the company to maintain that position as it scales.”

About Octet
Octet Scientific, Inc. is ensuring that tomorrow’s cleanest energy is stored in the world’s cleanest batteries. Our OctoLyte™ electrolyte chemicals give safe, sustainable zinc-based batteries the high performance they need for devices, backup power, and on the grid. The world’s first company dedicated to optimizing zinc battery chemistry, Octet was founded in 2017 in Cleveland, OH and has won the support of the National Science Foundation and the State of Ohio. For more information visit www.octetsci.com.

About Advanced Manufacturing Fund
The Advanced Manufacturing Funding (AMF) invests in high-potential early-stage manufacturing companies in Ohio, helping them navigate the unique business-building and funding challenges manufacturing startups face. The fund is supported by JumpStart Ventures, a division of JumpStart investing Seed, and Series A funding into early-stage technology startups, and MAGNET – Northeast Ohio’s Manufacturing Extension Partner (MEP) offering expert advice and technical support to innovative manufacturing startups. To learn more, visit JumpStart.vc and manufacturingsuccess.org/advanced-manufacturing-fund.

SOURCE Octet Scientific

Venture Climate Alliance to Develop Tools for Venture Capital Industry and Portfolio Companies to Track Alignment with and Contributions to the Climate Transition

SAN FRANCISCO, April 25, 2023 — The Venture Climate Alliance (VCA), an organization created by leading global venture capital firms to define, facilitate, and realize net zero-aligned pathways for early-stage investments, launched today with a goal to build a robust movement within the venture industry to combat climate change.

Consisting of 23 venture capital (VC) firms across the U.S. and Europe, VCA members have committed to supporting a rapid, global transition to net zero or negative carbon emissions by 2050 or sooner, and will take specific, near-term steps to achieve this goal, both within their respective firms and in their roles as investors and advisors to their portfolio companies.

Over the past few years, momentum across venture-backed climate tech innovation has been accelerated by entrepreneurial ambition, world-class innovation and more recently, increasing tailwinds driven by the U.S. Inflation Reduction Act, the EU Green Deal Industrial Plan, and other supportive policies. As one of the first institutional touchpoints between capital markets and early-stage innovation, venture capital investors have helped thousands of new companies from initial development to commercialization and scale. The VCA provides a forum through which member firms will develop best practices for collecting, interpreting and reporting carbon emissions, and climate impact data, as well as tools and guidance to help to overcome barriers associated with aligning early-stage investments with net zero goals.

The VCA’s founding members are Prelude Ventures, Capricorn Investment Group, DCVC, Energy Impact Partners, Galvanize Climate Solutions, S2G Ventures, Union Square Ventures, Tiger Global, World Fund and 2150; along with Obvious Ventures, Congruent Ventures, Valo Ventures, Clean Energy Ventures, Fifth Wall, Overture Ventures, Blackhorn Ventures, Spring Lane Capital, Azolla Ventures, Systemiq Capital, The Westly Group, Innovation Endeavors, and ReGen Ventures. It is supported by Great Circle Capital Advisors, a climate finance advisory firm.

“Our goal is to bridge the gap between what’s happening in public markets, where hundreds of companies have made bold forward-looking net zero commitments–and early stage innovation, which has the potential to decarbonize legacy industries through a combination of better products, more efficient processes, and lower costs,” said Alexandra Harbour, founder & chair of the VCA and a principal at Prelude Ventures.

In joining the VCA, member firms have committed to support the goal of achieving a global transition to net zero emissions. To start, venture firms pledge to inventory their direct Scope 1-3 carbon footprint and to reach net zero or negative emissions for their own firm’s operations by 2030 or sooner. Members will encourage and assist their portfolio companies in setting their own targets to achieve net zero alignment by 2050 or sooner, and will report transparently on their progress over time using best practice methodologies and disclosure guidance to be developed over the coming year. These commitments will establish stage-dependent climate-aligned goals as a part of startups’ growth strategies, rather than as a late stage add-ons to business-as-usual operations.

“We invest in climate tech companies that are transforming multi-billion dollar industries. As public markets, asset managers, and policymakers implement 2050 decarbonization goals, disclosure of climate-related risks, carbon emissions, and impact will matter for everyone– including those at the earliest stages of business building. As investors, it’s our role to prepare our teams for the realities of the markets that they’re operating in,” said Gabriel Kra, managing director at Prelude Ventures and founding member of the VCA.

“It’s critical that the venture capital industry support technologies that accelerate the climate transition,” said Samson Mesele, partner at Union Square Ventures and founding member of the VCA.

The VCA has been approved by the Race to Zero under the leadership of the UN Climate Change High-Level Champions, and constitutes a new sector-specific alliance under the Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero (GFANZ). The VCA will work alongside other sector-specific alliances within GFANZ to develop methodologies and tools appropriate for early-stage investments, and to share expertise on climate solutions across the broader financial sector.

Membership in the VCA is open to any venture capital firm, or a division of a larger firm that is engaged primarily in venture investing, that agrees to fulfill VCA’s commitments and to actively contribute to the organization as appropriate. For more information, or to become a member, please visit ventureclimatealliance.org.

“Net zero for thee but not for me is no longer a workable solution,” said Daniel Firger, co-founder and lead advisor of the VCA and managing director of Great Circle Capital Advisors. “If we’re serious about moving the entire world economy into alignment with a pathway to net zero emissions, we must consider the critical role that private markets play in that journey.”

About the Venture Climate Alliance
The Venture Climate Alliance (VCA) is an organization created by leading global venture capital firms to define, facilitate, and realize net zero-aligned pathways for early-stage investments. The organization currently consists of more than 23 members across the U.S. and Europe that have committed to achieving net zero or negative carbon emissions by 2050 or earlier.

Additional information available at ventureclimatealliance.org.

Addendum to Editors –

Founding Member Quotes

2150
“2150 is thrilled to be a part of the VCA to set a course for rapid action towards net-zero within venture capital. Early stage companies and their investors play an essential role in global decarbonization, and will benefit from a common framework to guide action and maximize impact.” (Peter Hirsch, Head of Sustainability, 2150)

Capricorn Investment Group
“We’ve been investing in climate tech companies over the last two decades–some of them have gone on to become market leaders reshaping trillion dollar industries, some are poised to do the same in the near future, and we hope many more will emerge in the future. We’ve learned a lot over the years and are excited to help launch this new alliance, and look forward to collaborating through the VCA to move the broader market, not just our own portfolio, into alignment with decarbonization goals.” (Dipender Saluja, Managing Partner, Technology Impact Funds, Capricorn Investment Group)

DCVC
“DCVC is proud to be a founding member of the Venture Climate Alliance—because helping brilliant new companies successfully address climate change represents a shared opportunity of historic proportions, with great outcomes for all stakeholders.” (Zachary Bogue, Co-Founder and Co-Managing Partner, DCVC)

Energy Impact Partners (EIP)
“As a platform custom-built to accelerate the net zero economy, EIP is pleased to help launch the VCA. We firmly believe financing and scaling innovative climate solutions is one key to a safe climate future, and this alliance will help the entire venture community improve its progress towards achieving net zero.” (Hans Kobler, Chief Executive Officer, Energy Impact Partners)

Galvanize Climate Solutions
“As an investment firm solely focused on the climate transition, we are proud to be a founding member of the Venture Climate Alliance. Setting standards for progress and accountability is critical to accelerating the climate transition, and we look forward to collaborating with the other members of the VCA to establish best- in-class tools and practices to meet our collective decarbonization goals.” (Nicole Systrom, Chief Impact Officer, Galvanize)

S2G Ventures
“S2G’s strategy reflects a growing appetite for combining financial returns with positive long-term social and environmental effects across sustainable food, agriculture, oceans and energy. Being part of the VCA enables us to collaborate with and learn from other investors, and harness our collective resources toward a shared vision of a healthy and sustainable planet.” (Stephan Feilhauer, Managing Director, Clean Energy, S2G Ventures)

Tiger Global
“The risks and opportunities posed by climate change are real for all investors, not just climate-focused investors. Over the last few years, Tiger Global has been taking steps to measure and manage our firm-level footprint, achieving net zero status as of 2021. As we look ahead, we believe that supporting our portfolio companies to better understand and manage these issues will be increasingly important. We’re thrilled to join the Venture Climate Alliance and work in collaboration with our peers to advance this work across the industry.” (Ali Hartman, Head of Responsible Investment, Tiger Global)

World Fund
“At the World Fund, we strongly believe that the Venture Capital Alliance (VCA) will play a pivotal role in driving climate innovation forward. By harnessing the collective expertise of top venture capitalists from both sides of the Atlantic, the VCA has the potential to significantly influence the funding decisions that shape the future of climate startups and technologies. As a group, we are committed to backing entrepreneurs who understand decarbonisation as a value driver, and those who build tech for a regenerative world. By doing so, we aim to have a meaningful impact in mitigating the climate crisis, driving positive change through strategic investment and support for innovative ventures that align with our vision.” (Danijel Višević, Founding Partner, World Fund)

Partner Quotes

Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero (GFANZ)
“Investing into climate solutions is a critical, foundational pillar of a comprehensive, economy-wide transition to net zero, and one of the four financing strategies in the GFANZ net zero transition plan framework. In keeping with our industry-led approach to date, we welcome the launch of the Venture Climate Alliance as a new sector-specific alliance under GFANZ, and applaud efforts by venture investors to establish workable and high-integrity standards for tracking the contributions of early-stage innovations in the transition to net zero.” (Mark Carney, Co-Chair, GFANZ)

UN Climate Change High-Level Champions
“As the High-Level Champions we are delighted to approve Venture Climate Alliance as a formal partner of Race to Zero. Venture capital funding is crucial to advancing the climate agenda. It plays a key role in the development of climate mitigation technology which is urgently needed to keep us within a 1.5 ° limit. Race to Zero’s 25 Partners and around 11,000 members are working hard to implement the campaign’s robust, science-aligned criteria. Two- thirds of the largest companies in the campaign have shifted from pledges to science based transition plans, driving down emissions in their operations by 6.5% on average. 70% have set an absolute reduction target by 2030. We look forward to supporting and collaborating with the Venture Climate Alliance as together we build on this significant momentum in this year of the Global Stocktake.” (UN Climate Change High-Level Champions for COP27 and COP28, Dr. Mahmoud Mohieldin and H.E. Razan Al Mubarak)

SOURCE Venture Climate Alliance (VCA)

 AUSTIN, Texas, April 25, 2023 — NetRise, the company providing visibility into the world’s XIoT security problem, announced today $8M in funding. The round was led by Squadra Ventures, with participation by existing major investors Miramar Digital Ventures, Sorenson Ventures and DNX Ventures.

NetRise has developed a cloud-based SaaS platform that analyzes and continuously monitors the firmware of Extended Internet of Things (XIoT) devices. Leading the market as a software supply chain detection & response platform, NetRise enables device manufacturers and enterprise customers to detect, respond to, and prevent threats throughout their supply chains.This funding will allow NetRise to expand its platform capabilities such as coverage for  Windows systems and containers as well as development of additional machine learning models for advanced analysis.

As threats and vulnerabilities rise across the enterprise, commercial and consumer devices that are connected to the internet and each other are a critical blind spot for security operations and vulnerability management teams. The firmware that powers these devices and allows them to connect to larger systems is critical for integrated functionality but creates a major vulnerability and neglected attack surface.

“Firmware security is not a problem that is relegated to a particular vertical or industry. We have built our platform in such a way that support for automotive, networking equipment, consumer IoT, industrial control systems, and medical device firmware alike are all supported.” said Tom Pace, co-founder and CEO of NetRise. “While working at the Department of Energy, I saw firsthand how little insight we had into the vulnerabilities and risks embedded in technology critical to every aspect of our daily lives. Our vision is that every technology user understands the ingredients in their tools and the potential implications of those components, no matter the source.”

By adding these additional capabilities, NetRise will continue to help both enterprise and device manufacturer customers to understand what’s inside not only their devices, but their entire software supply chain to identify potential risks and vulnerabilities. The NetRise platform enables continuous monitoring and analysis, compliance assessment and recommendations, real-time-risk tracking, and the generation, storage and management of Software Bills of Materials (SBOMs). NetRise reduces the time and cost of firmware and software supply chain security programs, allowing organizations to quickly find and remediate previously undetected issues.

“The NetRise platform delivers unprecedented automation and scale, making continuous monitoring a reality for enterprise XIoT,” said Adam Bixler, Cybersecurity Principal for Squadra Ventures. “We are seeing massive global acceleration in the market as companies around the world are looking to drive visibility into the software supply chain. With SBOM regulation and requirements looming, NetRise could not be more perfectly positioned.”

“Tom and his team are experienced, gritty, driven, and will outwork anyone in the room,” said Guy Filippelli, Managing Partner at Squadra Ventures. “They are world-class and will continue to innovate ahead of the market and bring critical technology to the industry just in time, as the White House and other regulatory agencies pressure manufacturers and software providers to infuse security into devices and disclose critical vulnerabilities.”

About Squadra Ventures
Squadra Ventures is a venture capital firm led by founder-operators that invests in early stage cyber and national security companies. Grounded in the belief that success is a combination of people, product, and planning, the Squadra team provides transformational support to startup leaders in the complex dual-use technology ecosystem. By applying a growth-stage mindset at the seed stage and a commitment to building alongside entrepreneurs, Squadra empowers extraordinary teams to win and leave a lasting positive impact on the world.
https://squadra.vc

About NetRise
Based in Austin, Texas, NetRise was built by defensive cyber experts bred across the private sector, intelligence community and U.S. federal government to solve the firmware security problem. The company is currently partnering with companies across manufacturing, automotive, medical devices, industrial control systems, satellites and many more.
https://www.netrise.io/

Media Contact:
Danielle Ostrovsky
Hi-Touch PR
410-302-9459
[email protected] 

SOURCE NetRise

Funding round led by Aescuvest alongside Omega Healthcare Investors

JERUSALEM, April 25, 2023 — Neteera Technologies Ltd., an Israeli-based startup disrupting the patient monitoring market, today announced the successful closing of a ~$13M Series B funding round. The round was led by Aescuvest, a prominent healthcare investment firm combined with existing and new investors, including Omega Healthcare Investors – a leading US-based Healthcare REIT (NYSE: OHI) with a particular focus on skilled nursing facility and assisted living facility operators across the United States and the United Kingdom, Nanz Family Office, Ankor Holding and Esas Private Equity. In addition, Neteera and Omega entered into a strategic partnership to offer Neteera’s technology to Omega’s healthcare operating partners.

With this latest funding round, Neteera will accelerate sales, production and deployment of its contactless patient monitoring solution and further feature development for its proprietary medical sensing platform. The technology is designed to enable continuous monitoring of patients’ bio markers without the need for contact or patient involvement, streamlining patient monitoring, improving outcomes, and reducing the burden on clinical staff.

“Aescuvest is committed to funding healthcare developments that have a positive impact on society, and we believe that Neteera’s innovative technology has the potential to revolutionize the way we monitor and care for patients,” said Sebastian Gührs, Partner & Head of Investment at Aescuvest.

Omega Healthcare Investors joined the investment round as well and cemented a strategic partnership with Neteera. As part of the relationship, Neteera will become Omega’s strategic partner for contactless patient monitoring and will offer its remote patient monitoring platform to Omega’s network of long-term care and skilled nursing facilities across the US.

“We are excited to partner with Neteera,” said Matthew Gourmand, Senior Vice President, Corporate Strategy of Omega Healthcare Investors. “We deployed their technology across a test group of facilities and received positive feedback from the operators, highlighting a reduction in hospitalizations and early recognition of changes in resident clinical needs. We believe this technology has the capacity to help caregivers, as they seek to provide high levels of care and comfort for their residents.”

Founded in 2015, Neteera quickly gained recognition for its unique FDA-cleared contactless remote patient monitoring platform. The platform, capable of continuous and seamless monitoring of patients’ bio markers in real-time, is improving patient care and operator efficiencies all over the globe. Together with the FDA clearance and the latest funding round, the company is poised to further disrupt the healthcare industry and bring its technology to more patients in need.

“We are thrilled to partner with Aescuvest and Omega as we continue to develop and scale our game changing solution,” said Neteera CEO, Isaac Litman. “With this funding and with Omega’s strategic partnership, we will be able to expand our reach and accelerate our mission to improve patient outcomes while reducing the burden on clinical staff.”

About Aescuvest:

Aescuvest is a healthcare investment company that focuses on funding digital healthcare ventures to make a significant impact. As the operator of a dedicated investment platform, the company offers exclusive access to promising healthcare ventures and facilitates direct investments through SPV structures. By providing entrepreneurial investments in a thriving market, Aescuvest enables investors to participate in lucrative healthcare investment opportunities.

About Omega Healthcare Investors:

Omega is a REIT that invests in the long-term healthcare industry, primarily in skilled nursing and assisted living facilities. Its portfolio of assets is operated by a diverse group of healthcare companies, predominantly in a triple-net lease structure. The assets span all regions within the U.S., as well as in the U.K.

About Neteera:

Neteera’s FDA-cleared continuous, contactless, passive vital signs and bio-data monitoring solution provides better patient monitoring both for the crisis ridden healthcare system and home health. Our sensing platform eliminates the need for device manipulation, removal of clothing, and caregiver presence. Neteera’s technology is a based on a safe, maintenance-free, sub-THZ micro-radar on chip sensor solution that protects privacy as it is not based on a camera. We improve care and ultimately reduce healthcare costs by enabling optimal comfort for patients.

Contact:
Sebastian Gührs
Head of Investment
Aescuvest
+491744333221
[email protected]

Logo – https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2058115/Aescuvest_Logo.jpg
Logo – https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2058116/Omega_Healthcare_Investors_Logo.jpg
Logo – https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2058117/Neteera_Logo.jpg

SOURCE Aescuvest

Funds will empower Adcentrx to progress its pipeline of novel antibody-drug conjugates into clinical development

SAN DIEGO and SHANGHAI, April 24, 2023 — Adcentrx Therapeutics (“Adcentrx”), a biotechnology company dedicated to revolutionizing Antibody-Drug Conjugate (ADC) therapeutics for cancer and other life-threatening diseases, announces the closing of a $38 million Series A+ financing. The round was led by Eight Roads Ventures, with participation from F-Prime Capital, ABio-X, Delta Capital, Trinity Innovation Fund, and other strategic investors. Life Venture Partners and Lighthouse Capital acted as Adcentrx’s financial advisors. Adcentrx intends to use the proceeds from the financing to advance its proprietary ADC therapeutic pipeline into the clinic.

ADCs are a class of therapies that combine the target specificity of antibodies with the potency of conventional chemotherapy drugs. This class has revolutionized the treatment landscape in oncology with the potential to positively impact other serious diseases. Adcentrx differentiates itself by leveraging its team’s industry-leading experience in ADC drug development as well as deep expertise in chemistry and biology. The team has pioneered the development of an ADC technology toolbox addressing key components of protein conjugate design to solve challenges that arose in previous generations of ADCs. Adcentrx implements this optimized approach to fuel the development of a robust pipeline of first-in-class and best-in-class therapies. The company’s lead candidate, ADRX-0706, is anticipated to enter a first-in-human Phase 1 clinical trial in the second half of 2023. Adcentrx is developing additional candidates in parallel with the goal of advancing at least one into the clinic each year.

“We are thrilled to have Eight Roads and our investors supporting our mission to bring innovative treatments to patients,” said Hui Li, Ph.D., Founder and CEO of Adcentrx. “Over the last two years, we have made significant progress advancing our emerging therapeutic pipeline that implements our proprietary and differentiated technology platform. This new round of funding from our investors will enable Adcentrx to quickly advance our safer and more efficacious conjugate therapies for patients in need. This year will be pivotal for Adcentrx, when we transition from the discovery stage into a clinical stage company.”

“ADCs as a therapeutic modality have flourished in recent years with a transformative inflow of active investment and strategic transactions. Adcentrx has demonstrated good potential of developing differentiated ADCs for unmet medical needs” commented Tao Huang, Ph.D., Principal of Eight Roads Ventures. “We are very excited to lead this round of financing to empower Adcentrx to accelerate its work in bringing new hope to patients in need.”

“Through its innovative work in the ADC field, Adcentrx exemplifies the type of company that ABio-X was designed to support as a global platform for developing the next generation healthcare companies. We are pleased to join together with other quality investors in this financing round and look forward to continuing our support of Adcentrx through the platform and board representation,” added Jeff Jonas, President and CEO of ABio-X.

“Adcentrx has made significant progress in building its preclinical pipeline and platform technology since our initial investment,” said Meng Jiang, Head, Venture Capital at CBC Group. “Together with our ABio-X colleagues, we are pleased to reaffirm our commitment to support the company’s continued growth and development.”

“As an innovation company with a global vision, Adcentrx leverages its technology platform to address the challenges of ADC drug development,” commented Lei Hong, Executive Director of Lighthouse Capital. “It is a privilege to participate in this round of financing that attracted investment from renowned funds and industry players, indicating the company’s growing prominence within the industry. We look forward to Adcentrx’s continued progress of advancing its novel ADCs into the clinic.”

For more information about Adcentrx and its innovative ADC technology, please visit https://adcentrx.com.

About Adcentrx Therapeutics
Adcentrx is a biotechnology company focused on accelerating breakthroughs in protein conjugate therapeutic development for cancer and other life-threatening diseases. By combining the targeting precision of biologics and the disease fighting power of small molecule payloads, Adcentrx strives to develop next-generation targeted therapies for improving patient treatment options.

About Eight Roads Ventures
Eight Roads Ventures is a global proprietary investment firm backed by Fidelity, managing over $11 billion of assets across China, India, Europe, Israel, Japan and the U.S. Our 50-year history of investing includes partnerships with over 300 healthcare and technology companies globally. Some of Eight Roads Ventures’ global investments include Alibaba, Beam Therapeutics, Pony.ai, Innovent Biologics, Insilico Medicine, Hibob, Medbanks, Semma Therapeutics and WuXi PharmaTech.

About F-Prime
F-Prime Capital is a global venture capital firm investing in healthcare and technology. For the past 50 years, its independent venture capital group has had the privilege of backing great entrepreneurs building groundbreaking companies.

About ABio-X
ABio-X was founded in 2021 by CBC Group, Asia’s largest healthcare-dedicated asset management firm headquartered in Singapore. ABio-X operates with a mission to incubate next-generation companies that bring transformative medicines and solutions to the global market.

About Delta Capital
Founded in 2010, Delta Capital is a leading early-growth and growth equity investment fund platform in China. Delta’s investment strategy focuses on early growth equity investments in Technology (semiconductor value chain, AI, biotech) and Consumer Services sectors. The firm has a stable and highly experienced team of over fifteen professionals who are experts in their respective fields. With its expertise in early growth equity investment and a focus on high-growth companies, Delta Capital is a prominent player in China’s venture capital market.

About Trinity Innovation Fund
Trinity Innovation Fund (TIF) is dedicated to investing in biomedical innovations. TIF’s limited partners include renowned biopharmaceutical companies and investment institutions. As an investor, TIF helps passionate scientists and entrepreneurs develop ground-breaking scientific research into successful corporate ventures. Partnering with scientists and entrepreneurs, TIF aims to transform innovations into cures for humanity.

About Lighthouse Capital
Lighthouse Capital, the most active new generation boutique investment bank in China. Founded in 2014, the firm is a fast-growing boutique investment bank serving enterprises with a global vision, committed to facilitating industrial upgrading and development through capital services and ecological empowerment. Lighthouse’s services include private equity financing, mergers and acquisitions, asset management, securities underwriting, and industrial development advisory.

Media Contact:
[email protected]

SOURCE Adcentrx Therapeutics

SAVANNAH, Ga., April 24, 2023 — Professional cyclists will descend on the streets of Peachtree Corners on April 26 within the “living laboratory” environment of the city’s Curiosity Lab. The cyclists will participate in a series of races as part of “Speed Week,” a premier week-long event on the USA Cycling professional circuit that draws cyclists from around the world, including Olympic medalists and world and national champions.

The Curiosity Lab Criterium is more than a bike race – it will incorporate technologies designed to improve roadway safety for vulnerable road users (VRUs). Real-world testing of the technologies will take place during the Criterium, and spectators will see the technology working in real time.

Louis Svehla, Communications Director for Curiosity Lab and the city of Peachtree Corners, says the event is a great opportunity for the public to see the type of work that goes on at the lab. “Curiosity Lab is a living laboratory helping design the city of the future,” said Svehla. “This race is a natural extension of what we do.”

Derrick Grissom, General Manager for Clearwave Fiber, said he is thrilled that Clearwave can help bring attention to the event.

“We provide the Fiber that runs throughout Technology Park, which makes the real-world testing possible. Curiosity Lab has been a great partner of Clearwave Fiber for many years and we immediately saw the benefit of the Criterium for the city,” Grissom said. “We knew an event like this would be beneficial to the community, its businesses, and residents.”

Svehla said the work at the Curiosity Lab wouldn’t be possible without community partners like Clearwave Fiber.

“I can’t say enough about how much Clearwave Fiber’s partnership means to the city and the lab. It makes sense that Clearwave is the Elite Sponsor for this event. Local investing is always what they’ve done. We weren’t out to get a bunch of sponsors bunch of sponsors, but to get the right ones. To have Clearwave Fiber support us and the community, more than a banner at the race but the individual excitement all the way down to their employees being part of the event,” Svehla said. “You don’t find partners like that every day. Clearwave Fiber supports the city and the mission, and that type of partnership is the lifeblood of what we’re doing here.”

Grissom says Clearwave Fiber wants to be more than just an Internet provider. “We want to be a crucial thread in the fabric of the communities we serve,” he said. “We believe in truly making an impact and giving back, supporting local events and non-profits, being active in local chambers of commerce and connecting with the communities and our customers.”

The Curiosity Lab Criterium Cycling Race is a six-race series and will begin at 3:30 p.m. with the women’s amateur division and conclude with the men’s professional division beginning at 8:10 p.m. The event will include many family-friendly activities including food trucks and exhibits featuring new cycling and safety technologies. There will also be kids’ races at 5:45 p.m. (in three age categories of 3-4, 5-6, and 7-8) along a 100-yard flat course in front of city hall. For more information, visit www.peachtreecornersga.gov.

About Clearwave Fiber
Clearwave Fiber is an internet service provider that operates a nearly 6,000 route-mile Fiber network serving communities across the Midwest and Southeast regions of the United States. With an emphasis on exceptional customer care and community engagement, the fast-growing company delivers advanced telecommunications solutions, providing fiber to business, enterprise and residential customers in Illinois, Kansas, Florida and Georgia. Committed to deploying 100% fiber internet service to 500,000 homes and businesses across the country by the end of 2026, Clearwave Fiber employs more than 500 and is based in Savannah, Ga. Learn more at ClearwaveFiber.com, Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.

SOURCE Clearwave Fiber

Company continues its accelerated path towards net energy production via micro-fusion technology

SEATTLE, April 24, 2023 — Avalanche Energy, a fusion energy startup developing modular fusion micro-reactors, today announced that it achieved a record of 200 kilovolts in its micro-fusion reactor and closed a $40M Series A round led by Lowercarbon Capital, with major participation from Founders Fund and Toyota Ventures. Also following on their Seed round investment are Congruent Ventures, Grantham Foundation and Clear Path. New participants also included Autodesk, MCJ Collective and the Climate Capital Syndicate. Avalanche recently operated their second prototype reactor at 200 kilovolts making it the highest known operating voltage of any fusion device since the University of Wisconsin at Madison produced 190 kilovolts in a 2006 experiment. The funding, which follows the company’s 2021 $5 million seed round led by Prime Impact Fund, will be used to continue the company’s accelerated work to test, develop and optimize its high-voltage orbitron prototypes, in addition to miniaturizing components critical to delivering a stand-alone, micro fusion reactor.

Avalanche Energy has been designing, building and testing micro-fusion reactors that are small enough to fit on a desk since 2021. The reactor’s small form factor enables rapid development cycles at relatively low cost – a revolution in the burgeoning nuclear fusion industry that has primarily pursued large fusion reactors that cost millions to billions of dollars and take many years to build and test. Since the company’s work began in June 2021, it has developed and operated two high-voltage reactor prototypes, achieving significant performance steps over the last 18 months. Avalanche’s technology has broad implications for energy independence and national security, opening the door to a wide range of applications, including carbon-free energy generation, advanced space propulsion, microgrids and transportation.

“This is a huge step that validates the rapid technical progress this team has made in just a year and half,” said Robin Langtry, CEO and co-founder of Avalanche Energy. “We are applying a test-fail-fix approach, akin to rocket engine development, to small scale fusion and it’s incredibly exciting to see our hardware ideas go from design to test in a matter of days. This new round of funding will allow us to scale up to run more tests at a faster pace that will ultimately enable us to deliver energy producing micro-fusion reactors.”

The company’s orbitron design is based on specialized electrostatic ion traps operated at hundreds of kilovolts to confine fusion fuel ions in precessing elliptical orbits at extremely high velocities. Each ion has tens of millions of chances at fusing as it crosses the path of another ion’s orbit within the orbitron device. The density of ions is increased by co-confining high-energy electrons orbiting in the same direction. Ions that don’t fuse will eventually deorbit and be removed from the device.

“Fusion has the potential to provide an enormous supply of power to electrify the Earth with no CO₂ or other harmful emissions and it has been an elusive goal in the quest for clean power,” said Lisa Coca, Climate Fund partner at Toyota Ventures. “Avalanche’s innovative micro-fusion reactor has the potential to be stacked for endless power applications, and what excites us most is the fact that the form factor enables an agile approach with rapid design turns. We are proud to support Avalanche’s very capable team on their mission to tap the full potential of nuclear fusion to help decarbonize the planet.” 

Avalanche launched out of stealth a year ago in January 2022 and has advanced quickly over the past year, growing to a team of 25 scientists and engineers and doubling the size of its testing facility in Seattle, WA. In May 2022, the Defense Innovation Unit awarded a prototype contract to Avalanche Energy to demonstrate the next generation of nuclear propulsion and power generation for spacecraft. 

About Avalanche Energy

 Avalanche Energy is a venture-backed, fusion energy start-up based in Seattle, WA. The company designs, tests and builds micro-fusion reactors barely larger than a football. Avalanche’s modular reactor design can be stacked for near-endless power applications and unprecedented energy density to provide clean energy and decarbonize the planet. This unique approach enables rapid iterations of design, build, test, fix cycles for faster development and the rapid scalability that the planet needs. For more information, please visit avalanche.energy.

Business Contact:

Brian Riordan 
Avalanche Energy 
[email protected]

Media Contact:

Chris Allieri 
Mulberry & Astor 
[email protected]

SOURCE Avalanche Energy