DETROIT – NextEnergy has partnered with global auto supplier Denso to accelerate smart city and advanced mobility technologies.
Japan-based Denso said in a press release that its sponsorship aligns with the company’s corporate environmental policy and action plan to help resolve environmental and energy issues and conduct business in harmony with nature, a policy first launched in 1997.
“DENSO is excited and proud to be sponsoring NextEnergy,” said Tony Cannestra, the Director of Corporate Ventures for DENSO International America. “We believe that working with NextEnergy to expand our knowledge of startup companies in the Midwest will be very valuable to DENSO’s external innovation efforts. In addition to that, NextEnergy’s commitment to clean energy advancement is an excellent fit to DENSO’s long-term corporate goal of pursuing eco-friendly partnerships.”
As part of the partnership, DENSO International America, Inc. (DIAM) becomes a corporate sponsor of NextEnergy’s venture services program, and NextEnergy will serve as a strategic advisor to DIAM’s Corporate Venture Group, which is based in San Jose, California. In addition to early insight on new technologies as they are being developed, the partnership will provide DENSO with networking, startup engagement and other relationship-building opportunities as well as an avenue for potential investments in NextEnergy clients.
“Collaboration for the purpose of accelerating technologies is the core of what we do,” said Jean Redfield, president and CEO of NextEnergy. “As part of our partnership with DENSO, we’re striving to help them meet their business goals by providing first-hand knowledge of collaboration opportunities with NextEnergy clients and technologies.”
NextEnergy is one of the nation’s leading accelerators of advanced energy and transportation technologies, businesses and industries. Since its inception in 2002, NextEnergy has helped attract more than $1.5 billion of new investment, including programs in excess of $160 million in which NextEnergy has directly participated.
For more information, visit nextenergy.org.
