Auto Tech Start-Ups Invited to Engage in $6.8M Michigan Pre-Seed Fund 2.0

DETROIT, June 9, 2014 /PRNewswire/ — Invest Michigan announced today that entrepreneurs can now seek an investment through the Michigan Pre-Seed Fund 2.0, a statewide investment fund of $6.8 million aimed at supporting high-tech early stage companies. The organization held an open house for its partners and co-investors to celebrate the launch.

Companies developing technologies in the areas of advanced automotive, manufacturing and materials, agricultural technology, alternative energy, homeland security and defense, information technology, life sciences and other innovative technologies are invited to discuss their financing needs with Invest Michigan.

“The Michigan Pre-Seed Fund allows us to provide financial backing and strategic guidance to innovative entrepreneurs and to grow businesses in the state of Michigan,” said Charlie Moret, president and CEO of Invest Michigan, which is based in Detroit. “We want early stage high tech start-ups, including those not currently in Michigan, to know that our state is a great place to build and sustain their companies.”

Michigan Pre-Seed Fund 2.0 is funded by the Michigan Strategic Fund and administered by the Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC), the state’s lead advocate for economic growth, and managed by Invest Michigan. It will have $5.8 million to invest into high-tech start-up companies and $1 million dedicated to the University Commercialization Fund to help universities transfer technology to the marketplace.

“This is just one of the many financing programs the MEDC offers to assist entrepreneurs,” said Paula Sorrell, MEDC vice president of Entrepreneurship & Innovation. “We want to see their businesses succeed, while also helping to strengthen the state’s economy.”

For more information on the Michigan Pre-Seed Fund 2.0, visit www.michiganpreseed.info.

Invest Michigan is a Michigan nonprofit corporation that manages funds associated with assisting or financing start-ups and early-stage technology-based companies as well as university research associated with transferring technology at the earliest stages into commercial markets. Invest Michigan is the fund manager for the Michigan Pre-Seed Fund 2.0, a $6.8 million statewide investment fund that provides funding to early-stage technology companies.

Pure Michigan is a brand representing business, talent and tourism initiatives across Michigan. These efforts are driven by the Michigan Economic Development Corporation, which serves as the state’s marketing arm and lead advocate for business growth, jobs and opportunity with a focus on helping grow Michigan’s economy.

For more on the MEDC and its initiatives, visit michiganbusiness.org. For Michigan travel news, updates and information, visit michigan.org. Michigan residents interested in seeking employment with any of Michigan’s growing companies should check mitalent.org, where more than 76,000 jobs are currently available in a variety of industries.