U-M's VC Frankel Fund invests in Accio Energy

Wednesday, June 24, 2009 | Source: Concentrate

The venture capitalists at the University of Michigan's Ross School of Business have struck again, investing $80,000 into an Ann Arbor-based company.

Accio Energy will use the money to develop a wind energy system that generates electricity differently than your standard wind turbine. The "aerovoltaic technology" uses charged particles and wind to generate electricity in a machine that doesn’t have any moving parts.

The money comes from the Frankel Commercialization Fund, a student-managed venture capital seed fund.

"It met our criteria," says Tom Porter, director of the Frankel Commercialization Fund. "Each investor has its own criteria."

That criteria includes Accio Energy's location because the Frankel Fund was formed to help speed up the technology commercialization and company formation at the university and surrounding area.

Accio Energy is also early in its development so this is one of its first investments. That allows the Frankel Fund to maximize its investment impact by getting in early. It's the Frankel Fund's fourth investment and its first in a alternative energy firm, an area the fund is aiming to invest further in.

Source: Tom Porter, director of the Frankel Commercialization Fund
Writer: Jon Zemke