Fresh Investment for ChEmpower [ChEmpowerへの新たな投資]
Toyota Tsusho announced on October 21, 2026 that it has invested in Pangaea portfolio company ChEmpower through a simple agreement for future equity (SAFE). ChEmpower develops abrasive-free chemicals and polishing pads for chemical mechanical polishing (CMP), the step that flattens silicon wafers during semiconductor manufacturing.
Hard tech. Until it’s ordinary.
What do we mean by “Hard tech. Until it’s ordinary.” ? It’s about supporting hard tech innovations until they’re no longer considered a “breakthrough”, and have simply become the way. Here’s a bit more context on how we came to this idea.
半導体スタートアップに私たちが求めるもの
Hard Tech（Deep Tech）企業に私たちが求めるものの多くは、セクターを問わず共通しています。独自のIP、定量的に差別化されたValue Proposition、資本効率、そして信頼できるチーム。数か月前、PangaeaのパートナーであるAndrew Haughianは、博報堂DYホールディングスとともにセミナーを開き、最近発表したHard Tech Reportの内容を共有しました。同レポートの多様な調査結果を掘り下げて紹介した後（詳細は[こちら]からダウンロードできます）、Andrewは、他産業とは異なる半導体およびAIインフラ企業が直面する特有の点に関して話しました。
What we look for in a semiconductor startup
Andrew Haughian walks through four things we look for in semiconductor startups: a clear slot in the industry roadmap, enough captured value per wafer or chip, partners who lead the field, and a team that knows the industry.
David Weekes promoted to Principal at Pangaea Ventures
Pangaea Ventures has promoted David Weekes to Principal. A chemist by training, David assesses early-stage hard tech across advanced materials, chemistry, engineering, and biology.
Collaboration News: Hinalea and Neogen Bring Hyperspectral Imaging to Food Inspection
Neogen has announced a strategic collaboration with, and equity investment in, Pangaea portfolio company Hinalea Imaging, following joint work on hyperspectral imaging in food safety since 2025. Combining Hinalea's imaging technology with Neogen's established food safety expertise opens a path to wider adoption of automated measurement, counting and classification, giving food producers reliable results sooner.
Collaboration Spotlight: Membrion and Lam Research
Pangaea portfolio company Membrion, Inc. and Lam Research have put ECD to work at Lam's Tualatin campus, treating concentrated copper wastewater onsite. The results: 100% in-spec treatment at 35% lower cost per gallon.
This kind of startup-corporate collaboration is how hard tech reaches industrial scale.
「待つな」Dioseve CEO 岸田 和真氏が日本の起業家に伝えたいこと
9月3日、Pangaea Venturesと博報堂DYホールディングスは、渋谷で開催されたTECHNIUM Global Conferenceのサイドイベント「Bridging Worlds」を共催した。創業者、投資家、事業会社のパートナーなど約100名が集まり、Pangaeaパートナーの Janelle Goulard 氏と、Dioseve CEOの岸田 和真氏によるパネルディスカッションが行われた。モデレーターは Renita Kalhorn 氏が務めた。
Don’t Wait - Dioseve CEO Kazuma Kishida’s advice for Japanese founders
Last week Pangaea Partner Janelle Goulard and Kazuma Kishida, CEO of Dioseve, sat down in Tokyo to discuss hard tech, founding stories, and when the time is right to build for global scale, in a discussion moderated by Renita Kalhorn.
変調という難題：なぜ我々はNLM Photonicsに投資したのか
NLMには信頼性データ、顧客PIC、大手企業が受け入れられるビジネスモデル、そして化学と顧客の両方を理解するチームが揃っている。ビットあたりの消費電力を20〜50%削減できれば、年間数億個規模のトランシーバーに適用した場合、AIインフラが電力網から引き出す電力を大きく減らすことになる。
The Modulation Problem: Why We Invested in NLM Photonics
NLM has the reliability data, a customer PIC, a business model the incumbents can say yes to, and a team that knows both the chemistry and the buyer. 20 to 50% less power per bit, applied across hundreds of millions of transceivers a year, significantly reduces what AI infrastructure draws from the grid.
Pangaea Invests in NLM Photonics, Joins Board
We are delighted to have joined NLM Photonics’ Series A2 round, and to welcome them to the Pangaea Portfolio.
What I Learned Watching pH7's Extraction Line Run
Six months into her role as an analyst at Pangaea, Helen Sun's work had mostly taken place behind a screen: pitch decks, financial models, investment theses. That changed when she traveled to Vancouver to visit the pH7 Technologies facility alongside Partner Sarah Applebaum, who serves on the company's board.
What Makes Startup-Corporate Collaboration Succeed: 5 Lessons From Both Sides
Recently, we were fortunate to have hosted an LP-only webinar with Michael in which he shared some of his biggest learnings from a career in innovation. Michael's career runs in the opposite direction of most people who end up running corporate venture: he started as a startup operator trying to get a corporate to take a chance on unproven technology, then spent years on the other side deciding which startups Henkel should bet on. That vantage point, from both the smaller and the (much) larger side of the table, is part of what makes his take so valuable.
スタートアップと大企業の協業を成功させる方法：両者の視点から学ぶ5つの教訓
Pangaeaは今回、マイケル氏をお迎えしてLP限定のウェビナーを開催し、Henkel社でのイノベーション活動で経験した重要な学びの数々を共有して頂きました。マイケル氏は、多くのコーポレートベンチャーの責任者とは異なるキャリアを辿っており、まずスタートアップ側として早期開発段階の技術を大企業が如何にして協業を走らせてくれるか模索することからスタートし、その後は逆の立場で、Henkel社がどのスタートアップにBetするべきかを判断する側で長年キャリアを過ごしました。スタートアップ側からも、そして大企業側からも見てきたこの視点こそが、彼の見解を非常に価値あるものにしている理由の一つです。
Nautilus Named NVIDIA AI Factory Infrastructure Partner
The recognition builds on earlier 2026 testing results, where the FCD passed over one hundred NVIDIA technical requirements, showing cooling capacity above 4.1 MW in N-mode dual-pump operation and 3.2 MW in N+1 mode, along with a 2°C approach temperature difference, less than half the 4.8°C reported for competing systems.
Inside the Magic Box: 3 Rules for Startup-Corporate Collaboration
Startup-corporate collaboration is one of the hardest, and most valuable, things to get right in hard tech. We've been talking with corporates and startups a lot lately about what helps these partnerships work, and three themes keep coming up on both sides of the table. We heard frequently about testing a relationship before committing capital, judging success by how the partnership runs, and winning over the business unit on its own terms rather than from the top down.
Ardent Announces Planned CEO Transition
Christine Parrish will become Chief Executive Officer effective August 1, 2026, succeeding Erica Nemser, who will continue to support the company through the transition and then serve as Executive Chair.
Low Light, High Fidelity: Hinalea's VNIR Ultra Helps Researchers See What Others Miss
It captures 301 spectral bands across the 400 to 1,000 nm range using a high-sensitivity sCMOS sensor, so researchers get high-fidelity spectral and spatial detail without the excessively long exposures low-light samples usually demand.