Dear friends of SOSV,
We hope you’re having a beautiful September! The big news is the U.S. HAX headquarters in Newark, New Jersey. In partnership with NJEDA and New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy, this $50M project will support industrial, healthcare, and climate startups. Big props go out to the passionate HAX team whose hard work made it all possible. Read the coverage TechCrunch.
The SOSV Climate Tech Summit (Oct 20–21) is fast approaching. In fact, we have just announced our Main Stage Agenda and Breakout Sessions, designed to support founders and investors who are eager to develop a stronger climate tech ecosystem. Don’t miss Gates, Khosla, Fadell, Kra, Valeti, Rae, and many more. Register here.
As if that’s not enough news, check out IndieBio’s beautifully revamped website — indiebio.co. Do take a look.
Not to be outdone, our cross-border, mobile-first program MOX held its 11th demo day at the end of August. Read the coverage in TechInAsia.
Lastly, in the new #WhoMadeThis? SOSV Managing GP Sean O’Sullivan chats with HAX alum Jam Zhang of Tinkamo, maker of interactive building blocks.
Stay well, everyone.
SOSV Portfolio Highlights
OpenTrons (HAX) raised $200M (led by Softbank) for easy-to-use lab robots that increased NYC’s Covid-19 testing capacity. The company is now valued at $1.8B. Read more.
Coutloot (MOX) raised $9M to build India’s largest offline to online (O2O) buying and selling platform. Read more.
Unspun (HAX) raised $7.5M for on-demand custom-fit jeans, cutting waste from the fashion industry. Read more.
Treepz — f.k.a Plentywaka (MOX) raised $1.2M to scale its shared mobility platform in Africa. Read more.
Vidyakul (MOX) raised $500k to enhance functionality of its e-learning platform. Read more.
The CareVoice (Chinaccelerator), a health insurtech startup, secured additional capital as part of its ongoing series B round. Read more.
RoboDeck (HAX), a Roomba-like robot for outdoor deck maintenance, nailed it at the TechCrunch Disrupt Startup Battlefield competition. Read more.
Simbe (HAX) struck a deal to bring its autonomous inventory-tracking robot, Tally, to all 111 Schnuck’s Market locations across the US. Read more.
dcSpark (dlab) announced their milkomeda sidechain architecture to help increase adoption and usability of alternative L1 blockchains. Read more.
Huue (IndieBio) will now use Ginkgo Bioworks’ automated synthetic biology platform to make more environmentally-friendly indigo dye. Read more.
Upside Foods — f.k.a. Memphis Meats (IndieBio) is partnering with Michelin-starred chef Dominique Crenn to put cultivated chicken meat on her menu. Read more.
Follow us on Linkedin and Twitter to stay up-to-date with news as it happens!
Media Highlights
SOSV Climate Tech 100 Startups value grows by 44% in 5 months • Benjamin Joffe on Medium • The Climate Tech 100 list financials were due for an update and 25 startups on the list raised new funding. The largest contributors to the jump in valuation were major raises at NotCo, Formlabs, and R-Zero.
SOSV unveils 6 startups as part of its 11th consumer tech cohort • TechInAsia • Technology from smartphones is transforming lives from Pakistan to Indonesia. Learn about six new startups from SOSV MOX 11.
Meet the company making mouse meat cat treats without harming animals • CNBC • SOSV-backed company Because, Animals creates alt protein cat treats from lab-cultured mouse meat. The mice who supplied the biopsies “live in a rather plush mouse house.”
Why Vegan Cheese Doesn’t Melt • WIRED • In this video, IndieBio alum Inja Radman, CSO and co-founder of New Culture, explains how to make vegan cheese melt, bubble, and stretch like cheese from cows.
Meet the black-owned agritech company on a mission to tackle climate change and food insecurity • ESSENCE • After years of hard work and networking, Tinia Pina, CEO of SOSV-backed Re_Nuble can boast that many farmers are reducing the level of carbon dioxide emissions by replacing their synthetic mineral fertilizers with her products.
Avalo uses machine learning to accelerate the adaptation of crops to climate change • TechCrunch • Take a deep dive into IndieBio alum Avalo’s project to radically speed up development of the new crop strains we need to address climate change and feed the world
Nura offers a smaller, cheaper version of its wireless earbuds for rent • TechCrunch • For $5/month, HAX alum Nura’s hardware-as-a-service model allows people to enjoy a dramatically enhanced listening experience with custom sound profiles.
Inside the Hermès Workshop That Makes Its Iconic Bags • Vanity Fair • IndieBio’s MycoWorks was featured in a photo essay of production inside the famed Hermès workshop. While Hermes is known for working with only the finest leather, the piece discusses its planned future use of fine goods made from MycoWorks‘ “Fine Mycelium.”️
Upcoming SOSV Event
SOSV Climate Tech Summit • October 20–21 • Join top investors, founders, and scientists to discuss climate tech as an emerging category for startups and venture investing. This is a free, virtual event. Register here.
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