 The Biweekly Deal Flow Update Curated by Zoic Capital. (#4) Please subscribe and always feel free to send us tips or comments. The purpose of this newsletter is to inform, educate and attract individuals and companies to become a part of our community. In this issue we have new deal flows we found exciting, both in their scope and ingenuity, as well as a new podcast episode featuring the talented Mark Girouard from Stage Right Ventures. Our reading over the past two weeks has brought our attention to topics ranging from Silicon Valley VC’s being enchanted by the midwest, IPO tech startups remaining private longer – choosing to raise funds via venture capital and of course the recent news on Theranos, and Cryptos being defined as commodities. We did come across a new book by Nassim Nicholas Taleb, titled, Skin in the Game: Hidden Asymmetries in Daily Life. Considered one of the foremost thinkers of our time, Taleb considers what it means to understand the world, succeed in a profession, contribute to a fair and just society, detect nonsense, and influence others. We think it could be an interesting read. And lastly, New York Magazine has a poignant article we suggest, The World Is Better Than Ever. Why Are We Miserable? An excerpt: “As we have slowly and surely attained more progress, we have lost something that undergirds all of it: meaning, cohesion, and a different, deeper kind of happiness than the satiation of all our earthly needs. We’ve forgotten the human flourishing that comes from a common idea of virtue, and a concept of virtue that is based on our nature.” Thanks for reading and I hope everyone has an enjoyable weekend… -Neal Mody -Zoic Capital Podcast This episode’s podcast #12 features Neal Mody, Chris Haydel and special guest Mark Girouard. In addition to being an advisor to Zoic Capital, Mark is the Founder and CEO of Stage Right Ventures, an angel investor, Yoga and Tai Chi extraordinaire as well as an investor within the film industry and healthcare. Follow the link below to find the podcast on the Zoic Capital homepage. |
| Four Deals For Friday Diagnostics has been a strong interest area for Zoic for some time, as previous newsletters have indicated. A particular area of growth and investment interest is consumer diagnostic testing, specifically at-home molecular testing that gives people to power to find information about themselves at that molecular scale. One specific area with strong growth potential is non-invasive prenatal testing, testing during pregnancy of genetic traits from gender to any inherited risks. Many companies are trying to move into this area, such as Qiagen and Ilumina. However, these companies are still limited as their devices are large, bulky, very expensive (hundreds of thousands of $) and very complex to use. Ideally, it is a company that combines non-invasive prenatal testing targets with an easy to use, low-cost device that can be used at home that will take the lead. MddiOnline Another area that we have seen great movement, even in the last 60 days is medical robotics, particularly exoskeletons. Either for entire body movement or for specific extremities, advances in both the mechanisms and sensors could potentially allow a wide variety of patients to experience full mobility. These can also be used not just for medical needs, but also to assist in many labor tasks and even athletic and government applications. MddiOnline We have also seen robotics applications for the surgical suite, including Intuitive’s offerings but also new innovations to assist in those complex tasks. Ourcrowd We have covered diagnostics and devices in this issue and previously, but for a new topic we have also seen more and more tools for gene editing. Although gene editing itself will most probably have to go through lengthier regulatory approval pathways for end-user applications, the tools themselves could represent interesting opportunities as the field continues to expand upon CRISPR.For example, Inscripta, a Boulder, Colo.-based developer of gene editing technology, has raised $55.5 million in Series C funding. Mérieux Développement and Paladin Capital Group co-led, and were joined by return backers like Venrock. Axios Articles Of Interest From The Past Week: •The Purpose of an IPO Has Changed. Startups go public not because they need to grow, but because they have peaked and their investors want out. –Bloomberg •You Can Hack Almost Any Smart Device With A Google Search. A simple design change can fix the Internet-of-Things’ biggest security hole. –FastCodeSign •Zombie Companies’ 20-Year Rise May Be Over, Deutsche Bank Says. –Bloomberg •Are Young Adults Growing Tired of Constant Social Connectivity? –eMarketer •Silicon Valley Is Over, Says Silicon Valley. –The New York Times •28 Books On Stoicism: The (Hopefully) Ultimate Reading List. – DailyStoic •The Arithmetic of Risk: higher risk means higher expected return is one of the most dangerous and misunderstood propositions in the financial markets. –Hussman Funds •Carl Jung and the Shadow: The Ultimate Guide to the Human Dark Side. –HighExistence  Zoic Capital again visited Vancouver, Canada for the Creative Destruction Lab event. CDL has quickly positioned itself as possibly the new Y Combinator of Canada when considering it’s created over $2 Billion in equity value in as little as 5 years. If you found this newsletter to be interesting, I encourage you to forward it on. If you’ve received this from a friend, please subscribe to keep up with future issues. Thanks for reading and please send us any tips or comments! Neal Mody Connect With Zoic Capital |
| Curated by the team at Zoic Capital. |
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