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Desteia (formerly known as "Auba") simplifies logistics by using AI to extract and organize information from unstructured data like emails, messages, and logistics documents. It connects these pieces using graph theory, the mathematical study of networks—comprising nodes (locations) and edges (routes), creating a clear dashboard for operators to manage shipments across ocean, ground, and air with specific expertise on U.S.-Mexico cross-border operations.

^{Organizations are grappling with deploying AI applications at the edge, where sensors and IoT devices are key to transforming operations. Their development teams need to tap into edge expertise so they can accelerate building, training, and deploying various models to various edge devices at scale.}

^{Latent AI expedites edge AI development with an all-in-one platform that empowers developers to build secure models ultra-fast with seamless field or lab updates.}

^{The Latent AI Efficient Inference Platform (LEIP) allows developers to jump-start design with benchmarked configurations, rapidly retrain within a trusted pipeline, and deploy secure models that can be monitored in real-time.}

^{Gaussion has developed a novel solution that radically enhances battery performance using an external magnetic field during charge and discharge cycles to enable rapid charging by steering ions within existing battery cells. The magnetic field also lowers cell degradation, extending battery life.}

^{Dr. Tom Heenan and Dr. Chun Tan, co-founders of Gaussion, began working together at University College London’s Electrochemical Innovation Lab. Inspired by their earlier work using particle accelerators to analyze energy materials such as batteries and fuel cells, they saw an opportunity to apply similar technologies to tackle commercial challenges. The co-founders have since spun-out of UCL to enable Gaussion’s market entry that includes producing and selling its products and potentially licensing its technology for other applications.}

^{With a global portfolio of patents and patent applications, Gaussion is poised to revolutionize the battery industry, offering a viable and scalable solution to meet the growing demand for more efficient and powerful energy storage systems. This innovation holds promise for a wide range of applications, including transportation electrification, construction equipment, mining operations, residential energy storage, and utility-scale energy storage for load and phase balancing.}

^{Quin Garcia and Alexei Andreev share their perspectives on the beginnings of Autotech Ventures. Quin talks about taking his idea and building out the mobility and transport VC, growing the company and managing culture, Alexei gives advice to startup founders on how to think about fundraising.}

^{Autotech Ventures has invested in the observable trend that electrified micromobility will be a part of future solutions in urban transportation - and also follow InsurTech for unique offerings that serve their end users in unique ways to provide affordability for their vehicles.}

^{Laka is collective bicycle insurance especially for cyclists. By collective we are referring to Laka’s unique pricing model. Each month, claims are spread amongst a collective of cyclists, so their monthly bill varies up to a guaranteed cap. Laka doesn’t charge a fixed sum. Instead, they calculate monthly contributions - up to a max capped amount - based on the collective's claims. 80% of the contribution goes straight back into the collective: fixing, replacing and helping other cyclists.}

^{Ben Allen, Jens Hartwig, Tobias Taupitz founded the company in 2017. Hear Jens share about the company and their founder story.}

^{One of our areas of focus is FinTech for mobility and ground transport. In this episode we speak with James Jackson, the CEO of Bumper about his business and journey as a startup.}

^{The average age of vehicles on the road continues to rise. As drivers hold on to their vehicles longer, this means potentially larger repair costs for those aging vehicles which can be quite a financial burden.}

^{In 2013, Bumper was established as a payment platform for car dealerships offering a better way to pay for car repairs and accessories by allowing customers to spread the cost of their repairs over manageable monthly payments, completely interest-free. Vehicle owners can search for a garage within the Bumper network, apply for buy now, pay later (BNPL), and then book an appointment directly into the workshop’s calendar.}

_{In 2014, Derk Roodhuyzen de Vries teamed up with Mark van Laar to create Fixico, a marketplace for drivers to find the best body repair shops. Today, Fixico is active in 10 countries and collaborates with over 3,000 certified body repair shops, and over 200 business partners. Their app enables car owners, fleets, rental and insurance companies to upload photos of their damage and compare multiple offers online. With an eye on the future, Fixico is looking to support new entrant electric car companies by using their network of independent repair shops to leverage and develop an infrastructure to support their customers. VinFast has selected Fixico for its European body repair network and scalable EV service management platform. Derk shares his company and founder story.}

_{Think of newtrul as the Expedia of trucking. Newtrul is a marketplace technology platform that allows someone shipping product (a broker) and looking for a truck to find someone that has a truck and needs cargo (a trucker or trucking company) to connect and transact easily and quickly.}

_{Over the years, the load booking process has become more time-consuming, expensive and overly complicated. As a result, nearly 30 billion miles are driven with empty or partially empty trucks annually. Newtrul’s private, digital freight aggregation platform allows carriers to connect with their customers and see all available shipments in one place, to maximize loads, save time and money and reduce carbon emissions.}

_{Founder and CEO Ed Stockman has spent his entire career in the logistics industry and after repeatedly hearing a need for a brokerage alternative from enterprise shippers, he founded newtrul in October 2018. Ed talks about building out his solution and company to where it is today, as well as his founder journey and lessons learned along the way.}

_{Gridwise is a platform to help the nearly 2 million ride-sharing drivers in the U.S. who work more than one driving service like Lyft, Uber, DoorDash Instacart etc increase their earnings by tracking mileage, analyzing revenue, generating tax reports and streamlining how they operate. And while Gridwise is a great business tool for gig drivers, the platform now aggregates some pretty amazing data. Gridwise has expanded their business to also include a data analytics product that can provide organizations with anonymized first-party data that helps them understand how people and goods move across on-demand delivery and ride-hailing services.}

_{Co-founder Ryan Green shares the business model, the birth of his company and his founder learnings as he’s built his company to where it is today.}

_{We are launching a new series, “Between Two Lightbulbs,” where Kellie Lindsay, our director of strategic partnerships, talks with startup founders to learn how they’re solving mobility challenges and discuss trends in our venture ecosystem.}

_{In this inaugural episode, Kellie chats with Gabe Sibley, co-founder and CEO of Verdant Robotics, Gabe shares the vision for his business and insights from his journey of creating and leading his company to revolutionize farming.}