• Lilac Solutions

  Participated · Series C · Feb 2024

  Lilac Solutions is an Oakland, CA–based company that develops patented ion-exchange (IX) technology and ion-exchange media (IXM) to produce lithium from brine resources. Its IXM is designed to be selective for lithium and to enable economically viable lithium production where prior IXM solutions were not practical. The company offers a full-service package for lithium resource developers, including test work, Front-End Loading (FEL) engineering, on-site piloting, and turnkey commercial production with design, build, operation, and supply of IXM. Led by CEO Dave Snydacker and COO Raef Sully, Lilac’s mission is to scale global lithium production to support the electric vehicle industry and the energy transition. The company recently raised a $145M Series C (bringing total capital raised to $315M). Lilac intends to use the proceeds to expand operations, ramp up manufacturing capacity of its proprietary IX material, and support commercial deployment at projects worldwide. Lilac Solutions is a lithium extraction technology company based in Oakland, California that has developed a patented ion-exchange process to produce lithium from brine resources. The company has proven its technology on a variety of brines and recently completed its first field pilot, demonstrating rapid deployment and strong process performance. Lilac’s approach uses ion exchange beads to recover lithium and allows brine to be returned underground after extraction, minimizing environmental impact compared with evaporation-pond methods. Management says the technology is significantly faster to deploy, offers better financial returns, and can enable production from lower-grade brine resources. Lilac plans to use the new capital to ramp production of its ion exchange beads, expand engineering and field operations teams, and deploy the technology globally. The company positions its solution as a way to scale lithium supply for the electric vehicle transition while protecting local communities and ecosystems. Lilac Solutions has developed a patented ion exchange technology and proprietary ion-exchange beads that enable faster, lower-cost, and more scalable lithium extraction from abundant brine resources. The technology was developed by CEO Dave Snydacker and Lilac's engineering team in Oakland and has been demonstrated at large scale with dozens of brine resources. Lilac positions its system as having an ultra-low environmental footprint compared with conventional extraction processes. The company has projects under development across the United States and South America and plans to deploy the technology globally. The recent capital raise will fund expansion of the engineering team and scale-up of bead production to support broader deployments. Lilac's stated mission is to increase lithium supplies needed for electric vehicles and renewable energy storage.

• Noveon Magnetics

  Led · Series B · May 2023

  Noveon Magnetics manufactures sintered NdFeB rare-earth permanent magnets entirely in the United States and is currently the only domestic producer operating at scale. Its proprietary EcoFlux™ technology enables a closed-loop process that maximizes resource efficiency and incorporates recycled materials while delivering high-performance magnets for electric vehicles, wind turbines, robotics, consumer electronics, defense systems, and other applications. The company has recently inked multi-year supply agreements with General Motors and ABB, partnered with Lynas and Solvay to bolster raw-material security, and launched a magnet-recycling initiative with LG Electronics and Kangwon Energy. Backed by the new Series C financing, Noveon plans to expand its annual manufacturing capacity beyond 2,000 tons to meet accelerating demand across automotive, defense, AI, and advanced-manufacturing sectors. The firm positions itself as a critical link in reshoring rare-earth supply chains and enhancing U.S. supply-chain resiliency. Its growth strategy includes scaling production, deepening strategic partnerships, and strengthening closed-loop recycling capabilities. The $215 million capital infusion provides substantial resources for these initiatives and enables secondary liquidity for early shareholders.

• Infinitum

  Participated · Series D · May 2022

  Infinitum designs patented air-core, axial-flux motors that are lighter, smaller, and more efficient than traditional motors, targeting applications including mission-critical data centers, commercial HVAC, pumps, and industrial equipment. The company’s motors rely on high-powered printed circuit board (HP-PCB) stators, which it says are central to its efficiency and light weight. Infinitum has more than 100 pending or issued patents and has developed a manufacturing approach that reduces copper usage and waste. The company was selected by the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Manufacturing and Energy Supply Chains to negotiate funding to accelerate domestic clean energy manufacturing. Infinitum plans to establish an HP-PCB stator manufacturing facility expected to be located in Rockdale, Texas, which the company says could create up to 170 operating jobs and 125 construction jobs. The project and facility aim to strengthen U.S. supply chains for critical components that are currently produced largely overseas. Infinitum develops patented air-core motor systems that aim to sustainably power energy-intensive applications in data centers, hospitals, buildings, logistics, manufacturing and industrial facilities. Its motors consume 10–65% less energy than traditional motors, are about 50% smaller and lighter, and use 66% less copper. Infinitum motor systems include an integrated variable frequency drive and can be customized for specific power and torque requirements; their modular design enables servicing, repair, remanufacturing and recycling. The company cites U.S. Department of Energy estimates that implementing advanced motor technology in U.S. industrial and commercial sectors could save 127 TWh/yr, $14.7 billion, and reduce 90.2 MMT of CO2. Infinitum is based in Austin, Texas and is led by founder and CEO Ben Schuler. The company said it will use new funding to scale production, meet customer demand and accelerate decarbonization. Infinitum develops patented air-core motors that replace iron-core, copper-wound stators with a lightweight printed circuit board stator and a built-in variable frequency drive. Its motors are roughly 50% smaller and lighter, use 66% less copper, have no iron in the stator, and consume about 10% less energy than traditional motors. The printed circuit board stator is described as 10x more reliable, and the motor’s modular design enables component reuse while manufacturing and servicing are less carbon intensive. Infinitum positions its product to enable variable-speed operation across industrial applications (compressors, pumps, fans, material handling) to cut energy use and emissions. The company is partnering with Rockwell Automation to develop a motor and low-voltage drive solution to be distributed through Rockwell’s channels. Infinitum is based in Austin, Texas and intends to scale production to meet customer demand and drive industrial decarbonization. Infinitum produces a patented air-core motor that is 50% smaller and lighter, uses 66% less copper, contains no iron, and consumes about 10% less energy than conventional motors. Its motors are modular by design, allowing housings, rotors, and stators to be reused multiple times and extending service life beyond typical 10–20 year motor lifetimes. The company recently rebranded as Infinitum and is renaming product lines (IEs to Aircore EC, IEm to Aircore Mobility, and IEalt to Aircore Power Gen) as it pushes commercialization. Infinitum is based in Austin, Texas and operates a 65,000 square foot production facility in Mexico. The company plans to expand and fully automate assembly at that Mexico facility to meet a significant increase in demand. Leadership says the goal is to scale production this year and next while advancing decarbonization and circularity in industrial, commercial, and mobility applications. Infinitum Electric designs and manufactures patented air-core motor systems that replace heavy iron with printed circuit boards to deliver comparable power at half the size and weight and lower noise and carbon footprint. Its integrated motor systems include motor, variable frequency drive (VFD) and embedded IoT in a single compact package, and the motors are reported to be about 10% more efficient than conventional motors. Since launching its IEs Series in 2020 the company has secured customer agreements representing more than $900 million in potential orders across heavy industry, manufacturing, HVAC and transportation. The company plans to vertically integrate and automate production, complete development and commercialization of a traction motor for the electric-vehicle market, and expand high-volume production out of its facility in Tijuana, Mexico. Infinitum moved its headquarters to a larger facility in Round Rock, Texas, and said it will double its U.S. workforce in 2022 with an additional 50 employees across Round Rock and Spokane, Washington. The company is based in Austin, Texas and has positioned its technology to address large-scale electrification and decarbonization opportunities.

No current team members are available.