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Rich has spent his entire career—more than 20 years—in roles focused on corporate growth…
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Rich Grant shared thisCheck out the latest updates from Cerity Partners Ventures in our quarterly newsletter. Sign-up to receive it by email going forward: https://lnkd.in/gcKEZrpzRich Grant shared thisWe just released Volume 2 of the Cerity Partners Ventures newsletter. This edition features a spotlight on NRG Energy, five new members of our team, fresh insights on how corporations and startups work together, what's happening across Cerity Partners, and more. Want it in your inbox? Sign up here: https://hubs.li/Q04BMJnD0
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Rich Grant posted thisCerity Partners Ventures is hiring! If you are interested, please review this job posting and apply. https://lnkd.in/gauScrSj
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Rich Grant reposted thisRich Grant reposted thisSpectro Cloud, a portfolio company of Cerity Partners Ventures' corporate partner T-Mobile, has announced a $100M Series D led by Growth Equity at Goldman Sachs Alternatives (Goldman Sachs Asset Management) at a $1B+ valuation. Spectro Cloud enables enterprises, public sector organizations, neoclouds and sovereign cloud providers to operate production AI infrastructure with greater control over cost, security, and governance. This investment will support Spectro Cloud's continued expansion of its product capabilities, global go-to-market motion, and ecosystem partnerships across the AI infrastructure stack. We look forward to continuing our work with Tenry Fu and his team. Learn more: https://lnkd.in/gJtg7xAJ
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Rich Grant reposted thisRich Grant reposted thisWe're pleased to see the portfolio companies of our corporate partners that made the 2026 Inc. Magazine 5000 list: Overstory, Relay, AssetWatch®, Bevaya, Wagmo, Trust & Will, Interplay Learning, and LinkSquares. The Inc. 5000 ranks the fastest-growing private companies in America. Companies are ranked by percentage revenue growth from 2022 to 2025, and must be U.S.-based, privately held, for-profit, and independent to qualify. https://lnkd.in/eBGHyVTHInc. 5000 2026: Meet the Fastest-Growing Private Companies in AmericaInc. 5000 2026: Meet the Fastest-Growing Private Companies in America
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Rich Grant reposted thisRich Grant reposted thisPerformance warrants for startup equity are one of the least understood tools of corporate innovation, but it doesn’t have to be so mysterious. In his latest Insight, Partner Scott Lenet explains how corporations should think about being compensated for helping portfolio companies, including when to accept equity that extends a startup’s cash runway. He suggests that corporations answer five questions to help understand whether performance warrants make sense and how to price them. The framework draws on the experience of more than 100 transactions between corporations and startups led by Cerity Partners Ventures colleagues. Read the full Insight here: https://hubs.li/Q04sYrWx0How Should Corporations Get Paid For Helping Startups?How Should Corporations Get Paid For Helping Startups?
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Rich Grant reposted thisRich Grant reposted thisOlympus Innovation Ventures, the strategic investment arm of Olympus Corporation, seeks to invest in start-ups at the intersection of medical technology and digital health. As the global leader in endoscopy with 70% market share and $6.5B in FY2026 revenue, the company can bring significant value to every investment. #OIV launched with a $50M fund in 2021 and has since expanded with a second $150M commitment in late 2025. OIV targets start-up investments in areas such as endoscopy, urology, respiratory care, and emerging technologies including AI and robotics. Current active portfolio investments include Alimetry, Neuspera Medical Inc., On Target Laboratories, Universal Diagnostics S.A., and Virgo. Cerity Partners Ventures has been working with OIV since helping to launch the program in 2021 and continues to support Olympus in exploring the next generation of medical technology innovation.
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Rich Grant reposted thisRich Grant reposted thisEvery startup has a founding CEO. Not every venture-backed company has a CFO. Many founders wait to hire finance, usually until after product-market fit or the next round. It can look like overhead when the focus is growth. But waiting has a cost too. In this insight, Cerity Partners Ventures Partner Scott Lenet explains why a CEO and a CFO play different roles, offense and defense. Drawing on the practice's work with more than 200 startups as of the second quarter of 2026, he lays out the signs a startup needs finance help sooner: plans that slip, messy fundraising, late board updates, and numbers no one trusts. Read the full insight here at Cerity Partners' site: https://lnkd.in/gxxc8FHt
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Rich Grant reposted thisIf you run a startup (or serve on a startup board) and are trying to decide if it’s time to reinforce your accounting or finance functions, this blog may help My Cerity Partners colleague Shannon Jenkins, CPA, CFP®, CEPA has deep expertise supporting companies through these types of challengesRich Grant reposted thisEvery startup has a founding CEO. Not every venture-backed company has a CFO. Many founders wait to hire finance, usually until after product-market fit or the next round. It can look like overhead when the focus is growth. But waiting has a cost too. In this insight, Cerity Partners Ventures Partner Scott Lenet explains why a CEO and a CFO play different roles, offense and defense. Drawing on the practice's work with more than 200 startups as of the second quarter of 2026, he lays out the signs a startup needs finance help sooner: plans that slip, messy fundraising, late board updates, and numbers no one trusts. Read the full insight here at Cerity Partners' site: https://lnkd.in/gxxc8FHt
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Rich Grant reposted thisRich Grant reposted thisAs Touchdown Ventures, we spent over a decade building and managing over 25 corporate venture programs in multiple industries—with over $1.5B in budgeted funds under management. We have hired and trained more than 100 venture capital investment professionals. That work continues, as we are now Cerity Partners Ventures, a practice within Cerity Partners, a firm managing $150B+ in client assets with 1,500+ professionals across the country. More to come on our partners, our programs, and our unique approach to venture capital and corporate innovation.
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Rich Grant reacted on thisRich Grant reacted on thisAllegion Ventures, the venture capital arm of our corporate partner Allegion, has led a Series C investment in Ambient.ai, an enterprise-grade agentic physical security solution. This is Allegion Ventures’ second strategic investment in Ambient.ai, deepening a collaboration focused on smarter security across data centers, corporate campuses, education, and healthcare. Learn more about how Allegion Ventures and Ambient.ai are working together here: https://hubs.li/Q04Cc9Nb0
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Rich Grant reacted on thisRich Grant reacted on thisWe just released Volume 2 of the Cerity Partners Ventures newsletter. This edition features a spotlight on NRG Energy, five new members of our team, fresh insights on how corporations and startups work together, what's happening across Cerity Partners, and more. Want it in your inbox? Sign up here: https://hubs.li/Q04BMJnD0
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Rich Grant reacted on thisRich Grant reacted on thisThis past Friday, my undergraduate students at the University of Michigan - Stephen M. Ross School of Business wrapped up our Finance 444: Applied Venture Capital class with our 2nd annual VC competition. One of the most rewarding parts of teaching this course is watching these students go from having limited exposure to venture capital to presenting startup investment recommendations before experienced VC and industry professionals in just seven weeks. Based on their stellar performance, I can tell you that the future is very bright! Congratulations to this year's winning teams who shared in the $10,000 prize pool: 🏆 1st Place: Eudora Chi, John Mark Holst, Alex Patterson, Noah Pendo, and Dana Thurnell (Latent Variables). Mentor: Joshua Gray 🥈 2nd Place: Henri Fleury, Ryan Goldenberg, Jacob Goodman, Zayd Humayun, and Shinichiro Iwami (Leisure Hydration). Mentors: Chris Curtis and Kalefe Wright A massive thank you to Alan Gelband and Alex Gelband for their generous financial support of the VC competition! I also want to thank our ten judges who traveled to Ann Arbor and our nine mentors who guided these teams: thank you for investing your time and expertise in the next generation of VC leaders. Judges: Jun Hong Heng, Lindsey Kilbride, David Strauss, Ross Bosn, David Schick, Rich Grant, Chris Albinson, Mark Sims, Gary S., and Gary Krisanda Mentors: Joshua Gray, Chris Curtis, Kalefe Wright, Wayee Chu, Oliver Henry, Casey Berman, Jason Harris, Dan Stolar, and Benjamin Sack Go Blue! 〽️ #MichiganRoss #VentureCapital #GoBlue #VCEducation
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Rich Grant reacted on thisRich Grant reacted on thisWe are proud to share that Relay has raised $36M in new funding, bringing our total capital raised to over $90M. This round was led by industrial leader, and Relay customer, International Paper alongside Cerity Partners Ventures, Harmonic Growth Partners, and Thayer Investment Partners, with continued backing from G2 Venture Partners and Wind River Ventures. What makes this milestone so meaningful is that some of the biggest names in the industries we serve don’t just run Relay on their floors, they are investing in the company behind it. No diligence process, market analysis, or pitch deck compares to seeing actual business outcomes delivered in real-life physical operations settings. This funding lets us go further, faster: building the key hardware and software components behind the system of action for physical operations, expanding across the industrial and hospitality markets, and growing the team behind it all. We can't wait to share what's next on our journey. Full announcement here: https://lnkd.in/eQXFVffb
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Rich Grant liked thisRich Grant liked thisI've been collecting cards since I was 7. I invested in CollX years ago. Funny enough, it took me until recently to actually start really using it. I had a front row seat watching Ted Mann and the team build it — the app, the community, the marketplace. I cheered them on and somehow never dove in myself because of my lack of tech experience. That changed a few weeks ago, thanks to my new friend Dave Shaw. Dave's a firefighter, serious collector, CollX ambassador, and the kind of guy who will walk a total rookie through the whole thing. He basically held my hand. I had a big pile of mostly vintage cards sitting there. Dave showed me how to scan them with Card Dealer Pro, get them listed, and curate them into Stacks. Stacks might be my favorite part. Instead of dumping hundreds of cards into a storefront, you group them — players, years, sets, whatever. It feels like flipping through someone's collection at a card show. But the community is what got me. You're building a collection and a profile at the same time. You start recognizing people, seeing what they chase, talking cards which I love to do. Growing up in New Jersey it was local shops and card shows. The tech has completely changed. The best part hasn't — finding people who love this stuff as much as you do. I believed in Ted enough to invest early. Now that I'm actually using it, I'm more excited than ever. Come find me, browse the collection, or others , maybe buy a card: https://lnkd.in/etc5tW5C Most importantly enjoy the ride ….
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Rich Grant liked thisRich Grant liked thisCerity Partners is back to school 😎 Campus Recruiting Season is officially underway! 🎉 This month we kicked things off with a strong start in our Kentucky and Central markets. A few highlights include events at: 📍 Xavier University 📍 University of Louisville 📍 Purdue University Coming up this month, we're heading east and south to connect with students at: 📍 Siena College 📍 Babson College 📍 Bucknell University 📍 Texas Tech University ...and more! This momentum builds on an incredible summer — with 110 interns and 40 new college graduates wrapping up their programs, we're excited to meet our Summer 2027 recruits! Follow our Early Talent team Jessica Carbajal and Savannah Besso to see where we're headed next! 🚀 #CampusRecruiting #TalentAcquisition #CerityPartners #Summer2027 #NextGenTalent
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