American Center for Manufacturing & Innovation (ACMI) ’s Post

Kipu's algorithms are enabling #QuantumComputing in the current NISQ (noisy intermediate scale quantum-computing) era 🚀 Thanks a lot Nadine Schimroszik for the feature on Kipu Quantum in Handelsblatt.

Exciting news ExoMatter! The months that lie behind us ExoMatter have been incredible. Despite a difficult investment situation, we have managed to close a great pre-seed round! Learnings from the last few months:  1. keep going: ExoMatter has the potential to create a huge impact for the manufacturing & chemical industry! 2. find the right investors who really understand deep tech! 3. other people from one of the biggest drivers of our innovation and sustainability: inspiring materials is fun! A big thank you also goes to my co-founder Josua Vieten. Who is passionate about driving Materials Science forward at ExoMatter. And of course a big thank you to the management team Claudia Remlinger and Jonathon Bellew and the entire team behind ExoMatter. Together with amazing Investors in this round encourageventures e.V., Vanagon.vc, Bayern Kapital, 212 NexT, Bloomhaus Ventures AG, ZAKA VC we will rock the materials science! #startup #preseedround #materialsscience #deeptech #amazingteam #femalefounder

One of my favorite colleagues and fellow equity champion shared his thoughts on Inclusion with NSIN - National Security Innovation Network recently. As he so eloquently states, “if the VC and innovation communities continue to overlook the value that underrepresented founders and talent can bring to national security, we are increasing our risk of not meeting those threats, let alone creating additional financial returns and economic value.” I completely agree and will continue to reiterate that the issue of creating an equitable and inclusive community is an issue for us all as a matter of National Security. Please check out the article when you have a second and let us know your thoughts on this very important issue. Way to advocate John Adams!

🚀 ExoMatter Raises €1.7 Million Pre-Seed Investment 🚀 We are thrilled to announce that we have successfully closed our €1.7 million pre-seed funding round, led by Vanagon.vc. We are proud to also have the support from Bayern Kapital, 212 NexT, Bloomhaus Ventures AG, ZAKA VC and four incredible female business angels from encourageventures e.V.. At ExoMatter, we are revolutionizing the field of materials research through our AI-driven platform. Using advanced AI and quantum chemical modeling, we empower companies to discover brand-new materials that are optimized for performance, cost, and sustainability — up to 90% faster than traditional methods. This not only reduces costs and greenhouse gas emissions but also makes the entire process more sustainable and efficient. “This technology enhances innovation capabilities and helps companies prepare for future regulatory requirements, such as the EU Ecodesign Directive.”, said Susanne Fromm, Co-Founder of Vanagon Ventures. 🌍 Tackling Global Challenges Together The development of new materials is often a slow, trial-and-error process that can take many years. With ExoMatter, companies can overcome these hurdles. Our platform leverages AI and quantum-level calculations (DFT) to explore the vast potential of new materials, optimizing them for performance, cost, and sustainability. 📈 Our Vision for the Future With a proven product-market fit, we’re already collaborating with major industry leaders like Airbus and Infineon, and we’re on a clear growth path. As a first mover in Europe’s digital materials space, we are excited to continue expanding our customer base and solidifying our position as the leading digital materials platform in Europe. "We’re incredibly grateful for the trust and support of our investors and can’t wait to continue our journey, scaling the ExoMatter platform and driving innovation in materials science. " state our Co-Founders Barbara Bachus and Josua Vieten.  #Innovation #AI #MaterialsScience #DeepTech #Sustainability #StartupFunding #ClimateTech #Growth #munichtstartup 

"If we want to be bold, we could say that Spacetek is for mass spectrometry what SpaceX is for commercial space travel." In our latest #PortfolioSpotlight, we shift the focus to Spacetek Technology AG, a leader in bringing space technology to industrial applications. We interviewed Maximilian P. Rothenberger, CEO, and asked him to share their journey, groundbreaking products, and the impact of having the right investment partner. Here are a few key highlights from our conversation with Max: "A key challenge in the early days was to find the right market niche to tackle first." Finding the right market niche is crucial to effectively focus your early resources, establish a competitive advantage, penetrate the market more easily, and gain deep customer insights, leading to higher customer loyalty. "We took an established measurement principle and redesigned the instrument to be the most compact and robust, ready to scale in an industrial environment." Refining established concepts or products to meet modern demands efficiently can be a powerful strategy for creating successful business ventures. As Spacetek’s team prepares for two upcoming moon missions, we invite you to read more about their mission to revolutionize semiconductor manufacturing and their future developments. 🔗 Read the full interview at https://lnkd.in/dRm6u8Je #Semiconductor #SpaceTech #SwisscomVentures #Spacetek #IndustrialApplications #Startups #TechLeadership

🚀 NATO Innovation Fund Empowers Deeptech with Expert Team The NATO Innovation Fund (NIF) proudly introduces a dynamic new investment team, backed by €1 billion to pioneer advancements in deeptech crucial for defense and security. 🌟 Expertise Across Domains AI & Quantum Technologies: Specialists like Associate David Ordonez bring insights from high-tech sectors including AI, autonomous systems, and hypersonics, focusing on enhancing capabilities within the NATO region. Energy & Climate: Led by Brooke Latham, the team integrates sustainable investment strategies to align with global climate goals, underscoring NATO’s commitment to environmental responsibility. Space Tech & Materials Science: Trisha Saxena and her colleagues assess startups with potential contributions to security and resilience, emphasizing innovation in space and materials technologies. 📈 Strategic Impact This expert group is tasked with identifying startups that can significantly contribute to the technological superiority and strategic capabilities of NATO members. Their diverse backgrounds in sectors from Formula 1 engineering to sustainable finance ensure a broad perspective on potential technological impacts. 🔗 Further Information For a deeper understanding of the NIF's goals and the new team’s roles, https://shorturl.at/DAoV1 📊 Why It Matters The formation of this team marks a crucial step in NATO’s strategic initiative to harness cutting-edge technologies for enhanced collective defense and security. It represents a significant investment in the future of military and defense technology, reflecting an understanding of the critical role that innovation plays in modern security strategies. Join the Conversation What impacts do you foresee from NATO's increased focus on deeptech investment? Share your views and let’s discuss how these technologies will shape the future of defense and security. #NATOInnovation #DefenseTechnology #SustainableInvesting #DeepTech #GlobalSecurity

Good piece explaining the current state of VC investment in DoD. Where does the payoff come in as programs vie to jump the valley of death? The Rashomon effect can be seen in every Pentagon meeting where people leave believing they heard what they wanted to hear only to find out that is not what was implemented.

We at Starburst Aerospace are honored to have been selected by the U.S. Small Business Administration as one of the 2024 Growth Accelerator Fund Competition (GAFC) Stage One winners! Read about the award in the press release: https://bit.ly/4bvmWQ3 Innovation is the driving force of the US economy. Our greatest opportunity as a nation is to harness the power of coalitional innovation — to build an ecosystem that accelerates technological advancements and ensures robust, sustainable growth in both national security and commercial sectors. Industry-transforming innovation doesn’t just happen: innovation is an active process that comes from continually seeking new information, asking challenging questions, engaging with customers, experimenting with new ideas, and networking with diverse individuals with varying perspectives. Receiving this SBA award reaffirms our commitment to building impactful and inclusive approaches to foster a robust, collaborative national innovation support ecosystem — one that advances small business research and development and ensures that the next generation of science and technology-based innovations scale into thriving businesses. We are expanding and strengthening our ecosystem to continue to support National and Economic Security and further develop technical capabilities in areas including but are not limited to: • National Security and Defense • Space Technology • Microelectronics • Advanced Computing and Software • Artificial Intelligence and Autonomy • Integrated Network Systems-of-Systems • Quantum Computing • Human-Machine Interfaces • Renewable Energy Generation and Storage • Advanced Materials • Biotechnology • Other Critical and Emerging Technologies If you want to join us and help shape continued ecosystem-building in the industry, please reach out us: https://bit.ly/40pW3rN Elizabeth Reynolds, Jacob Squire, Nate Mason, François Chopard #SBA #award #accelerator #innovation #biotech #aerospace #defense #enablingtechnologies

The NATO Innovation Fund (NIF) continues to unveil its latest investments, with several key takeaways: 💫 The investments are geographically diverse, though there is a significant focus on the UK 🇬🇧 and Germany 🇩🇪. 💫 The fund co-invests with other well-established venture capital firms. 💫 The areas of focus are varied, encompassing both hardware and software. 💫 The fund is stage-agnostic, investing in companies at different stages of development. 💫 NIF also invests in venture capital firms. 💫 The latest disclosed investment: Isar Aerospace a Munich-based company, secured a Series C round of €220 million 💶, co-led by 10x Group, Besant Capital and European family office G3T. 💫 For more details, check out Börsen-Zeitung’s article by Karolin Rothbart https://lnkd.in/dENs-gvK #innovation #defensetech #technology #vc