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Denver Post—Solid Power, a CU Â鶹ӰԺ spinout, is producing the material for solid state battery cells in a new 75,000-square-foot factory in Thornton and is looking at expanding operations globally in the next year or so.

Business Wire—Cascade Biocatalysts (formerly Rigid Biotech), a CU Â鶹ӰԺ startup and biomanufacturing company catalyzing green chemistry, raised an oversubscribed $2.6 million pre-seed. Cascade aims to use the raised funds to scale its impact from the lab bench to pilot scale and support its initial wave of customers.

The Embark Deep Tech Startup Creator at Venture Partners at CU Â鶹ӰԺ has officially launched its first Embark Entrepreneurs in Residence cohort. Embark aims to connect business minds outside the university with breakthrough inventions emerging from CU Â鶹ӰԺ's research labs to bring them to market and unleash the full impact of CU Â鶹ӰԺ's research into the world.

Denver Post—Meati Foods, a Â鶹ӰԺ-based producer of plant-based meat alternatives and CU Â鶹ӰԺ spinout, is expanding its commercial reach by selling to Whole Foods Markets across the country.

BioSpace—SomaLogic, a leader in data-driven proteomics technology and CU Â鶹ӰԺ spinout, today announced its partnership with Dante Genomics, a global leader in genomics and precision medicine, to offer a comprehensive solution for proteomics testing at scale in Europe. Dante will be the first SomaLogic-authorized site in Italy.

BizWest—VitriVax Inc., a Â鶹ӰԺ-based developer of vaccine-shot technology and CU Â鶹ӰԺ spinout, was recently awarded a five-year, $29 million contract from the U.S. Department of Defense to create a single-injection, thermostable vaccine for melioidosis and glanders.

Innosphere Ventures—New Iridium, a CU Â鶹ӰԺ spinout dedicated to decarbonizing the chemical industry and driving sustainable innovation, announced it has been awarded a $1 million National Science Foundation (NSF) Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase II grant. This grant will enable New Iridium to advance its cutting-edge photocatalysis platform that uses light rather than heat, revolutionizing the production of low-carbon chemicals while significantly reducing costs compared to today’s processes.

CU Â鶹ӰԺ researcher Linda Watkins and CU startups Beryl Therapeutics Inc., Modendo Inc. and TissueForm Inc. are among 37 companies and researchers awarded Proof of Concept and Early-Stage Capital Retention grants through the Colorado Office of Economic Development and International Trade (OEDIT).

VegNews—Meati Foods, a CU Â鶹ӰԺ spinout and the innovative producer of plant-based meat alternatives crafted from mushroom root, announced that former Major League Baseball (MLB) Hall of Fame member and entrepreneur Derek Jeter has become an investor and advisor for the company.

CU Â鶹ӰԺ researchers have identified a surprising new player in ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis)—an ancient, virus-like protein. With funding from the ALS Association, the National Institutes of Health, and Venture Partners at CU Â鶹ӰԺ, Alexandra Whiteley's lab is now working to understand the molecular pathways involved and to find a way of inhibiting the rogue protein.