π Issue #108: A Few Claremont Highlights From 2023
Highlights from some of the interesting Claremont deals in 2023, updates on the Claremont companies that raised funding to close out the year, and some exciting opportunities at Claremont startups
π¬ Welcome to issue #108 ofΒ Between the Lines
Good morning & happy Thursday. Welcome to 2024! It's hard to believe that this is the fourth calendar year weβve been running BTL π±β¦ but itβs looking like another very exciting year for Between the Lines and StoryHouse Ventures. Next week, weβll share a full deep dive on all the Claremont startup data we collected in 2023.
But for now, weβre highlighting two of the exciting Claremont deals that went down in 2023 β mining company KoBold Metals reaching unicorn status and Living Carbon bringing their modified trees into the wild. Itβs a Claremont world out there. π
~ Josh, Miles, Pat
π€ Community Spotlight: KoBold Metals & Living Carbon
Crunchbase recently wrote a short report on five of the most interesting startup investments that happened in 2023, and, you guessed it, two of them were Claremont startupsβ¦
Kurt House
Claremont grad Kurt House (CMC β01) is the co-founder and CEO of Kobold Metals β a rapidly growing start-up using AI to enable the transition to electrification and help solve climate change. The company is backed by Bill Gates's Breakthrough Energy Ventures, a16z, Bond Capital, Sam Altman, and others. Kobold is also the 20th Claremont-founded startup to reach unicorn status in the last three yearsβ¦so much for a small collection of no-name liberal arts colleges!
Maddie Hall
Claremont grad and Forbes 30 Under 30 Maddie Hall (CMC β14) is the co-founder and CEO of Living Carbon β a biotech startup that leverages synthetic biology to enhance the carbon capture capabilities of trees. Maddie started Living Carbon with a mission to rebalance the planetβs carbon cycle responsibly using the inherent power of plants. Living Carbon is now backed by leading climate investors, including Felicis, Lowercarbon, Homebrew, Toyota Ventures, and StoryHouse Ventures.
Crunchbase News: Interesting Startup Deals You May Have Missed This Year
While startup funding may be down this year, 2023 certainly did not lack for interesting deals.
From a cyber brain to humanoid robots to an AI doctor, the year had its share of unique and intriguing startups that raised cash. Letβs take a look at those that caught our eyeβ¦..
Mining for big money
This was another big round that garnered big headlines back in June.
However, if a round is interesting enough it makes the list regardless, so just in case you missed it: KoBold Metals raised a big $195 million round from a number of big-name investors including Andreessen Horowitz, and Bill Gates and Jeff Bezos-backed Breakthrough Energy Ventures. The cash valued the climate-tech startup at $1.15 billion.
What makes the California-based startup intriguing?
KoBold Metals ties two hot trends together for investors β artificial intelligence and alternative energy sources. The company uses AI to mine for valuable metals such as cobalt, copper, nickel and lithium, which are used in the production of batteries for a variety of sectors, including electric vehicles.
The startup has built a database about the Earthβs layers and uses algorithms to make predictions about where mineral deposits are located around the world.
Pretty cool and timely, even if you may have seen it already β considering all the escalating concern about finding such material.
Building a better tree
Climate biotech firm Living Carbon also made some headlines way back in January when it raised a $21 million Series A led by Temasek.
The San Francisco-based startupβs βphotosynthesis-enhanced hybridβ trees are genetically engineered to grow bigger and faster β therefore being able to take more carbon out of the air than unmodified plants. According to the company, its photosynthesis enhancement improves biomass accumulation in trees by up to 53% and has the potential to capture approximately 27% more carbon.
As part of the funding, Living Carbon will take its modified pine trees out of a lab and into the wild, planting them on private land in Georgia and Pennsylvania. The company said it is on track to supply 4 million to 5 million seedlings throughout the U.S. this year and next.
Everyone is looking for ways to cut down on carbon, after all β perhaps the path is through better plants.
π£ Claremont Introductions: Asher Weiss & Tixologi
Claremont graduate Asher Weiss (CMC β18) is the co-founder and CEO of Tixologi β an all-in-one, self-serve ticketing platform that puts event producers in control of their ticketing. Tixologi allows event producers to fully customize and integrate their ticketing experience, build a database of fans, and understand all their ticket holders, not just their ticket buyers, eliminate fraudulent tickets, and engage their fans on a deeper level.
If youβre looking to get more for less out of your ticketing solution, look no further than Tixologi. Visit their website today to get started, or email Asher here with any questions. π
π¨Claremonster Call-Out: Jack Sadowsky
Claremont graduate Jack Sadowsky (PO β00) is the co-founder and VP of Discovery Chemistry at Kimia Therapeutics β a drug discovery company that uses high-throughput precision chemistry, genome editing, and machine learning to pinpoint druggable targets at vital points of disease intervention. After completing his Chemistry degree at Pomona, Jack joined Carmot Therapeutics, where he played a pivotal role in developing the Chemotype Evolution platform during its early stages. He then joined Genentech and was promoted to Senior Scientist, overseeing the bioconjugation team and supporting all research efforts.
His leadership led to advancements in multiple antibody-drug conjugates, as well as pioneering novel applications of bioconjugation chemistry, such as antibody-mediated degrader delivery and click-activated prodrugs. After eight years at Genentech, Jack returned to Carmot Therapeutics as a Principal Investigator in Discovery Chemistry before co-founding Kimia in 2023 with his co-founders, who are also Carmot veterans.
They recently raised a $55M Series A led by The Column Group and Dimension. Kimia is advancing its ATLAS platform to create a chemical map of the druggable proteome and accelerate the discovery of novel therapeutic targets and drug leads.
πΌ Whoβs Hiring?: Terra AI & Micro
StoryHouse portfolio company Terra AI is on a mission to provide the premier AI platform for the development of critical natural resources. They're leveraging AI modeling, reasoning, and optimization to enhance the performance, predictability, and safety of reservoir, wind, and mineral development projects. Claremont grad Anthony Corso (HMC '14) and John Mern (who previously worked for KoBold Metals, founded by CMC grad Kurt House) are the co-founders of Terra, and they are looking for a talented Senior Software Engineer to lead the development of their core web application product. If you're interested in learning more, shoot us a message.
Machine Learning Engineer (Hybrid) - Ideally, someone with a background in building image-generation models such as Dall-E, Adobe Firefly, etc.
Micro is an AI-powered super app built on top of email that helps entrepreneurs manage their businesses with simplicity. The app organizes data from email and other business tools into interactive βMicro Appsβ for every workflow, from fundraising to task management, embedded in a modern email client experience. Theyβre a seed stage company thatβs backed by industry leaders such as a16z, Flybridge, Graph, and 50+ other angels and institutions. Product expert and friend of Claremont Brett Goldstein is the founder and CEO of Micro, and heβs looking for a highly-skilled technical partner to be his co-founder and Head of Engineering. Check out the opening if you know someone who would be perfect for the role.
Check out the other ~5,000 open jobs at 400+ Claremont-affiliated companies here on our Storyboard. Plus, create a profile and enter your preferences to get alerted to new job postings relevant to you, be they the 1,000+ remote jobs, 100+ internships, or 40+ part-time positions available. Weβve published research that shows that Claremont-founded companies that disproportionately hire Claremont talent outperform β so pay attention, Claremonsters!
If any of these roles catch your eye π , apply and mention Between the Lines. Or, if you are an employer looking to hire tip-top Claremont talent, fill out this form to have your jobs featured.
π£οΈ Conversations on the Interwebz:
This weekβs must-watch πΊ
Serial Claremont entrepreneur Victor Penev (PO β96) sat down with Startup Health to share his views on food as the ultimate medicine and how organizing the worldβs food knowledge can help people eat better and live longer, happier lives. Victor is the co-founder and CEO of Edamam β a startup that provides nutrition solutions to clients such as Nestle, Samsung, Epicurious, Gannett, The New York Times, and other businesses in the food, health, and wellness sectors.
This weekβs Claremont financing πΈ
Claremont alum Daniel Pivonka (HMC '07) and Nalu Medical recently raised $65M in a Series E round led by Novo Holdings. Nalu is a medtech firm that develops innovative solutions for patients with chronic neuropathic pain. Their FDA-cleared Neurostimulation System, a battery-free micro-implantable pulse generator (iPG), serves both Spinal Cord Stimulation (SCS) and Peripheral Nerve Stimulation (PNS) for pain relief. The funding will boost commercial growth and further develop clinical and health-economic evidence for the Nalu system.
Biotech startup CRISPR QC, co-founded by former KGI Associate Professor Kiana Aran, just secured a $10M Series A funding round led by Xcellerant Ventures. Their CRISPR Analytics Platform, based on the companyβs proprietary CRISPR-Chip technology, offers comprehensive real-time CRISPR activity measurement and analysis, enabling scientists to optimize gene editing results and ensure top-notch quality control. Kiana is also the former co-founder of Cardea Bio, which was acquired by Paragraf in 2023.
This weekβs top listen π§
Claremont entrepreneur and KoBold Metals CEO Kurt House (CMC β01) was on the Volt podcast discussing the science and ethics of finding and developing the critical materials needed for the energy transition.Β Kurt talked about the present status of mineral exploration, the necessary changes needed to progress, and how ML and AI can play a pivotal role in driving these advancements.
Everything else you need to knowπ‘
Last year, Laserfiche CEO and Claremont business leader Karl Chan (HMC '89) celebrated his remarkable 35-year journey with the company. He shared his unique path to becoming CEO, recounting how he explored various roles and departments within the organization before ultimately reaching the top of the ladder.
Canβt get enough of Between the Lines? Follow and connect with us on Twitter!
π½οΈ BTL Snacks:
π‘ Think About Identity By Designβ¦..Β Claremont grad Nancy Marzouk PI (β98) recently authored an article for Forbes talking about identity by design for brands. She shares how marketing and technology executives are now turning to their own first-party data as the foundation of this new identity strategy instead of relying on third-party information. Nancy is a leader in marketing technology and the founding CEO of identity solutions company MediaWallah.
πΉ The Fantastic Four Of Video Analyticsβ¦.. Businesses are now able to predict on-site trends and fine-tune operations using a new tool that provides accurate data-driven insights. Claremont grad Jed Levin (HMC β06) is the co-founder of Grip Places β a startup that uses machine vision, AI, and ML to revolutionize the retail and hospitality sectors. Their "Video Analytics as a Service" tool leverages proprietary AI and ML to provide insights into customer demographics, emotions, gender distribution, age, and more.
Feedback? We love to hear it.Β Hit us with an email. ππΌ