Potomac Tech Wire - Sept 24

Arlington-based Dandelion Energy Raises $40 Million in Series C; Developer of Advanced Heat Pump Technology

o Arlington-based Dandelion Energy Raises $40 Million in Series C
o DC-based Knownwell Secures $4 Million in Seed Capital
o The Washington Post Cuts More than 50 Jobs in Arc XP Division
o Emergent Acquires Resale Business of Tysons-Based Three Wire
o DC Capital Partners Acquires Controlling Stake in C5MI Insight
o DC-Based VerImmune Completed First Closing of Pre-Series A Round
o Briefly Noted: Vheda Health, Apex Clean Energy, HCI Equity Partners

Arlington-based Dandelion Energy Raises $40 Million in Series C; Developer of Advanced Heat Pump Technology

Arlington, Va. – Dandelion Energy, an Arlington-based developer of innovative heat pump technology for homes, announced that it has raised $40 million in Series C funding. The round was led by Google Ventures, with participation from Collaborative Fund, LenX, Breakthrough Energy Ventures and NGP. In 2022, Dandelion raised $70 million in a Series B1 round. The company primarily sells its heat pump technology to multifamily and home developers.

"Dandelion is becoming the preferred partner – nationwide – to the country's largest home builders and multifamily developers as they shift to building fully electrified homes," said Dan Yates, the CEO of Dandelion, in a news release about the funding round. "Dandelion's current and upcoming projects range from thousand+ single-family home developments to multifamily buildings with hundreds of apartments.”

DC-based Knownwell Secures $4 Million in Seed Capital

Washington, DC – Knownwell, a DC-based startup developing an AI-based intelligence platform for professional services companies, announced that it has secured $4 million in seed funding. The roud was led by Sovereign’s Capital, with participation from Studio.vc and various private investors. In January, Knownwell announced a $2 million pre-seed round.

“Knownwell's AI platform will transform how professional services organizations engage with their clients,” said Phil Jung, a partner at Sovereign’s Capital. “The company's vision for leveraging AI to synthesize an enterprise's natural communication channels – email, Slack, Zoom – with their public data to uncover deeper insights and enable smarter decision-making will strengthen how client relationships are developed.”

The Washington Post Cuts More than 50 Jobs in Arc XP Division

Washington, DC – Amid a slowdown in tech hiring in the region, The Washington Post has cut more than 50 jobs in its Arc XP division, which sells publishing software to more than 2,500 media clients. The company has touted the 9-year-old division as one of its shining stars, counting on it as a steady source of revenue at a time of uncertainty in the print media space. In an email to employees, Matt Monahan, the president of Arc XP, called the moves – which include about a quarter of the division’s total staff – a “hard by necessary” step to make the division more sustainable. The layoffs come less than a year after The Post cut 240 newsroom jobs through a combination of layoffs and buyouts.

Emergent Acquires Resale Business of Tysons-Based Three Wire

Tysons, Va. – Emergent, a Virginia Beach-based information technology reseller to the public sector, said on Tuesday it has acquired the technology resale business of Tysons-based Three Wire Systems, which provides technology to federal agencies. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Emergent, which is owned by Oracle infrastructure company Mythics, said the move will expand its cloud, open-source and security technology offerings. Three Wire Systems’ technology resale business was established in 2006, partnering with companies such as Dell, Broadcom, Zscaler and Ping to offer third-party tools to government clients.

DC Capital Partners Acquires Controlling Stake in C5MI Insight

Alexandria, Va. – DC Capital Partners, an Alexandria-based private equity firm focused on middle-market government and engineering companies, said it has made a controlling investment in C5MI Insight, a Florida-based provider of supply chain IT services. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed, and C5MI's founders have reinvested equity as part of this transaction. Founded in 2016, C5MI is a developer of software designed to help government and large commercial clients protect and sustain supply chain operations in contested or degraded environments.

DC-Based VerImmune Completed First Closing of Pre-Series A Round

Washington, DC – VerImmune, a DC-based biotechnology startup, said it has completed the first closing of a $4.5 million pre-series A round of funding. Beiley Biofund led the round, which also included new investors John Ballantyne, the co-founder and former CSO at Aldevron, and previous backers Proxima Ventures, Mana Ventures and Gaingels. VerImmune said it will use the funds to advance the development of its lead product candidate, VERI-101, a cancer immunotherapy aimed at fighting tumors.

Briefly Noted:

(Columbia, Md.) Columbia-based Vheda Health, a provider of virtual health engagement services for health plans supporting underserved populations, has named Kerry Lee Perry as its CMO. Perry previously served as the CMO and project management officer at IPG (now Evolent Health).

(Charlottesville, Va.) Charlottesville-based Apex Clean Energy, an operator of utility-scale wind, solar and storage facilities, has named Kenny Chernauskas as its CFO. Chernauskas has been with the company for more than 11 years, most recently leading its corporate finance activities.

(Washington, DC) DC-based private equity firm HCI Equity Partners has named Whit Rudder as an associate. Rudder most recently served as a senior analyst at VRA Partners, focusing on sell-side middle-market M&A transactions in business services, industrials, consumer, technology and healthcare.