University of Minnesota
VC Fund
Minneapolis, United States
University of Minnesota is a VC fund in Minneapolis focused on Therapeutics and Biotechnology. University of Minnesota provides baccalaureate, master’s, and doctoral degrees in medicine, business, law, liberal arts, science, engineering, and architecture fields. They also provide education services to communities through science-based knowledge and training.
- Total investments:
- 14
- Last investment:
- Lead investor:
- 14%
Last updated:
For AI agents: llms.txt
Industries University of Minnesota invests in
TherapeuticsBiotechnologyMusicEnergyMedical
Stages University of Minnesota invests in
Series BGrantVenture - Series UnknownSeries ASeries C
Countries University of Minnesota invests in
United StatesCanada
Contacts
| Name | Phone | Socials | |
|---|---|---|---|
Betsy Vohs
|
|||
Catherine Qi Zhao
|
|||
Dan Mallin
|
|||
Dan Voytas
|
|||
Douglas J. Gorence
|
Investment Focus
Industry
- Therapeutics 3 (21%)
- Biotechnology 3 (21%)
- Music 1 (7%)
- Energy 1 (7%)
- Medical 1 (7%)
Stage
- Series B 4 (29%)
- Grant 2 (14%)
- Venture - Series Unknown 2 (14%)
- Series A 1 (7%)
- Series C 1 (7%)
Country
- United States 7 (50%)
- Canada 2 (14%)
Team
| Name | Title | Investments | Links | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Betsy Vohs
Member Board Of Directors
|
Member Board Of Directors | Total investments: 0 | Find email | |
|
Catherine Qi Zhao
Assistant Professor
|
Assistant Professor | Total investments: 0 | Find email | |
|
Dan Mallin
Entrepreneur in Residence
|
Entrepreneur in Residence | Total investments: 0 | Find email | |
|
Dan Voytas
Professor of the Department of Genetics, Cell Biology & Development
|
Professor of the Department of Genetics, Cell Biology & Development | Total investments: 0 | Find email | |
|
Douglas J. Gorence
President & Chief Investment Officer
|
President & Chief Investment Officer | Total investments: 0 | Find email | |
| See all 19 team members → | ||||
Investments
| Company | Description | Round | Links |
|---|---|---|---|
Claros Technologies
|
Claros Technologies is an environmental technology company that develops solutions for the detection, analysis, and destruction of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). The company provides PFAS testing and analytical laboratory services, proprietary PFAS destruction technology, and regulatory compliance solutions for industrial, municipal,and government organizations. Its technologies are designed to help identify, manage, and permanently eliminate PFAS contamination from water, wastewater, and other materials through science-based environmental remediation solutions. | $10M / Convertible Note / Aug 12, 2025 | |
RetiSpec
|
RetiSpec is developing a non-invasive eye scanner for early detection of Alzheimer’s Disease pathology years before symptoms occur, so that clinicians can intervene with emerging therapeutics early, when there’s a chance of actually impacting the disease. | $10M / Series A / Jul 26, 2024 | |
|
Claros Technologies
|
Claros Technologies is an environmental technology company that develops solutions for the detection, analysis, and destruction of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). The company provides PFAS testing and analytical laboratory services, proprietary PFAS destruction technology, and regulatory compliance solutions for industrial, municipal,and government organizations. Its technologies are designed to help identify, manage, and permanently eliminate PFAS contamination from water, wastewater, and other materials through science-based environmental remediation solutions. | $22M / Series B / May 28, 2024 | |
Niron Magnetics
|
Niron develops innovative advanced magnetic materials for high performance and low-cost permanent magnets. Permanent magnets play a vital, hidden role in modern technologies. Common devices that we use daily, such as computers, appliances, and automobiles are powered by permanent-magnet motors that convert electricity to motion. In the productionof electricity, permanent magnets are found at the heart of generators.Despite their ubiquity, however, magnets themselves have not kept pace with demands of higher performance, lighter weight machines. In fact, it has been almost 25 years since the last new magnetic material (NdFeB) became commercially available. As hybrid and electric vehicles fill the streets, and wind power generation continues to be one of the fastest growing means of producing electricity, the demand for increased efficiency needs to be met with innovative new magnetic materials.Niron Magnetics is developing the world’s first advanced manufacturing process for the mass production of permanent magnets powered by our breakthrough material formulation. Niron’s proprietary Iron nitride magnets possess inherently higher magnetization and can be produced at a lower cost compared to today’s rare-earth magnets, and will enable a revolution in the design of new electric motors and generators.Niron was founded in 2014 as a spinout of University of Minnesota and is based on technology that has received the support of ARPA-E, the National Science Foundation (NSF), and the Department of Energy Office of Basic Energy Sciences. | $25M / Venture - Series Unknown / Feb 20, 2024 | |
|
Niron Magnetics
|
Niron develops innovative advanced magnetic materials for high performance and low-cost permanent magnets. Permanent magnets play a vital, hidden role in modern technologies. Common devices that we use daily, such as computers, appliances, and automobiles are powered by permanent-magnet motors that convert electricity to motion. In the productionof electricity, permanent magnets are found at the heart of generators.Despite their ubiquity, however, magnets themselves have not kept pace with demands of higher performance, lighter weight machines. In fact, it has been almost 25 years since the last new magnetic material (NdFeB) became commercially available. As hybrid and electric vehicles fill the streets, and wind power generation continues to be one of the fastest growing means of producing electricity, the demand for increased efficiency needs to be met with innovative new magnetic materials.Niron Magnetics is developing the world’s first advanced manufacturing process for the mass production of permanent magnets powered by our breakthrough material formulation. Niron’s proprietary Iron nitride magnets possess inherently higher magnetization and can be produced at a lower cost compared to today’s rare-earth magnets, and will enable a revolution in the design of new electric motors and generators.Niron was founded in 2014 as a spinout of University of Minnesota and is based on technology that has received the support of ARPA-E, the National Science Foundation (NSF), and the Department of Energy Office of Basic Energy Sciences. | $33M / Venture - Series Unknown / Nov 08, 2023 | |
Orbital Sidekick
|
Orbital Sidekick utilizes hyperspectral technology - capturing hundreds of narrow contiguous spectral bands, from visible light through infrared. The company develops a space-based infrastructure of hyperspectral sensors to provide monitoring services to the energy sector.Orbital Sidekick was founded in 2016 and is headquartered in San Francisco,California, United States. | $10M / Venture - Series Unknown / Jan 31, 2023 | |
BKB Floral Foam
|
BKB is working towards a renewable and compostable future for the floral and horticultural industries by making sustainable replacements for current foams made from fossil fuels. | $50K / Grant / Sep 20, 2022 | |
Punkademic
|
Punkademic Courses started with educators who were teaching music production at universities in the U.S. | Grant / Sep 15, 2022 | |
Novome Biotechnologies
|
Novome Biotechnologies, Inc. is a biotechnology company focused on engineering defined activities into the human gut microbiota to treat chronic diseases. The Company has developed the first-ever platform for controlled colonization of the gut with engineered bacteria, enabling first-in-class living therapeutics: Genetically Engineered MicrobialMedicines (GEMMs). Novome is utilizing its proprietary GEMMs platform in its lead preclinical program in hyperoxaluria, which is focused on the development of a therapeutic strain of bacteria that degrades oxalate to prevent the formation of kidney stones. Efforts are also directed to the expansion of its proprietary synthetic biology platform into additional indications. | $43.5M / Series B / Sep 13, 2022 | |
|
Niron Magnetics
|
Niron develops innovative advanced magnetic materials for high performance and low-cost permanent magnets. Permanent magnets play a vital, hidden role in modern technologies. Common devices that we use daily, such as computers, appliances, and automobiles are powered by permanent-magnet motors that convert electricity to motion. In the productionof electricity, permanent magnets are found at the heart of generators.Despite their ubiquity, however, magnets themselves have not kept pace with demands of higher performance, lighter weight machines. In fact, it has been almost 25 years since the last new magnetic material (NdFeB) became commercially available. As hybrid and electric vehicles fill the streets, and wind power generation continues to be one of the fastest growing means of producing electricity, the demand for increased efficiency needs to be met with innovative new magnetic materials.Niron Magnetics is developing the world’s first advanced manufacturing process for the mass production of permanent magnets powered by our breakthrough material formulation. Niron’s proprietary Iron nitride magnets possess inherently higher magnetization and can be produced at a lower cost compared to today’s rare-earth magnets, and will enable a revolution in the design of new electric motors and generators.Niron was founded in 2014 as a spinout of University of Minnesota and is based on technology that has received the support of ARPA-E, the National Science Foundation (NSF), and the Department of Energy Office of Basic Energy Sciences. | $21.3M / Venture - Series Unknown / Jul 29, 2021 | |
| See all 14 investments → | |||
Co-Investors
American Century Investments
2 deals together
Anzu Partners
2 deals together
Capita3
2 deals together
Eli Lilly
2 deals together
F.R. Bigelow Foundation
2 deals together
Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community
2 deals together
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FAQ
What does University of Minnesota invest in?
University of Minnesota invests primarily in Therapeutics, Biotechnology and Music startups, most often at Series B and Grant stage. Most of the 14 investments tracked by Shizune back companies in United States. The Investment Focus section breaks down every industry, stage and country in the portfolio.
How do I contact University of Minnesota?
Public channels for University of Minnesota include LinkedIn, X (Twitter) and the website linked on this profile. For a verified work email and phone number, create a free Shizune account — contact data is searched across 20+ sources and validated before delivery, so your outreach lands in the right inbox.
Who are the partners at University of Minnesota?
The team at University of Minnesota includes Betsy Vohs (Member Board Of Directors), Catherine Qi Zhao (Assistant Professor) and Dan Mallin (Entrepreneur in Residence), among 19 team members tracked by Shizune. The Team section lists each member with their title, investment count and links.
Is Shizune's investor data accurate?
Yes — every stat on this profile is calculated from confirmed public funding rounds monitored across hundreds of sources since 2020. This profile was last refreshed in Aug 2026 and is updated monthly. Spotted something off? Use the “Suggest an edit” link near the top of the page.
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