Strategic Ventures Impact Insights: October 2025 (Volume 3, Number 9)

ZS2 Accelerates Commercialization with Major Partnership and Funding Milestones

ZS2 Technologies has taken two transformative steps forward in its mission to redefine climate-resilient construction. The Company recently announced a Joint Development Agreement (JDA) with one of North America’s largest materials companies, including $1.0 million USD in testing support for its TechBoard® technology and a proposed $17.0 million USD scale-up investment to accelerate commercialization across the world.

This strategic collaboration marks a critical inflection point for ZS2, aligning its advanced magnesium oxide (MgO)-based building materials with one of the industry’s largest distribution and manufacturing networks. The JDA not only validates the performance and scalability of ZS2’s proprietary TechBoard® and TechPanel® systems but also paves the way for widespread adoption of climate-resilient materials across North America.The agreement accelerates ZS2’s commercialization, significantly ramps production of their TechBoard®, and represents approximately $149MM CAD in potential annual revenue.Adding to this momentum, ZS2 has also secured $1.75 million CAD in non-dilutive funding from PrairiesCan, raised $3.1MM CAD to date in an Accelerator investment round, and entered into an agreement to purchase a SIPs manufacturer in Alabama.

ZS2 is committed to scaling sustainable solutions that perform in the face of climate extremes by combining strength, sustainability, and speed. With magnesium oxide–based systems that are non-combustible, water- and mold-resistant, and carbon-negative in production, ZS2’s technologies represent a new standard for resilient, sustainable construction.

Scott Jenkins, Co-Founder and CEO of ZS2

Scott Jenkins built his career by helping businesses scale; as a key executive at DIRTT Environmental Solutions, he helped grow the company’s revenue from $6 million to over $300 million, ultimately leading it through a successful IPO. That laid the groundwork for his next mission: turning one of the world’s dirtiest materials into a resilient building solution.

Now, as CEO of ZS2 Technologies, Scott isn’t just creating better building materials, he’s helping reshape the narrative around construction and climate. His leadership is guiding ZS2 to the forefront of Canada’s climate-tech movement, where carbon-negative building systems are no longer theoretical—they’re in production right now.

A Voice in the Industry

Scott was recently a featured speaker at the Innovating Building Materials and Supply Chain forum, where he presented ZS2’s carbon-negative approach to cement manufacturing. By using magnesium-rich waste materials and embedding direct air capture (DAC) into the production process, ZS2 is showing that it’s possible to create building materials that remove carbon from the atmosphere instead of emitting it.

ZS2: Behind the Name (as Told by Scott)

"The story we tell people we just meet is that two of the key minerals and elements in our patented formulations are Zeolite and Sulphur which we can then combine with CO2 and magnesium so the idea was to name the company after some of our key ingredients. This was also beneficial for the company branding and acquiring trademarks and web domains for such a unique name.

"The truth is we started the company just before the Covid pandemic and everyone was at home including our kids. Well, one day my oldest son (9 at the time) came up to me at the kitchen counter where I was working and said "Dad, I have a name for your new company" to which I said "O.K. Zachary what is it" and he said ZS3 Technologies. Of course I asked why and he calmly explained that his name was Zachary, his brother's name was Sam, Mom's name is Sarah and Dad's name is Scott...so one "Z" and three "S"'s. I told him I would "ask Ms. Kristin" my Co-Founder. Well she loved the idea but as we discussed it I said "you know, it should be ZS2 Technologies...take my name out of it and that will be our reminder of who we truly work for and are building something special for...not us."

Scott Jenkins continues to be a powerful advocate for climate-positive innovation—on stage, on screen, and on job sites. With deep industry experience and a clear vision for sustainable construction, he's not just building new materials: he’s building momentum for a better-built world.

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

Leveraging Autonomous Robots for Search and Recovery

Copperstone Technologies is a robotics company developing autonomous solutions for hazardous site investigation, delivering mission-critical data to industrial clients operating in extreme environments. Its flagship product line, HELIX, consists of robots designed to navigate mine tailings, wastewater lagoons, and other dangerous or inaccessible sites—offering a safer, more accurate, and cost-effective alternative to traditional methods.

Copperstone Technologies' Search and Recovery offering launched with a successful demonstration at the start of October. They have initiated a joint venture to sell Search and Recovery services into the Canadian market, focused on finding drowning victims in lakes and ponds, particularly in the shoulder seasons when thin ice is a challenge. A representative of a multinational sonar company also participated in the demonstration and has proposed a collaboration to distribute this new payload around the world.

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

Hydrocycle Secures Second Government Grant and Grows Pipeline

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:

• In addition to the confirmed funding for Hydrocycle from Hangzhou, they have now secured preliminary approval for a second government grant from Nanjing.

• The Nanjing officials reviewing their application were enthusiastic enough to recommend Hydrocycle to a government-run investment fund, which is now beginning their review for a potential US$1M equity investment.

• Hydrocycle has issued its first invoice for the Romania project (total value: US$250K) and is now preparing formal technical proposals at the request of three companies in France:

  • Two leading national industrial laundry company with a combined 103 facilities nationwide

  • France’s largest medical waste manager, with 2 facilities

    
    

Each of these represents potential multi-phase contracts with a combined value well exceeding US$50M over time. They also have another $50M+ in opportunities under discussion with more than a dozen countries around the world.Splash's carwash facilities continue to outperform:

• Splash implemented a broad price increase across all wash services. They expect this to ultimately lift average transaction values by over 25% once the changes have taken full effect.

• Splash has received unsolicited franchise inquiries for the Greater Bay region in China (including Hong Kong), Vietnam, and Philippines.

  
  

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

WAVE Initiates Design of Consumer Product

WAVE continues to build momentum, kicking off the design of a consumer product, revamping pricing, and adding team members:

• Initiated design and manufacturing of consumer product in Hong Kong

• Rolled out 5-year pricing plans for both new sales and renewals; initial market response has been very positive.

• Created dedicated Director of Client Services to renew and manage all existing customers

• Added two new employees in Assembly and Customer Experience

  
  

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

We are happy to announce that Robert Parker has joined Strategic Ventures as a Venture Partner. Rob is a seasoned climate tech ecosystem leader, investor, and operator with 25 years of experience ranging from investment banking to consulting to venture investing.

Prior to joining Strategic Ventures, Rob was Deputy Director of Finance and Innovation Investment at the Maryland Clean Energy Center. Rob is also an Adjunct Professor at New York University, teaching in the Clean Start Program as well as an EIR for NYSERDA’s ClimateTech Expertise Network run by Columbia Technology Ventures. Rob has an MBA from Loyola University – Chicago and a BA in International Relations from Johns Hopkins University.