MFV Partners - October 2024 Update
🌟 Highlights
We are actively investing out of our Fund II and looking for a new generation of deep-tech entrepreneurs
Two of our recent investments came out of stealth last quarter!
Three more investments - will come out of stealth soon
Our portfolio companies, Agility Robotics in humanoid robots, PsiQuantum in quantum computing, and Sun Mobility in EV battery infrastructure, continue to dominate their respective fields
🆕 New Investments Spotlight
Chef Robotics
Our Series Seed investment from last year, Chef Robotics, came out of stealth!
Chef Robotics has developed an AI-first robot for food manipulation and packaging and is deploying it across North America. Chef’s robots have packaged 30M meals so far - an incredible feat for an early-stage robotics company!
PhenoTA
Phenota, our first investment in Israel from Fund II (with Vertex Ventures Israel, my old co-investor firm in Waze), came out of stealth
PhenoTA applies advanced optics and AI capabilities to blood tests to transform the landscape of medical decision-making.
📊 Portfolio Updates
Agility Robotics
Agility showcased its RoboFab, the first factory dedicated to building humanoid robots
Agility’s Digit became the first humanoid robot deployed in commercial operations, at the Atlanta facility of its partner GXO
PsiQuantum
PsiQuantum signed a far-reaching agreement with the State of Illinois for the first US-based utility-scale, fault-tolerant quantum computer in Chicago
PsiQuantum Receives $940 Million AUD ($620M USD) to Install a 1 Million Qubit Machine in Australia by 2027
Sun Mobility
Sun Mobility partnered with Indian Oil, which has 37K fuel stations, to build 10,000 battery-swapping stations by 2030
Ati Motors
Ati Motors was recognized in Forbes Asia 100 to Watch list
Irrigreen
Irrigreen’s third-generation controller for smart water conservation sprinkler system received rave reviews from Forbes
💡 MFV Insights
Our take: Software won’t solve the climate crisis: Deep tech investment is needed (VentureBeat)
The article emphasizes that while software has revolutionized many sectors, it cannot adequately address the climate crisis. Deep tech innovations, particularly hardware solutions, are essential for effective climate action.
Key Points:
Need for Hardware: Significant climate solutions are emerging from deep tech, including carbon capture and clean energy technologies.
Investment Focus: The venture capital community must shift from a software-centric approach to include hardware and deep tech investments that tackle physical challenges.
Dispelling Myths: Contrary to popular belief, large companies can be built in deep tech, and the capital and time required to reach unicorn status are comparable to software companies.
Investment Trends: Despite challenges in scaling hardware solutions, there’s potential for impactful exits within five years, underscoring the urgency for investment in deep tech to combat climate change.
Our perspective: Deep tech exits: Not just science fiction anymore, (TechCrunch)
The article highlights a rebound in deep tech startup exits. Deep tech companies contributed significantly, with a quarter of unicorn exits in 2023 coming from this sector.
Key Points:
Exit Growth: Deep tech unicorn exits surged 550% from 2013 to 2022, with the average number of exits increasing from 19 per year (2013-2017) to 49 (2018-2022).
Driving Sectors: Key areas include health tech, compute (quantum computing), and mobility, with a rising focus on climate solutions.
Future Outlook: Deep tech valuations are expected to align with or exceed those of software companies.
We were quoted in Fortune and spoke on the panels at the University of Chicago’s Deep Tech Summit and Energy Transition Network event. The MFV team and partners NGP and Stifel Bank hosted a great networking session on June 24th at SF Deep Tech Week.
If you are in Chicago on October 21-22, check out the Chicago Quantum Summit. Karthee will be there.
