December 20, 2021 / Dave Kirkpatrick LinkedIn / – We are delighted to announce the acquisition of Community Energy Solar (CES) by AES to accelerate the deployment of utility scale solar and storage. SJF led the Series A financing for CES in 2010, in partnership with our co-investor NGP ETP. At that time, the CES…

ARLINGTON, Va., Dec. 20, 2021 / PRNewswire / — The AES Corporation (NYSE: AES) today announced the acquisition of leading US solar developer, Community Energy Solar, LLC (Community Energy). AES has signed PPAs to deliver 4 GW of renewables in the US this year and the acquisition of Community Energy will further bolster the Company’s future expansion…

SJF Ventures is hiring for three new positions: an associate based in its Durham office; a senior analyst based in its San Francisco office; and an analyst, portfolio acceleration based in either its New York or Durham office. Information about each role and application instructions is included below. Associate Position (Durham, NC): SJF Ventures is…

December 16, 2021 / Mercado Labs / — Mercado Labs, an online platform that automates the first mile of the import supply chain, announced today it has closed a Series A investment led by SJF Ventures. Existing investors, LiveOak Venture Partners, Ironspring Ventures, and Supply Chain Ventures also participated in the round. The Series A funding will be used to…

October 15, 2021 / Arrun Kapoor LinkedIn / – It was great to see Fiverr’s acquisition of CreativeLive last week. The acquisition will bring an upskilling product under the umbrella of a thriving gig placement platform, consolidating two of the primary components of employment into one offering. At SJF, we have long been interested in…

SJF Ventures hosted its second Future Impact series event on solar energy’s transition to the primary source of global energy this century.  On September 30, 2021, SJF Ventures hosted a conversation on the future impact of the “Solar Century.” Facilitated by Dave Kirkpatrick and Jacqueline Goodman at SJF, this discussion focused on solar energy’s transition…

BERKELEY, Calif. and TEMPE, Ariz., Aug. 25, 2021 / PRNewswire / — Solar digital solutions startup Terabase Energy today announced that it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire PlantPredict, a predictive solar energy modeling tool, from First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ: FSLR), a leading American solar technology company. The terms of the agreement were not disclosed. PlantPredict is a sophisticated predictive solar energy…

New Orleans, LA / April 28, 2021 / PRNewswire / – PosiGen, the nation’s leading provider of renewable energy and efficiency solutions for low-to-moderate income (LMI) households, is pleased to announce the second close of its Series D growth equity financing with an additional $27 million investment from a syndicate of leading private equity investors, including Activate…

March 9, 2021 / EdSurge / – Going after an industry giant in K-12 college and career planning wasn’t what Katie Fang originally had in mind when she started SchooLinks in 2015. Back then, it was a website where high school students and parents could research college options. Such services were a dime a dozen, she…

NEW YORK, August 5, 2020 / CREtech /- ROOM, the startup reshaping the modern workspace, today announced it has closed a $12.5 million Series A round to fuel the upcoming expansion of its product portfolio with a suite of modular architectural solutions designed to meet crucial demand for adaptability and flexibility in the office. Backed…

AUSTIN, Texas, July 30, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Vital Farms, Inc. (“Vital Farms”), a Certified B Corporation that offers a range of ethically produced pasture-raised foods nationwide, today announced the pricing of its initial public offering of 9,303,977 shares of its common stock at a price of $22.00 per share. The shares are expected to begin…

Stephanie Nieman recently authored an article, Technology innovations tackling the youth, young adult mental health crisis, that was first published in MobiHealthNews.  The piece gives a breakdown of the growing list of digital mental health tools available to these populations, and the various ways to deploy them. July 10, 2020 / MobiHealthNews / – The current COVID-19 pandemic and…

There is no playbook for what to do when your warehouse is hit by a tornado, or when the world is impacted by a pandemic. SJF portfolio company Optoro faced both at once. Resilience, persistence and drive allowed the company to persevere during the toughest challenges, and Optoro’s technology enabled the warehouse to be back…

We, like you, have been dealing with shock, sadness, frustration, and anger in the wake of the recent murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis.  As with the cases of Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, and others, we know the unfortunate truth that for every George Floyd, there are an unknown number of similar events that go…

SJF Ventures is offering Cleantech Open Office Hours from 10 am – 6 pm ET on Thursday, April 30 and Wednesday, May 13 to support growth-stage companies with the potential to rapidly scale in an economic recovery. During the office hours, cleantech entrepreneurs will present their investment opportunity or discuss top-of-mind issues via video with…

Dave Kirkpatrick recently authored an article, Coronavirus Proves Government Is Important, that was first published in The Hill.  The column covers how attacks on government have weakened our response to the pandemic and climate crisis and highlights the urgent need for proficient and accountable governments to protect all citizens from these crises, especially the poor.  The piece…

SJF Ventures portfolio companies Vital Farms and Cooks Venture were mentioned in the news talking about the effects of the Coronavirus.  The Washington Post discussed changing consumer habits with Vital Farms’ CEO, and The New York Times talked about food supply chain issues with Cooks Venture’s CEO. Stress-baking and hoarding has led to a retail…

Boston, Massachusetts, January 22, 2020 / PR Newswire / – Catalant Technologies today announced the close of $35 million of additional funding from its Series E equity round and expansion of its existing debt facility to scale its product offering and expand into new global markets. Catalant is a leading provider of software that helps companies effectively manage strategy…

Each year, Optoro publishes an impact report outlining the company’s environmental and social impact achievements. Through its mission to make retail more sustainable by eliminating all waste from returns, on average in 2019, Optoro clients were able to keep 96% of returned and excess goods out of landfill. Additionally, the company mitigated 8.5 million pounds…

January 14, 2020 / Triple Pundit / – Picture this: A chicken factory farm with overcrowded hens packed onto the cement floor with a higher risk for disease and without good-quality feed or even fresh air. Now, picture this: Family farms that provide their pasture-raised hens with plenty of feed, nutrients and abundant space to forage for…