The Southwest Angel Network has joined a coalition of Austin business leaders uniting to use our privilege and position to advance racial justice in our companies and communities.
Together, we are condemning racism. We are standing in solidarity with the Black community.
The Southwest Angel Network is working to support portfolio companies in these uncertain times, and is pleased to announce an incremental investment in Shyft Power Solutions.
Shyft was founded at Stanford University as a byproduct of the research of the co-founders, and facilitates the adoption of solar energy and storage in micro-grids, thereby enabling widespread access to clean, reliable and affordable energy. Shyft builds the technology that enables the transition to a decentralized, democratized and digitized energy landscape, and is focused on markets with unreliable power grids.
The Southwest Angel Network is please to participate in follow-on funding for Family Plan. SWAN made a seed investment in September of 2018. Since that time Family Plan has made significant progress and has now closed a multi-million dollar round.
Family plan works to reduce the stress on a family following a divorce. Using Family Plan, parents can manage custody scheduling on a shared calendar in real time, arrange and make payments instantaneously and with authentication, and make and log texts and emails to support open communication and maintain a reliable record. No other mobile app provides this suite of functions. This app has been developed with input from a team of divorced parents, divorce lawyers, and ex-judges to address both an important social need and a large market opportunity.
Family Plan was founded and is led by Mark and Laura MacMahon, from Maine, who founded the company for the same reason many companies are founded – they had a problem they wanted to solve, and the available solutions just weren’t good enough. In the years after Mark’s divorce, he found that he was spending hours a week just trying to stay on top of managing his schedule, finances, and communications all related to the kids. Mark and Laura decided to build a set of tools that would help families thrive after a breakup – reducing conflict along the way.
The Southwest Angel Network continues to find attractive investment opportunities in the current COVID-19 and recession environment. We are making significant new investments in pre-seed and seed companies, and are also supporting portfolio companies.
The total dollars invested in the first four months of 2020 is larger than the total we invested in 2018, and is over 50% of the total amount invested in the twelve months of 2019.
SWAN made a first investment in CURB in 2019, and is pleased to announce a significant follow-on investment that will assist the company in its rapid revenue growth.
CURB provides an interactive energy efficiency solution that enables homeowners to reduce electricity consumption by up to 20%. CURB uncovers home energy trends, pinpoints power hogs, and gives users control over their electric bill.
The heavy-duty engine industry is approaching a time when the rising cost of petroleum-based diesel fuel—and continued government regulation of CO2 and diesel criteria pollutants (NOx and particulates)—are leading to the decline of diesel-fueled engines. Heavy-duty engine manufacturers are aggressively seeking viable alternative technologies. ClearFlame Engine Technologies is introducing a disruptive, patented engine technology that easily integrates into existing compression ignition engine manufacturing which delivers uncompromising engine performance at a lower cost.
ClearFlame Engine Technology has the potential to reduce well over five gigatons of greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.
Our network’s investment was part of the company’s $3M funding round.
Please see this helpful article. The article points out that “three of our [Lauchpad’s] highest return investments were made during the depths of the 2008-2009 recession. More modest valuations, less competition for talent, and strong positioning for economic recovery were a rare combination to drive outsized portfolio returns”.
The Southwest Angel Network is pleased and excited to announce an investment in SpeechVive. SpeechVive offers a proven device that allows the majority of Parkinson’s patients to the recover the ability to carry on a conversation. This patented technology was created by co-founder Dr. Jessica Huber. The company has revenue and is poised for rapid growth.
Acadeum was founded by 2016 and the Southwest Angel Network was one of the early investors in 2017. Acadeum, previously known as College Consortium, offers a software platform that allows universities to share online courses. Students today can face challenges with earning a degree on a timely basis because the students are burdened by a lack of access to needed classes at the needed time. Making classes more available can increase graduation rates and decrease the time to graduation.
Our network is pleased to announce a follow-on investment in OneSeventeen Media. The company improves the social-emotional well-being of youth, and reaches those youth through partnerships with employee benefit programs and with schools.