INDIANAPOLIS -February 10, 2021 – The Heritage Group and Heritage Environmental Services, Inc. (collectively, “Heritage”), a leader in environmental and sustainability services, launched a new division, Heritage Battery Recycling (HBR), in late 2020 to address growing market demand for safe, sustainable solutions for lithium-ion batteries near or at end-of-life. HBR’s goal is to recover and reuse critical battery precursor resources that exist in finite supply across the globe.

In collaboration with Romeo Power, Inc. (“Romeo Power“) (NYSE: RMO), an energy technology leader delivering large-scale electrification solutions for complex commercial applications, HBR will develop a battery reuse and recycling facility sited in the southwestern United States.

“By working directly with Romeo Power, we have a unique opportunity to provide a safe, environmentally sound end-of-life strategy for commercial truck manufacturers, commercial fleet managers and conscientious business owners who are investing in clean energy today,” said Jeff Laborsky, CEO of Heritage. “We are proud to be part of this long-term sustainability collaboration.”

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INDIANAPOLIS – January 21, 2021 – HG Ventures today announced that Senior Director Ginger Rothrock has been named to the “Top 50 Rising Stars” List by Global Corporate Venturing (GCV), the leading industry publication for corporate venture capital.

The Top 50 Rising Stars Award recognizes the most significant professionals who entered the industry during the previous five years from a global roster of more than 2,500 corporate venture arms. Rothrock received the award on Jan. 21 during Digital Forum 3.0, an online conference sponsored by GCV.

Rothrock is among only 12% of venture capital partners who are women.

“I am honored to receive such a distinguished award,” Rothrock said. “I’m passionate about the power of corporate venture capital to unlock innovation and further the entrepreneurial ecosystem, especially in the materials science and sustainability sectors that are our focus at HG Ventures. I look forward to making further contributions to the industry.”

Rothrock is the second member of the HG Ventures team recognized by GCV. Executive Vice President for New Ventures Kip Frey was included in the Powerlist Top 100 leaders of in-house venture capital groups in 2020.

“Rising Star is an excellent description of Ginger,” Frey said. “She is playing a key role in developing HG Ventures into one of the nation’s premier corporate investment initiatives.”

Rothrock was recruited to HG Ventures in late 2018 while serving as vice president of technology and commercialization at RTI International, a translational research institute in Research Triangle Park, North Carolina. Eleven years earlier, Rothrock, a Ph.D. chemist, co-founded Liquidia Technologies, a clinical biopharma company in Research Triangle that went public in 2018.

At HG Ventures, Rothrock is responsible for sourcing deals, due diligence, and portfolio company governance and support. She is also liaison for internal incubation projects at the more than 30 companies tied to both HG Ventures and its parent company, The Heritage Group. With more than 5,000 employees globally, The Heritage Group is among Indiana’s largest private companies.

INDIANAPOLIS – January 5, 2021 – Heritage Environmental Services, Inc. (“HES”), a leader in environmental and recycling services, and Romeo Power, Inc. (“Romeo Power”) (NYSE: RMO), an energy technology leader delivering large-scale electrification solutions for complex commercial applications, announced today that they have launched a program to select fleet electrification partners to execute on HES’s fleet electrification strategy. HES and Romeo Power intend to select leading edge commercial Battery Electric Vehicle (BEV) value chain participants such as Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs), integrators and ePowertrain providers, to participate in the program. The goal is to enter into long-term production partnerships with program participants that deliver the best solution for Heritage’s requirements. All participants will be required to utilize Romeo Power’s energy technology and battery management system in their vehicle offerings.

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INDIANAPOLIS – January 5, 2021 – Romeo Systems, Inc. (“Romeo Power”), an energy technology leader delivering large-scale electrification solutions for complex commercial applications, announced today that it has completed its business combination (“Business Combination”) with RMG Acquisition Corp. (“RMG”) (NYSE: RMG), a special purpose acquisition company. The Business Combination was approved by RMG stockholders in a special meeting held on December 28, 2020 and consummated on December 29, 2020. Beginning on December 30, 2020, Romeo Power’s shares of common stock will trade on the New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”) under the ticker symbol “RMO” and its warrants will trade on the NYSE under the ticker symbol “RMO.WT”.

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INDIANAPOLIS – December 7, 2020 – EPG (brand name: Epogee) is a plant-based oil that has been restructured in such a way that virtually none of it is absorbed by the body (instead of the usual 9 calories per gram, this fat has 0.7). And it’s attracting interest from formulators across the food industry, as firms see an opportunity to make significant calorie reductions without compromising taste or texture, claims commercial officer Jayme Caruso.

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INDIANAPOLIS – December 4, 2020 –

MITO Material Solutions co-founders, Haley Marie Keith and Kevin Keith, were named to the 2020 Forbes 30 Under 30 Manufacturing & Industry list. MITO Material Solutions is a HG Ventures portfolio company, and was a member of the 2019 class of The Heritage Group Accelerator Powered by Techstars. The company’s proprietary graphene-functionalization technique creates hybrid polymer modifiers that enhance durability while cutting the weight of materials. HG Ventures participated in the company’s oversubscribed $1M Series Seed round earlier this year.

Congratulations to accelerator participants, Myriam Sbeiti and Daniela Blanco, the co-founders of Sunthetics, for being named to the 2020 Forbes 30 Under 30 Energy list. Sunthetics was a member of the 2020 class of The Heritage Group Accelerator Powered by Techstars. The company is developing the first generation of smart electrochemical equipment that will allow traditional, fossil-fuel reliant reactions to be replaced with faster, more sustainable electric processes.

INDIANAPOLIS – October 15, 2020 – “The same way Moore’s Law for microchips has changed the world, the next generation of computing will be enabled by an acceleration in energy storage,” said Rajan Kumar, PhD, founder and CEO of the battery startup Ateios. “Technology keeps moving towards smaller and thinner devices for everyday use. The only thing stopping it is the battery.”

Ateios (pronounced “Ah-TAY-ohs”) has developed the world’s first flexible, paper-thin customizable battery. Today, they announced closing an over-subscribed, $1.25 million Series Seed financing round, led by early-stage venture capital firm, Good Growth Capital.

 

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Corporate venture capital arm of The Heritage Group honored as among the world’s most prominent

 

 

INDIANAPOLIS – September 17, 2020 – The Heritage Group (THG) announced today that Kip A. Frey, its Executive Vice President for New Ventures, has been named to the Global Corporate Venturing (GCV) Powerlist 2020. Published annually, the Powerlist recognizes the world’s top 100 leaders of in-house venture capital groups, drawn from a universe of more than 2,000 corporations that invest in innovative start-ups as part of their corporate strategies.

James Mawson, GCV’s Editor-in-Chief, described the Powerlist as “the global pinnacle in corporate venturing, both in thought leadership and deal-making acumen. Each member of this list leads a corporate venture arm at the forefront of institutional venture innovation.”

Since its formation in 2018 under Frey’s leadership, HG Ventures has invested more than $65 million in hardtech startups and now has a portfolio of more than twenty companies, including six Indiana-based businesses: 120Water, Epogee, Gauge Telematics, Biosynthetic Technologies, Ateios, and MITO Materials. HG Ventures was created to drive innovation and growth by investing in private companies and new technologies in THG’s core industries of environmental services, specialty chemicals, and transportation construction and materials.

“Innovation is core to who we are at The Heritage Group, and HG Ventures allows us to partner our world-class businesses with entrepreneurs at the cutting edge of those industries,” said Amy Schumacher, CEO of The Heritage Group. “We are very gratified to have our corporate venture arm receive such significant recognition so soon after our launch.”

Megan Glover, CEO of 120Water, has realized value at multiple levels through HG Ventures’ investment: “The HG Ventures team understands how larger corporations can fuel innovation through partnerships with startups and entrepreneurs,” said Glover. “When I met Kip, I knew there was sincere interest not only in our company vision but our ability to build an influential business in the local entrepreneurial ecosystem. That’s a winning combination.”

Frey’s team is currently hosting The Heritage Group Accelerator Powered by Techstars, which brings ten early-stage and early-growth companies to The Center, THG’s state-of-the-art R&D facility at Intech Park. HG Ventures provides the startups with funding, mentors, and access to technical expertise to develop and refine their business plans.

Prior to joining THG, Frey served as the Vice Provost for Innovation & Entrepreneurship and Professor of Law and Public Policy at Duke University. He practiced intellectual property law before joining Turner Broadcasting System where he contributed to the acquisition of Castle Rock Entertainment, the formation of the Cartoon Network, and construction of the MGM Grand Hotel. He has served as CEO of several startups and as a partner at venture capital firm Intersouth Partners. Frey is a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of the University of Southern California and of Duke Law School, where he served on the Duke Law Journal.

About HG Ventures

HG Ventures is the corporate venture capital arm of The Heritage Group (THG) that supports innovation and growth by investing and partnering with private companies developing new technologies and approaches in THG’s core and adjacent markets. By leveraging the world-class expertise of The Heritage

Group operating companies and research center, HG Ventures offers a unique value proposition to its portfolio company partners. https://www.hgventures.com/

INDIANAPOLIS – Indianapolis-based The Heritage Group and Techstars are teaming up for the second year to help 10 startup teams scale their innovative ideas. The company says the accelerator’s 2020 class of Next-Gen Hardtech Tech Companies includes founders and companies that are developing new solutions for some of the world’s biggest problems.

Techstars and The Heritage Group say the teams represent a diverse skill set, from construction tech and the industrial Internet of Things to sustainable material manufacturers. The startups are working on technologies such as repurposing plastic, reducing carbon emissions, and increasing worker safety.

“The accelerator is an opportunity to combine the material science expertise of The Heritage Group with the passion and vision of entrepreneurs to drive real change in the materials science and hardtech space,” said Kip Frey, Executive Vice President of New Ventures for The Heritage Group. “In partnership with Techstars, we look forward to welcoming a new class of entrepreneurs to Indianapolis and helping them build successful businesses.”

 

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INDIANAPOLIS – September 01, 2020 – MITO Material Solutions, a cutting edge developer of additives that enable polymer manufacturers to enhance product performance, announced an oversubscribed $1M Series Seed funding round led by two Chicago-based firms, Dipalo Ventures and Clean Energy Trust.

This investment follows MITO Materials receipt of more than $1.1 million in R&D grants from the National Science Foundation and participation in the Heritage Group Hardtech Accelerator powered by Techstars in late 2019. Additional Series Seed investors who participated in this round include Charlottesville, Virginia-based, CavAngels; Indiana-based HG Ventures, Elevate Ventures, and VisionTech Angels; and Oklahoma-based, Cortado Ventures.

 

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