Greentown Labs is thrilled to congratulate five of our very own entrepreneurs for being recognized in last week’s Forbes “30 Under 30” list for their respective categories of Energy and Manufacturing and Industry for 2015. From a pool of over twenty thousand nominations, the fourth annual Forbes “30 Under 30” lists recognizes 600 young professionals grouped into 20 different categories. These individuals are working to change the face of global culture by “modernizing the way things are made in a greener, tech-savvy world.” Greentown Labs was represented on this list by five individuals from three different companies: Rise Robotics,  Grove Labs, and NBDnano.  As an organization committed to cultivating a thriving community of entrepreneurs and visionaries, it is both exciting and validating when our member companies achieve such prestigious and well-
earned recognition.

Blake Sessions and Arron Acosta, Co-founders of Rise Robotics, were named among the top 30 under 30 in the Manufacturing and Industry category. Their company brings the concept of accessibility to wearable robotics, with the vision of creating a build-your-own-exoskeleton developer kit—at the heart of which is their unique power solution called the Cyclone. Rise’s technology democratizes robotics that have historically been prohibitively expensive and highly inaccessible for most people, by providing an alternative, cheaper, and more efficient option ubiquitously available for hobbyists and roboticists around the world with which to experiment and innovate.

Gabe Blanchet and Jamie Byron, Co-founders of Grove Labs, were also recognized in the Manufacturing and Industry category. Grove Labs is producing an indoor aquaponic food-growing system, complete with an app through which users can monitor the health and
growth of their own fresh food. CEO Blanchet explained, “We believe in empowering people with more control over what they consume and how they lead healthy and productive lives. Fresh food does not have to travel from miles away; it can come from your backyard, your living room, or your kitchen. You can grow it.  Having a Grove, or a garden, is a significant step towards living more resiliently and healthily.” Their technology re-envisions how people acquire and consume food, initiating behavior changes that reduce the energy expenditure associated with growing and transporting fresh food to markets, and drastically reducing public exposure to toxic pesticides.

Deckard Sorensen, Founder and President of NBDnano, was distinguished among 30 Under 30 breaking ground on new Energy technologies. His company takes inspiration from the Namib desert beetle, which with it’s particular exoskeleton can generate 12% its weight in water per day in the desert. This ability led to NBDs exploration of coatings and materials that optimize heat exchange to maximize energy efficiency.  On describing how his company changes the culture of energy, Sorensen explained, “NBD is changing the face of global culture by promoting biomimicry as inspiration for the creation of sustainable technologies. NBD looks to implement its coating technology into current products and systems to enhance their sustainability. Our market focus currently includes: carbon reduction emissions of power plants, fog capture in coastal regions, and a new class of repellant coatings with unparalleled durability for industrial applications.”  Their insect-inspired technology introduces a new approach to developing energy solutions: to look to the planet and its many examples of life to inform our own mechanisms for sustaining human life.

Thank you Forbes for this honor and recognition!