gener8tor and U.S. Venture Announce 2024 Cohort of U.S. Venture Sustainability Accelerator
APPLETON, WI - Global venture capital firm gener8tor, in partnership with energy, transportation, and sustainability solutions company, U.S. Venture, has announced the 2024 cohort of startups selected for investment through the U.S. Venture Sustainability Accelerator.
The U.S. Venture Sustainability Accelerator invests $100,000 into each of five startups per cohort that are solving problems in the sustainability and/or mobility space.
This is the second year of the U.S. Venture Sustainability Accelerator. After reviewing hundreds of applications, the team selected five new companies to participate in the accelerator program, based in Appleton, WI. The participating companies are: Deflect Inc. (New York, NY); OpenGrid Inc. (Washington D.C.); Hazel Trade (Calgary, Canada); RIISE (U.K.); and Softly (Chicago, IL); Learn more about the selected startups below.
“We’re thrilled to welcome another five startups to the Appleton ecosystem,” said Andrew Schmitz, Managing Director of the U.S. Venture Sustainability Accelerator. “With a competitive applicant pool this year, we are fortunate to have such great companies in the cohort, all doing important work within sustainability.”
These companies not only receive investment, connection and mentorship from Wisconsin-based gener8tor, but also gain a significant advantage by developing a close relationship with one of the largest privately-held corporations in Wisconsin, Appleton-based U.S. Venture.
“As we welcome this new cohort of startups to the U.S. Venture Sustainability Accelerator, we are reminded of the transformative power of collaboration. These companies bring fresh ideas that challenge conventional approaches and we are happy to collaborate with them to support their growth," said Chuck Dauk, U.S. Venture’s Chief Innovation and Transformation Officer.
At the end of the accelerator, startup founders will pitch their companies to investors, community partners and the public at a Showcase event at 5:30 p.m. on June 12 at Poplar Hall in Appleton.
To learn more about the US Venture Sustainability Accelerator, visit our website.
U.S. Venture Sustainability Accelerator Spring 2024 Cohort
Deflect reduces fuel consumption on freight trains with its patented deflectors that are easy to install and effortless to maintain. Deflect’s RoofRider and SideRider deflectors have shown significant potential for fuel savings through wind tunnel testing and modeling. Deflect anticipates a 3% savings on fuel costs for railroad operators on fully equipped trains.
Spencer Maynes, CEO | spencer@deflectinc.net | Adrian Villar Collazo, CTO | adrian@deflectinc.net | deflectinc.net
OpenGrid operates an urban network of proprietary fast EV chargers that are rapidly deployable regardless of infrastructure restraints while still providing the fast charging experience urban EV drivers want. OedumOne, our patent-pending lithium battery integrated charger is five to 10 times faster than most urban chargers. Our end-to-end turnkey solution provides site selection, permitting, installation, operation, and maintenance to local business owners to turn their real estate into charging hubs as EVs become more widespread.
Nanbo Liu, CEO | nanbo@opengridtech.com | Theo Hebblethwaite, COO | theo@opengridtech.com | opengridtech.com
Hazel facilitates green tax credit transactions via our blockchain-powered marketplace that provides transparency to all stakeholders. Its mission is to lower the barrier to entry, mitigate risk and ensure developers get the optimal prices for their tax credits. Hazel Trade has over $180M in green tax credits ready for trading.
Gia Mattu, CEO | gia@hazeltrade.com | hazeltrade.com
RIISE’s data analytics platform disrupts the $7.8 billion real estate data industry, unlocking previously inaccessible data by providing stakeholders with new portfolio insights and predictive intelligence at the click of a button. By seamlessly aggregating fragmented documents and data sources into one centralized platform, RIISE helps teams to instantly build sustainability and financial strategies, accelerating stakeholder decisions for Asset Owners, Investors, Lenders, & Insurers.
Adrian Twibill, CEO | atwibill@riise.ai | Alejandro Arango Echeverri, CPO | aarango@riise.ai | Alex Reeves, CTO | areeves@riise.ai| www.riise.ai
Softly helps businesses navigate green marketing regulations and sustainability with confidence. Their risk monitoring and analytics platform protects businesses from non-compliance by alerting them of risky environmental marketing claims. Softly is revenue generating, in private-BETA, and has a rapidly growing pipeline of customers.
Mollie Hughes, CEO | Mollie@softlysolutions.com | Kathryn Decker, CFO/CTO | kathryn@softlysolutions.com | softlysolutions.com
About gener8tor
gener8tor is a global venture firm and accelerator network that supports startups, workers, employers, artists and musicians across race, place and gender. gener8tor partners with companies, governments, universities and nonprofits to operate programs and conferences in more than 41 communities across 22 states and two countries. Fast Company named gener8tor one of the Best Workplaces for Innovators in 2021 and 2022. The International Trade Council recognized gener8tor as the Global Venture Capital Firm of the Year in 2022.
About U.S. Venture
For over 70 years, U.S. Venture, Inc. has been recognized as an innovative leader in the distribution of renewable and traditional energy products, lubricants, tires, parts, and using data-driven insights to manage energy and information in the global movement of goods. U.S. Venture delivers creative, sustainable solutions that give their customers a competitive edge, and enable the company to support the communities in which they live, work, and play. Through the values lived by their family of brands, U.S. EnergyTM, U.S. AutoForce, Breakthrough®, U.S. Lubricants, and IGEN®, U.S. Venture seeks new ways to drive business success while being steadfast in its commitment to making the world a better place.
