Despite the headwinds of a presidential election year, a poor economy and high interest rates, 2024 has been a busy year for VisionTechportfolio company, many of which have continued to make measurable progress. VisionTech member-investors have also demonstrated resilience and enthusiasm, completely multiple follow-on rounds with our portfolio companies. As we close out the year and into “Santa Season,” we’re gifting you with a roundup of updates encompassing news from September-November. Keep in mind, we still have one month to go in 2024. We may have more big news soon!
PORTFOLIO COMPANY NEWS
ADIPO THERAPEUTICS
Indianapolis-based biotech startup Adipo Therapeutics presented scientific data in June at the American Diabetes Association Scientific Sessionin Orlando that demonstrated that their lead asset, ADPO-002NP, can effectively “brown” white adipose tissue in humans. Studies with white adipose tissue from patients undergoing bariatric surgery have shown the expression and up-regulation of two key biomarkers in the process of mitochondrial biogenesis (browning of white adipose tissue,) which has the potential to increase energy expenditure or calories burned.
Adipo welcomed two new team members this fall. Marco Verwijs, PhD, is a senior CMC advisor for Adipo and has over 18 years of product development and manufacturing experience. He has a passion for bringing meaningful drugs to patients and has worked on multiple commercial products, leading them from clinical product development through NDA filing and commercial launch. He joins Adipo from Aerovate Therapeutics, where he served as chief technical officer responsible for developing and manufacturing its drug-device product for pulmonary delivery. He has also worked at Vertex, Flexion Therapeutics, and Epizyme.
Sumitra Ghate joined Adipo as vice president of Product Development and Global Regulatory Affairs. She has nearly 30 years of experience in drug development across both large pharma and emerging biotech firms. Sumitra spent almost two decades at Eli Lilly in Chemistry, Manufacturing and Controls (CMC) and Regulatory Affairs. Much of her time was spent advancing diabetes therapies. Notably, she played a pivotal regulatory lead role in the development and submission of the market application for Trulicity (GLP-1 analog), as well as leading submissions across the insulin portfolio.
AKADEUM LIFE SCIENCES
Akadeum Is closing out 2024 with solid progress. Akadeum, which has developed a patent-protected flotation-based separation platform that is revolutionizing biotech workflows across cell therapy, research, diagnostic, and therapeutic markets, continues to make progress. The Ann Arbor, Michigan-based company currently has two demo units of its AlerionTM Microbubble Cell Separation System in the field with cell therapy customers who are either looking to use Akadeum products in process development or in active clinical trials. The Alerion instrument will be commercially launched in Q1 2025.
CEO Brandon McNaughton reports demand for the Alerion instrument is growing, with multiple users interested in integrating it into upcoming clinical trials. Additionally, Akadium has received continued market validation of its industry-first ability to isolate untouched T cells at scale. It successfully completed its first customer GMP audit. Akadeum has also identified FDA-registered, third-party manufacturing sites ready to help scale the company’s product line. Kits are currently available for cell therapy, purification, culture cleanup, and small-scale immunology research. Akadeum is actively collaborating with federal and corporate partners. Inquiries should be directed here.
AMPLIFIED SCIENCES
Amplified Sciences’ lead diagnostic test, PanCystPro, received regulatory clearance in its CLIA certified lab in late July, a major milestone. Congratulations to the Amplified Sciences team and to Jessica Alvarez who led the assay validation efforts with partners at ResearchDX. The company is now shifting focus to the commercialization of the PanCystPro test. This includes navigating the gauntlet to Medicare reimbursement, a pivotal clinical utility trial, and providing PanCystPro to a targeted number of clinicians and patients through an Early Access Program in early 2025.
CEO Diana Caldwell reported several more recent wins. Amplified Sciences has delivered a second assay, PanHGLG, to further risk stratify patients diagnosed with pancreatic cystic lesions. The assay was able to accurately grade the level of dysplasia as demonstrated in a multi-analyte assay in a diverse cohort of 70 patients. The company has submitted two NIH-NCI grants totaling over $3.4M in potential awards.
The company has earned well-deserved recognition this year. It won the Innovation Showcase’s Pitch Competition’s Life Sciences Division in June, an honor that came with $10,000 in cash and a $25,000 investment from Elevate Ventures. In September, Amplified Sciences took first place in the RESI Innovators Pitch Challenge and Judges Pick in Boston.
Amplified Sciences has added tremendous bench strength to its team with the additions of (L-R) Mike Poderycki, PhD, Director of Research and Technology; Daniel Beck, PhD, Senior Scientist in Chemistry; and Kaitlyn Varela, PhD, Post Doctoral Associate. Poderycki and Beck have nearly 30 years of combined industry and research experience. Varela is launching her career with Amplified. Congratulations to all!
AUGMENT THERAPY
Augment Therapy has teamed up with Niantic, Inc., creators of hit augmented reality games like Pokémon GO and Peridot. The collaboration aims to elevate rehabilitative care by integrating the beloved Peridot virtual pets into the realm of physical rehabilitation, focusing on both pediatric and geriatric care. Patients will engage with their virtual “Dots” within Augment Therapy’s ARWell apps by performing therapeutic movements like throwing, brushing, and walking that are designed to improve mobility and well-being.
Augment Therapy will pilot Peridot-inspired experiences in clinical settings, encouraging patients to stay active and adhere to their therapy programs. The company also plans to conduct multi-phased research to measure how these digital companions can enhance patient motivation and performance. The partnership opens up endless possibilities for improving rehabilitation outcomes in fun, engaging ways.
Asim Ahmed, Global Product Marketing Lead for Niantic, said, “We’re impressed by Augment Therapy’s success in using augmented reality for physical rehabilitation. Together, we’re excited to create engaging therapeutic experiences within the Peridot franchise that transform recovery into a playful journey, enhancing motivation, and making therapy more enjoyable for patients of all ages.”
Early this fall, Augment Therapy traveled to New York City to participate in the National Down Syndrome Society’s Buddy Walk. CEO Lindsay Watson and her team performed more than 50 live demonstrations of their ARWell app with participants as young as two years old. Check out the fun here. They also shared their software with Kate Eberle Walker, CEO of Presence, a leading provider of teletherapy services to some 10,000 schools and 2,000 therapists. This led to meaningful conversations on the benefits Augment Therapy could bring to the Presence network, particularly in improving therapy engagement for students with special needs. Augment Therapy also met with members of the Sesame Street Workshop, with whom they have a partnership. Augment Therapy has been a VisionTech portfolio company since 2021.
ELEVATE K-12
Piyush Lumba was named CEO of Elevate K-12 on September 18, 2024. Prior to joining Elevate K-12 in 2022, Lumba served in executive leadership roles at Microsoft, Amazon, and CommerceIQ. Founder and former CEO Shailey Baranwal will continue as Chair of the Board and Chief Learning Officer, focusing on advancing the category of LIVE teaching, forming strategic partnerships, and gathering insights from districts, teachers, and students to help enhance the company’s solutions. Elevate K-12 joined the VisionTech portfolio in 2018.
ONSTATION
OnStation hosted its first in-person OnStation Nation on October 1. For the past two years, this was a virtual event and featured OnStation team members only. In 2024, five customers and two prospects traveled to Cleveland for two days of conversation around what they like, want improved, or added to the collaborative digital stationing platform for highway construction projects. OnStation received valuable input for its product roadmap and gathered use case stories. Those in attendance felt the passion of the OnStation team, and asked if they can come back to next year’s OnStation Nation. One more bonus of the event: CEO Patrick Russo reports that six-figure proposals were written for both prospects and have a strong likelihood of closing.
FLYTE BY PELVITAL
Effective October 1, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) granted PelVital’s Flyte device for treating female stress urinary incontinence a new HCPCS code. PelVital has also received confirmation from Minnesota Medicaid that they are moving Flyte’s HCPCS code from non-covered to covered with prior authorization. This is a significant win for multiple reasons. First, it is the first positive reimbursement policy from a non-Veterans Administration payer. Second, it enables PelVital to drive Medicaid prescriptions in Minnesota. And third, it establishes a precedent to use with other payers in Minnesota as well as other state Medicaid agencies.
Flyte, the only at-home therapy of its kind that offers users surgical level results without surgery, has begun shipping its Gen 1.5 device that now includes an app. This upgrade allows the capture of users’ outcome data, supporting clinical care. Flyte users as well as those considering the device also receive expert support from licensed physical therapists to answer questions and ensure proper use.
HEALIONICS
Healionics has received the FDA’s Breakthrough Device designation for its innovative STARgraft vascular graft. The STARgraft arteriovenous graft is intended to provide a safer, more reliable means of dialysis access in patients with kidney failure. The FDA’s Breakthrough Devices Program aims to identify important new medical devices that provide more effective treatment of life-threatening and irreversibly debilitating conditions. The Program fast-tracks FDA regulatory review in order to provide timely access for patients and healthcare providers. Healionics’ Breakthrough Device designation signifies FDA acknowledgment that STARgraft clinical outcomes show evidence of significant advantages over current alternatives for dialysis access. The benefits of receiving Breakthrough Device designation include expedited interactions with FDA regarding market clearance and with Medicare regarding potential added reimbursement for healthcare providers.
“FDA recognition of STARgraft’s potential to significantly improve the standard of care and quality of life for dialysis patients is a major company milestone and validation of our team’s efforts,” said Healionics CEO Mike Connolly. Read press release here.
In August, Healionics announced that all patients in its current clinical trial of STARgraft had reached the 12-month endpoint with excellent results. The 12-patient cohort implanted with the current version of STARgraft maintained 100% primary unassisted patency through 12 months post-implant, meaning zero interventions were required to maintain sufficient blood flow for dialysis therapy. A zero-infection rate was also achieved. These results are for a limited number of patients, but far exceed the performance of on-market grafts as reported in historical literature and as observed for the Gore-Tex graft control arm of our first clinical trial. The results were recently presented by Dr. John Ross at a major clinical conference, Controversies in Dialysis Access Symposium. Healionics continues to follow patients in this trial, and median duration of functioning implants is now more than 19 months.
HOW’S MOM
In January 2024, Matt Prasek became CEO of Howe’s Mom and made significant changes to the company’s market strategy to better align with customers’ needs. This included doubling pricing and opening new avenues for growth. One of these is a partnership with Midwest Insurance Group (MIG) established in March. This agreement covers the cost of the How’s Mom Platform automated communications for all 500 senior care facilities insured by MIG. The partnership has contributed to a 56% increase in How’s Mom’s growth resulting in a doubling of annual recurring revenue in just six months. Prasek says the company’s focus for the remainder of the year is to continue success with MIG and scale this model to other carriers to achieve faster growth.
LAXIS
Laxis has introduced OSO: The AI-powered earbud revolutionizing conversations. OSO is an AI-powered personal assistant that is designed to capture, transcribe, and summarize conversations effortlessly. Powered by Laxis AI, OSO records in-person discussions, phone calls, and virtual meetings, generating real-time transcriptions and summaries in 50+ languages. With seamless integration across platforms like Zoom, Google Meet, Teams, Hubspot, and Salesforce, OSO gives users’ productivity a serious upgrade.View promotional video here.
Laxis will be exhibiting its AI-powered sales automation solution at CES, the most powerful tech event in the world, January 7-10, 2025, in Las Vegas. It is the premier show for introducing hot tech, making deals and connections. Additionally, Forbes recently published an article submitted by Laxis that explores how AI is transforming the sales landscape. Read it here.
MENTAVI HEALTH
Mentavi Health, a provider of mental health diagnosis and treatment, has introduced a new affordable offering aimed at helping individuals proactively steward their mental wellness. The Mentavi Mental Wellness Snapshot is a tool that provides a quick, accessible gauge of a person’s mental wellness. It takes about 20 minutes to complete and costs $29.99, with the option for employers to cover the cost for employees. The assessment provides a Mental Wellness Score of Green Zone (all is well), Yellow Zone (consider some proactive actions), and Red (seek further specialist help). The Wellness Score includes detailed breakdowns across various conditions such as anxiety, depression, PTSD, dementia warning signs, ADHD, and loneliness. These results can help determine if a comprehensive diagnostic evaluation and treatment are needed. Contact Corey Hart for more information. Mentavi Health (ADHD Online) joined the VisionTech portfolio in 2023.
NUVOX
NuvOx Co-founder, Dr. Evan Unger, won the 2024 Harry Fischer Award for Excellence in Contrast Media Research (CMR). The award recognizes Unger’s exceptional contributions to the field of contrast media research. A commemorative medal was conferred at the annual CMR meeting in October in Oslo, Norway, in early October. Unger, executive chairman of Nuvox Therapeutics, has been at the forefront of ultrasound contrast agent development since 1994. He pioneered the best-selling microbubble contrast agent, Perflutren, and continues to innovate at NuvOx by applying his expertise in microbubble technology to develop nanobubbles for oxygen delivery, the basis of NuvOx’s product, NanO2TM.
Commenting on behalf of CMR, Dr. Jeff Bulte, a professor of Radiology and director of Cellular Imaging at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, said, “This award honors a long-term track record of outstanding research that has significantly shaped the field of contrast media. Specifically, Dr. Unger is recognized for his work toward the creation, thorough characterization, and demonstration of the feasibility of ultrasound contrast agents in clinical practice.”
FLYTE BY PELVITAL
PelVital is capitalizing on growth opportunities within the Veterans Administration (VA). Sales of the Flyte device for female urinary incontinence within VA health centers rose by 10% in September over August. In that same time period, the number of contracted VA Centers rose 17% with 27 centers contracted. PelVital CEO Lydia Zeller says the VA represents a significant growth opportunity as it operates a total of 160 health centers across the United States. PelVital has broadened its prescriber base beyond OB/GYNs to include Primary Care/Family Medicine physicians and nurse practitioners, a move that will increase access to the Flyte device and grow sales.
ONSTATION
OnStation has welcomed a former Montana DOT official, Mack Long, as a strategic advisor. Long is responsible for guiding relationships with public sector officials, research and grant funding. Long has 30 years of industry experience, including serving as director of the Montana Department of Transportation. Long also chaired the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials’ Construction Committee. Learn more here.
TRIO LABS
Trio Labs sees more growth from commercial production.The company, which combines the speed of metal additive manufacturing with the precision of CNC machining to create complex, microscale parts, is seeing more growth from customers transitioning from prototypes to in-market production and from those in full scale production. Trio Labs CEO Adam Steege reports that third quarter revenue exceeded the company’s target by 5% despite anticipated seasonal slowdowns. Trio Labs has also made progress in adding production capacity to meet customer demand. It recently qualified a strategic partner to bolster capacity and supply security.
SCALE COMPUTING
Scale Computing was named in Gartner® Hype Cycle™ for Data Center Infrastructure Technologies this year. A market leader in edge computing, virtualization and hyperconverged solutions, Scale Computing announced on September 18 it was recognized as a Sample Vendor in the 2024 Gartner® Hype Cycle™ for Data Center Infrastructure Technologies. Commenting on the news, CEO and Co-founder Jeff Ready said, “Scale Computing has long been dedicated to developing innovative solutions that empower businesses to meet their goals in an increasingly complex IT environment.” Read the release here. Scale Computing joined the VisionTech portfolio in 2015.
SPINTECH HOLDINGS
SpinTech has added two to its Board Directors. VisionTech is pleased to announce that VisionTech member-investor Gail Rominger has joined the Board of Directors of SpinTech Holdings. Rominger is president of Rominger Consulting and has more than 30 years of experience in business development. In addition to VisionTech, she is an active mentor, investor, and founder of Dayton, Ohio, area startups. Brian Schafer, managing director of McKenna & Associates, has also joined the SpinTech Board. McKenna is a fast-growing advisory and investment firm that manages complex mergers and assists on government arbitrage efforts for Fortune 500 companies and high-net-worth individuals. Schafer also served more than 25 years in the U.S. Air Force, including time as an F-15 fighter pilot.
3AWARE
Congratulations to CEO Bill Moss and the 3Aware team on becoming VisionTech’s newest portfolio company. Twenty-two VisionTech investors wrote checks totaling $145,500 in the deal. Headquartered in Indianapolis, 3Aware has a first of its kind, real-time software surveillance platform, aiSurveillance™, for the post-market life cycle of medical devices. Moss originally pitched VisionTech August 31, 2024.
WICKED TECHNOLOGIES
Wicked Technologies continues to meet key milestones in commercializing its Wicked Smart Pad. Designed to combat moisture-related bed sores in seniors, the Wicked Smart Pad is a washable, reusable, sensorized bed pad that detects moisture in real-time and sends alerts to caregivers for quicker response to incontinence events. According to CEO Alli Truttmann, the company is hitting its regulatory pathway target with FDA registration. Wicked Technologies does not need FDA approval as a 510(k) exempt device, just a registration once its Quality Management System is complete. The company’s in-house manufacturing success rate is 98.6% on pads and 97% on modules/software. Additional pad connector modifications are underway to increase durability when laundering the pads. On the sales side, in early October Wicked Technologies successfully installed 23 paying beds at Atria Senior Living’s flagship luxury senior living residence, Coterie, in Hudson Yards, New York.
ZIVE
Zive, the creator of Kiwi for Gmail, was invited to participate in the Google Growth Accelerator Program. The accelerator has given Zive direct access to Google marketing experts who have been working alongside the Zive team to refine its marketing approach. Under Google’s guidance, Zive has created new content, targeted new demographics, and explored new pathways to revenue by hitting new keywords. Customer conversion tracking has also been optimized. As a result of these efforts, Zive has increased its marketing spend-to-return ratio from $1.35 to $1.49 in which every dollar spent on ads returns $1.49 in sales. A Q1 marketing blitz is planned to start 2025 strong. See how Kiwi enhances users’ Gmail and office suite experience in this video.
CLOSED ROUNDS
Adipo Therapeutics Secures New VisionTech Funding
VisionTech investors, who wrote checks totaling $242,000 to Adipo Therapeutics in April 2023, invested another $166,000 in early November. VisionTech’s total investment now stands at $408,000. Indiana-based Adipo is advancing a novel treatment to fight the global obesity epidemic. Adipo’s Series A Equity round seeks to raise between $6M and $12M.
GEOH Closes Seed Plus Round at $3M; Focused on Putting Funds to Work
GEOH, whose user-friendly software platform is tailored to meet the complex needs of home health agency owners, closed its $3M Seed Plus Round at the end of June. Under the leadership of CEO Tom Bumgardner and CFO David Gunn, GEOH has achieved a 260% increase in year-over-year revenue growth. Proceeds from the round are directed to sales and marketing, expanding geographic footprint, and a hiring business development leader. GEOH became a VisionTech portfolio company in 2022.
iCHOR Vascular Closed $6 Million Series A Round.
iCHOR oversubscribed its Series A Round by $1 million that closed this summer. Queen City Angels led the round with participation from VisionTech and other investors. iCHOR, guided by CEO Tim Blair, is commercializing a platform technology for opening vascular occlusions (blood clots). iCHOR’s first device recently received 510(k) market clearance from the FDA and will be commercially available in October 2024. iCHOR became a VisionTech portfolio company in 2024.
1LogTech Successfully Closes Round with VisionTech Investors.
On Monday, October 21, VisionTech closed its round with 1LogTech. Twenty-one VisionTech investors wrote checks totaling $132,500 to the group’s newest portfolio company. Led by CEO JP Wiggins,1LogTech is providing the first transportation-focused integration platform as a service (iPaaS) enabling shippers to self-deploy and maintain carrier integrations. Wiggins originally pitched VisionTech in May 2024.
OnStation Closes $8.5 million Series A Round in June, Nabs Award.
Congratulations to CEO Patrick Russo and OnStation team! The round was led by Hardik DeSai and JumpStart Ventures. VisionTech participated, with 37 investors contributing $467,000. VisionTech has invested $1.27 million over three rounds since 2021 when OnStation became a portfolio company. In early September, OnStation was selected as a winner of the Ohio Venture Pipeline All-Star Class of 2024. The award recognized OnStation’s success in closing its Series A round as well as strong growth.
Pelvital Closes $1.5 Million Series Seed Plus Round.
Pelvital CEO Lydia Zeller reported strong demand for Pelvital’s Series Seed Plus financing round, which closed fully subscribed in early September at the maximum authorized amount of $1.5 million. Pelvital is commercializing Flyte, the only at-home, intra-vaginal device that treats stress urinary incontinence in women. Pelvital became a VisionTech portfolio company in 2023. Stay tuned for updates on commercialization of the Flyte device in October.
Wicked Technologies Led by CEO Alli Truttman Closes Second Round with VisionTech.
Wicked Technologies CEO Alli Truttmann first pitched VisionTech in October 2023, becoming a portfolio company in early 2024 with an investment of $281,000. Truttmann presented a follow-on round opportunity in October and secured another $100,000 from 15 investors. To date, 35 unique VisionTech investors have ante upped $381,000 to support commercialization of the sensorized Wicked Smart Pad, which is solving the issue of moisture-related bed sores in the elderly.
OPEN ROUNDS AS OF DECEMBER 1
HAPPE Spine Led by Interim CEO and Co-Founder Dr. Ryan Roeder Is Raising a $1.5M Bridge Round.
Roughly 18 months after FDA clearance, early-growth startup HAPPE Spine’s progress is impressive. Some 30 surgeons across the U.S. have implanted more than 700 INTEGRATE-C Interbody Fusion Cages in 300+ patients with cervical disc degeneration with positive outcomes. HAPPE is looking to expand its patented material and manufacturing platform to other orthopedic applications. This round will close soon.
Nuvox Therapeutics Led by CEO Dr. Evan Unger Is Raising $7M to Complete Three Active Clinical Trials.
This round is intended to mitigate any risks for completing three clinical trials: Phase IIb trials in gioblastoma and stroke and a Phase Ib in ARDS. The raise includes two tranches, with a first tranche of $3M. This will extend Nuvox’s runway on its trials. The company is pursuing non-dilutive funding through the National Cancer Institute and has two grants under consideration.
Scioto Biosciences Led by CFO and Founder Jim Schutz, Is Raising a $750K Bridge Round.
A VisionTech portfolio company since 2018, Scioto Biosciences is developing the next generation of formulated live bacterial therapeutics leveraging the gut-brain axis to optimize microbiome delivery to benefit children and adults with autism and GI disorders. Studies of autistic children treated with Scioto’s therapeutic are promising.
Seneca Therapeutics Is Raising a $10M Round.
A VisionTech portfolio company since 2021, Seneca Therapeutics led by CEO Jim Hussey is developing revolutionary immunotherapeutic candidates to provide advanced targeted treatments for solid cancer tumors. A final capital call is expected in December.
We hope you have enjoyed this isionTech portfolio company news round up. If you have questions about these companies or are interested in joining VisionTech as a member-investor, please reach out to Executive Director Ben Pidgeon. Find his contact information here. If you’re interested in pitching our group, learn more here.