As a reminder, our monthly newsletters will now open with commentary from different Anzu team members. This month, we’ll hear from our Principal, Jimmy Kan, Ph.D., and he will discuss our portfolio company, Niron Magnetics and relevant updates there as rare-earth prices continue to rise and technological innovation becomes even more critical.
– David, David, Whitney
Hello!
I’m Jimmy Kan and I help lead the investment team at Anzu Partners, with a particular emphasis on hardware, AI/ML, and next-generation materials. We wanted to take this opportunity to introduce you to Niron Magnetics, one of our portfolio companies that has recently been in the news with the close of a new tranche of funding from Western Digital, the innovative magnetic materials and data storage company. This is also timely given the Biden-Harris Administration’s announcement of increased investment in the domestic production of key critical materials and minerals to break dependence on China and boost sustainable practices in the U.S.
As you read this newsletter, within your arm’s reach, you’ll be able to find several devices powered by one of the most underappreciated and misunderstood technologies in modern electronics – permanent magnets. These magnets play a vital role in devices that we use every day: computers, headphones, power tools, electric vehicles, generators, and more.
However, despite their ubiquity in our everyday lives and the pace at which the world is electrifying with renewable energy and electric vehicles, there has been very limited innovation in magnetic materials. These high-performance magnets have remained largely unchanged since the 1980s and are usually made using rare-earth metals that are expensive, environmentally damaging to mine, and suffer from major geopolitical issues that impact supply chain stability. These problems have recently been highlighted in the media as rare-earth metals prices hit record highs in February and major government programs have scrambled to attempt to address the issues.
At Anzu, we have focused our Next-Generation Materials investing in technologies that address a major mismatch between the pace of fundamental materials innovation and application deployment demand. To help scout for these opportunities, we have built up our capabilities around the expertise of more than ten team members with backgrounds in materials science, chemical engineering, mechanical & aerospace engineering, and other deeply technical disciplines. With magnets, it became clear that the world would not be able to “build mines to demand” for economic and environmental reasons and that global shortages of rare-earth metals would present before 2030 as we continue our rapid transition to a low-carbon economy.
Enter Niron Magnetics. Niron was founded out of research sponsored by the US Advanced Research Projects Agency (ARPA-E) at the University of Minnesota and is now developing the world’s first commercial high-performance magnets free of rare-earth metals. By combining breakthroughs in nanomaterials with mature metallurgical methods, Niron can create Clean Earth Magnets from a combination of commonly available iron and nitrogen raw materials that can be sourced globally and sustainably. In addition, the production process is up to 95% less environmentally damaging and results in magnets at less than half the cost compared to currently used rare-earth magnets.
With all these benefits, Niron has attracted the attention of several major automotive, audio speaker, power tool, wind turbine, and consumer electronics companies around the world as potential customers and development partners. The advantages of Niron’s Clean Earth Magnets have convinced the most recent round of forward-thinking, strategic investors who have backed Niron:
“By investing in the technological advancements happening at Niron, we are able to help build a more sustainable electric economy from the inside out,” said Pratik Budhdev, Global Investment Director of Volvo Cars Tech Fund.
“Western Digital is driving toward a more sustainable supply chain, and magnets play a critical role in that chain for HDDs,” said Dan Steere, Senior Vice President, Western Digital Capital. "While most of the materials used in our HDDs are plentiful and readily available, rare-earth magnets are difficult to process and available only in limited geographies and quantities. Niron’s technology has the potential to help strengthen our supply chain and reduce the life cycle impacts of our products.”
We are delighted to see the progress Niron has made since our early investment and have been glad to work alongside the team over the years in areas spanning technology R&D, business development, marketing, and recruiting, and are looking forward to a green future powered by Clean Earth Magnets!
Sincerely, Jimmy Kan
PORTFOLIO COMPANY UPDATES
Aspinity launched the AML100, the first analog machine learning chip for always-on devices
Aspinity launched the first member of its analogML family, the AML100, which is the industry’s first and only tiny machine learning (ML) solution operating completely within the analog domain. The AML100 reduces always-on system power by 95%, allowing manufacturers to dramatically extend the battery life of today’s devices or migrate walled powered always-on devices to the battery - opening whole new classes of products for voice-first systems, home, and commercial security, predictive and preventative maintenance, and biomedical monitoring.
The AML100 delivers substantial system-level power savings by moving the ML workload to ultra-low-power analog, where the AML100 can determine data relevancy with a high degree of accuracy and at near-zero power. This makes the AML100 the only tinyML chip that intelligently reduces data at the sensor while the data is still analog and keeps the digital components in low power mode until important data is detected, thereby eliminating the power penalty of digitization, digital processing, and transmission of irrelevant data.
Niron announced it has received a strategic investment from Western Digital Capital, the investment arm of data storage solutions provider Western Digital. The new funding will enable Niron to build upon its innovative Clean Earth Magnet™ to deliver better performance at lower costs while eliminating the need for rare earth materials.
Since Niron’s production process is up to 95% less damaging across certain environmental impacts than alternatives, this investment will drive the data storage industry toward a more sustainable future. Specifically, Western Digital sees promising potential for Niron’s next-generation Clean Earth Magnet™ to be used in hard disk drives for enterprise cloud storage, data centers, and more.
NTx recently received a grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to develop new production approaches to improve global access to mRNA vaccines and therapeutics. With this grant, NTx plans to advance novel solutions for mRNA production, which will help lower the cost and improve access to mRNA vaccines and therapeutics, particularly in low- and middle-income countries.
The NTx platform will commercialize cell-free continuous flow manufacturing for mRNA and protein-based medical products. The purpose of the platform development is to get innovative medicines to patients more quickly and improve global supply chains.
NTx’s mission to improve global vaccine access was also covered in a story from the Rio Rancho Observer.
BioSkryb signed a new distribution agreement with ALS Automated Lab Solutions GmbH
BioSkryb Genomics and ALS Automated Lab Solutions GmbH, developer of a multi-patented spatial single-cell and colony picking technology platform, have signed a new U.S. distribution agreement to power comprehensive single-cell plus spatial genomic analysis. The distribution agreement combines BioSkryb’s proprietary ResolveDNA™ technology with the ALS CellCelector™ platform to drive single-cell genomic applications where the genome context matters and will also help develop single-cell genome analysis from intact tissue samples.
With the combination of BioSkryb’s proprietary ResolveDNA technology and the ALS CellCelector platform, researchers and clinicians can perform single-cell genomics from cells isolated at a specific location. The companies are collaborating to extend the analysis of intact tissue specimens, where a single cell is selected from the organized cell structure and analyzed with high-resolution genome analysis. This process is designed to maintain the cell context of their original environment and provides critical information for many fields, including oncology, cardiology, neurology, immunology, and preimplantation genetic testing, that could help guide diagnostics and treatment decisions.
ImmunoScape announced it has signed a licensing deal with Pure MHC, LLC, a target discovery and development company, to advance the development of novel TCR-based therapies. Using ImmunoScapes’ Deep Immunomics platform and Pure MHC’s library of T cell antigens to accelerate the identification of novel T cell receptors and pursue TCR-T therapeutics for lung cancer, colorectal cancer, and other cancers.
ImmunoScape’s unique Deep Immunomics platform enables high-throughput screening of potential targets by utilizing proprietary barcoding technology to enable the discovery of rare, therapeutically-relevant T cells. Pure MHC has developed an in-depth library of T cell antigens specific to tumor cells, which are optimal targets for TCR-T therapeutics. The licensing deal will allow ImmunoScape to pursue TCR-T therapeutics using this library and accelerate the identification of novel T cell receptors for therapeutic development.
GelSight appointed Rony Abovitz and Elliot Katzman to its Board of Directors
GelSight expanded its Board of Directors with two new members who will help guide the company’s transformation into a tactile intelligence platform. Rony Abovitz and Elliot Katzman are both experienced technology and business leaders who will help GelSight further develop its AI-driven tactile sensing platform, advise on strategic direction, and continue expansion into new markets.
Rony Abovitz is a technology pioneer, entrepreneur, and strategic advisor. He co-founded robotics and haptics pioneer MAKO Surgical (acquired by Stryker for $1.65b) and founded Magic Leap, the leading technology innovator in spatial computing/XR. He is also a senior advisor at the Boston Consulting Group, supporting growth tech as well as large companies across healthcare, innovation, AI, and overall strategy/tech disruption.
Elliot Katzman has over 35 years of experience as a board member, venture investor, and senior technology executive, and has helped build some of New England’s most successful technology companies, such as Solidworks (Dassault Systems), Onshape (PTC), Acacia Communications (IPO), Atria Software (IPO – IBM / Rational), Echo Nest (Spotify), Seniorlink, Vela Systems (Autodesk), and many other successful companies. He also currently serves on the board of Paperless Parts.
InterVenn Biosciences Co-Founder and Advisor Carolyn Bertozzi awarded 2022 Wolf Prize in Chemistry
Stanford Professor Carolyn Bertozzi, co-founder and advisor at InterVenn, has been jointly awarded the 2022 Wolf Prize in Chemistry for creating a new biochemical field of study and contributing to the understanding of the glycocalyx, a network of cellular molecules important to health and disease.
Awarded since 1978, the Wolf Prize recognizes “outstanding scientists and artists from around the world […] for achievements in the interest of mankind and friendly relations among peoples.” Categories of the prize include medicine, agriculture, mathematics, chemistry, physics, painting and sculpting, music, and architecture.
The prize in chemistry for 2022 was awarded to Carolyn, along with Bonnie L. Bassler, Bertozzi, and Benjamin F. Cravatt III, for their work contributing to understanding how cells use chemistry to communicate, and for developing methods to examine the biological molecules used in the communication process.
ANZU UPDATES
Jenna Abelli, Principal at Anzu Partners interviewed by Mindset Startup Academy
Jenna recently sat down with Verlin Gradney, founder of Mindset Startup Academy, for a video interview on Anzu’s approach to verifying customer demand when evaluating potential investments.
Mindset Startup Academy is an online community of early-stage investors and startup founders, where investors are given a platform to discuss their approach to investing that can then be shared with peers and startup founders to help them better understand how investors think.
Jordan joins Anzu Partners as a Human Resources Business Partner under People Operations, based in San Diego, CA.
In her role, Jordan supports the day-to-day HR operations for all portfolio companies, including HR system administration, payroll review, policy guidance, and HR program implementation. Prior to joining Anzu, Jordan was a Human Resources Generalist at Charter Communications supporting the MDU Sales team and has previously worked in Higher Education at San Diego State University in Student Conduct, Residence Life, and Academic Advising.
Jordan received her BS in Social Psychology from the University of California, San Diego, and her MA in Educational Leadership from San Diego State University.
CAREER OPPORTUNITIES
Anzu Partners and our portfolio companies are hiring!
Browse the open roles here and learn more about joining our amazing teams.
The information contained in this newsletter is being provided by Anzu Partners for informational purposes only. The information was obtained from various sources, but Anzu Partners cannot assure its accuracy. This is neither an offer to sell nor a solicitation for an offer to buy an interest in any fund managed by Anzu Partners. Any such offer or solicitation will only be made to qualified potential investors pursuant to a private placement memorandum. Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Inherent in any investment is the potential for loss.
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