Tag Archives: Funding and Investment

BabyLiveAdvice Announces $1.1M Seed Investment to Improve Maternal-Infant Health Outcomes

CALABASAS, Calif. /ScoopCloud/ -- BabyLiveAdvice™, the leading virtual maternal telehealth provider, announced the completion of a $1.1 million seed investment led by Venn Ventures and Synergen Technology Labs. BabyLiveAdvice, founded by CEO Sigi Marmorstein, RN, PHN, MSN, FNP-BC, partners with healthcare providers and health systems to support coordinated, comprehensive prenatal, postpartum, and infant care anywhere by closing the care gaps experienced by expecting and new parents. The result is reduced complications and better outcomes for parents and babies.

Participating strategic investors span the healthcare ecosystem, including

* Venn Ventures, venture capital group,

* Synergen Technology Labs, technology innovators,

* Ob Hospitalist Group (OBHG) the nation's largest and only dedicated OB hospitalist provider,

* CareFirst BCBS, payer organization, and

* LifeBridge Health, hospital system.

"Providing safe and timely care to pregnant people and infants has always been a tremendous challenge," said Marmorstein. "Now, with decreasing outpatient and inpatient care capacities, related to provider burnout and shortage, maternal-infant care gaps are growing, resulting in worsening outcomes for parents and babies.

"BabyLiveAdvice's unique approach enables it to reduce these gaps and improve outcomes to enhance, not replace, the current standard of care."

BabyLiveAdvice had served over 40,000 parents, including Hispanic, Black, Navajo Nation, and other historically underserved populations. Through research and pilots, BabyLiveAdvice has demonstrated improved clinical outcomes, decreased emergency room use, reduced readmissions, and fewer postpartum complications.

Marmorstein explained how BabyLiveAdvice, "provides services that support marginalized, remote communities at a fraction of the cost with improved outcomes. We are the only company on the market that can support the entire pregnancy journey in one place from the comfort of the user's home without increasing the provider burden. With BabyLiveAdvice, babies now come with instructions."

Users have access to a network of resources and support for their journey to parenthood, including nurses, nurse-practitioners, doulas, lactation specialists, socialworkers, mental health providers, nutritional specialists, care coordinators, diabetic specialists, and virtual group education classes.

BLA provides users with virtual, live maternal education classes that support self-care and self-advocacy. Users receive significantly improved maternal-infant education in lactation, proper nutrition, mental health, weight management, blood pressure and blood sugar control, and other benefits.

"Maternal health is often overlooked and is an area of healthcare ripe for innovation benefitting both parents and children," said Melissa Larson Youngblood, BabyLiveAdvice Board Member and Co-Founder and Partner at Venn Ventures, which co-led the investment round. "It was easy to invest in BabyLiveAdvice and Sigi as a women entrepreneur. The company is mature, has a strong pipeline, and has tens of thousands of users across the nation."

BabyLiveAdvice leverages a VSee-built, customized telehealth solution that is HIPAA-compliant, featuring EHR integration, telemonitoring capabilities, chat functionality, and group or one-on-one consultations. All consultations are documented, and notes are shared with the patient's medical provider through seamless EHR integration to assure medical and supportive care are well aligned.

"Through our BabyLiveAdvice partnership, we look forward to providing new maternal care resources to our patients and hospital partners," said Dr. Amy VanBlaricom, OBHG's Chief Clinical Officer and BabyLiveAdvice board member. "We are especially excited about BabyLiveAdvice's potential to positively impact patients with access to care challenges and the minority populations we serve. BabyLiveAdvice aligns with OBHG's mission of saving the lives of mothers and babies regardless of location, race, or economic status. Supporting patients throughout all phases of pregnancy, including the prenatal and postpartum stages, is so important in closing gaps in care."

BabyLiveAdvice partners include March of Dimes, Johnson and Johnson, The National Black Doulas Association, LifeBridge Health Sinai Hospital in Baltimore, Huntington Health, AltaMed, among others.

For media queries and BLA partnerships contact David Marmorstein: david@babyliveadvice.com.

About BabyLiveAdvice:

BabyLiveAdvice is a woman and nurse-founded company with the mission to close the care gaps in maternal childcare and reduce maternal and infant morbidity and mortality around the world. BabyLiveAdvice has helped tens of thousands of parents to get one-on-one support and education from a caring provider in their language. Its mission is to help parents and improve the statistics surrounding pregnancy, births, and maternal wellbeing.

Learn more: https://babyliveadvice.com/

RELATED LINKS:

https://vsee.com/

https://vennventures.com/

https://www.synergentl.com/

BabyLiveAdvice, the leading virtual maternal telehealth provider, announced the completion of a $1.1 million seed investment led by Venn Ventures and Synergen Technology Labs. BabyLiveAdvice, founded by CEO Sigi Marmorstein, RN, PHN, MSN, FNP-BC, partners with healthcare providers and health systems to support coordinated, comprehensive prenatal, postpartum, and infant care.

Related link: https://www.babyliveadvice.com/

Proteios Technology, Inc. Awarded $1.6 Million NIH SBIR Grant to Commercialize its Multivariate Cell Isolation Technology

SEATTLE, Wash. /ScoopCloud/ -- Proteios Technology, Inc. is pleased to announce it's received a $1.6 million SBIR Phase II grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to commercialize its multivariate (parallel) cell isolation technology. Grant funds will be used to extend Proteios' cell isolation kits to include up to 20 of the most common cell types currently used in cell therapy development.

Cell biology is complex. And conducting experiments on an isolated population of cells, rather than a heterogeneous mix, is a common approach to reduce experimental complexity. Cell isolation allows cell biologists to confidently attribute observed effects and responses to a particular cell type.

Specifically, Proteios' multivariate cell isolation technology provides high-performance, antibody- and magnetic bead-free isolation of cell types in fewer than 30 minutes. This is a big reduction in time compared to currently available methods, while meeting or exceeding cell yield, purity and viability.

Proprietary Proteios Chimeras will be designed and developed to bind to each of the 20 target cell types with high specificity and selectivity through a combination of robotic biological screening, Machine Learning (ML) and Molecular Dynamics (MD) simulation.

Proteios will also incorporate Proteios Chimeras into its cGMP cell therapy manufacturing device - a bench prototype funded under contract by the National Cancer Institute (NCI). The device provides end-to-end manufacturing of cell therapies in a closed and fully-automated system with concise control over the multiple cell types that form the basis of cell therapy formulations. Proteios Chimeras will be a major component of consumables for the cGMP cell therapy manufacturing device.

"It's believed that the effectiveness of cellular therapeutics can be improved by the addition/removal of certain secondary cell types," Bob Snyder, Ph.D., co-founder and CEO of Proteios Technology, says. "Proteios' cell isolation technology will provide for the parallel enrichment and/or depletion of any cell type as new cell therapy formulations are investigated, reducing the vein-to-vein time and overall manufacturing cost."

Proteios is also preparing for the immediate commercial release of its research-scale recombinant protein purification kits which will provide a viable alternative to His Tag technology, unusable with about 20 percent of proteins of interest.

Initially, Proteios will launch two kits based on a proprietary affinity tag and a silica-based resin for:

1 - high-expressing proteins; and

2 - low-expressing proteins.

To learn more: https://www.proteios.com/

About Proteios Technology:

Proteios Technology is a leading provider of products and services dedicated to supporting the discovery of advanced therapeutics and their efficient manufacturing. Its innovative solutions support research at all levels from discovery and translational research to cGMP manufacturing and companion diagnostics. Its technologies enable the multivariate (parallel), tag-free isolation of any biological, including proteins/biopharmaceuticals, cell types, antibodies and viruses. Proteios' research-scale kits enable the discovery of new advanced therapeutics. And the inherent scalability of the technology allows the same methodology to be used in the manufacturing of advanced therapeutics and dramatically reduces the time required for process development.

Proteios is driven by the goal to lower the cost of healthcare and to provide advanced therapeutics to a larger patient population. It's located in the heart of Seattle and adjacent to some of the world's leading cell therapy research institutes - including the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle Children's Research Institute and the Seattle Cancer Care Alliance.

Proteios Technology, Inc. is pleased to announce it's received a $1.6 million SBIR Phase II grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to commercialize its multivariate (parallel) cell isolation technology. Grant funds will be used to extend Proteios' cell isolation kits to include up to 20 of the most common cell types currently used in cell therapy development.

Related link: https://www.proteios.com/

TMC Emerging Technology Fund LP Invests in Willow Servicing

SAN DIEGO, Calif. /ScoopCloud/ -- The Mortgage Collaborative (TMC), the nation's largest independent cooperative network serving the mortgage industry, announced today that the TMC Emerging Technology Fund LP (the "Fund") recently participated in a $6 million seed round for Willow Servicing. The round was led by Thomvest Ventures, with participation from Global Asset Capital, Webb Investment Network and Zigg Capital.

Willow Servicing was founded in 2021 with the vision of modernizing the core technology that orchestrates the collection of $18 trillion of U.S. mortgage debt. Willow's cloud-based mortgage servicing platform automates routine servicing tasks and compliance, allowing small and large servicers to efficiently service loans in-house.

"Partnering with TMC gives us direct access to a broad network of lenders who can provide guidance on the changing dynamics within the mortgage industry and invaluable feedback on our product roadmap and offering," said Laura Cain, CEO of Willow Servicing. "We are eager to continue building out our platform and automate the most error-prone and difficult tasks facing mortgage lenders and servicers. The additional funding will allow us to continue investing in our customers and solving their pain points."

Since launching its platform in Q1 2022, Willow has serviced over $750 million in loans. While initially designed to manage interim servicing, Willow has quickly expanded to support additional loan types and processes, from HELOCs and construction loans to appraisal fees and payoffs.

Feliks Viner, vice president of secondary markets at First World Mortgage and Tech Fund council member, said, "Willow Servicing's platform has been a perfect solution for our interim servicing needs. The entire process, from initial onboarding to managing daily workflow, has been seamless with real-time support and a user-friendly website. Willow has allowed us to effortlessly automate our interim servicing process and provide our customers with timely notifications and simple payment options. We are thrilled for our continued partnership with Willow Servicing."

The Limited Partners of the TMC Emerging Technology Fund consist of some of the most technology-forward lender members of TMC who evaluate and invest in companies looking to advance the mortgage industry. The Fund continues to look for investment opportunities that will result in higher profitability and business process improvement for TMC lender members. For more information, please reach out to tmctechfund@mtgcoop.com. To learn more about Willow Servicing, visit https://www.willowservicing.com/ or reach out at sales@willowservicing.com.

About The Mortgage Collaborative

Based in San Diego, Calif., The Mortgage Collaborative was founded in 2013 by four notable industry leaders and is the nation's largest independent mortgage cooperative network. TMC is singularly focused on creating an environment of collaboration and innovation for small to mid-size mortgage lenders across the country to reduce cost, increase profitability, and better serve the dynamic and changing consumer base in America. For more information, visit http://www.mortgagecollaborative.com/

The Mortgage Collaborative (TMC), the nation's largest independent cooperative network serving the mortgage industry, announced today that the TMC Emerging Technology Fund LP (the "Fund") recently participated in a $6 million seed round for Willow Servicing. The round was led by Thomvest Ventures, with participation from Global Asset Capital, Webb Investment Network and Zigg Capital.

Related link: https://www.mortgagecollaborative.com

New Energy Risk Announces Milestone as Clients Raise $3B in Capital, Also Announce Senior Promotions

AVON, Conn. /ScoopCloud/ -- New Energy Risk (NER), a wholly-owned division of Paragon Insurance Group, on June 30 surpassed $3 billion in capital raised by clients since inception, a pivotal marker as the company continues to support the deployment of innovative technology solutions to address climate change and other global challenges.

Learn more about this achievement in NER's announcement, https://newenergyrisk.com/clients-surpass-3-billion/, and more about some of NER's clients via its case studies, https://newenergyrisk.com/case-studies/.

"This $3 billion milestone demonstrates the success of our products and underscores our commitment to 'Underwriting a Greener Future,'" NER Chief Executive Officer Tom Dickson said. "We are at the forefront of providing insurance solutions to the innovators who are accelerating the green energy transition. The capital they raise is an indication of rapidly increasing investor demand for positive impact."

Building on this momentum, NER is announcing that Chief Actuary Sherry Huang, a seven-year veteran of the company, is expanding her role to also support transaction approval and execution as chief actuary and managing director of underwriting development. Brad Price is being promoted from principal engineer to managing director of technical due diligence. Brentan Alexander has stepped down as president of NER and will be joining an emerging technology firm in the coming weeks. He has been a key leader in the success of NER since joining in 2012 and will remain involved as a consultant to NER for an extended period of time.

"Congratulations to the NER team and to Brad and Sherry on their additional responsibilities and to Brentan on his new endeavor," said Andy Borst, Paragon's president of E&S and International. "The $3 billion in capital raised is a major achievement that confirms NER as a leader in providing innovative solutions and underscores Paragon's commitment to investing in and supporting businesses that help address climate change and other global challenges."

About New Energy Risk:

New Energy Risk is a pioneer of large-scale, breakthrough technology performance insurance solutions. The company provides complex risk assessment and serves as a bridge between technology innovators, financiers, and insurers. Insurance policies are administered through New Energy Risk affiliate Complex Risk and Insurance Associates, LLC, CA License #0I24307. Visit: https://newenergyrisk.com/.

About Paragon:

Paragon Insurance Holdings, LLC, formed in 2014, writes all commercial lines of insurance across more than 20 programs. Paragon's industry-specific and general underwriting facilities offer insureds, retail agents, carriers, reinsurers and service providers unique product, service, capability, and results. Visit: https://www.paragoninsgroup.com/.

New Energy Risk (NER), a wholly-owned division of Paragon Insurance Group, on June 30 surpassed $3 billion in capital raised by clients since inception, a pivotal marker as the company continues to support the deployment of innovative technology solutions to address climate change and other global challenges.

Related link: https://www.paragoninsgroup.com/

COVERGENCE – the research institution tech and startup gap fund and startup accelerator summit

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah /ScoopCloud/ -- COVERGENCE, co-hosted by innovosource and the University of Utah's PIVOT Center, is in its fifth annual year. This year it will be held from Oct. 20-21 at the University of Utah Rice-Eccles Stadium Club. With more than 60 university gap fund/accelerator programs (GAP) and potential commercial and investment partners, this dynamic event will serve as the platform for best practice discussions, GAP program and portfolio reviews, and commercial and investment partnering.

For more than 17 years, Jacob Johnson, innovosource founder, has worked to bridge the gap between researchers, investors and corporations. He's launched initiatives and supported programs like gap funds and accelerator programs (GAP), that advance promising research institution technology and startups from the lab to corporate collaboration and outside investment.

Seventy percent of COVERGENCE participants represent leaders of research institution-managed proof of concept, startup accelerator, and venture gap fund programs with the remainder of representatives coming from corporate innovation and venture firms.

"COVERGENCE brings all these important entities together in one place," Johnson says. "There are multiple opportunities to learn from and share with fellow GAP program leaders, and showcase your portfolio and opportunities to potential commercial and investment partners."

Research institutions will get to experience direct relationship building with other executive GAP program leaders and portfolio managers, leveraging $88 B+ in research funding per year. They'll also get to meet with corporate innovation teams and investors who can help to bridge university gap funding (proof of concept, startup, venture), or what is often to referred to as the "valley of death."

What exactly is the valley of death? It's the gap between the lab research and the marketplace where early-stage capital and technology/startup development support is lacking. This "gap" extends from where funding of basic research ends to where existing technology-driven companies or investors are willing to accept the risk to commercialize or invest in the technology or startup. The negative result is that a large portion of economic creation and commercial potential is left unrealized.

This shortage of early-stage development capital and support is a serious threat to future innovation and associated societal benefits. So, to address this challenge, research institutions and partners have led in the creation of technology and startup gap funding and accelerator support programs as a capital and innovation support mechanism. These programs are uniquely positioned to address critical elements of technology development and startup formation from research institutions.

innovosource's most recent landscape report reveals that 176 gap-fund and accelerator programs from 97 universities included in our GAP community have:

* invested $665MM of their internal funds into more than 1,500 startups and 1,000 corporate-licensed technologies;

* realized $8B+ in direct follow-on investment from corporations, investors, and public funds

* originated 90 percent of opportunities from institutions outside of Boston, New York, and Silicon Valley; and

* supported a diverse portfolio of applications in biopharma and medical devices, software and apps and food, agriculture and energy.

From partner panels and investor focus groups to happy hour mixers and fund/accelerator program and portfolio briefs this event is designed to be exclusively intimate, capping registrants at 150.

COVERGENCE is designed to be an intimate event that helps to maximize relationship building and knowledge exchange. Attendees will have ample time to meet each other and provide a basis to carry those relationships forward long after the Summit ends. There's a huge opportunity for collaboration and partnership to help university-founded startups scale their programs and tech/startup assets.

Some past participants said:

* "COVERGENCE was a great conference to learn more about the complexities of gap funding at universities, from grants to venture. Great topics, networking, and even a little bit of fun thrown in."

* "This was a great opportunity for a small program like ours to compare notes with more established, larger programs to compare best practices."

* "COVERGENCE was worth the intercontinental travel. With a high concentration of experts, entrepreneurs and investors, it really was an eye-opening experience."

And, the benefits to COVERGENCE research institutions can actually start before the Summit begins. How? Research Institutions can apply to provide a GAP program/portfolio brief at the Summit and more broadly submit to COVERGENCE GAP opportunity platform for review and feedback from corporate/investor participants before, during, and after event.

At the event, university participants will receive core GAP best practice discussions, as well as corporate/investor/and innovation ecosystem panels. Limited opportunity also exists for institutions to join a side-track to provide GAP program and portfolio reviews to participating corporations and investors.

Cost for research institutions to attend COVERGENCE 2022 is $399 and that includes registration and access to the pre-event partnering site and submission to the opportunity database. For more information and to register, visit: https://www.innovosource.com/covergence-2022.

About innovosource:

Over the past 15 years, innovosource (https://www.innovosource.com/) has worked with and supported hundreds of gap funding programs around the world. By partnering with research institutions and affiliates, innovosource informs, connects, and advocates for technology and startup gap funding and accelerator support programs.

COVERGENCE, co-hosted by innovosource and the University of Utah's PIVOT Center, is in its fifth annual year. This year it will be held from Oct. 20-21 at the University of Utah Rice-Eccles Stadium Club. With more than 60 university gap fund/accelerator programs (GAP) and potential commercial and investment partners, this dynamic event will serve as the platform for best practice discussions, GAP program and portfolio reviews, and commercial and investment partnering.

Related link: https://www.innovosource.com/

innovosource summit to connect early-stage investors with university-managed tech and startup funds and accelerator programs

MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. /ScoopCloud/ -- innovosource will host its fifth annual COVERGENCE Summit from Oct. 20-21, 2022, at the University of Utah Rice-Eccles Stadium Club. The event gathers more than 60 university gap fund/accelerator programs (GAP) and potential commercial and investment partners to discuss best practices and review portfolios and investable projects and startups.

Jacob Johnson, innovosource founder, works to bridge the gap between researchers, investors and corporations and says that there is a real opportunity to address the lack of early-stage capital and innovation development support through strong university GAP fund and investor partnerships

"These summits serve as the meeting place to introduce investors to GAP program leaders and their pipelines of promising technologies and startups. By aligning with these programs, investors will see high-potential opportunities that have already gone through significant de-risking and validation. They are at the place where they are seeking investment and commercial partners to take the technologies and startups to market," he says.

Interested investors will benefit in multiple ways. They'll gain inside access to a wide array of investable tech/startups coming out of these gap-fund and accelerator programs and will get to experience direct relationship building with executive program leaders and portfolio managers, leveraging $88 B+ in research funding per year. Investors will also gain insights into emerging technology advances and themes while learning how to finesse early-stage investment strategies for programs that produce a high-rate of investable and ready-to-commercialize technologies and startups.

Universities and hospitals are leading through the implementation of university gap funding (proof of concept, startup, venture) and accelerator programs to bridge this "valley of death." Over the past 15 years, these programs have evolved into sophisticated investment, evaluation, development, and commercialization support mechanisms to nurture the most promising opportunities in emerging, high-growth technology areas.

Smart companies and investors are taking notice and making it a strategic, external innovation priority to partner with these gap fund and accelerator programs through applied research, proof of concept projects, seed and venture investments, and advisory/mentorship in return for insights, competitive positioning, and access to future technology and startups.

innovource's most recent landscape report reveals that 176 gap-fund and accelerator programs from 97 universities have:

* invested $665MM of their internal funds into more than 1,500 startups and 1,000 corporate-licensed technologies;

* realized $8B+ in direct follow-on investment from PE, family offices, and angels

* originated 90 percent of opportunities from institutions outside of Boston, New York, and Silicon Valley; and

* supported a diverse portfolio of applications in biopharma and medical devices, software and apps and food, agriculture and energy.

From partner panels and investor focus groups to happy hour mixers and fund/accelerator program and portfolio briefs this event is designed to be exclusively intimate, capping registrants at 150.

"We keep events intimate to maximize relationship building and knowledge exchange. Attendees will have ample time to meet each other and provide a basis to carry those relationships forward long after COVERGENCE," Johnson says.

A former attendee said, "COVERGENCE offers insight into a niche industry that the corporate and investment worlds are neglecting. There is a huge opportunity for collaboration and partnership to help university-founded startups scale their businesses."

Cost for investors to attend COVERGENCE 2022 is $499 that includes registration and access to the pre-event partnering site and opportunity database.

For more information and to register, visit: https://www.innovosource.com/covergence-2022 .

About innovosource:

Over the past 15 years, innovosource (https://www.innovosource.com/) has worked with and supported hundreds of gap funding programs around the world. By partnering with research institutions and affiliates, innovosource informs, connects, and advocates for technology and startup gap funding and accelerator support programs.

innovosource will host its fifth annual COVERGENCE Summit from Oct. 20-21, 2022, at the University of Utah Rice-Eccles Stadium Club. The event gathers more than 60 university gap fund/accelerator programs (GAP) and potential commercial and investment partners to discuss best practices and review portfolios and investable projects and startups.

Related link: https://www.innovosource.com/

Nutrition Company PlantBaby Raises $4 Million Seed Round with Big Idea Ventures and The Fund LA, Among Others

KAUAI, Hawaii /ScoopCloud/ -- PlantBaby, the innovative nutrition company developing a portfolio of the purest plant-based products to support the nutritional journey from infancy into adulthood, announces its $4 million Seed funding round, led by Big Idea Ventures and The Fund LA.

The round also welcomed new institutional investors including Two Culture Cap, Springbank Collective, Western Technology Investment, and Niche Capital.

In December 2021, PlantBaby launched its first product Kiki Milk, the first organic plant-based milk designed specifically for kids. Kiki Milk is made with a blend of organic, whole foods and boosted with nourishing superfoods available in two flavors: Original and Chocolate formulated in partnership with leading pediatrician Dr. Joel "Gator" Warsh and nutritionist Vicki Kobliner, RD.

It is made only from nutrient-rich, plant-based, organic whole foods and contains no additives like refined sugars, gums, GMOs, glyphosate, preservatives, protein isolates, or tree nuts (except coconuts). The organic, whole foods utilized to create Kiki Milk include organic oats, organic hemp seeds, organic sprouted pumpkin seeds, and organic coconuts. Each variation is packed with its proprietary blend of superfood powders with nourishing plants, like organic Aquamin(tm), organic bananas, organic blueberries, and organic spinach.

For PlantBaby Co-Founders Lauren and Alex Abelin, this is the first step to realizing their vision of creating safe plant-based food options for kids. Six months after their son Alakai was born, they needed to find him suitable plant-based, soy-free, and dairy-free infant formula supplements. After researching and feeling dissatisfied with the options available, they sought to create products to suit his needs along with the 40% of kids who have chronic health conditions nationwide who need healthier solutions than the ones offered on the market already.

"Since launching just six months ago, we've seen constant consumer demand," said Co-Founder Alex Abelin. "This fundraising round will support continued research and development of new plant-based culinary innovations and continued growth of the brand to make PlantBaby itself a vehicle to create positive change for children's health and well-being of children everywhere."

"We are thrilled to support the great work being done by Lauren, Alex, and the rest of the PlantBaby team," said Tom Mastrobuoni, Chief Investment Officer for Big Idea Ventures. "The non-dairy space is highly competitive, but the PlantBaby team has created a unique product that features cleaner label ingredients and appeals to the most precious consumers of all, our children."

About PlantBaby:

PlantBaby is a future-forward nutrition movement developing a portfolio of clean-label, organic, plant-based foods, beverages, formulas, and supplements to support children on their nutritional journey from infancy into adulthood. Founded in 2020 on Kauai, Hawaii, PlantBaby is dedicated to restoring harmony in our food and agricultural systems by supporting regenerative agriculture and sourcing climate-friendly crops. PlantBaby is proud to partner with Farmer's Footprint and Planet FWD, two organizations committed to building a healthier Planet Earth.

For additional information, visit https://www.plantbaby.co/, https://www.kikimilk.com/ and @kikimilkco.

About Big Idea Ventures:

Big Idea Ventures (BIV), the most active food technology investor in 2021, is solving the world's greatest challenges by supporting the world's best entrepreneurs, scientists and engineers. BIV develops the most globally strategic funds, delivering significant investor returns while addressing real world challenges. BIV is focused on alternative protein with its New Protein Fund and commercialization of university intellectual property with its Generation Food Rural Partners fund. Learn more: https://bigideaventures.com/.

PlantBaby, the innovative nutrition company developing a portfolio of the purest plant-based products to support the nutritional journey from infancy into adulthood, announces its $4 million Seed funding round, led by Big Idea Ventures and The Fund LA.

Related link: https://www.plantbaby.co/

TMC Emerging Technology Fund LP Invests in leadPops

SAN DIEGO, Calif. /ScoopCloud/ -- The Mortgage Collaborative (TMC), the nation's largest independent cooperative network serving the mortgage industry, announced today that the TMC Emerging Technology Fund LP (the "Fund") recently participated in a follow-on round to a recent $3.5M Series A completed by leadPops, a digital customer acquisition software and marketing innovation platform. leadPops allows users to create robust, automated lead-generating systems that drive qualified leads directly to their business. Current leadPops clients leverage tools such as lead funnels, lead-generation websites and in-house managed marketing services to drive and secure high-quality leads with solid conversion potential.

"At leadPops, we believe driving traffic and clicks doesn't matter if you're not converting those clicks into clients, which is why we're thrilled to partner with The Mortgage Collaborative at a time when many mortgage companies need us the most" said CEO and Co-Founder of leadPops Andrew Pawlak. "The TMC Tech Fund's investment will help further accelerate leadPop's growth while allowing us to positively impact the more than 250 mortgage companies that are part of TMC. It's a big win for everyone involved, and the leadPops team is ready to rock."

leadPops was founded in 2011 to help mortgage, real estate and insurance businesses thrive online through optimized conversion. Existing partnerships include the Association of Independent Mortgage Experts (AIME), C2 Financial, Fairway Independent Mortgage, Movement Mortgage, Thrive Mortgage and many more. With more than 3,000 clients nationwide, leadPops was named one of the country's fastest-growing companies in 2021, earning it a place on the Inc. 5,000 list.

"Andrew literally wrote the book on mortgage lead generation and has a profound amount of knowledge and experience in lead generation and management for mortgage, real estate and insurance professionals," said Sandy Selman, Venture Partner for the TMC Emerging Technology Fund. "Andrew has boundless enthusiasm to help his clients succeed and is among that rare breed of entrepreneur in whom we are fortunate to invest."

The Limited Partners of the TMC Emerging Technology Fund consist of some of the most technology-forward lender members of TMC and are responsible for evaluating and investing in companies looking to advance the mortgage industry to the next level. The Fund continues to look for investment opportunities that will result in higher profitability and business process improvement for TMC lender members. For more information, contact info@tmctechfund.com. To learn more about leadPops, visit https://leadpops.com.

About The Mortgage Collaborative:

Based in San Diego, CA., The Mortgage Collaborative was founded in 2013 by four notable industry leaders and is the nation's largest independent mortgage cooperative network. TMC is singularly focused on creating an environment of collaboration and innovation for small to mid-size mortgage lenders across the country to reduce cost, increase profitability, and better serve America's dynamic and changing consumer base. For more information, visit http://www.mortgagecollaborative.com/

The Mortgage Collaborative (TMC), the nation's largest independent cooperative network serving the mortgage industry, announced today that the TMC Emerging Technology Fund LP (the "Fund") recently participated in a follow-on round to a recent $3.5M Series A completed by leadPops, a digital customer acquisition software and marketing innovation platform. leadPops allows users to create robust, automated lead-generating systems that drive qualified leads directly to their business.

Related link: https://www.mortgagecollaborative.com

AI Radiology and Emerging Medical Technology Venture Capital Investment Group Now Open to Outside Participation

LOS ANGELES, Calif. /ScoopCloud/ -- Seventeen-year-old ProNova Partners has been contracted to facilitate the expansion of an Artificial Intelligence Radiology Imaging and emerging Medical Technology Venture Capital Investment Group.

"This venture capital investment partnership was founded in 2018," announced Rick Carlson, CEO of ProNova Partners. "On behalf of their members, they find and invest in game changing, cutting edge, emerging companies specializing in Artificial Intelligence Radiology Imaging and other Medical Technologies."

"The group is owned and operated by three managing partners with broad ranging domain expertise," continued Carlson. "We are very pleased to work with such a qualified group. They are finding and investing at the early stages in firms at the razor's edge of Artificial Intelligence in medical technology." Carlson's company has assisted the expansion or sale of some 400 companies in a wide variety of market segments.

"The investment group has already seen high quality, sector specific deal flow, and boasts of a robust current portfolio of investments in leading edge technologies," concluded Carlson.

"The investment firm's distinguished Managing Partners' combined credentials span venture capital investment expertise. This includes domain expertise in radiology covering a broad range of aspects of radiology and MRI imaging, entrepreneurship, artificial intelligence, and other emerging medical technologies. Their combined knowledge and experience establish them as ideally suited to spearhead the formation of a selected group of physician and non-physician investors plus providing groundbreaking leadership in early stage company investments in the AI/Imaging/Radiology sector."

For detailed information go to: https://pronovapartners.com/engagement/ai-radiology-and-emerging-technology-firm-for-sale/

Seventeen-year-old ProNova Partners has been contracted to facilitate the expansion of an Artificial Intelligence Radiology Imaging and emerging Medical Technology Venture Capital Investment Group.

Related link: https://www.pronovapartners.com/

America’s ‘Queen of Crowdfunding’ Celebrates 10 Year Anniversary of Helping Pass The Jobs Act of 2012 Into Law

LAS VEGAS, Nev. /ScoopCloud/ -- This April marks the 10-year anniversary of the Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act, or JOBS Act which is a law intended to encourage funding of small businesses in the United States by easing many of the country's securities regulations, said Ruth E. Hedges, CEO of Rise Up Crowdfunding. It passed with bipartisan support and was signed into law by President Barack Obama on April 5, 2012.

Back then, the country was filled with hope and change. But has anything really changed for small businesses 10 years later? Ruth E. Hedges certainly thinks it has but she also knows there's still a long way to go.

Ms. Hedges was an integral team member that lobbied for and helped get the JOBS Act passed into law in 2012 ensuring that diverse entrepreneurs get greater access to capital to help them scale, grow and compete for contracts. The JOBS Act of 2012 also helped usher in Regulation Crowdfunding (also known as crowd-investing or investment crowdfunding). It's a method of raising capital used by Startups and early-stage companies.

Essentially, regulation crowdfunding offers the company's stock to the general public in exchange for capital. Each investor is entitled to a stake in the company proportional to their investment.

Hedges is a long-time champion for small businesses, diversity, equity, inclusion and wealth building. Her decades long work in these areas along with her tireless efforts to increase the power of diverse business owners and entrepreneurs across the world, have earned her the nickname: The "Queen of Crowdfunding."

After the JOBS Act passed, Hedges went on to start and run the world's first ever Crowdfunding Conference for seven years drawing attendees from all over the world to learn more about leveraging crowdfunding to help scale their businesses. Now, as the CEO of Rise Up Crowdfunding, she uses her passion and energy to continue manifesting her purpose - increasing the power of diverse business owners and entrepreneurs while simultaneously providing diverse populations a turnkey way to invest in companies that are a part of the New Majority in America.

"We are heading into a world where underrepresented groups are a more significant percentage of the American population, and as this number grows, the need to generate wealth within these communities has become necessary for the country's future," said Hodges.

"We are eternally grateful to President Obama for helping pass the JOBS Act of 2012 in order to help to level the playing field for access to capital for everyone and now, 10 years later, we unequivocally know that if small businesses had more access to capital, more could be done to grow the current batch of small and diverse companies eligible to apply for supplier diversity contracts thereby uplifting communities where those businesses are located through job creation, increased wages, tax revenue, and generational wealth," added Hedges.

Rise Up Crowdfunding is the first funding portal focused on these key issue areas. Created by Ruth E. Hedges in collaboration with the Coca-Cola Company, Rise Up Crowdfunding is a coalition of leaders across industries and organizations committed to ensuring that diverse entrepreneurs get access to capital to help them scale and drive growth within the supplier diversity network. Other key collaborative partners are the National Veteran Business Development Council and the IWEC foundation for women.

April is also national financial literacy month. And, on Tuesday April 26, Ms. Hedges will be speaking on Capitol Hill about the integral role that crowdfunding can play to help small diverse businesses, specifically, Black businesses, scale and grow. Congress is launching the Congressional Caucus on Black Innovation and, given her tremendous expertise in the field of crowdfunding, Ms. Hedges has been asked to present and speak at the launch event. Her speaking engagement will provide an opportunity to contribute to the future policy solutions impacting Black people, with the ultimate goal of the Caucus being to produce an omnibus bill on how to foster Black innovation in America and beyond.

All throughout the month of April, Ruth E. Hedges and Rise Up Crowdfunding will continue manifesting the mission of the JOBS Act of 2012 and bringing to fruition the hope and change that was lobbied for a decade ago in order to help level the playing field for small businesses and diverse entrepreneurs in an unprecedented way.

"Now, more than ever, we should be teaching individuals about the value of financial literacy, economic empowerment and entrepreneurship instead of simply teaching them how to be good at consumption," stated Ruth E. Hedges. "And the Rise Up Crowdfunding platform will accomplish all that and so much more," she added.

Individuals interested in learning more about Rise Up Crowdfunding, Ruth E. Hedges or how they can support diverse businesses, can visit the website at: https://riseupcrowdfunding.com/.

Rise Up Crowdfunding can also be found on the following social media channels: https://www.linkedin.com/company/riseupcrowdfunding/

https://twitter.com/riseupcf

https://www.facebook.com/RiseUpCrowdfunding/

https://www.instagram.com/riseupcrowdfunding/

ABOUT RISE UP CROWDFUNDING:

Rise Up Crowdfunding is a new impactful collaborative equity crowdfunding process to help more Women, Black, and Brown, LGBTQ, Veterans, and all underrepresented minority founders and small businesses gain access to capital from the millions of people who (since the passing of the JOBS Act in 2012) can now invest a small amount of money in a private company online. Rise Up Crowdfunding leverages regulation crowdfunding to quickly reach people all over America that are looking for the capital they need to grow and scale bring their business in order to better compete for supplier diversity contracts or those individuals seeking to become an investor.

This April marks the 10-year anniversary of the Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act, or JOBS Act which is a law intended to encourage funding of small businesses in the United States by easing many of the country's securities regulations, said Ruth E. Hedges, CEO of Rise Up Crowdfunding.

Related link: https://riseupcrowdfunding.com/

Neurosoft Bioelectronics Receives Nearly $3 Million in Funding

NEW YORK, N.Y. /ScoopCloud/ -- Neurosoft Bioelectronics, an early-stage company developing tools for unmet needs in epilepsy and tinnitus, was awarded nearly $3 million USD, from the SERI-Funded European Innovation Council Accelerator Grant and a share of the $165,000 USD through the European Research Council Proof-of-Concept Grant. Additionally, the firm secured a $100,000 convertible note from the Fongit Innovation Fund.

Proceeds will fund continued development of the company's soft flexible electrodes to be marketed as SOFT ECoG™, a family of implantable devices which can seamlessly interface with the brain. The novel devices are up to 1000x softer and 2x thinner than clinical electrodes, with integrated electrode sites up to 100x smaller, making them suited for high-resolution recording and stimulation of the brain for up to thirty days. Their conformability and softness make them ideally suited for placement in the sulci of the brain - hard to reach areas of the brain where many disorders may best be treated. The deep folds of a sulcus are inaccessible for other electrodes while SOFT ECoG can be safely and precisely placed for stimulation and recording.

"Given that 70% of the surface of the brain is buried in sulci, it was critical to develop a technology that could safely and effectively work in those spaces," said Neurosoft Bioelectronics' CEO, Nicolas Vachicouras, Ph.D. "We're eager to put these significant funds toward clinical testing and regulatory approval of SOFT ECoG in the upcoming months, which will simultaneously drive progress of SOFT TINNIT. Together, these products have the potential to bring relief to epilepsy, brain tumor, and tinnitus patients, and in the future will impact those living with other neurological disorders such as deafness, blindness, tetraplegia, and chronic pain."

Vachicouras will present an update about the company and technology at the Bioelectronic Medicine Forum in New York today.

Most of the funds are designated for the further development of SOFT ECoG however, the innovations made will simultaneously advance the company's second product, SOFT TINNIT™. SOFT TINNIT is a chronic implant to perform closed-loop neuromodulation of the cortex to provide relief for patients suffering from severe tinnitus. Severe tinnitus, which has no cure, affects more than 7 million people in the U.S. and Europe.

Learn more: https://www.neurosoft-bio.com/technology

About Neurosoft Bioelectronics

Neurosoft Bioelectronics Ltd. is a Swiss medtech spin-off from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne (EPFL). Neurosoft Bioelectronics develops next generation soft implantable electrodes to interface with the brain for the treatment of severe neurological disorders. Its main product is a fully implantable closed-loop Brain-Computer Interface (BCI) to treat severe tinnitus, a condition that affects 7M people in the US and Europe, of which 7% attempt suicide every year. It is also developing a family of subdural electrodes intended for monitoring during brain tumor and epilepsy resection surgery.

Learn more at: https://www.neurosoft-bio.com/

RELATED LINKS:

https://neurotechreports.com/pages/bioelectronic-medicine-forum.html

Neurosoft Bioelectronics, an early-stage company developing tools for unmet needs in epilepsy and tinnitus, was awarded nearly $3 million USD, from the SERI-Funded European Innovation Council Accelerator Grant and a share of the $165,000 USD through the European Research Council Proof-of-Concept Grant.

Related link: https://www.neurosoft-bio.com/

Nancy Pfund, Pioneering Leader in Impact Investing, Named FWSF Financial Woman of the Year 2022

SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. /ScoopCloud/ -- Financial Women of San Francisco (FWSF) today named Nancy Pfund, the Founder and Managing Partner of DBL Partners, as the FWSF 2022 Financial Woman of the Year. DBL Partners is one of the first venture capital firms to bring impact investing into the mainstream. Nancy and her colleagues launched DBL out of JP Morgan in 2008 after seeing increased momentum in the move to social and environmental impact. At DBL (standing for "Double Bottom Line"), Nancy and her team built a firm whose raison d'être is to foster investment with impact. The firm strives to optimize both financial return (First Bottom Line) and positive social impact, including social, environmental and economic benefits (Second Bottom Line) in the regions and sectors in which it invests. Nancy was an early investor in Tesla, SpaceX, SolarCity, and Pandora, among many others.

In addition to her innovation and leadership in building a clean energy future for the planet and putting social impact on the boardroom agenda, Nancy has consistently been an advocate for advancing the participation and leadership of women. Nancy firmly believes that the future will be brighter with a more diverse and representative workforce building it. FWSF shares Nancy's commitment to making an impact, increasing diversity, and advancing women-these are a few of the many reasons why Nancy is being honored by FWSF in 2022.

"Building my finance career in San Francisco over the years," says Nancy, "I have always been struck by the abundance of professional women who lead not only in their own fields, but in proactively helping other women advance in theirs. The Financial Women of San Francisco organization has played a key role in highlighting the importance and accomplishments of Bay Area women in finance, and I am honored to join the ranks of outstanding women who have won this award before me."

Melissa Maquilan Radic, the 2022 President of FWSF and Managing Director of Investor Relations & Capital Markets at IMPACT Community Capital, LLC is particularly excited about this year's honoree. "Nancy Pfund was a leader in the impact investing space long before this type of investing gained the widespread recognition it has today. She is a champion of social and environmental change, both personally and professionally, and is an inspiring role model for women who want to lead in the investment management or impact space. We are so proud to grant Nancy our highest honor and look forward to sharing her insights with the FWSF community."

"When I first started my impact investing journey, it was a lonely place to be," Nancy explained, "Undaunted, and determined to bring the worlds of finance, investment and social and environmental progress together, I relied on the support of early adopters willing to bet on me and on this new vision. Many of these early adopters were women, and women continue to lead in impact today. FWSF embodies the spirit of impact-and its benefits-by steadfastly lifting women up and passing the baton to younger women through its scholarship program that creates the next generation of financial women leaders."

The Financial Woman of the Year award was established in 1996 to celebrate the organization's 40th anniversary. Past FWSF Presidents Leslie Miller and Shelly Porges created the Financial Woman of the Year event with the triple purposes of raising funds for FWSF's scholarship program, increasing awareness of FWSF, and celebrating the careers of senior leaders in finance. Since then, it has provided a platform for high-achieving honorees to share their professional experience with others and to inspire other women in their own careers and ambitions. Nancy joins a distinguished list of former honorees including Jenny Johnson, CEO of Franklin Templeton, Terri Kallsen, Chief Operating Officer at Wealth Enhancement Group, Heidi Roizen, Partner at Threshold Ventures; Robin Washington, former chief financial officer (CFO) of Gilead; Debbie Messemer, former managing partner of KPMG's Bay Area Market; Carrie Dolan, CFO of Kraken Digital Asset Exchange; Sarah Friar, CEO of Next Door and former CFO of Square; and Pat Yarrington, former CFO of Chevron.

About Nancy Pfund

Nancy Pfund is the Founder and Managing Partner of DBL Partners and one of the world's pioneers in impact investing. Through Nancy's passion and leadership, DBL has revealed the power of venture capital to promote social change and environmental improvement. Nancy writes and speaks frequently on the field of impact investing, and she sponsors or sits on the boards of several companies, including; Farmers Business Network, The Muse, Zola Electric, Bellwether Coffee, Spatial, and, prior to their public offerings, Tesla, SolarCity and Pandora. Prior to founding DBL, Nancy was a Managing Director in Venture Capital at JPMorgan, having started her investment career at Hambrecht & Quist in 1984. Previously, Nancy worked at Intel Corporation, The State of California, Stanford University, and the Sierra Club. Nancy received her BA and MA in Anthropology from Stanford University and her MBA from the Yale School of Management.

In September 2020, Nancy was named to the Forbes Impact 50 List of the most notable impact investors. She is also a recipient of the Commonwealth Club 2018 Distinguished Citizen Award and the Earth Day Network 2018 Climate Visionary Award. She was featured as #17 in the 2014 Fortune Inaugural World's Top 25 Eco-Innovators and appeared in Fast Company's 2016 List of Most Creative People in Business.

To learn more about Nancy Pfund's incredible leadership and career, please visit: https://www.dbl.vc/people/nancy-pfund/

About DBL Partners

DBL Partners was formed with a "Double Bottom Line" investment strategy to invest in companies that can deliver top-tier venture capital returns (First Bottom Line), while working with companies to enable social, environmental, and economic improvement in the regions in which they operate (Second Bottom Line).

DBL Partners uses venture capital to accelerate innovation in a way that positively affects an organization's social impact, as well as its financial success. DBL strongly believes that these two drivers-positive social change and healthy financial performance-are inherently connected. DBL invests and helps nurture outstanding entrepreneurs and companies in Cleantech, Information Technology, Sustainable Products and Services and Healthcare.

For more information about DBL Partners, please visit: https://www.dbl.vc/

About Financial Women of San Francisco

The Financial Women of San Francisco seeks to advance the success of women in finance and financial services and to be a source of insight and inspiration to financial women executives and managers throughout the Bay Area. In addition to the FWSF's professional organization focused on advancing women, since 1985, the FWSF Scholarship Fund (a 501(c)(3) organization) has awarded more than $2.7 million in scholarship grants to more than 325 Bay Area women. Beyond financial support, FWSF scholarship recipients are mentored by FWSF members, become members of the organization, and attend career development and networking events.

For more information, please visit https://financialwomensf.org/ or follow Financial Women of San Francisco on LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter.

Financial Women of San Francisco (FWSF) today named Nancy Pfund, the Founder and Managing Partner of DBL Partners, as the FWSF 2022 Financial Woman of the Year. DBL Partners is one of the first venture capital firms to bring impact investing into the mainstream. Nancy and her colleagues launched DBL out of JP Morgan in 2008 after seeing increased momentum in the move to social and environmental impact.

Related link: https://financialwomensf.org/

Applications are open for the second year in a row at this Arizona-based accelerator built for female founders 40+

PHOENIX, Ariz. /ScoopCloud/ -- RECREATE Now LLC is taking applications for its second cohort in Arizona and it's first cohort in San Francisco, California to help aspiring women entrepreneurs build and launch their idea. Following an expansion into the Bay Area, the Arizona-based organization is aiming to support the underserved market of women over 40 who are transitioning from the corporate world and wanting to start their own business or non-profit without being surrounded by twenty-something tech bros.

* Even as millions of women in the U.S. quit their jobs, women over 40 are still an underserved demographic in the entrepreneurship community

* Start-up funding for female founders is on the rise for both for-profit and non-profit sectors

* The deadline to apply for the Recreate Action Tank is March 1, 2022

Coming from the world of executive coaching and corporate training on Diversity and Inclusion, Recreate Co-founder Melissa Lamson knows how to identify a gap in the market. Even with nearly 40 million people leaving their jobs in 2021 and a clear rise in entrepreneurship, she hasn't found an accelerator tailored to the uniqueness of women over 40-so she built one.

"I've seen so many women hesitate on their own ideas, and not having the guidance they need means those ideas fall by the wayside. We want to give them a chance by surrounding them with extraordinary women who have done it before and who are doing it now," says Lamson.

With full-day sessions led by big-name entrepreneurs like Heidi Jannenga of WebPT and Courtney Klein co-founder of SEED SPOT, among other talented women, the accelerator aims to nourish the founders with a cohort of talented women building alongside them.

Encouraging this new wave of female founders, the Recreate Action Tank is in partnership with the Arizona Commerce Authority and has been sponsored by Carvana, Bank 34 and Blue Cross Blue Shield.

"We curate the tools, practices, connections, and funding opportunities - everything these women need to give their business idea or non-profit a chance to thrive," says Lamson, "It's not just about teaching or lecturing, it's about taking action with a core community to support you."

To learn more about the program or to apply, visit https://www.recreateactiontank.org/

RECREATE Now LLC is taking applications for its second cohort in Arizona and it's first cohort in San Francisco, California to help aspiring women entrepreneurs build and launch their idea. The organization is aiming to support the underserved market of women over 40 who are transitioning from the corporate world and wanting to start their own business or non-profit without being surrounded by twenty-something tech bros.

Related link: https://www.recreatenow.org/

TMC Emerging Technology Fund LP Invests in Capacity

SAN DIEGO, Calif. /ScoopCloud/ -- The Mortgage Collaborative (TMC), the nation's largest independent cooperative network serving the mortgage industry, announced today that the TMC Emerging Technology Fund LP (the "Fund") recently participated in a $38M Series C investment round for AI Software, LLC dba Capacity. Capacity is an AI-powered support automation platform that connects into an organization's tech stack to answer questions, automate repetitive support tasks, and build solutions to any business challenge.

"The TMC Emerging Tech Fund's commitment to innovation in lending makes it a great partner for Capacity. We share the belief that technology has the power to improve the loan origination process and value their investment in our efforts to help people do their best work with support automation," said David Karandish, Founder and CEO of Capacity. "By tapping into the insights of TMC members, we can optimize how our AI-powered platform serves the needs of the mortgage industry, helping them centralize their knowledge, streamline workflows and automate repetitive tasks to meet the needs of their customers in today's environment."

Capacity provides mortgage lenders with a single platform to automate customer support and internal business processes. The platform boasts a more than 90% success rate in answering all prospective and current borrower inquiries automatically via conversational AI, and its no-code/low-code design, powerful workflow automation suite, robust developer platform and flexible database enables graceful human handoffs when necessary and intuitive task management. With Capacity's AI-powered support automation platform, lenders can enhance their user experience while streamlining operations, resulting in an 11-day improvement in closing times over the national average of 47 days.

"As mortgage tech enters its next evolution, companies like Capacity and its software represent a key next step in creating a more modern, tech-enabled mortgage operations process. Using best-in-class AI, Capacity helps mortgage lenders ease friction points and reduce costs within their operations, resulting in a less expensive and more streamlined borrower experience. We are thrilled to support Capacity on its journey and look forward to seeing the additional innovations it can deliver," said Jonathan Freed, Lender Engagement Director of the TMC Emerging Technology Fund.

The Limited Partners of the TMC Emerging Technology Fund consist of some of the most technology-forward lender members of TMC who evaluate and invest in companies looking to advance the mortgage industry. The Fund continues to look for investment opportunities that will result in higher profitability and business process improvement for TMC lender members. For more information, please reach out to tmctechfund@mtgcoop.com.

About The Mortgage Collaborative

Based in San Diego, Calif., The Mortgage Collaborative was founded in 2013 by four notable industry leaders and is the nation's largest independent mortgage cooperative network. TMC is singularly focused on creating an environment of collaboration and innovation for small to mid-size mortgage lenders across the country to reduce cost, increase profitability, and better serve the dynamic and changing consumer base in America. For more information, visit http://www.mortgagecollaborative.com/

The Mortgage Collaborative (TMC), the nation's largest independent cooperative network serving the mortgage industry, announced today that the TMC Emerging Technology Fund LP (the "Fund") recently participated in a $38M Series C investment round for AI Software, LLC dba Capacity. Capacity is an AI-powered support automation platform.

Related link: https://www.mortgagecollaborative.com

SIERA.AI Announces $6.8 Million Seed Funding Round

AUSTIN, Texas /ScoopCloud/ -- Connected Industrial Mobility leader, SIERA.AI, announced the completion of a $6.9 million seed funding round. The funding round was supported by Parkway Venture Capital, a New York venture capital firm and Ubiquity Ventures, a Silicon Valley seed-stage institutional venture capital firm.

Ken's Foods and NFI Industries are among the building material, food and logistics industries that are planning to scale with SIERA.AI's technology offerings for vehicle compliance and safety. Flagship products include S3 Pedestrian Detection and S3 Slow to a Safe Stop.

"Warehousing is the new retail," said Suhas Ahuja, Co-Founder & COO of SIERA.AI. "SIERA.AI is positioned to lead the new ecommerce world with safety and automation that enables an organization to achieve sustainable growth."

SIERA.AI proactively fosters a better workplace.

"Our vision is to bring the power of one-screen on the vehicle and one dashboard in the cloud for heavy industrial vehicles," said Saurav Agarwal, Co-Founder and CEO of SIERA.AI. "We expect our platform will enable customers to connect their Warehouse Management and Manufacturing Execution Systems to our single mobility orchestration engine that will drive productivity across all types of manual and autonomous vehicles."

About SIERA.AI

SIERA.AI is a fast-growing venture-backed AI company in Austin, Texas that's building the future of connected industrial mobility. SIERA.AI's AI-enabled IoT devices and SaaS platform bring advanced vehicle safety and automation to the manufacturing and warehousing market. Our customers include top Fortune 500 manufacturing, warehousing and distribution centers. We have been recognized as one of 21 Austin startups to watch out for in 2021.

Learn more about SIERA.AI's mobile safety solutions at: https://www.siera.ai/

Connected Industrial Mobility leader, SIERA.AI, announced the completion of a $6.9 million seed funding round. The funding round was supported by Parkway Venture Capital, a New York venture capital firm and Ubiquity Ventures, a Silicon Valley seed-stage institutional venture capital firm.

Related link: https://www.siera.ai/

TMC Emerging Technology Fund LP Invests in Clever Real Estate

SAN DIEGO, Calif. /ScoopCloud/ -- The Mortgage Collaborative (TMC), the nation's largest independent cooperative network serving the mortgage industry, announced today that the TMC Emerging Technology Fund LP (the Fund) recently participated in a Series B investment round for Clever Real Estate. Clever offers free educational resources - including expert advice, reviews and guides - to help consumers navigate their real estate journey. They also match sellers and buyers with vetted local real estate agents and other service providers to negotiate lower rates on their behalf.

"Clever's mission is to help every person navigate their real estate journey with a trusted expert in their corner. Today, Clever's websites deliver educational content to more than 11 million readers per year. Through our nationwide agent network, Clever sells more than $250M in real estate each month and helps customers save an average of almost $10,000 in realtor fees on each transaction," said Luke Babich, Co-Founder and COO of Clever Real Estate. "We're thrilled to partner with TMC's Emerging Technology Fund to take Clever's growth to the next level. The Fund not only brings capital to help us accelerate the growth of our team and technology but also relationships and operating experience as Clever deepens partnerships in the mortgage industry to propel our team to another year of 300+% growth."

Owen Lee, a limited partner of the TMC Emerging Technology Fund and Co-Owner of Success Mortgage Partners, stated: "Success Mortgage Partners was thrilled to invest in Clever Real Estate. Clever's technology and its disruption of industry norms positions the company for massive future growth. What's more, its leadership team is young, smart, talented and not fearful of hard work - all of which makes Clever an ideal candidate for investment by The TMC Emerging Tech Fund. invests in companies."

The Limited Partners of the TMC Emerging Technology Fund consist of some of the most technology-forward lender members of TMC. The Fund seeks to invest in companies that are leveraging technology to bring transformational change to the mortgage and real estate industries, with a particular emphasis on investment opportunities that will result in higher profitability and business process improvement for TMC lender members.

For more information, please reach out to tmctechfund@mtgcoop.com.

About The Mortgage Collaborative

Based in San Diego, Calif., The Mortgage Collaborative was founded in 2013 by four notable industry leaders and is the nation's largest independent mortgage cooperative network. TMC is singularly focused on creating an environment of collaboration and innovation for small to mid-size mortgage lenders across the country to reduce cost, increase profitability, and better serve the dynamic and changing consumer base in America.

For more information, visit https://www.mortgagecollaborative.com/.

RELATED LINKS:

https://www.mortgagecollaborative.com/tmc-emerging-tech-fund.html

https://listwithclever.com/

The Mortgage Collaborative (TMC), the nation's largest independent cooperative network serving the mortgage industry, announced today that the TMC Emerging Technology Fund LP (the Fund) recently participated in a Series B investment round for Clever Real Estate. Clever offers free educational resources - including expert advice, reviews and guides - to help consumers navigate their real estate journey.

Related link: https://www.mortgagecollaborative.com

TMC Emerging Technology Fund LP to Host TMC Mortgage Tech Day

SAN DIEGO, Calif. /ScoopCloud/ -- The Mortgage Collaborative (TMC), the nation's largest independent cooperative network serving the mortgage industry, announced today that the TMC Emerging Technology Fund LP (the "Fund") will host TMC Mortgage Tech Day on March 19, 2022, in conjunction with TMC's Winter Conference at the Fontainebleau Miami Beach.

The TMC Mortgage Tech Day is a unique opportunity for Fintech and Mortgage Tech companies to present to a live audience of TMC's Emerging Tech Fund limited partners, which is comprised of TMC mortgage lender executives, and a panel of judges from leading mortgage tech venture capital (VC) firms.

Presenters will receive visibility by top lenders in the country, consideration for investment by the fund and national media coverage, and the top three are also eligible for a cash prize. Target investment themes include Robotic Process Automation (RPA), Machine Vision/Machine Learning, Artificial Intelligence (AI), Web & Mobile Applications, Cybersecurity & Blockchain Applications, and Digital Transaction Platforms.

Interested companies must submit an application here by January 14, 2022. All applicants will be screened by the TMC Emerging Technology Fund for a chance to present during TMC Mortgage Tech Day.

TMC Emerging Technology Fund LP is an early-stage venture capital fund sponsored by The Mortgage Collaborative targeting investments in companies that improve the following: efficiency of manufacturing and servicing mortgages, customer experience, quality and profitability of mortgage origination. TMC's lender members comprise 15-20% of all mortgage originations in the United States.

The Limited Partners of the TMC Emerging Technology Fund consist of some of the most technology-forward lender members of TMC who evaluate and invest in companies looking to advance the mortgage industry. The Fund continues to look for investment opportunities that will result in higher profitability and business process improvement for TMC lender members. For more information, please reach out to tmctechfund@mtgcoop.com.

About The Mortgage Collaborative

Based in San Diego, Calif., The Mortgage Collaborative was founded in 2013 by four notable industry leaders and is the nation's largest independent mortgage cooperative network. TMC is singularly focused on creating an environment of collaboration and innovation for small to mid-size mortgage lenders across the country to reduce cost, increase profitability, and better serve the dynamic and changing consumer base in America. For more information, visit http://www.mortgagecollaborative.com/

RELATED LINKS:

https://www.mortgagecollaborative.com/tmc-emerging-tech-fund.html

https://www.mortgagecollaborative.com/tmc-mortgage-tech-day.html

https://t07vlwbo2c0.typeform.com/to/nGS1Z290?typeform-source=www.mortgagecollaborative.com

The Mortgage Collaborative (TMC), the nation's largest independent cooperative network serving the mortgage industry, announced today that the TMC Emerging Technology Fund LP (the "Fund") will host TMC Mortgage Tech Day on March 19, 2022, in conjunction with TMC's Winter Conference at the Fontainebleau Miami Beach.

Related link: https://www.mortgagecollaborative.com

International Businessman, Kofi Nartey, Joins Belize-Centric Global Progress Fund Team

BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. /ScoopCloud/ -- Global Progress Fund, a platform created to provide international groups seeking to diversify their portfolios' access to investments within the country of Belize, is pleased to announce that it has partnered with international businessman, Kofi Nartey, as a founder and core member of the management team.

The Global Progress Fund has been designed as a multi-faceted sustainable investment opportunity, ranging from sustainable smart city real estate development to manufacturing biofuels and bioplastics to multi-media. At the forefront of all of these components is increasing the economic resiliency and bringing economic opportunity to Belize.

"I am delighted to be part of the Global Progress Fund," said Mr. Nartey. "I'm looking forward to helping bring about what will be a billion dollar sustainable smart city development in the heart of Belize. But I'm also looking forward to working towards furthering the economic and infrastructure development of Belize."

In addition to sharing the Global Progress Fund with Mr. Nartey's celebrity and luxury real estate clients through Globl RED, his private real estate firm with over US$6B in transactional experience, Mr. Nartey will assist with the curation and strategy of the real estate development component, from pre-development planning through the ultimate sales cycle.

"We are thrilled to align with a respected industry leader like Kofi. We are excited to have him help us bring the Global Progress Fund to life as he continues to take on the international real estate world through his work with developers, affluent individuals, sports and entertainment celebrities," said co-Founder and Managing Director, Herbert Dogan. "Given our green initiatives and sustainability commitment, we are also pleased to report that we are negotiating with a UK-based NFT pioneer to be able to issue carbon credits as part of the Fund. Finally, we can also report that The Fresnel Companies will be assisting us with the specialized technological issues that are involved in creating a smart city development."

"The Global Progress Fund sustainable smart cities development concept is unique in the Americas," said The Fresnel Companies Partner, Andrew Murphy. "The technological challenges of the development concept align very well with The Fresnel Companies' capabilities."

About Global Progress Fund

Focused on central Belize, the Global Progress Fund will offer select forward-looking investors the opportunity to plant their next "flag" in a developing nation that offers a wealth of opportunities and to have an oversized positive impact on the country with a team that has access to government leaders at the highest level resulting from over fifty years of doing business in the country. By combining the collective years of experience of the team members and leveraging the varied talents of the strategic partners, the Fund can execute on the multi-generational opportunities herein, creating a legacy that will survive modern challenges, affording opportunities for the next generation and beyond, all while having a beneficial impact on the country and people of Belize by providing economic, employment and educational opportunities. For more information about Global Progress Funds vision, please visit: https://youtu.be/Mm0PEEYcxzU

About Kofi Nartey

A leading authority on luxury real estate and development, Kofi Nartey is the go-to broker for affluent clientele, celebrities, and prominent sports figures around the globe. He is the founder of GLOBL Real Estate + Development, a private real estate firm based in Beverly Hills, with global reach. He regularly appears on national television and in print media outlets, including The Wall Street Journal, Los Angeles Times, CBS, CNBC, Fox Business News, ESPN, CNN Money, and The Insider.

He was recently named to the LA500, as one of the most influential business leaders in Los Angeles. Kofi leverages his exposure, reach, professional sports and acting experience, MBA business acumen, and his desire to unlock potential in every business and person he engages. For more information, please visit our Website: https://www.globlred.com/

About The Fresnel Companies

The Fresnel Companies provide essential services in established markets. Technology development and intellectual property developed for these companies have uses that often exceed the scope of the businesses they were designed to serve. Our main focus is in areas where Fresnel collectively has more than 50 years of experience of creating value for investors and management. FGC specifically focuses on four primary segments: Fintech, Media, Data Analytics/Distribution and Software Innovation. For more information, please visit our Website: https://www.fresnelcm.com/

Global Progress Fund, a platform created to provide international groups seeking to diversify their portfolios' access to investments within the country of Belize, is pleased to announce that it has partnered with international businessman, Kofi Nartey, as a founder and core member of the management team.

Related link: https://www.globlred.com/

Lender Price Receives Strategic Investment Led by Argentum to Support Rapid Growth

PASADENA, Calif. /ScoopCloud/ -- Lender Price, a leading provider of cloud-based mortgage pricing and digital lending solutions, announced today that it has received a strategic investment led by Argentum with participation from First Analysis and existing investor Costner Lake Investments. The investment will further accelerate Lender Price's rapid growth by supporting product development, sales & marketing, and customer service capabilities.

Many mortgage originators and lenders use decades-old technology to run their core operations, resulting in costly process inefficiencies and missed revenue opportunities. Lender Price's innovative technology allows lenders to easily manage and streamline key parts of the mortgage process, including origination, pricing, underwriting, and secondary marketing. Along with added functionality, Lender Price's products are built on a modern tech stack that makes them faster, more configurable, and easier to integrate than competing solutions.

Lender Price's product suite of SaaS solutions is anchored by an advanced enterprise product, pricing, and eligibility (PPE) engine that allows lenders to make pricing-related adjustments across all of their channels in real-time. The pricing engine powers the company's other automated mortgage solutions to create a tightly integrated digital lending platform that also includes: a marketplace connecting brokers to up-to-date pricing of hundreds of wholesale lenders, a digital point of sale that simplifies the origination process, and a first-of-its-kind underwriting and pricing engine for non-agency mortgages (FLEX).

Currently, Lender Price supports 150+ lenders, thousands of brokers, and 50,000+ loan products. While it serves customers of all sizes, it works with some of the country's largest lenders including Mr. Cooper, Flagstar Bank, American Financial Resources (AFR), PennyMac, Rocket Mortgage, Freedom Mortgage, several non-agency lenders, and two of the top ten commercial bank mortgage lenders.

"This investment will enhance our ability to offer industry-leading technology and services that meet the growing needs of originators and lenders," said Dawar Alimi, Co-Founder and CEO of Lender Price. "Given Argentum's track record of successfully scaling B2B SaaS companies, fintech experience and extensive industry network, we could not be more excited to partner with them to pursue the large opportunity ahead of us."

Lender Price experienced rapid growth in 2021 and recently reported that it processes over $20 BN in locked loan volume through its platform every month.

"Lender Price's software is critical in helping lenders rapidly execute profitable lending strategies with ease. With a highly advanced technology platform and experience supporting a diverse customer base that includes some of the industry's largest and most sophisticated mortgage lenders, the company is helping the mortgage industry modernize its workflows and process burgeoning loan volumes," said Daniel Raynor, Managing Partner at Argentum.

"From lead to loan lock and beyond, Lender Price's products provide value at each step of the mortgage process. We look forward to supporting Dawar and his team as they continue to scale the company and establish themselves as a leader in origination, pricing, and underwriting technology," added Sohum Doshi, Vice President at Argentum, who will join Lender Price's Board of Directors in connection with the investment.

About Lender Price

Lender Price is a California-based developer of mortgage technology, including an advanced product, pricing, & eligibility (PPE) engine, digital lending point-of-sale (POS), and non-agency automated underwriting engine. Lender Price provides all types of mortgage lending institutions - wholesale and correspondent lenders, banks, credit unions, and mortgage brokers - with advanced technology designed to eliminate friction, increase transparency, and effectively engage with borrowers. More information about Lender Price can be found at: https://lenderprice.com

About Argentum

Argentum is a New York-based growth equity firm that helps scale bootstrapped B2B software, technology-enabled and business services companies. The firm invests in companies that are seeking capital to accelerate growth, fund acquisitions and / or generate shareholder liquidity. Over its 30-year history, Argentum has invested in over 90 companies and supported more than 200 add-on acquisitions. To learn more, visit: https://argentumgroup.com/

Lender Price, a leading provider of cloud-based mortgage pricing and digital lending solutions, announced today that it has received a strategic investment led by Argentum with participation from First Analysis and existing investor Costner Lake Investments. The investment will further accelerate Lender Price's rapid growth by supporting product development, sales & marketing, and customer service capabilities.

Related link: https://lenderprice.com/

Expetitle Closes $2.3 Million Seed Plus Round

MIAMI, Fla. /ScoopCloud/ -- Expetitle, a digital title company and a leader in remote real estate closings, announced today it has closed their $2.3 million Series Seed Plus financing round. The investment will help the company aggressively expand its sales and marketing efforts.

The oversubscribed round included participation from Beagle Ventures, LAB Ventures, TBD Angels, and several prominent family offices including the owners of one of the largest home purchasers in the US. Other contributors include Patrick Dwyer, Head of Silicon Valley Bank Miami, and Shai Goldman, Director at Brex.

Pablo Vicuña and Pedro Cabezon of Beagle Ventures led the round, stating, "We are excited to partner with Expetitle for its strong management team and the incredible market opportunity. We have been impressed with both the product and the organization so far, and know we can bring the expertise to help take Expetitle to the next level." Luke Burns led the investment from TBD Angels adding, "We're excited Expetitle is going to be joining the TBD portfolio. The mixture of their value-proposition, team, and unique go-to-market strategy lines them up for a really big opportunity in a space ready for disruption."

"Expetitle is disrupting title insurance from the ground up," said Sean Daly, the company's CEO and co-founder. "Consumers today can find a home online, tour it virtually, and arrange financing from their laptop, but when it comes to the closing process, most transactions still happen in a lawyer's office with a thick stack of paper. Expetitle has changed that with a fully remote process, giving buyers, sellers, and their agents everything they need with just a click of a button. With this new capital, we will be rolling out our solution to new states and with new partners across the country."

About Expetitle:

Founded in January 2019, Expetitle was born out of the LAB Ventures startup studio. Expetitle is a multi-state title company, operating in Florida, Georgia, and Texas, that delivers fully digital and hybrid closings through one secure collaborative platform that adds transparency to the entire closing process. Expetitle's mission is to provide a better, transparent closing experience for buyers, sellers, and their agents and brokers. Today's consumer is used to doing everything on their phone in real-time, why should buying a home be any different? To learn more about Expetitle, visit https://www.expetitle.com/.

Expetitle, a digital title company and a leader in remote real estate closings, announced today it has closed their $2.3 million Series Seed Plus financing round. The investment will help the company aggressively expand its sales and marketing efforts.

Related link: https://www.expetitle.com/

US-based Carbon Direct invests €15M ($17.7M) for 7% stake in Calix’s LEILAC business

SYDNEY, Australia /ScoopCloud/ -- Multi-award-winning Australian technology company Calix Limited (ASX: CXL) ("Calix" or the "Company") is pleased to announce global decarbonisation investor Carbon Direct Capital Management has invested €15m for a 6.98% equity stake in Calix subsidiary, the LEILAC Group, which is dedicated to the commercialisation and ongoing development of Calix's LEILAC CO2 capture technology.

Highlights:

* €15M investment in Calix's LEILAC business by Carbon Direct, one of the world's leading decarbonisation investors

* Investment will accelerate the development and deployment of LEILAC, which uses Calix technology for cement and lime decarbonisation

* Carbon Direct will advise LEILAC on areas including capital markets, regulations, commercial development, and technical development, helping it scale the business

* LEILAC technology has been successfully piloted at 25,000tpa scale and is now being scaled up to 100,000tpa, with several commercial pilot plants under development

* Investment implements Calix's equity farm-in strategy to create focussed, commercialisation businesses for its core technology

* Calix will host an investor webinar at 10.00am (AEST) Thursday 16 September with CEO, Phil Hodgson. Click here to register: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_unJvaUQ0TdONM9yA30XgwA

Calix will continue to own the remaining 93% of the LEILAC Group.

In addition, as part of the transaction, Calix has entered into a licence agreement with the LEILAC Group under which it will retain 30% of royalties earned by the LEILAC Group from deployment of the technology, regardless of Calix's equity stake in the LEILAC Group. The LEILAC Group will operate autonomously, with its own management team and a Board composed mostly of Calix directors, with one appointee nominated by Carbon Direct.

The LEILAC Group, comprising Calix (Europe) Ltd (UK) and its subsidiaries, is the exclusive licensee of Calix's Low Emissions Intensity Lime and Cement (LEILAC) CO2 capture technology. LEILAC technology was successfully piloted at 25K tonnes per annum scale at HeidelbergCement's plant in Lixhe, Belgium, and is being scaled up to 100K tonnes per annum scale in the "LEILAC-2" project for a HeidelbergCement plant in Hannover, Germany. Further commercial pilot plants for lime production are under development with Tarmac, the UK division of CRH, and AdBri in Australia, among others.

US-based Carbon Direct's investment arm, Carbon Direct Capital Management, makes direct investments into leading carbon removal and utilisation technology companies. The firm also operates a scientific advisory business, which advises leading corporations on how to fulfil their carbon removal and utilisation commitments. Carbon Direct's advisory work spans 28 countries and includes clients such as Microsoft and Shopify.

Pottinger acted as financial and strategic advisor to Calix on this transaction, and Hamilton Locke acted as legal advisor.

Carbon Direct investment to accelerate LEILAC technology uptake

Along with existing capital already invested in the LEILAC Group, Carbon Direct's investment will be used by the LEILAC Group to accelerate and continue to de-risk deployment of the LEILAC technology, both technically and commercially. Technically, additional resources will be deployed in engineering and research to speed optimisation. Commercially, new resourcing in business development, especially project development and CO2 use or sequestration, will be deployed to help develop complete project solutions for customers. A new CEO will be appointed to run the business as a stand-alone entity.

The investment marks the conclusion of work led by Pottinger to accelerate commercialisation of the LEILAC technology and identify the optimal financial and strategic partner(s) to support this the business' critical next phase of development.

Calix Limited CEO Phil Hodgson said the deal represented a critical milestone in Calix's stated strategy of seeking equity "farm-ins," after initial development undertaken by Calix, to accelerate and deploy its underlying platform technology into each line of business, with Calix remaining head licensor.

"As each of these businesses become independent commercial entities, they will remain joined at the hip" technically with Calix, which will continue to support development of the core intellectual property. Over time, growing royalty income from these companies will also support the development of new applications of the IP and associated technologies," Mr Hodgson said.

He said the investment by Carbon Direct will help accelerate the development and deployment of the Calix Technology for cement and lime decarbonisation.

"The recent Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report was unequivocal in saying that to reach the stated 2030 goals on climate change, CO2 emissions have to be reduced. LEILAC Technology is an option that is being deployed now to meet this urgent need.

"Carbon Direct coming on board is a strong vote of confidence in Calix's LEILAC decarbonising technology, following on from endorsements and partnerships with industry leaders such as HeidelbergCement, Cemex, Lhoist and Solvay

"The investment will assist us in accelerating the deployment of the technology into the carbon capture and storage landscape, with additional resources covering technology research and development, CO2 logistics, use and storage, and whole-of-project expertise, while our technology gains more exposure in global markets outside of Europe.

"The deal also represents our first material portfolio transaction in our stated strategy to farm-in equity to deploy our technology commercially. We believe this strategy adds speed and focus at a critical time in the technology commercialisation journey, and leaves the head company to focus on what it does best - supporting our technology and developing the next global, disruptive applications."

Carbon Direct founder and CEO Jonathan Goldberg said Carbon Direct invested in companies that could deliver both commercially viable solutions and solve big climate problems.

"We are very impressed by the technical and commercial rigor of the LEILAC team, and plant partners are outspoken in their excitement about LEILAC. We are delighted to support Phil, Calix, and the LEILAC Group as they seek to scale LEILAC into cement and lime plants around the world," Mr Goldberg said.

"Both Carbon Direct's investment team and its scientific advisory team, which now includes 46 globally renowned CO2 scientists and project managers, are available to assist the LEILAC Group on subjects including capital markets, regulations, commercial development, and technical development. Our entire firm is dedicated to helping technologies such as LEILAC to scale."

Pottinger Executive Chairman Nigel Lake added: "Great engineering and technology alone are not enough: to have a transformational impact on an entire global industry takes a dedicated and well-resourced business. The investment by Carbon Direct marks a critical inflexion point for both Calix and the LEILAC Group as decarbonisation of the construction sector begins in earnest."

Carbon capture is needed to reach the UN climate goals

Global decarbonisation efforts are accelerating. For example, in June 2019, the UK Government became the first major economy to commit to net zero CO2 by 2050 and is heavily supporting decarbonisation efforts through funding under the UK Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy £1bn Net Zero Innovation Portfolio. In 2021, the European Union unveiled a plan to slash its carbon emissions by 55% before 2030 and impose border tariffs on countries, including Australia, that do not have some form of carbon price.

Cement production is the world's single biggest industrial cause of carbon pollution, responsible for up to 8% of global emissions, producing more than 4 billion tonnes of CO2 per year. Cement is the primary ingredient in concrete, the second most used material in the world after water. Meanwhile, the global production volume of lime was approximately 330 million tonnes in 2020, with myriad applications beyond cement including the manufacture of aluminium, asphalt, copper, glass, gold, lithium, plasterboard, silver, solar-grade silica, steel, table salt and toothpaste. Lime is also used in agriculture and for water and sewage treatment.

Making 1 tonne of lime or cement clinker produces approximately 1 tonne of CO2

LEILAC's Breakthrough carbon capture technology

Between 50 to 60% of cement CO2 emissions derive from the process of heating or "calcination" of limestone, the chemical reaction that converts limestone (CaCO3) into lime (CaO) and CO2. These emissions are therefore unavoidable and a low-cost capture solution is essential.

The patented LEILAC kiln design separates CO2 emissions arising during lime and cement production without significant energy penalty. The LEILAC kiln is being developed to use a variety of input fuels and is also easily electrified, enabling complete decarbonisation of production by switching to renewable energy.

LEILAC technology was successfully piloted at 25ktpa scale at HeidelbergCement's Lixhe Cement plant in Belgium, and is being scaled up to 100kTpa scale in the "LEILAC-2" project for a HeidelbergCement plant in Hannover, Germany. LEILAC-2 is targeted to be in production by late 2023 / early 2024, and is being funded by €34m from the EU Horizon 2020 scheme through a combination of cash and in-kind contributions from industrial partners. In addition to HeidelbergCement, industrial partners helping in developing the technology include Cemex, Tarmac, Cimpor, Lhoist, Engie and Solvay.

Six commercial-scale cement and four commercial scale lime follow-on projects are being developed with several interested parties, with two projects now moving into more detailed planning under previously announced heads of agreement with CRH's UK subsidiary Tarmac and Adbri in Australia.

About Carbon Direct LLC

Carbon Direct provides both scientific advisory services and investment capital to the carbon removal & utilization ecosystem. Our advisory business works for clients to fulfill their carbon removal & utilization commitments. Carbon Direct's team of world-renowned carbon scientists has a nuanced understanding of the true risks and opportunities of emerging and mature carbon removal & utilization technologies. Our investment business makes direct investments into leading carbon removal & utilization companies. Carbon Direct was founded in 2019 by Jonathan Goldberg and has offices in New York City. To learn more, visit http://www.carbon-direct.com/

About Calix

Calix is a team of dedicated people developing a unique, patented technology to provide industrial solutions that address global sustainability challenges.

The core technology is being used to develop more environmentally friendly solutions for sustainable processing, advanced batteries, crop protection, aquaculture, wastewater and carbon reduction.

Calix develops its technology via a global network of research and development collaborations, including governments, research institutes and universities, some of world's largest companies, and a growing customer base and distributor network for its commercialised products and processes.

Because there's only one Earth - Mars is for Quitters.

Website: https://www.calix.global/

Twitter: @CalixLimited

YouTube: CalixLimited

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Caption: Calix decarbonising technology at the LEILAC plant in Belgium.

Multi-award-winning Australian technology company Calix Limited (ASX: CXL) ("Calix" or the "Company") is pleased to announce global decarbonisation investor Carbon Direct Capital Management has invested €15m for a 6.98% equity stake in Calix subsidiary, the LEILAC Group, which is dedicated to the commercialisation and ongoing development of Calix's LEILAC CO2 capture technology.

Related link: https://www.calix.global/

Whiteoak Invests in Amplify-Now to Accelerate Global Expansion and Development

REDONDO BEACH, Calif. /ScoopCloud/ -- Amplify-Now, a leading provider of Strategy Execution Management software headquartered in Adelaide, Australia, announced that Whiteoak, a growth-equity firm based in Sydney, Australia, plans to invest in their company to help spur global growth and product development ambitions. The investment news followed Amplify-Now's recent expansion into its North American headquarters, near Los Angeles.

"We wanted to accelerate the success we've achieved with an investment firm that provides a combination of capital and deep strategic support," Matt Williams, CEO of Amplify-Now, says. "Whiteoak has a successful track record for supporting Australian-headquartered companies to succeed in global expansion."

The investment is the second in the $100M Whiteoak Growth Fund, securing a majority stake in Amplify-Now.

Greg Garvin, Whiteoak's Managing Director, says that, "Amplify-Now has achieved global success by offering a software solution that provides a single source of truth to help manage complex transformation programs within large organizations. Clients love that the solution is intuitive and easy to set up and can be configured for many applications including: Business Transformations, Post-merger integrations, ESG change programs and Digital Transformations."

Other companies backed by Whiteoak include: Lack of Color (also in the fund), a fashion label; SkinKandy, a jewelry and piercing business; Priava, a venue management platform; Status Anxiety, a popular handbag label; and The Healthy Mommy, an online weight loss and health community for mothers.

About Amplify-Now

Since 2013, Amplify-Now has offered Benefits Realization and Strategy Execution Management (SEM). Its SEM software enables organizations to execute strategies that create business value for their customers and investors. The software supports transformation programs from end-to-end, supporting portfolio planning through value realization.

To support a global roster of corporate and consulting clients, it's headquartered in Adelaide, Australia with offices in Los Angeles, CA and West Sussex, UK.

For more information: https://amplify-now.com/

About Whiteoak

Whiteoak was founded in 2016 by Richard Whiteoak as an independent investment firm with a distinctive approach to investing capital in private Australian companies. Its mission is to accelerate the growth of high-quality companies by providing capital and deep strategic support.

For more information: https://www.whiteoak.com/

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Amplify-Now, a leading provider of Strategy Execution Management software headquartered in Adelaide, Australia, announced that Whiteoak, a growth-equity firm based in Sydney, Australia, plans to invest in their company to help spur global growth and product development ambitions..

Related link: https://amplify-now.com/

Seattle company developing wave-powered marine platform for ocean science applications

SEATTLE, Wash. /ScoopCloud/ -- Oscilla Power, Inc. [OPI] is proud to announce the receipt of a $200k Phase I SBIR grant award from the US Department of Energy to develop a wave energy powered platform for ocean sensing and monitoring systems. This award will help to develop technology that enables offshore instrumentation payloads to be powered by renewable energy from the surrounding ocean waves.

During this work OPI will collaborate with CODAR Ocean Sensors, an expert in high-frequency (HF) radar monitoring, to develop a wave-powered instrumentation platform for an offshore HF radar package. Such a system has the potential to greatly expand the range of existing shore-based environmental monitoring.

During this 9-month project, OPI will work with researchers at ECU's Coastal Studies Institute and Oregon State University to develop the marine platform using state-of-the-art optimization algorithms inspired by nature.

There are currently over 8,000 ocean monitoring platforms deployed world-wide, yet the global oceanographic monitoring system market is still considered to be in its infancy. Existing buoys and sensor platforms either utilize solar panels or disposable batteries, both of which need regular servicing visits. By harnessing energy from ocean waves, these servicing visits can be reduced to near zero, along with the associated waste and carbon emissions.

According to Balky Nair, President of Oscilla Power, "This is a great opportunity for OPI to showcase our technology and create a paradigm shift in the in the way ocean instrumentation will be powered in the future."

If this early work is successful, OPI plans to continue to work with project partners to progress into a full ocean demonstration in 2023. While the marine platform will be developed specifically for CODAR during the project, this R&D will lay the groundwork for a variety of ocean sensor systems.

About Oscilla Power Inc.:

Oscilla Power Inc. is developing advanced technology to extract energy from ocean waves. In addition to the work described here, they are currently completing the construction of the Triton-C prototype, a 100kW wave energy converter that is expected to be tested in Hawaii next year.

Learn more at: https://www.oscillapower.com/

Oscilla Power, Inc. [OPI] is proud to announce the receipt of a $200k Phase I SBIR grant award from the US Department of Energy to develop a wave energy powered platform for ocean sensing and monitoring systems.

Related link: https://oscillapower.com/

Blockchain-based, AI-powered mortgage advisor Home Lending Pal raises $2.2M in pre-Series A round led by TMC Emerging Technology Fund LP

SAN DIEGO, Calif. /ScoopCloud/ -- The Mortgage Collaborative (TMC), the nation's largest independent cooperative network serving the mortgage industry, announced today that the TMC Emerging Technology Fund LP (the "Fund") recently led a pre-Series A investment round in Home Lending Pal, a technology-enabled marketplace that focuses on fair lending practices by using artificial intelligence and distributed ledger technology to turn a complex home research and origination process into an easy online shopping experience for both qualified and unqualified borrowers.

Home Lending Pal's platform assists consumers, particularly minorities and millennials, to assess their financial ability to take on a mortgage. It also guides them to take actions to improve their access to mortgage financing and select mortgage originators with whom they want to share their application information based on an AI algorithm that predicts probability to close.

"TMC understands that progressive approaches to addressing fair lending and bridging the homeownership gap are needed, and the unique access the Fund provides to TMC's network of prominent industry lenders will be vital in helping Home Lending Pal build a process that de-identifies HMDA data until after the underwriting decision is made," Bryan Young, co-founder and CEO of Home Lending Pal, said. "This revolutionary technology allows underwriting data to be digitally validated while using a single upload of documentation to enable multiple lenders across the country to determine if they will work with the borrower without human biases from the upfront disclosure of age, sex or race."

"Financial inclusion must start with equal access, borrower data empowerment, and personalized education without sales pressure," said Steven Better, co-founder and COO of Home Lending Pal. "Home Lending Pal reduces origination friction for qualified borrowers and allows personalized roadmaps for unqualified borrowers to become qualified. I am excited to work with TMC to modernize the process by emphasizing fair lending and putting people first."

"The mortgage industry is embracing the idea of providing educational financial resources to consumers long before they begin their home buying journey and seek out lenders for financing options. Home Lending Pal exemplifies this concept by providing a much-needed solution to a pervasive issue," said Jonathan Freed, Managing Partner of Holland Mortgage Advisors and one of the Fund's participating Limited Partners. "We are excited by Home Lending Pal's cutting edge technology and the opportunity to collaborate with their forward-thinking team to improve access to home financing solutions by all consumers."

Orlando-based Angel Syndicate Bluewave Investment Partners, CMFG Ventures, Dallas Cowboys linebacker Jaylon Smith, and CMFG Ventures Discovery Fund are other notable investors who joined the round. Home Lending Pal has raised $3.5 million to date for its digital mortgage advising platform, powered by artificial intelligence and blockchain. Home Lending Pal will demonstrate the next phase to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) in early September and release it to the public for consumer use and feedback by late September.

The Limited Partners of the TMC Emerging Technology Fund consist of some of the most technology-forward lender members of TMC who evaluate and invest in companies looking to advance the mortgage industry. The Fund continues to look for investment opportunities that will result in higher profitability and business process improvement for TMC lender members.

About The Mortgage Collaborative

Based in San Diego, Calif., The Mortgage Collaborative was founded in 2013 by four notable industry leaders and is the nation's largest independent mortgage cooperative network. TMC is singularly focused on creating an environment of collaboration and innovation for small to mid-size mortgage lenders across the country to reduce cost, increase profitability, and better serve the dynamic and changing consumer base in America. For more information, visit http://www.mortgagecollaborative.com/.

The Mortgage Collaborative (TMC), the nation's largest independent cooperative network serving the mortgage industry, announced today that the TMC Emerging Technology Fund LP (the "Fund") recently led a pre-Series A investment round in Home Lending Pal, a technology-enabled marketplace .

Related link: https://www.mortgagecollaborative.com

Nation’s Only Black Cybersecurity Reskilling School Receives $10M Funding Boost to Connect Students with High-Paying Careers in Tech

DETROIT, Mich. /ScoopCloud/ -- Detroit-based Automation Workz Institute, Inc., the nation's only Black tech diversity consulting and upskilling institution, today announced the close of $10 million growth financing to drive the expansion of their cybersecurity, network engineer and development certification courses to people of color across America.

* Game-changing funding will increase people of color access to Automation Workz programs

* 30 percent of Automation Workz graduates have received six-figure job offers

* "The best social justice program is a job, especially a high-paying high-demand tech job" - Automation Workz CEO & Founder Ida Byrd-Hill

Focusing on careers in network engineering, cybersecurity and IT/tech, as a post-secondary vocational school, Automation Workz customizes workforce training to develop diverse adults for high-paying careers in business, tech and cybersecurity. The announcement took place on Tuesday, August 10, 2021 at the 2021 ASU+GSV Summit in San Diego.

"This new funding partnership with Blair is game-changing on so many levels," said Automation Workz CEO and Founder Ida Byrd-Hill. "Lack of money should not be a barrier to move into the plethora of high-paying tech jobs that, for too long, have been a barrier to people of color. For years, I've advocated the best social justice program is a job, especially a high-paying high-demand tech job. I'm so thankful to Blair for believing in Automation Workz which I built to discover the tech genius that is often overlooked within inner cities."

As an immediate benefit, the new funding will increase people of color access to Automation Workz's program using Income Share Agreements whereby students sign an enrollment agreement. Upon graduation or receipt of a higher-paying job, whichever happens first, they will share income to repay tuition over four years. Automation Workz will also be able to add more staff and artificial intelligence capabilities to increase enrollment, hence more job offers. Automation Workz's goal is to assist 50,000 people of color to achieve six-figure job offers to create prosperous affluent economies in inner cities across America, thereby reducing crime, poverty and the stress that plagues inner cities.

"Blair is excited to partner with Automation Workz, a leading education provider, to increase upward mobility and afford students the opportunity to achieve great outcomes," shared Justin Stolzenberg, Head of Growth at Blair. "Their commitment to providing students an excellent education and lifelong career path is second-to-none, and continuously proven through their commitment to outcomes-based financing. We are thrilled to work with Automation Workz on removing the burden of upfront payments from their students and increasing access to their program."

To date, 30 percent of Automation Workz graduates have received and accepted six-figure job offers with the highest offer received by a Black woman. Reflecting its community and student constituents, people of color Instructors and mentors provide a safe and inspiring training space to launch into the tech industry. In addition, beyond a traditional curriculum, hands-on certification training utilizing digital simulations, games and animation are unique tools to both grow and groom the invisible tech geniuses that live in inner cities.

Both endorsement and validation of its high-powered training is illustrated by Automation Workz's inclusion as one of the nation's top 10 Cybersecurity Bootcamps by Career Karma and being named one the Best Cyber Security Bootcamps of 2021 by Intelligent.com. In addition, Pearson PLC of London has validated Automation Workz as distinctly having a niche audience of 30-40-year-old Black women which is unique across the world.

About Automation Workz Institute

Founded in 2017 as Cisco Networking Academy, Automation Workz Institute is an SBA woman-owned career technical trade school that advocates the future - and how we get there - uniquely depends on automation, processes and people (APP). Emphasizing innovation and ideation, Automation Workz expertly retools and enhances APP for internal and external audiences through scalable, customized services designed for organizations of all sizes. In 2021, Automation Workz was ranked as one of the nation's top 10 Cybersecurity Bootcamps by Career Karma. Most recently, it was named one the Best Cyber Security Bootcamps of 2021 by Intelligent.com, a trusted resource for online degree rankings and higher education planning. For additional information, go to https://autoworkz.org.

About Blair

Blair empowers schools of all kind to be more accessible by structuring and creating sustainable ISA (Income Share Agreements) programs. The team at Blair deeply believes in two core facts: education is powerful and access to education should not depend on one's financial background. Millions of talented people are not able to fulfill their potential due to financial barriers. Backed by some of the most prestigious institutions of the educational and financial services sector, we are building the financial and technological infrastructure to create outcome-based financing methods. Our goal is to help level the playing-field and give everyone the chance to improve their own lives with just grit and passion rather than a stellar credit score. As a service to educational institutions, we only succeed if our partner institutions and their students succeed. To learn more, go to https://joinblair.com.

MEDIA CONTACT:

Randy L. Jones, APR

1 Voice Communications

Randy@1voicecommunications.com

(586) 567-2639

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Detroit-based Automation Workz Institute, Inc., the nation's only Black tech diversity consulting and upskilling institution, today announced the close of $10 million growth financing to drive the expansion of their cybersecurity, network engineer and development certification courses to people of color across America.

Related link: https://autoworkz.org/

Associated Colleges of Illinois Awarded Grant to Help Improve Four-Year Degree Completion Rates for Community College Transfer Students

CHICAGO, Ill. /ScoopCloud/ -- Associated Colleges of Illinois (ACI) (https://acifund.org), the Illinois Community College Board (ICCB) and the Illinois Board of Higher Education (IBHE) were awarded a $25,000 planning grant to conduct research and develop an implementation plan to help more community college transfer students earn bachelor's degrees at ACI-affiliated colleges and universities.

The Teagle Foundation (https://www.teaglefoundation.org/Home), New York City, and the Arthur Vining Davis Foundations (https://www.avdf.org/), Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, awarded the planning grant, called "Transfer Pathways to the Liberal Arts." Collaborative research and planning work is expected to begin July 1 and be completed at the end of the 2021 calendar year.

"We're excited about the grant award and this initial phase to build enrollment and financial support for community college transfer students," said Mick Weltman, ACI executive director. "We're also pleased to collaborate with statewide team members such as ICCB and IBHE in this initial planning effort."

The grant proposal quotes research that states that 65 percent of jobs in today's economy require at least some postsecondary education, and yet, significant numbers of Illinois residents have no post-secondary degrees or credentials. Illinois established a goal of increasing the proportion of residents who hold high-quality degrees or credentials to 60 percent by 2025. In addition, more than 7 of 10 students who earned associate's degrees, then transferred to four-year institutions, earned four-year degrees in two years, according to the National Student Clearinghouse.

To meet the terms of the planning grant, ACI, the ICCB and the IBHE will form the Illinois Project Leadership Team. Team members will conduct academic and financial research, aimed at improving academic transferability and development of a campaign and fundraising plan to assist community college transfer students and Illinois higher-education institutions, according to the grant proposal.

The academic component, led by a project investigator, will involve collaborative research to help the project leadership team determine "effective strategies that can streamline and strengthen existing pathways," the grant proposal said. The team will also study a statewide community college transfer agreement among ACI-affiliated colleges and universities.

The financial research component will include resource development opportunities to fund community college students transferring to ACI-member institutions, and how best to obtain financial support.

A project investigator and ACI will use the research results to development a case for supporting more scholarships for community college transfer students and the expected effect on transfer degree-completion rates. The team will also develop a fundraising plan.

The project team will include ACI Executive Director Mick Weltman (mweltman@acifund.org), ACI staff, faculty and provost from ACI-member Judson University (https://www.judsonu.edu/), provost from Lincoln Land Community College, IBHE, ICCB leaders and an independent financial consultant.

About ACI:

Associated Colleges of Illinois (ACI) is a collaboration of 267 private, independent colleges and universities, representing more than 70,000 students. Established in 1952, ACI supports member colleges and universities by advancing independent liberal arts and sciences education and helping underserved students succeed in college, careers and life. The organization raises funds for scholarships, peer mentoring and emergency financial aid, and it provides member services such as professional development conferences and college-to-career seminars and events.

Visit ACI's website (https://acifund.org) for more information.

MEDIA CONTACT:
John Brooks
Associated Colleges of Illinois
jbrooks@acifund.org
Phone 312-263-2391

Associated Colleges of Illinois (ACI), the Illinois Community College Board (ICCB) and the Illinois Board of Higher Education (IBHE) were awarded a $25,000 planning grant to conduct research and develop an implementation plan to help more community college transfer students earn bachelor's degrees at ACI-affiliated colleges and universities.

Related link: https://acifund.org

Move For Hunger Receives $128,000 Donation from the Assurant Foundation

RED BANK, N.J. /ScoopCloud/ -- Move For Hunger, a national hunger relief non-profit organization, announced today that they have received a $128,735 donation from the Assurant Foundation as part of the '2021 Turning Miles into Meals Challenge.'

Assurant, a leading global provider of housing and lifestyle solutions that supports, protects, and connects major consumer purchases, hosted the 'Turning Miles into Meals Challenge' from May 10 through June 6, with more than 2,200 employees moving to fight hunger. Participants completed weekly and daily challenges to keep them motivated during the month-long event which culminated with an awards ceremony to recognize the group's efforts and to present Move For Hunger with the charitable donation.

This is the second year in a row that Assurant and the Assurant Foundation participated in the 'Turning Miles to Meals Challenge' and exceeded all expectations and goals. In its inaugural year in 2020, roughly 160 Assurant employees participated and moved 15,000 miles to fight hunger. This year, Assurant stepped up in a major way logging more than 128,000 miles or more than 250 million steps. The Assurant Foundation donated $1 to Move For Hunger for each mile earned, and the total donation will help provide 322,000 meals to those families and individuals facing hunger and food insecurity in the U.S.

"Being there to help others especially in times of need and working to strengthen the communities we serve is the heartbeat of our Assurant Cares commitment," said Mike Campbell, president, Global Housing, Assurant. "Our team's enthusiastic support of the critical work of Move For Hunger is one more way we bring our purpose to life while also enhancing our own wellbeing by moving to end hunger."

Since starting in 2009, Move For Hunger has helped transport over 23 million pounds of food (19 million meals) to food banks in every state in the U.S. and in Canada. Last year as COVID-19 shut the country down and unemployment skyrocketed, Move For Hunger and its network rose to the challenge by having its most impactful year yet with over 5 million pounds of food transported (over 4 million meals).

"There are 42 million people in this country who are food insecure. That's 1 in 8 Americans," said Adam Lowy, Executive Director and Founder of Move For Hunger. "This event is so special because thousands of people mobilized around a common cause. We're so grateful to have a partner in Assurant who is committed to our mission and has the creativity to do something unique to get their entire company involved. After a year inside, I think we all could probably use a few extra steps."

About Move For Hunger

Move For Hunger is a national 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that has created a sustainable way to reduce food waste and fight hunger. We have mobilized the leaders of moving, relocation, and multi-family industries to provide their customers, clients, and residents with the opportunity to donate their food when they move. Members of Move For Hunger also organize community food drives, participate in awareness campaigns, and create employee engagement programs. For more information, or to find out how you can host your own food drive, visit https://moveforhunger.org/.

About Assurant

Assurant is a leading global provider of housing and lifestyle solutions that support, protect and connect major consumer purchases. Anticipating the evolving needs of consumers, Assurant partners with the world's leading brands to develop innovative products and services and to deliver an enhanced customer experience. A Fortune 500 company with a presence in 21 countries, Assurant offers mobile device solutions; extended service contracts; vehicle protection services; pre-funded funeral insurance; renters insurance and lender-placed homeowners insurance. The Assurant Foundation strengthens communities by supporting charitable partners that help protect where people live and can thrive, connect with local resources, inspire inclusion and prepare leaders of the future. Learn more at http://assurant.com/ or on Twitter @AssurantNews.

Move For Hunger, a national hunger relief non-profit organization, announced today that they have received a $128,735 donation from the Assurant Foundation as part of the '2021 Turning Miles into Meals Challenge.'

Related link: https://moveforhunger.org/

Sacramento SPCA Receives Lifesaving Investment from Newly Named Petco Love for the Zoe K. McCrea Animal Health Center

SACRAMENTO, Calif. /ScoopCloud/ -- The Sacramento SPCA announced today that they received a $15,000 grant investment from Petco Love, to support their lifesaving work for animals through the newly constructed Zoe K. McCrea Animal Health Center.

A check presentation was held at the Petco retail store located at 855 E Bidwell Street in Folsom, California on Friday, July 9 at 11 a.m.

The Sacramento SPCA applied for the lifesaving investment as part of a year-long fundraising campaign to complete construction of the new state-of-the-art animal hospital located at 6201 Florin Perkins Road in Sacramento.

A remodel of the shelter's administrative office and sick bay building began in May 2020, renovations were complete in January 2021 and the Zoe K. McCrea Animal Health Center performed its first public surgeries in late January.

The expanded facility has allowed the Sacramento SPCA to immediately increase public access to low-cost and no-cost spay/neuter surgeries, vaccinations, and preventative care for animals in the Sacramento region and beyond.

The Kristan Otto Shelter Medicine Program, with species-specific housing for sick and injured animals; an isolation ward for managing contagious diseases; and examination, laboratory, and treatment space, is also located inside the new Zoe K. McCrea Animal Health Center.

"We are incredibly grateful for our partnership with the Petco Folsom store and Petco Love to support our lifesaving work in the new health center," said Kenn Altine, Sacramento SPCA CEO. "With Petco Love's local and national support, we can provide expanded access to low-cost preventative care to our community's pets, help animals get into homes faster and save more lives."

Petco Love is a nonprofit leading change for pets nationally by harnessing the power of love to make communities and pet families closer, stronger, and healthier. Since their founding in 1999 as the Petco Foundation, they've empowered organizations with $300 million invested to date in adoption and other lifesaving efforts. And, they've helped find loving homes for more than 6.5 million pets in partnership with Petco and more than 4,000 organizations, like the Sacramento SPCA, nationwide.

"Today Petco Love announces an investment in the Sacramento SPCA and hundreds of other organizations as part of our commitment to create a future in which no pet is unnecessarily euthanized," said Susanne Kogut, President of Petco Love. "Our local investments are only one component. In April, we also launched the first of our national tools to empower all animal lovers to drive lifesaving change right alongside us."

For more information about the Sacramento SPCA, visit http://sspca.org/. To learn more about Petco Love, visit http://www.petcolove.org/.

About the Sacramento SPCA

Founded in 1892, the Sacramento SPCA has been providing homeless animals with individual comfort, shelter, and love for more than 129 years. They provide compassionate medical care to tens of thousands of animals annually and offer a variety of programs and services designed to keep people and pets together for life. Visit http://sspca.org/ or follow at Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and LinkedIn.

About Petco Love (Formerly Petco Foundation)

Petco Love is a nonprofit changing lives by making communities and pet families closer, stronger, and healthier. Since our founding in 1999 as the Petco Foundation, we've empowered animal welfare organizations by investing nearly $300 million in adoption and other lifesaving efforts. We've helped find loving homes for more than 6.5 million pets in partnership with Petco and organizations nationwide.

Today, our love for pets drives us to lead with innovation, creating tools animal lovers need to reunite lost pets, and lead with passion, inspiring and mobilizing communities and our more than 4,000 animal welfare partners to drive lifesaving change alongside us. Is love calling you? Visit http://www.petcolove.org/ or follow at Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and LinkedIn to be part of the lifesaving work we're leading every day.

MEDIA CONTACTS:

Dawn Foster, Sacramento SPCA Marketing & Communications Director, dfoster@sspca.org or (916) 802-0915

Jennifer Perez, Petco Love, media@petcolove.org

he Sacramento SPCA announced today that they received a $15,000 grant investment from Petco Love, to support their lifesaving work for animals through the newly constructed Zoe K. McCrea Animal Health Center. A check presentation was held at the Petco retail store located at 855 E Bidwell Street in Folsom, California on Friday, July 9 at 11 a.m.

Related link: https://www.sspca.org/

Abyan Nur Announces Heated Menstrual Cup Kickstarter Project for Safe and Eco-Friendly Relief from Premenstrual Syndrome (PMS)

MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. /ScoopCloud/ -- Women's health enthusiast Abyan Nur and her team are introducing the Heated Menstrual Cup to help women find relief from menstrual pain and reduce or eliminate dependence on over-the-counter medication.

"Many women suffer severe discomfort and pain before and after menstruation due to cramping. For relief, most of them go for over-the-counter drugs, which offer a temporary solution," said Nur.

Abyan Nur announces a Kickstarter campaign for Heated Menstrual Cup to help women find a safe and simple way to get relief from premenstrual syndrome (PMS). The product contains two components, including a cup for collecting menstrual fluid and a removable thermogenic heating ring, which attaches to the open upper end of the cup. Heated Menstrual Cup is made from 100% hypoallergenic medical grade silicone, making them safe, comfortable, convenient, and flexible.

Pain during menstruation is common for many women and can affect physical and mental health. Abyan Nur created the Heated Menstrual Cup because of her passion and commitment to improving women's health and helping them find relief and reduce or eliminate dependence on pain relief and other drugs. While taking the pain pills, women have suffered severe and mild side effects that have left them with symptoms that affect their happiness and reduce productivity.

Heated Menstrual Cup offers so many benefits to help women maintain a healthy and pain-free menstrual cycle. It doesn't introduce any chemicals into the body, making it safe for most people no matter their age, size of the cervix, and flow rate. They are affordable and pocket-friendly, compared to other options like tampons.

Heated Menstrual cups permit multiple uses, making them a huge money saver. The product is eco-friendly and easy to maintain and clean to ensure high-level hygiene. They're also travel-friendly and will be a perfect companion for girls who like to go on vacation. So, go trekking, road trips, sightseeing, adventures, and camping without worry.

Supporters of the Heated Menstrual Cup Kickstarter campaign will have the privilege of becoming part of the product development process. They'll also get the product at a discounted price, among other perks.

For more information, please visit https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/heatedmenstrualcup/heated-menstrual-cup.

YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCh3LgQnK-PglFrvJ9kWl6Cg

VIDEO (YouTube): https://youtu.be/395EBb-uWPo

Women's health enthusiast Abyan Nur and her team are introducing the Heated Menstrual Cup to help women find relief from menstrual pain and reduce or eliminate dependence on over-the-counter medication.

Related link: https://heatedmenstrualcup.com/

Kognity raises USD 20m to improve learning in US high schools

STOCKHOLM, Sweden /ScoopCloud/ -- Kognity, a Stockholm based EdTech company with customer schools in over 100 countries, is taking the next step towards its ambition of radically improving learning globally by entering the US high school market. To support the growth journey, Kognity is partnering with leading Nordic growth investor, Alfvén & Didrikson.

Kognity launched its learning platform in 2015. Through initially targeting international curricula, the company has established a global school customer base across more than 100 countries. Following this growth, Kognity is now initiating an expansion of its offering to state curricula, starting with US high schools.

"We are beyond excited to start this next phase of our journey. Since our launch, we have helped over 1/4 million teachers and students across all continents to better learning outcomes," says Kognity's CEO, Hugo Wernhoff. "During the Covid pandemic, many schools have relied on Kognity to continue their operations. But we're only at the beginning of our journey. We're convinced that Kognity can play a role on a global scale in solving the massive challenges facing education today. Expanding to US high schools, as our first national curriculum market, is an important step towards that."

To support the growth journey, Kognity has partnered with renowned Nordic growth investor, Alfvén & Didrikson, who are now investing USD 20 million. Alfvén & Didrikson is drawing from experience of scaling global success stories such as Trustly, Acast, Quinyx and Mentimeter, in helping Kognity succeed in this next phase of its journey.

"We are very impressed by Kognity, its growth and its established market positions in existing verticals. We are now looking to back Kognity's purposeful expansion to the large and important US high school market. Over the longer term, we believe Kognity is one of few players that can address inequity in education globally. This is a meaningful mission that we are proud to support," says Alfvén & Didrikson's CEO and partner, Maria Åhr, who is joining Kognity's board of directors together with Ken Liebkind, also partner at Alfvén & Didrikson.

About Kognity

Kognity is a fast-growing EdTech company that aims to radically improve learning for 1.5 billion school students globally. Kognity provides intelligent textbooks to schools in over 100 countries on 5 continents, allowing students to learn faster and more effectively, and teachers to help students reach their goals. For more information, visit https://kognity.com/. Press contact: Carl Emilsson, carl.emilsson@kognity.com, +46709218686

About Alfvén & Didrikson

Alfvén & Didrikson is an active and long term backer of passionate entrepreneurs and teams with international growth ambitions. Since 2010, the Alfvén & Didrikson team has made investments in fast growing Northern European companies such as Trustly, Quinyx, Acast, Mentimeter, Sympa and Klevu. For more information, visit https://www.alfvendidrikson.com/.

*LOGO link for media: https://www.Send2Press.com/300dpi/21-0616s2p-kognity-300dpi.jpg

Kognity, a Stockholm based EdTech company with customer schools in over 100 countries, is taking the next step towards its ambition of radically improving learning globally by entering the US high school market. To support the growth journey, Kognity is partnering with leading Nordic growth investor, Alfvén & Didrikson.

Related link: https://kognity.com/

London Company Building Digital Ecosystem for Creators in Sub-Sahara Africa

LONDON, U.K. /ScoopCloud/ -- Pioneering London-based ForeMedia Group Plc (an international company well known for its top-rated extensive media and entertainment operations in Nigeria and United Kingdom, along with delivering Afro-centric media and entertainment to audiences worldwide), is delighted to announce that it is building the first digital ecosystem for talented entertainment creators in sub-Saharan Africa.

At this juncture in time, when diversity is being met with such strong enthusiasm, the company's strategy is to support sustainable creative initiatives, thereby enabling creators to learn, produce, distribute, and monetize their work. Various elements include new media and marketplace services and products such as content production, distribution and marketing, video streaming and advertising.

Riding the Wave of Rapid Annual Growth

Data from PwC's Entertainment & Media Outlook (2017-2021), projects that Nigeria will enjoy a rapid annual growth of 12.1%, thus making it the world's fastest-growing media and entertainment market over the upcoming years. However, due to the lack of platforms around the world which cater to African audiences, there is an urgent need for a dynamic, high capacity omni media platform. To that end, the entrepreneurial Founder/CEO, and associates of the ForeMedia Group (all of whom are renowned for their expertise in Afro-centric media and entertainment), have carried out substantial groundwork to make the ForeMedia Group the number one digital ecosystem in the whole of sub-Saharan Africa. At the core of every digital ecosystem is a platform business model, and the ForeMedia Group has built an extremely robust tech infrastructure to support its omni media platform.

Mission

"The company's strategic plan will empower one million young talents in media and entertainment in the medium/ long term and have large scale creation plans," says Hareter B. Oralusi, founder and CEO.

The ForeMedia Group provides a perfect new media and entertainment platform for young talented creators and SMEs (small and medium-sized enterprises), thus empowering them to export and create a global market for commercially feasible afro-centric content. The company's ethos is "to use the latest cutting-edge digital technology help empower the next generation of Africans through media, entertainment, and entrepreneurship; thus, spreading the wonderful diversity of Afro-centric media and entertainment all over the world." This is set to give both African and non-African people alike, a fantastic new sphere of brilliant second to none, entertainment, and media.

ForeTVHub

ForeTVHub (one of the ForeMedia Group's platforms), is dedicated to distributing the most engaging and original content. It covers media and entertainment from both ForeMedia creators and notable third-party partners. The platform continues to delight both the creators and users in new ways.

And with innovative cutting-edge sports and entertainment videos, TV shows, top rated documentaries, music, books and podcasts, and so much breaking content from across the globe, many people and their families visit the site multiple times a day. Learn more: https://foretvhub.com/

ForeMedia Creator

ForeMedia Creator is a stimulating initiative which backs and empowers the creators who work with the ForeMedia Group. It supports creators with the essential tools for success: infrastructure, equipment, technical support, distribution, and monetization.

About the Founder and CEO

Hareter B. Oralusi M.S., is a renowned visionary, serial entrepreneur, and philanthropist. He is dedicated to spreading diversity around the world and kindling economic growth in Africa (according to African Economic Outlook 2021, "Real GDP in Africa is projected to grow by 3.4 percent in 2021"). This is substantially higher than other countries.

Oralusi has substantial business experience. He founded the ForeMedia Media Group Plc (2017). Founded the London School of Social Enterprise and Sustainable Economics (2014).

Founded the Nigerian Capital Development Fund (2010). Further, he was awarded a Master of Science (M.S.) in human resource management and organizational development from the PEF, Private University for Management, in Vienna, Austria.

Learn more at: https://foremediagroup.com/

CONTACT INFORMATION

Contact person:
Timilehin Suara
Email: info@foremediagroup.com
Telephone Number: +44 7769 345 292

Address: Accelerator, 35 Kingsland Road, London, England, E2 8AA

MULTIMEDIA:

*PHOTO link for media: https://www.Send2Press.com/300dpi/21-0526s2p-formedia-group-300dpi.jpg

Pioneering London-based ForeMedia Group Plc (an international company well known for its top-rated extensive media and entertainment operations in Nigeria and United Kingdom, along with delivering Afro-centric media and entertainment to audiences worldwide), is delighted to announce that it is building the first digital ecosystem for talented entertainment creators in sub-Saharan Africa.

Related link: https://foremediagroup.com/

Pattison announces the closing of a $17 million credit facility funded by Amerisource Business Capital

CLAYTON, Iowa /ScoopCloud/ -- Pattison Company, a leading provider of high-quality industrial sand, construction aggregate, armor stone and rail car storage, will use the proceeds to refinance existing term debt and equipment debt, new projects, and working capital.

Kyle Pattison, CEO and owner of Pattison, said, "We are very pleased with the pricing, structure and covenants of the package. Amerisource will be an important partner going forward. This refinancing gives us an exceptionally strong balance sheet and the liquidity to take advantage of the numerous opportunities we have before us. Our sand, aggregate and storage businesses are all growing, and we have several new initiatives. We deeply appreciate the intense due-diligence Amerisource performed and their response which was tailored to meet all our needs."

Bill Herrington, EVP of Amerisource, added: "We are very pleased to partner with Kyle and the entire Pattison team. The company has a rich history and track record, and we look forward to supporting their continued growth and expansion."

The facility was arranged by JFM Capital Advisors, LLC and CS Merchant Capital Partners. Joe Maly, Managing Partner of JFM Capital Advisors, said, "The high overall interest level this transaction generated in the credit market is a testament to Pattison's diversified business model, their high caliber management and great team."

More information can be found here: http://www.pattisonsand.com/pattison-announces-major-refinancing-package/

MULTIMEDIA:

*LOGO link for media: https://www.Send2Press.com/300dpi/21-0517s2p-pattisonco-300dpi.jpg

Pattison Company, a leading provider of high-quality industrial sand, construction aggregate, armor stone and rail car storage, will use the proceeds to refinance existing term debt and equipment debt, new projects, and working capital.

Related link: http://www.pattisonsand.com/

NFT-craze continues: the first NFT house on the Moon is up for sale for $100,000

NEW YORK, N.Y. /ScoopCloud/ -- Today, Roman Kropachek, co-founder of CleverFiles, serial IT entrepreneur, has announced the bid for the first ever NFT house on the Moon. The project has been in development by the team of architects and 3D visual artists with a total of over 1500 hours invested in its design, and turned into a viable plan for construction, including a detailed 3D map, interior and exterior visualization and planning. The bid starts at $100,000 equivalent in Ether and is available for purchase at Open Sea.

Should the house be sold for more than $100,000, the rest of the proceeds made from the 3D digital file will head to the U.S. Space & Rocket Center Education Foundation to inspire the next generation of innovators and pioneers through technology, engineering, and mathematics programs.

"Experimenting and taking risks is an integral part of my entrepreneurial DNA. I've always wanted to create some unconventional products, and with the development of the NFT-art, the opportunity presents itself. The team and I have spent over 1500 hours in total working on it and it actually became a viable plan of the house, with its interior and exterior design, room layout, materials to be used and so much more. The buyer will not only get the originals of the digital files, but also a daytrip on my yacht in Miami as a bonus," says Roman Kropachek.

The Moon house is not the only thing to be sold as an NFT art by Kropachek. Another perfect imperfection to be auctioned, is a series of corrupted images called "Stunning Fragmentation" that were created during the data recovery with Disk Drill. The series consists of 6 images, each of them to be auctioned for $50,000 equivalent in Ether at Open Sea.

CleverFiles lab's data recovery attempts sometimes result in distorted photos. It can be considered as both: accident and art. In some cases, Disk Drill's internal algorithms and macOS file system procedures may come up with something random, unique and beautiful at the same time. File fragmentation, unpredictable internal code labyrinths, combined with version compatibility mismatch, and corrupted data storage trick Disk Drill's Deep Scan and macOS Quick Look into creating distinct art effects when reconstructing partially recovered TIFF images. One of the examples is the Star Wars wallpaper that was previously stored on macOS 11 Big Sur, turned into a corrupted file and an NFT artwork.

Both offers are available at Open Sea, the world's largest digital marketplace for crypto collectibles and non-fungible tokens (NFTs).

Learn more: https://opensea.io/assets/0x495f947276749ce646f68ac8c248420045cb7b5e/65213817091493522833689331958610492281659304869464207112996087112323771138049

About Roman Kropachek

Roman's journey in entrepreneurship started in 2000, at a time when the very young ventured into private entrepreneurship in 3D modeling, designing and development of websites, SEO, and marketing.

In 2002 he co-founded Eltima, a global technology development company providing premium software solutions for Windows, Linux macOS, and Android platforms, and where he also acts as the designer and marketing strategist. In 2009, he co-founded Cleverfiles, a company that has grown to be a top data recovery vendor in the United States. He also co-founded Netspot App, a Wi-Fi survey app for Mac.

About CleverFiles

CleverFiles is a US-based software development company, specializing in data recovery solutions, creators of Disk Drill for Mac & Windows. Our mission is to secure personal data one computer at a time. Empowering users with affordable tools to solve everyday technical challenges. Clever Data Powers Clever Decisions. For more details please visit: https://www.cleverfiles.com/

MEDIA CONTACT:
Alina Mulova
alina@cleverfiles.com
404-512-2336

MULTIMEDIA:

*VIDEO (YouTube): https://youtu.be/s1fXGTFpjTk

*IMAGE LINK FOR MEDIA: https://www.Send2Press.com/300dpi/21-0505s2p-cf-moon-house-300dpi.jpg

Today, Roman Kropachek, co-founder of CleverFiles, serial IT entrepreneur, has announced the bid for the first ever NFT house on the Moon. The project has been in development by the team of architects and 3D visual artists with a total of over 1500 hours invested.

Related link: https://www.cleverfiles.com/

Alternative Finance Network Announces New Lending Partner, Providing Cannabis Real Estate Loans Starting at 5%

DENVER, Colo. /ScoopCloud/ -- Alternative Finance Network (AFN), a leading provider of financing for the cannabis industry led by Marijuana Money Man, Scott Jordan, announces its new lending partner for single-digit real estate loans. The partnership will allow AFN to offer bank-like rates, resulting in real estate loans starting at five percent for high quality borrowers.

"This is truly a historic moment for the cannabis industry, and we could not be more excited to introduce this partnership that will allow us to deliver real estate loans in the single digits to marijuana businesses," says Scott Jordan, founder, Alternative Finance Network. "I have been an advocate for over a decade, helping cannabis companies achieve parity within the lending community. Today, we are seeing rates dropping significantly from loans I secured 10 years ago at 40 percent, to an astonishing low mark of mid-single digits. This is a trend I am extremely pleased to see and I am thrilled to be a part of the forward momentum and equality for the cannabis industry."

Low rates are available for the purchase of cannabis tenanted buildings, dispensaries, warehouses and more. The loans can provide up to 60 percent loan-to-value for purchases with bank-like rates available in all legal states for well-qualified borrowers.

For more information about real estate loans or other lending options with Alternative Finance Network, visit http://alternativefinancenetwork.com/.

About Alternative Finance Network

The Alternative Finance Network (AFN) was created by Scott Jordan, the Marijuana Money Man, in 2019 with the mission of providing multiple funding options to cannabis business owners for equipment, real estate and working capital financing. The AFN network provides access to private lenders, banks, credit unions and more with vetted capital partners. Please visit http://alternativefinancenetwork.com/ to learn more about cannabis financing options.

MEDIA CONTACT:
Jordan Callahan
Aimee Miller Marketing
303.406.8839
jordanjacksoncallahan@gmail.com

Alternative Finance Network (AFN), a leading provider of financing for the cannabis industry led by Marijuana Money Man, Scott Jordan, announces its new lending partner for single-digit real estate loans. The partnership will allow AFN to offer bank-like rates, resulting in real estate loans starting at five percent for high quality borrowers.

Related link: https://alternativefinancenetwork.com/

Rockfleet Announces Availability of CapRaize

NEW YORK, N.Y. /ScoopCloud/ -- Rockfleet Financial Services, Inc. ("Rockfleet") announced today immediate availability of CapRaize℠, enabling entrepreneurs and qualified all-stage companies seeking capital to connect seamlessly with all classes of investors, including crowdfunding enthusiasts, accredited investors, qualified purchasers, institutions, and family offices. CapRaize is now available at https://capraize.com/.

"Rockfleet believes that there is a need to keep the human element involved in the capital raising process while simultaneously amplifying access to opportunities for investors," said Cathy Corrigan, CEO of Rockfleet. "Founders of companies meeting our vetting requirements will benefit not only through targeted outreach via our sales force, but also through this new capability to reach potential investors we have not yet met."

"CapRaize allows us the advantage of creating the right balance between the high touch human connection with entrepreneurs and investors that we at Rockfleet value, while using state of the art cloud-based technology, enabling seamless interaction and transaction between the two. We see this as both a way for Rockfleet to offer our clients this service and additionally to expand access via our affiliate program to other boutique broker/dealers seeking this type of approach," added John Swift, Managing Director and Group Head of Private Capital and Wealth Management Groups at Rockfleet.

Rockfleet also announced its recent addition to the Private Capital Group, Lindi Salasko, Managing Director. Salasko is a closely-held advisor to private companies from early-stage technology businesses to multi-generational family-owned corporations. Her career began in 2000 with Brown Brothers Harriman & Co., in corporate finance. Most recently, Salasko co-founded Nuova Capital, a micro-VC fund investing in very-early-stage companies in North America and the Middle East with the aim to be the first institutional check. Prior to Nuova, she established Unison Capital FZE, a boutique investment bank headquartered in the UAE with offices in Hamburg, Hong Kong and San Francisco, focusing exclusively on cross-border transactions.

Salasko said of CapRaize, "As the landscape continuously shifts for middle market, privately-held businesses, the ability to cast a wider net to garner investment from institutions, family offices and accredited investors is more necessary than ever for these companies to achieve growth. The launch of a digital fundraising platform of CapRaize's breadth and caliber could not come at a better time!"

POSITIVE IMPACT

Several of Rockfleet's institutional clients seek to benefit from early adoption of CapRaize℠:

Sonatafy Technology, a client-centric focused technology services company featuring nearshore software developers, recently committed to the CapRaize platform to complement its capital raising efforts to address its need for growth capital while diversifying its investor base in a meaningful and responsible way.

Kannact™, a digital health company providing chronic management solutions, is augmenting its traditional capital raising efforts with CapRaize to address its need for growth capital for its rapidly expanding business.

TwoWayMed™, a cloud based, healthcare services marketplace for the under- and un-insured, is using CapRaize to heighten investor awareness of its initial seed capital round, complementing Rockfleet's sales efforts.

AuthentiFact℠, the provider of DLGNZ℠ - an online marketplace that seeks to democratize the due diligence process by expanding companies' access to a larger, diversified pool of due diligence services providers - is launching its initial capital raise on CapRaize.

About Rockfleet

Founded in 2008, Rockfleet is a recognized leader in financial services. The company offers a wide range of products and services designed to bring and execute the best choices for its clients. For mor information about Rockfleet, visit https://rockfleetfinancial.com/.

Rockfleet and CapRaize are either registered service marks or service marks of Rockfleet.

The names of actual companies and products mentioned herein may be the trademarks or service marks of their respective owners.

@rockfleet @CapRaize

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Rockfleet Financial Services, Inc. ("Rockfleet") announced today immediate availability of CapRaize℠, enabling entrepreneurs and qualified all-stage companies seeking capital to connect seamlessly with all classes of investors, including crowdfunding enthusiasts, accredited investors, qualified purchasers, institutions, and family offices.