Strategic Ventures Impact Insights: August 2025 (Volume 3, Number 7)

Copperstone Technologies: The Robotics Startup Solving One of Industry’s Dirtiest Problems

Copperstone Technologies is redefining how industries monitor environmental risk in hazardous environments. Based in Canada, the company designs amphibious, all-electric “HELIX” robots to perform remote inspections and data collection in some of the world’s most dangerous and hard-to-access environments: tailings ponds, contaminated sites, ice-covered water, and unstable terrain.

Most mining companies still rely on hazardous manual inspections and heavy equipment to monitor tailings facilities and polluted water bodies. This exposes workers to real danger, limits data quality, and leaves room for catastrophic failures—such as the billion-dollar 2019  Brumadinho dam collapse in Brazil. Copperstone’s robots eliminate the need for human entry, capture high-resolution environmental data, and operate emissions-free, aligning with global mandates on climate, safety, and ESG compliance.

The company has raised $5.8M USD from WindSail Capital Group and Canadian innovation programs to scale manufacturing and roll out its next-gen robot, HELIX Mercury—a heavier-duty platform with deeper instrumentation capabilities.

The company has already received international recognition—including first place at the 2025 Tailings Dam Safety Challenge in Chile—and is now expanding across North and South America.

Copperstone is a startup to watch, with:

• Massive global problem (tailings and water monitoring) with limited safe solutions

• Recurring revenue model through Robotics-as-a-Service

• Strong IP and real-world traction with global mining firms

• Alignment with top-tier investment theses: automation, climate resilience, and industrial decarbonization

• First-mover advantage in a niche but urgent robotics application—one that regulators and insurers are increasingly demanding

  
  

With real tech, real traction, and a growing client base in a risk-averse, regulation-driven market, Copperstone is quietly becoming a category-defining company in industrial environmental robotics.

Meet the CEO Behind One of Today’s Most Promising Robotics Startups: Jamie Yuen

Jamie Yuen is the CEO and Co-Founder of Copperstone Technologies, the robotics company behind the award-winning HELIX platform—an amphibious, all-electric solution designed to monitor some of the world’s most hazardous environments safely, from tailings ponds to unstable terrain. With a B.Sc. and M.Sc. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Alberta, Jamie began his career building drones and remote sensing systems for industrial clients, where he saw firsthand the risks and limitations of traditional field inspections.

That insight led to the founding of Copperstone, where Jamie has played a central role in engineering, manufacturing, field operations, and business development. He took the HELIX robots from lab prototype to commercial deployment, replacing dangerous manual inspections with autonomous, data-rich monitoring solutions. Under his leadership, the company has established in-house manufacturing capabilities, secured multi-million-dollar funding, and earned international recognition for advancing safety in the mining and infrastructure sectors.

Today, Jamie is focused on scaling Copperstone’s Robotics-as-a-Service model and expanding its reach into global ESG-driven markets. Known for his ability to blend deep technical knowledge with strategic vision, he continues to lead Copperstone’s mission to make hazardous work safer, smarter, and more sustainable.

Please contact Mitchell Hauser orTony Coretto for more information or to arrange a meeting with Jamie Yuen, Copperstone' CEO. 

ZS2 Builds a 2,700 sq. ft. Structure in Only 2 Days

ZS2 Technologies is revolutionizing construction with advanced, resilient magnesium cement technology providing the industry with high-performance, prefabricated building materials designed for superior strength and fire retardance.

Recent updates include:

• ZS2 completed a 2,700 sq. ft. structure in just 2 days, a major milestone that demonstrates their superior power and efficiency of their technology

• ZS2 announced their newest partnership with Envirowest in Utah: future builds are already in discussion, with interest from new clients and developers across the region

  
  

Please contact Mitchell Hauser or Tony Coretto for further information or to arrange a meeting with Scott Jenkins, ZS2's CEO.

Nanocrine Partners with the University of Notre Dame’s Nanofabrication Facility (NDNF)

Nanocrine, a biotech company based in Frederick, Maryland, is revolutionizing the drug discovery process. Nanocrine's Plasmonic imaging chips enable real-time imaging of cellular activity, helping researchers better understand how cells behave and interact with drugs. 

• Nanocrine is partnering with the University of Notre Dame’s Nanofabrication Facility (NDNF) for the manufacturing of the Company’s proprietary plasmonic chips

• The Company has received yet another order from National Institutes of Health (NIH)

• Nanocrine has launched a contract research service, facilitating experiments-as-a-service to support labs using its groundbreaking platform, expanding access and accelerating research timelines

• The Company’s plasmonic chips continue to be used in research being conducted by the National Cancer Institute (NCI), monitoring the molecular releases of tumor cells in real time

  
  

Please contact Mitchell Hauser for more information or to arrange a meeting with Patrick Calhoun, Nanocrine's President and Chief Science Officer.

Splash Secures $960K in New Bridge Financing

Splash, the leader in sustainable automated carwashes in China (the world’s largest market), continues to break records, with strong topline growth, major cost reductions, early profitability, new development financing, resumed site openings, and Hydrocycle’s substantial sales pipeline:

• Splash has now secured $960K in new bridge financing, positioning Splash to restart new site development at scale in the near term

• Hydrocycle was approved for a minimum of $150K in Chinese provincial government grant funding, with a potential of up to $2.7M in total. This also unlocks access to millions more as an accredited entity, with funds available to support Splash directly through its subsidiary structure

• Hydrocyle has made it to the final round for a new $900K wastewater treatment project in France

  
  

For further information or to set up time to speak with Splash's CEO, Rob Shesol, please contact Tony Coretto.

WAVE continues to build momentum:

• WAVE welcomes a new CEO, Chris Barton, with 35+ years of experience in recurring-revenue and SaaS, bringing a strong focus on innovation, operational excellence, and expanding access to aquatic safety technology

• WAVE closed a $452,500 bridge round led by Launchpad Venture Group and Simad Holdings. This capital enables sales and marketing expansion supporting the HWaaS rollout, R&D and working capital in preparation for a larger private or institutional financing round in Q1 2026

• WAVE has launched an all new, modernized, website in preparation for new e-Marketing and targeted lead management. This new format will be integrated across all of WAVE's social media for a unified, digital brand experience 

• WAVE announced a new vendor partnership with BGCA National. The goal is to rapidly scale adoption among the nation’s thousands of youth clubs, leveraging established trust and purchasing power.

  
  

Please contact Mitchell Hauser for more information or to arrange a meeting with Chris Barton, WAVE's CEO.

We are excited to welcome our new Venture Partner, Tony Di Stasi-Abreu. Tony is a seasoned financial executive with 20+ years of experience in pricing, valuation, and risk management across global financial services. As Co-Chair of a valuation committee overseeing portfolios exceeding $13B, he has provided strategic counsel across sectors including energy, biotech, tech, and infrastructure. To learn more, please click here.