Richmond, VA, Sept. 22, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Center for Innovative Technology (CIT) today announced that CIT GAP Funds has made a follow-on investment in Arlington, Va.-based NOVI, developer of the next generation of hardware and data analytics platforms for the new space, infrastructure and manufacturing verticals. Since CIT’s initial investment in early 2019, the company has accelerated strategic outreach and development on its first commercial technology. The additional capital from GAP Funds will be used to accelerate their commercial go‐to‐market strategy and support key hires.

NOVI is focused on combining machine learning and data fusion to provide a new approach for edge intelligence in ground, aerial and Low Earth Orbit (LEO) applications. Today’s small-satellites represent single-payload “point-solutions” without on-board data fusion or processing. NOVI’s patent-pending, reconfigurable, additively-manufactured structures enable flexible and rapid customization as a low-cost, experimental test platform to accommodate different payload types, and on-board processing and data fusion for coincident gathering of multiple signals.

“Over the last year, NOVI has rapidly grown our team and received five new contracts. We have a unique opportunity to capture the growing demand for multi-sensor platforms, and to move space activity into the next generation of satellites,” said Dr. Amit Mehra, Managing Partner, NOVI. “Our core capabilities are centered around development of aerospace hardware that is tightly coupled with data fusion and machine-learning based processing of multi-sensor data, which leads to significant reductions in capital cost for constellation deployments. We are grateful for the continued support of CIT GAP Funds, which will enable us to build out and execute on our go-to-market strategy.”

NOVI’s solutions are aimed at replacing large and expensive legacy systems, and have been recognized numerous times so far in 2020:

• Awarded a $992,999 firm-fixed-price agreement by the Air Force Research Laboratory, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, for the development of a flexible small-satellite platform for rapid deployment and qualification of experimental payloads.
• Received an Air Force Phase II Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) contract to use neural net algorithms for automatic identification of common distress types in drone-based images of roadways and parking lots, and use custom software to convert the results to a Pavement Condition Index (PCI).
• Awarded a National Science Foundation (NSF) SBIR grant to conduct research and development work to demonstrate on-board data fusion and processing for multi-sensor small satellites.
  

“Since CIT’s initial investment in 2019, NOVI has proven their potential to disrupt the new space industry. The need for low earth orbit constellations is growing, such as earth imaging and remote sensing, IoT, weather forecasting, high bandwidth connectivity, and a host of other critical use cases,” said Marco Rubin, Senior Investment Director, CIT GAP Funds. “NOVI’s innovations will have an impact on the future of space activity, and CIT looks forward to their continued success.”

About NOVI, LLC

NOVI is developing the next generation of integrated hardware and inspection analytics solutions for the space and defense, infrastructure and manufacturing industries. For more information, please visithttps://novillc.com/.

About CIT GAP Funds

CIT GAP Funds makes seed-stage equity investments in Virginia-based technology, cleantech, and life science companies with a high potential for achieving rapid growth and generating a significant economic return for entrepreneurs, co-investors, and the Commonwealth of Virginia. Since its inception in 2005, CIT GAP Funds has deployed $30.2 million in capital across 237 investments, including 16 companies in designated Opportunity Zones. CIT GAP Funds’ investments are overseen by the CIT GAP Funds Investment Advisory Board (IAB). This independent, third-party panel consists of leading regional entrepreneurs, angel, and strategic investors, and venture capital firms such as New Enterprise Associates, Grotech Ventures, Harbert Venture Partners HIG Ventures, Edison Ventures, In-Q-Tel, Intersouth Partners, SJF Ventures, Carilion Health Systems, Johnson & Johnson, General Electric, and Alpha Natural Resources. For more information, please visit www.citgapfunds.org.

About the Center for Innovative Technology (CIT)

Investing in Virginia's Growth | CIT concentrates on the early commercialization and seed funding stages of innovation, helping innovators and tech entrepreneurs launch and grow new companies, create high paying jobs and accelerate economic growth throughout the entire state of Virginia. Founded in 1985, CIT accelerates next generation technologies and technology companies through commercialization, capital formation, market development initiatives, and expansion of broadband throughout Virginia. Our programs include | CIT GAP Funds | Commonwealth Research Commercialization Fund (CRCF) | Virginia Founders Fund | Broadband/Rural Broadband | Smart Communities | Cybersecurity | Unmanned Systems | SBIR/STTR Support (Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) & Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs) | University Partnerships | Startup Company Mentoring & Engagement. CIT’s CAGE Code is 1UP71. For more information, visit www.cit.org or follow CIT on Twitter and LinkedIn. Note: Novi is a 2019 Commonwealth Research Commercialization Fund (CRCF) award recipient.