Participated · Equity · Aug 2025

Green Steel Environmental is a U.S.-based company developing safer, chemical-free solutions for wastewater and biogas treatment. Led by Jon Jonis, the company is advancing alternatives that let utilities manage treatment systems without relying on toxic compounds. Its solutions aim to reduce the expense, handling risks, and environmental damage associated with traditional chemicals. On August 11, 2025, Green Steel Environmental raised $1.7M to support expansion and product development. The company intends to use the funds to expand operations and continue development efforts. The round signals early investor interest from regional angel groups and strategic partners as the company scales.

Participated · Seed · Mar 2024

Smart Response Technologies (SRT) develops Delphini, a cloud-based AI SaaS platform that provides real-time voice-to-text transcriptions for emergency call takers and dispatchers. Delphini was developed in cooperation with the Air Force Research Lab and offers features like spatially separated audio, customizable keyword highlights, and predictor-word detection. The company says Delphini increases first-responder communications effectiveness by 55% and comprehension by 70% while helping reduce stress and burnout. Delphini is already used by police and fire departments and county 911 Emergency Communications Centers nationwide and supports command-and-control centers, corrections, event management, and campus and corporate security. SRT is veteran-owned, founded in 2022, and plans to use new capital to accelerate product development, expand R&D, and broaden its offerings. The company has emphasized its social impact and potential for collaborations with other firms in the public safety sector.

Participated · Series A · Aug 2023

VenoStent is a Houston, TX–based clinical-stage medical device company developing SelfWrap, a bioabsorbable perivascular wrap placed around arteriovenous access sites during fistula-creation surgery. The wrap is intended to accelerate usability and increase the durability of AV fistula sites for chronic kidney disease patients requiring hemodialysis by mimicking the arterial environment in veins and leveraging the body’s healing mechanisms. The company is led by CEO Tim Boire, Ph.D., and COO Geoffrey Lucks. VenoStent recently completed its Series A financing at $20M, including a $4M investment from Norwest Venture Partners. It was also awarded a $3.6M SBIR Phase II grant from the NIH to help fund a planned multi-center, 200-patient randomized controlled trial in the U.S. The company intends to use the funds to support clinical development and the RCT to validate SelfWrap's impact on fistula usability and durability. VenoStent is a clinical-stage, venture-backed therapeutic medical device company developing a bioabsorbable wrap, SelfWrap, to transform outcomes in vascular surgery, starting with hemodialysis access. SelfWrap is intended to improve the usability and durability of arteriovenous fistulas (AVFs) used by chronic kidney disease patients for dialysis. The company recently closed a $16M Series A financing to support clinical and manufacturing work. VenoStent plans to use the funds to expand its US pivotal trial and scale manufacturing capabilities as it pursues FDA approval. The company has been granted an Investigational Device Exemption (IDE) from the FDA for its US clinical trial, SAVE-FistulaS. VenoStent is led by CEO Tim Boire, Ph.D., and has previously received funding from KidneyX, the National Science Foundation, the National Institutes of Health, Y Combinator, Health Wildcatters, and Texas Halo Fund. VenoStent’s core technology is polymer engineering protected by patents; its first product, SelfWrap, is a slip-on bioresorbable wrap intended to address the 55–65% vascular access surgery failure rate in hemodialysis patients. The company aims to complete first-in-human clinical work and conduct studies to support Breakthrough Device Designation (BDD) and an Investigational Device Exemption (IDE) submission. Proceeds from the recent round will be used to grow the team, scale quality control and manufacturing processes, and strengthen clinical and reimbursement positions. VenoStent has participated in Y Combinator’s Summer 2020 batch and is led by Co-Founder and CEO Tim Boire, Ph.D., with Geoff Lucks as Co-Founder and COO. Its funding to date exceeds $6M, which includes non-dilutive grants and prize awards alongside prior equity investments.

Participated · Series B · Jun 2022

Zylö Therapeutics has developed the Z-pod® technology, a topical delivery platform intended to extend duration of effect, improve targeting, and enhance performance of therapeutic and cosmetic agents. The Z-pod® platform can be adapted to provide sustained topical delivery of nitric oxide for multiple therapeutic indications. The company reports progress on product candidates including an erectile dysfunction program and a cutaneous lupus program, and seeks partners to conduct human studies for applications such as aging, hyperpigmentation, acne, and diabetic foot ulcers. Proceeds from the Series B financing will be used to complete high value-add internal research projects, scale up manufacturing of Z-pod® particles, and fully implement ISO-9001 and cGMP quality systems. Zylö says the funds will extend its runway and hedge against recession risk over the next two years. The company is based in Greenville, SC. Zylö Therapeutics has developed the Z-pod™ topical delivery platform and a proprietary nitric-oxide-releasing topical drug candidate aimed at treating erectile dysfunction. The company was awarded a $1.7M Phase II SBIR grant from the NIH (NIDDK) to advance the program into human trials. Planned uses of the funds include scale-up of manufacturing, implementation of a cGMP quality system, required toxicity testing for an IND, and a pre-IND meeting with the FDA. In a Phase I award (~$225,000), Zylö reported compelling results in a radical prostatectomy rat model: a single topical application produced an average of 2.0 erections in 60 minutes, and pre-dosing with a 1/10th human-equivalent dose of sildenafil increased erections to 4.6 and halved time-to-initial-erection. If approved, the candidate would target men with ED after radical prostatectomy and men with age-related ED who do not respond to or cannot take PDE5 inhibitors; Zylö cites a U.S. addressable market of over $2 billion per year. The company also highlights potential broader applications of the Z-pod™ technology such as wound healing, atopic dermatitis, gingivitis, and sports recovery.

Participated · Series B · Sep 2015

Cognition Therapeutics uses disease-relevant screening and novel chemistry platform approaches to produce a pipeline of new small-molecule drug candidates targeting protein misfolding diseases of the nervous system. Its lead clinical candidate is a highly brain-penetrant, orally bioavailable small-molecule receptor antagonist that blocks memory deficits in Alzheimer’s disease models. The company is led by CEO Dr. Hank Safferstein. Cognition completed a $12M Series B financing to support its programs. The proceeds will be used to advance its lead Alzheimer’s program into Phase 1 clinical studies by the end of 2015. The company is based in Pittsburgh, PA. Cognition Therapeutics is a drug discovery company developing disease-modifying therapies for central nervous system disorders, with a focus on Alzheimer’s disease. The company uses proprietary, biologically-relevant screening technology across biology and chemistry platforms to discover novel drug targets. Its platforms have produced compounds that selectively block soluble Abeta oligomer–induced toxicity on synapses without affecting normal Abeta expression or function. Mechanism-of-action studies have revealed strategies to target receptors and pathways central to Alzheimer’s pathology. The company was founded in 2007 and is led by CEO Hank Safferstein, Ph.D., J.D. Financially, Cognition Therapeutics has received multiple financings, including a recent $138K funding commitment and prior Series A1 financing. Cognition Therapeutics is a Pittsburgh-based drug discovery company focused on novel small molecules intended to block the central toxicity of proteins in Alzheimer’s and other neurodegenerative diseases. The company has developed multiple screening strategies to identify candidate compounds that target disease pathways. Led by President and CEO Hank Safferstein, Ph.D., J.D., Cognition aims to advance its lead compounds toward Investigational New Drug (IND) candidate status. Financially, the company recently closed a $2.5M Series A1 financing comprised of new investment and conversion of convertible debt. The proceeds are earmarked to bring compounds to IND-candidate readiness. In conjunction with the financing, Dr. Nada Jain of Golden Seeds and Mark Breedlove of Keystone Profiles joined the company’s board of directors. Cognition Therapeutics focuses on detecting Abeta proteins implicated in Alzheimer’s and developing molecules to block their harmful effects. The company is developing tests to identify those proteins and therapeutic molecules intended to stop or reverse Alzheimer’s-related degeneration. Cognition says its discoveries could also be applied to other neurodegenerative diseases. The underlying advancements are licensed from California State University Channel Islands. Cognition moved to Pittsburgh about two years ago from California. The company has raised $1.2 million in a Series A to further study its tests and treatments.