Agrology is an agricultural technology company recognized for its contributions to sustainable farming practices and a recipient of a National Science Foundation award. Operating from offices in Alexandria, Virginia, and Salinas, California, Agrology provides real-time data that enables growers to assess the ecological and agronomic impacts of regenerative farming. The company focuses on monitoring soil health, microbial activity, carbon cycles, nitrous oxide emissions, net ecosystem exchange, and microclimatic conditions. This data helps farmers connect regenerative practices to measurable reductions in greenhouse gases and other ecological benefits. Additionally, Agrology's predictive agriculture system offers insights that assist farmers in adapting to climate change while improving soil sequestration and generating carbon credits. The company is trusted by prominent growers, researchers, and global consumer packaged goods brands.
Babylon Micro-Farms
Grant in 2023
Babylon Micro-Farms Inc., founded in 2017 and based in Charlottesville, Virginia, specializes in providing indoor farming solutions that empower individuals and communities to grow their own produce. The company offers a smart, scalable indoor farming platform designed for a variety of crops, including leafy greens, herbs, microgreens, and edible flowers. By leveraging remote management technology, Babylon Micro-Farms aims to create a decentralized network of micro-farms across North America, making sustainable hydroponic farming more accessible. Their innovative systems automate the growing process, significantly reducing water usage, food waste, and pollutants while allowing year-round cultivation. Additionally, Babylon Micro-Farms has developed low-cost micro-farms to support food-insecure populations, particularly refugees in the Middle East, highlighting their commitment to addressing food security through sustainable agriculture.
AgroSpheres develops novel technologies that aim to set a new standard for bio-based delivery of active ingredients. It uses a unique platform technology for crop protection solutions and other industrial applications. The company is an encapsulation and delivery technology that dramatically enhances the performance of a broad range of crop protection products including fungicides, insecticides, and herbicides. AgroSpheres was founded in 2016 and is based in Charlottesville, Virginia.
Babylon Micro-Farms
Grant in 2021
Babylon Micro-Farms Inc., founded in 2017 and based in Charlottesville, Virginia, specializes in providing indoor farming solutions that empower individuals and communities to grow their own produce. The company offers a smart, scalable indoor farming platform designed for a variety of crops, including leafy greens, herbs, microgreens, and edible flowers. By leveraging remote management technology, Babylon Micro-Farms aims to create a decentralized network of micro-farms across North America, making sustainable hydroponic farming more accessible. Their innovative systems automate the growing process, significantly reducing water usage, food waste, and pollutants while allowing year-round cultivation. Additionally, Babylon Micro-Farms has developed low-cost micro-farms to support food-insecure populations, particularly refugees in the Middle East, highlighting their commitment to addressing food security through sustainable agriculture.
CytoRecovery
Grant in 2021
CytoRecovery, Inc. specializes in developing microfluidic technology aimed at recovering and testing subpopulations of cancer cells from tumor biopsies and other biological samples. Founded in 2017 and based in Blacksburg, Virginia, the company provides tools that allow cell biologists and life science researchers to efficiently select and recover rare, homogeneous, and viable cell subpopulations from various sources, including tissue and blood. The technology facilitates precise cell biology analytics by offering individual trapping and release of these rare cells for downstream analysis, thus enhancing research capabilities in the study of cancer and other diseases.
Altrix Medical
Grant in 2020
Altrix Medical is a medical company that develops online applications and medical equipment in order to improve people's lives. The company was founded in 2013 and is based in Centreville, Virginia.
Caza Health is a biotech company specializing in the microbiome, immunology, and oncology. The company was founded in 2019 and is headquartered in Earlysville, Virginia.
Neurowired, founded in 2013 and located in Morgantown, West Virginia, specializes in developing biomimetic algorithms aimed at real-time processing of biological signals. The company focuses on extracting limb movement intent from signals generated by muscles, nerves, or the central nervous system. By leveraging advanced sensors, Neurowired enables accurate predictions of limb movements, facilitating intuitive control over augmented reality, virtual reality applications, prosthetic limbs, and natural muscle movements. This innovative approach allows users to interact with digital environments in a manner that closely resembles their physical interactions in reality.
PolArctic is a data science and oceanographic company that specializes in creating custom products for the Arctic. The company is based in Lorton, Virginia.
Babylon Micro-Farms
Grant in 2020
Babylon Micro-Farms Inc., founded in 2017 and based in Charlottesville, Virginia, specializes in providing indoor farming solutions that empower individuals and communities to grow their own produce. The company offers a smart, scalable indoor farming platform designed for a variety of crops, including leafy greens, herbs, microgreens, and edible flowers. By leveraging remote management technology, Babylon Micro-Farms aims to create a decentralized network of micro-farms across North America, making sustainable hydroponic farming more accessible. Their innovative systems automate the growing process, significantly reducing water usage, food waste, and pollutants while allowing year-round cultivation. Additionally, Babylon Micro-Farms has developed low-cost micro-farms to support food-insecure populations, particularly refugees in the Middle East, highlighting their commitment to addressing food security through sustainable agriculture.
AgroSpheres develops novel technologies that aim to set a new standard for bio-based delivery of active ingredients. It uses a unique platform technology for crop protection solutions and other industrial applications. The company is an encapsulation and delivery technology that dramatically enhances the performance of a broad range of crop protection products including fungicides, insecticides, and herbicides. AgroSpheres was founded in 2016 and is based in Charlottesville, Virginia.
Babylon Micro-Farms
Grant in 2019
Babylon Micro-Farms Inc., founded in 2017 and based in Charlottesville, Virginia, specializes in providing indoor farming solutions that empower individuals and communities to grow their own produce. The company offers a smart, scalable indoor farming platform designed for a variety of crops, including leafy greens, herbs, microgreens, and edible flowers. By leveraging remote management technology, Babylon Micro-Farms aims to create a decentralized network of micro-farms across North America, making sustainable hydroponic farming more accessible. Their innovative systems automate the growing process, significantly reducing water usage, food waste, and pollutants while allowing year-round cultivation. Additionally, Babylon Micro-Farms has developed low-cost micro-farms to support food-insecure populations, particularly refugees in the Middle East, highlighting their commitment to addressing food security through sustainable agriculture.
Unanimous AI
Grant in 2019
Unanimous A.I., Inc. specializes in swarm artificial intelligence software solutions that harness collective human intelligence to enhance decision-making and predictions. Founded in 2014 and headquartered in San Francisco, the company offers two primary products: Swarm Insight and Swarm IQ. Swarm Insight enables organizations to gather and analyze consumer insights more accurately than traditional methods, while Swarm IQ enhances the predictive capabilities of business teams, improving forecasts and evaluations. By merging real-time human input with AI algorithms, Unanimous A.I. creates dynamic systems that keep people involved in the decision-making process, rather than replacing them with automated solutions. This innovative approach has garnered recognition, including awards at the SXSW Interactive Innovation Awards. With additional offices in locations such as Arlington, San Luis Obispo, Chicago, and Washington, the company aims to transform how organizations harness collective intelligence for various applications, from marketing to finance.
Altrix Medical
Grant in 2019
Altrix Medical is a medical company that develops online applications and medical equipment in order to improve people's lives. The company was founded in 2013 and is based in Centreville, Virginia.
Cerillo is a biotechnology company founded in 2016 and headquartered in Charlottesville, Virginia. The company focuses on developing innovative biological laboratory instruments that simplify common research tasks. One of its notable products is a compact multiwell plate reader, designed to operate effectively in small laboratory environments. This instrument enhances researchers' capabilities by allowing for extensive characterization of microbes, thereby removing traditional barriers imposed by conventional laboratory technologies. Through its advancements, Cerillo aims to empower researchers and facilitate more efficient scientific exploration.
BlackBoiler, LLC is a legal technology company that specializes in AI-assisted contract review solutions. Established in 2016 and based in Arlington, Virginia, with an additional office in New York, the company utilizes advanced deep learning and natural language processing technologies to provide its clients with efficient contract management tools. BlackBoiler's platform enables legal service providers, law firms, and attorneys to quickly review and revise contracts, employing a system that learns from historical contracts and company standards. Its key features include automated redlining, third-party contract review, integrated email workflows, and productivity metrics, all designed to streamline the contract review process and significantly reduce the time and costs associated with legal documentation.
Cerillo is a biotechnology company founded in 2016 and headquartered in Charlottesville, Virginia. The company focuses on developing innovative biological laboratory instruments that simplify common research tasks. One of its notable products is a compact multiwell plate reader, designed to operate effectively in small laboratory environments. This instrument enhances researchers' capabilities by allowing for extensive characterization of microbes, thereby removing traditional barriers imposed by conventional laboratory technologies. Through its advancements, Cerillo aims to empower researchers and facilitate more efficient scientific exploration.
LabBrightSpec addresses high-value, time-sensitive analytical chemistry challenges that are not well addressed by other spectroscopy techniques and instruments. It provides innovative laboratory services in order to deliver immediate results to potential customers of our instrumentation products. They are based in Charlottesville, Virginia, about two hours from Washington, DC. The BrightSpec Fourier transform molecular rotational resonance (FT-MRR) product platform is based on technology developed at the University of Virginia by Brooks Pate and his team, several of whom now work at BrightSpec. They offer FT-MRR product configurations for analytical chemistry and gas sensing in manufacturing process control, quality control, environmental monitoring, and formulation research.
Aperiomics, Inc. is a biotechnology company based in Sterling, Virginia, specializing in pathogen detection services for the animal screening, agricultural testing, and human diagnostics industries. Founded in 2013 and initially known as NextGen Diagnostics, the company changed its name in 2014. Aperiomics utilizes advanced sequencing technologies and a proprietary informatics pipeline to identify a wide range of pathogens, including viral, bacterial, fungal, and parasitic organisms, through a single test. By employing Deep Shotgun Metagenomic Sequencing and leveraging a comprehensive database of over 37,000 microbes, Aperiomics enables medical professionals to identify infections that may be missed by conventional testing methods. This innovative approach has aided many patients suffering from unexplained illnesses by providing accurate diagnoses and facilitating effective treatment pathways. Recognized for its contributions to the field, Aperiomics received accolades such as Life Science Innovator of the Year in 2016 and International Start Up of the Year in 2018.
LabBrightSpec addresses high-value, time-sensitive analytical chemistry challenges that are not well addressed by other spectroscopy techniques and instruments. It provides innovative laboratory services in order to deliver immediate results to potential customers of our instrumentation products. They are based in Charlottesville, Virginia, about two hours from Washington, DC. The BrightSpec Fourier transform molecular rotational resonance (FT-MRR) product platform is based on technology developed at the University of Virginia by Brooks Pate and his team, several of whom now work at BrightSpec. They offer FT-MRR product configurations for analytical chemistry and gas sensing in manufacturing process control, quality control, environmental monitoring, and formulation research.
MineLight Solutions
Grant in 2014
MineLight Solutions is a consulting firm that provides solutions such as strategic and operational planning, operational improvement, performance management and reporting, IT restructuring and reoganization, and communication planning. The company comprises of management consultants that mostly offers its services towards federal government clients to assist other businesses or organizations. MineLight Solutions was founded in 2008 by Patrick O'Brien in Fairfax, Virgina.
The Center for the Environmental Implications of NanoTechnology (CEINT) is exploring the relationship between a vast array of nanomaterials— from natural, to manufactured, to those produced incidentally by human activities— and their potential environmental exposure, biological effects, and ecological impacts. Headquartered at Duke University, CEINT is a collaborative effort bringing together researchers from Duke, Carnegie Mellon University, Howard University, Virginia Tech, University of Kentucky, and Stanford University. CEINT academic collaborations include on-going activities coordinated with faculty at Baylor, Clemson, North Carolina State, and North Carolina Central universities, with researchers at NIST and EPA government labs, and with key international partners.
Rivanna Medical, LLC is a medical technology company based in Charlottesville, Virginia, founded in 2010. The company focuses on developing and commercializing innovative ultrasound-based systems aimed at enhancing the application of spinal and epidural anesthesia through advanced 3D navigation of the lumbar spine. Its flagship product, Accuro, not only facilitates precise anesthesia delivery but also supports various diagnostic imaging needs, including musculoskeletal and abdominal anatomies. Rivanna Medical is committed to improving patient outcomes and lowering healthcare costs while minimizing patient exposure to radiation commonly associated with X-ray-based imaging techniques.
Echo Ridge develops and sells systems for resilient Positioning/Navigation/Timing (PNT), Electronic Warfare (EW), and high-fidelity laboratory modeling, simulation and testing of complex RF devices and systems. The comapy provides multiple services for aviation, bridges, biosurveillance, cyber intelligence, disaster management, federal infrastructure, rail and transits, highways, and geospatial services. Echo Ridge was founded in 2006 in Sterling, Virginia.
NBE Tech, LLC is a Virginia-based company specializing in material solutions for thermal management and high-temperature applications. Founded in 2005, it focuses on the development and production of nano metal powders and nano silver pastes, particularly its proprietary nanoTach® product. This technology, developed through research at Virginia Tech, is distinguished by its ability to maintain thermal, mechanical, and electrical properties while simplifying processes like low-temperature joining techniques. Unlike traditional methods that require substantial pressure for effective sintering, NBE's nanoTach® pastes can be sintered at lower temperatures without the need for pressure, enhancing efficiency in semiconductor and optoelectronic device manufacturing. The company operates a high-volume production facility at the Virginia Tech Corporate Research Center and has received recognition for its innovations, including a prestigious R&D 100 Award in 2007.
Synoptos
Angel Round in 2011
Synoptos specializes in delivering tailored business intelligence through advanced media monitoring and analysis services. The company employs proprietary technologies and algorithms, partially funded by grants from the National Science Foundation and Virginia's Center for Innovative Technology, to provide comprehensive insights into news and social media. By blending advanced data visualization tools with rigorous human analysis, Synoptos helps clients, including Fortune 500 companies, government agencies, and non-profits, understand the media landscape, track information flow, and identify key influencers. Its services support intelligence gathering, business operations, performance measurement, and enhanced decision-making, enabling organizations to effectively leverage digital media for their strategic goals.