The New Jersey Economic Development Authority (NJEDA) has completed two new investments through the New Jersey Innovation Evergreen Fund (NJIEF), supporting early-stage companies in the state. Nascent Materials, Inc. received $750,000 through a co-investment application from Princeton-based venture capital firm SOSV, while Enquyst Technologies, Inc. was awarded $3 million via an application submitted by New York City-based Eckuity Capital.
“The New Jersey Innovation Evergreen Fund is a groundbreaking tool aimed at strengthening New Jersey’s economy and backing high-potential startups by creating a self-sustaining cycle of investment for entrepreneurs seeking capital,” said Tim Sullivan, Chief Executive Officer of the NJEDA. “Under Governor Murphy’s leadership, the Garden State is cementing its position as a global hub for innovation by supporting the next generation of transformative businesses.”
Launched in 2022, the NJIEF aims to expand access to strategic resources and venture capital within New Jersey. The fund allows the state to act as an equity investor in early-stage companies and can deploy up to $600 million alongside professional venture capital firms. Currently, there is about $19 million of unallocated capital available for future investments in high-growth businesses.
“The NJEDA’s funding for Nascent Materials and Enquyst will accelerate each companies’ growth by providing essential resources for success. With four investments already made, the New Jersey Innovation Evergreen Fund shows no signs of slowing, demonstrating the state’s strong commitment to supporting young, innovative ventures,” said Kathleen Coviello, Chief Economic Transformation Officer of the NJEDA. “NJIEF’s continuous venture capital investments in high-growth startups play a key role in driving job creation and economic growth across the State.”
Nascent Materials develops cathode active materials used in lithium-ion batteries. Cathodes are responsible for about 40 percent of total battery cell costs and are mainly produced in China. The company operates out of SOSV-sponsored HAX in Newark. NJEDA's investment attracted additional international and out-of-state capital at a ratio of 2:1 private/public funding.
“While the U.S. has both the lithium resources and strong end-market demand for batteries, we continue to lag in one of the most strategic segments of the value chain: cathode manufacturing. This bottleneck has left domestic cell manufacturers overly reliant on foreign suppliers for their most expensive and technically complex input,” said Chaitanya Sharma, Founder and CEO of Nascent Materials. “This investment from NJEDA enables us to expand our operations in New Jersey and build the foundation for a resilient, homegrown supply chain. With its exceptional engineering talent, global port access, and critical position in national logistics networks, New Jersey is uniquely positioned to become a key hub in the emerging U.S. battery belt. We’re proud to be part of that vision and excited to grow alongside a state that’s actively investing in clean energy innovation and advanced manufacturing.”
SOSV is a global multi-stage venture capital firm based in Princeton with over $1 billion under management and manages three development programs including HAX. Through HAX Strategic Innovation Center (SIC), it has invested in 50 Newark-based businesses. In June, NJEDA announced plans to partner with SOSV on another project with Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL) to create an SIC near Princeton.
“New Jersey has become a critical hub for industrial deep tech, and Nascent Materials is exactly the kind of company we envisioned supporting when we chose Newark as the home for HAX HQ. Their breakthrough cathode manufacturing process tackles one of the most urgent challenges in U.S. electrification—sourcing battery materials that are affordable, reliable, and not dependent on foreign supply chains, enabling us to reshore critical manufacturing,” said Duncan Turner, General Partner of SOSV and Global Managing Director of HAX. “With support from NJEDA and the infrastructure we’ve built at HAX HQ in Newark, Nascent has a clear path to scale in New Jersey, while reshaping a core part of America’s energy future.”
Enquyst Technologies was founded in Boston but now plans to move its core operations to New Jersey due to this investment opportunity and access to its biotech sector. The company produces technology platforms designed for biomanufacturing complex drugs such as monoclonal antibodies (mAbs), bispecific antibodies, protein therapeutics, biosimilars, and gene therapies—all areas with significant market demand but insufficient production capacity; currently only half of market demand is met domestically.
“For decades, we have seen minimal innovation in bioprocessing, due to the highly regulated and conservative nature of the biotech and biopharma industries. Strategies fall short in meeting the cost and purification demands of today’s increasingly diverse biological medicines,” said Dr. Jason Criscione, Founder and CSO of Enquyst Technologies. “Our platform technology is disrupting biological drug manufacturing by enabling truly continuous processing, delivering best-in-class purity with no yield loss, offering flexibility across diverse biological drug classes, and lowering downstream processing costs by more than 70 percent. With investment from NJEDA and Eckuity Capital, Enquyst is expanding its NJ footprint to facilitate early adoption through strategic partnerships within the region’s biomanufacturing ecosystem.”
Eckuity Capital invests primarily across life sciences sectors aiming for quicker commercialization timelines; this marks their first investment into a business based out of New Jersey.
“We believe Enquyst can fundamentally transform the purification process for complex molecules, but more importantly, change the way we think about manufacturing costs, time, and speed to market for the broader biologics industry,” said Vishal Jain, Managing Partner of Eckuity Capital.
Companies approved under NJIEF benefit from commitments made by tax credit purchasers who fund these investments while also providing networking opportunities or mentoring as part of their obligations.
Applications remain open both for new qualified venture firms interested in participating as well as existing QVFs seeking funding opportunities; details are available on the NJEDA website.
