Growth Factory

Don't miss Fusion Fund founder and managing partner, Lu Zhang speaking on Food, Health and Medicine at GFX24! Lu Zhang, Founder and Managing Partner of Fusion Fund, is a renowned Silicon Valley-based investor, a serial entrepreneur, and a Stanford Engineering alumna. With a strong technical background, Lu has extensive experience bringing a broad range of technologies to commercialization, and deep domain expertise in AI in healthcare, Enterprise AI/Networks, Edge Computing and Data Privacy. Founded by Lu in 2015, Fusion Fund is dedicated to supporting early-stage entrepreneurs working on innovation in healthcare, enterprise AI and industrial automation. With investments in over 80 companies across the U.S. and Canada, Fusion Fund has generated substantial exits over the years. Prior to starting Fusion Fund, Lu was a serial entrepreneur and materials science researcher. Following the acquisition of her startup by a leading public medical device company, Lu began investing in and supporting early-stage entrepreneurs. This eventually led her to create Fusion Fund in 2015. Since then, Lu has built a distinguished eco system and established her reputation in the VC industry. She was honored as Young Global Leader by World Economic Forum (Davos), Silicon Valley Women of Influence, Best 25 Female early-stage investor by Business Insider, Featured Honoree of VC of Forbes 30 under 30 and Town & Country 50 Modern Swans - Entrepreneurship Influencer Lu frequently speaks at high profile tech conferences such as World Economic Forum(Davos), Future Investment Initiative (FII), Web Summit, SuperReturn, etc. and she is a guest lecturer at Stanford University and Wharton. Lu serves as a board member of many portfolio companies, the Board and Chairwomen of the Youth Council of Future Science Award, and Jury Board of the Cartier Women Initiative and Young Leader Award. She holds an M.S. in Materials Science and Engineering from Stanford University. Get your tickets to hear her speak at GFX24 now: gfxventuresummit.com

We’re excited to announce that we've been awarded a $10 million grant from the California Energy Commission (CEC) for our long-duration battery storage project in partnership with ESS, Inc.! The project will showcase the capability and reliability of iron-flow battery technology, which complements renewable energy sources like wind and solar by storing energy and strategically dispatching it based on demand to support the grid as we transition to a clean energy future! Check out the full press release here: https://lnkd.in/dVGbgyp9 #EnergyStorage #BatteryStorage #CleanEnergyFuture #2030ZeroCarbon

Startup Founders: Will you be actively fundraising this Fall? Are you building a pre-Series A company in: -- Future of Food, Health & Medicine -- GovTech -- ClimateTech -- Enterprise SaaS / AI APPLY HERE: https://bit.ly/3LhZiv4 to pitch at GFX2024 on October 10th. DEADLINE TO APPLY: Monday, July 15th!! Participation includes pre-event pitch prep support. We have LIMITED SPOTS available. In addition to getting in front of investors from within and beyond the region, you will have the opportunity to compete for a Growth Factory investment offer which will be announced at the Backyard Awards Party - the culminating event at this year's GFX. Monique Brown Gary Simon Rick Spencer Nikki Sims Mark Haney Orville Thomas Rachel Stern Brooke (. Cameron R. Law Laura Good Aaron Mondell Anderson Niki Peterson Geoff H. Troels Adrian Hayden Kandul Lucy Lu Roberts John Selep Thomas Hall Franklin Burris, MPA Jon Gregory Paul Ratner Phil Scott Cheryl Beninga Rachel Zillner

T-minus 3 months until GFX 2024! Don't forget, Growth Factory's annual #VentureConference & #StartupShowcase brings together the most talented and innovative minds from the Greater Sacramento region and beyond to connect, learn, and support great start-ups. Let's build the #BackyardAdvantage together! Register now at GROWTHFACTORY.US

Thank you to Buzz Oates, Corporate Tax Incentives, and Five Star Bank - California for sharing your expertise, engaging your networks, and deploying resources to fuel entrepreneurship and innovation in the Sacramento Region. Together we are building the #BackyardAdvantage!

With over 1500 projected attendees, 100 investors, more that 80 exhibitors and 30 startup pitches, GFX 2024 is YOUR time to network, connect and build the Backyard Advantage. Register now at GROWTHFACTORY.US and join us October 10th for GFX 2024.

On July 10th, Beats Lyrics Leaders and Arts Council Placer County will host a Creative Economic Townhall. They will dive into what the Creative Economy is and how it affects our businesses, cities, and communities. Join us for an evening of networking from 6-8pm! The Roseville Venture Lab is a public-private partnership between the Growth Factory and the City of Roseville.

Come out next weekend to support Cars Against Cancer fundraising event on July 7th at the Roseville Speedway from 8am to 12pm! This is produced by one of our Roseville Rising for High School alumni, Sophia Perez, to raise money for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. There will be a great mix of cars ranging from new supercars to old custom classics. It’ll be a fun day to bring family out and enjoy music, food trucks, and stunning vehicles, all for a good cause. Join Growth Factory in celebrating her leadership and entrepreneurial spirit as well as her commitment to community.

It's going to be a really creative day at the Roseville Venture Lab on July 10th! In addition to a professional development series with Blue Line Arts, we are excited to host Beats Lyrics Leaders, led by the indefatiguable J. Ross Parelli for a Creative Economy Town Hall! Join us: https://lnkd.in/ghGw7_Wy The Creative Economy focuses on the industries where creativity, cultural knowledge, and intellectual property intersect. C.E. encompasses arts and culture, media, design, advertising and marketing, software and digital media, historical heritage, design and architecture, music, literature, culinary arts, and venues. C.E. embraces innovation, intellectual property, cultural significance, and economic impact. In Placer County the Creative Economy has contributed over 26 million dollars and brought over 486 jobs to our County. How does the Creative Economy affect our businesses, cities, and communities? Let's talk about it!

We are excited to partner with our friends from Blue Line Arts to host another professional development workshop on July 10th at the Roseville Venture Lab. This session will be focused on supporting artists and creators in building a website to promote their brand and fuel their business. Registration is open at: https://lnkd.in/gBqm-D5u. We will have the fabulous Courtney McArthur, Brand Manager & Web Designer, Dedicated Designs leading this session. Not only is this her day job - she has successfully built websites for over a hundred businesses across the United States, helping them enhance their online presence and achieve their marketing goals. But, she too is an artist! With an Associate of Arts in Photography, she has been shooting personally and professionally since the age of 18. She has built her own website to promote her personal brand and will share valuable tips for individuals just getting started. Roseville Venture Lab is a private-public partnership between the City of Roseville and the Growth Factory.