As part of the Angel Capital Group network of micro venture capital funds, the Tri State Angel Investment Group, joined in a deal worth nearly $1 million to fund Portsmouth, Ohio, virtual reality tech company, Yost Labs (http://www.yostlabs.com). Other participating investors included the East Central Ohio Tech Angels Fund (ECOTAF http://www.ecotaf.net) and the TechGROWTH Ohio (http://www.techgrowthohio.com), with support from Ohio's Third Frontier program.
'Our investment in Yost Labs confirms Tri State's belief that there are great companies in our area that can prosper with the support of angel funding and assistance,' said Don Perry, Chairman of the Tri State Angel Investment Group (TSAIG). According to Perry, TSAIG was responsible for bringing the deal to the attention of their financial partners in the Angel Capital Group network, drawing in investors from across the South and Midwest.
'Yost has great leadership, a great market, and groundbreaking, patented technology. We are thrilled to add them to our portfolio,' declared Perry, noting that this is the second of such investments between the groups with many more expected in the future.
According to Dr. Eric Dobson, Chief Executive Officer of the Angel Capital Group (http://www.theangelcapitalgroup.com): 'Helping a local company like Yost Labs meet its growth aspirations is the reason Angel Capital Group exists. Innovation has moved off the coasts to the heartland. People work where they want to live-not the other way around. We are witnessing a resurgence of the economically sustainable community and American dream.'
Yost Labs invented the world's fastest inertial motion sensors. Customers include Apple, Google, Amazon, NASA and the US Navy. With this investment, Yost plans to add employees to meet the demands of the exploding virtual reality, drone and sensor markets. Industry analysts have named Yost Labs a technology leader in the emerging virtual reality market - a market estimated to be worth over $150 billion by 2020. The company's PrioVR full-body immersive motion capture system will start shipping in March, and has already pre-sold thousands of units. Greg Merril, CEO in Yost Labs is confident: 'By the end of this year we are on track to have the largest user and developer community of any full-body inertial sensor interface device in the world.' Currently, the Company has ten employees and is projected to reach 300 employees by 2020.
Said Merril: 'A motivating factor in our success is that 100 years ago southern Ohio and the surrounding Appalachian area was a national leader in manufacturing. With the depression, floods and other factors, this became an economically challenged region. Today, with the help of this investment, we are in the process of making the Ohio Valley into the next Silicon Valley.'
ABOUT TRI STATE ANGEL INVESTMENT GROUP:
The Tri State Angel Investment Group (TSAIG) was formed to pool the capital resources and the business connections of accredited investors in and around the tri state region. TSAIG will make investments in private companies that demonstrate the potential for sustainable, profitable, growth capable of providing a suitable return to the investors. The Tri State Angel Investment Group, LLC, attempts to focus the majority of its investments and help create jobs within the Tri State Region of Kentucky, Ohio and West Virginia. For more information, please contact Mick Fosson, mick.fosson(at)kctcs(dot)edu, (606) 922-2678.
ABOUT ANGEL CAPITAL GROUP:
The Angel Capital Group network brings Angel investors and entrepreneurs together in an environment that celebrates innovation, rewards strategic risk-taking, and promotes performance. Through membership in Angel Capital Group, once-solitary Angel investors, or even a single Angel Group, have access to the best deals (regardless of location or industry) without facing the pressure to fund an entire deal on their own. A national brand presence allows ACG to source hundreds of quality investment opportunities, supported by a suite of investor services, to incentivize for true portfolio diversification. For more information, visit http://www.theangelcapitalgroup.com, info(dot)angelcapitalgroup(dot)com, or 1-844-949-2622 x2012.