The New Jersey Economic Development Authority (NJEDA) has finalized investments totaling $6.2 million for three businesses through the New Jersey Innovation Evergreen Fund (NJIEF). The fund, established in 2022, aims to expand access to venture capital and strategic resources for early-stage companies in New Jersey by acting as an equity investor alongside professional venture capital firms.
Currently, the Evergreen Fund holds over $5 million in unallocated capital, which will be used for further investments in high-growth companies within the state. In addition, NJEDA recently raised $85 million by auctioning tax credits. This new capital is expected to be available for investment at the beginning of 2026.
“These investments build on the momentum of the NJIEF and highlights the state’s dedication to backing emerging minority and women-led businesses and entrepreneurs,” said Kathleen Coviello, NJEDA Chief Economic Transformation Officer. “By generating a steady flow of venture capital into high-growth startups, the NJIEF will keep fueling job creation and economic development throughout New Jersey.”
Companies approved under the NJIEF also receive support from tax credit purchasers who commit to providing networking, mentoring, and educational opportunities as part of their bids.
PolyGone Systems received an investment of $1.25 million through an application submitted by FYRFLY Venture Partners. The company was founded by Princeton University graduates Yidian Lu and Nathaniel Banks and has developed patented filtration media for water treatment. PolyGone has launched what it describes as the world’s first industrial microplastic treatment pilot project.
“The New Jersey Evergreen Fund has been transformational for our company, PolyGone Systems. As a cleantech startup developing hardware, raising early-stage capital is uniquely difficult. The Evergreen Fund served as a powerful catalyst, motivating investor commitments and enabling us to close our full seed round within just six months,” said Yidian Lui, Co-Founder of PolyGone Systems. “Throughout the process, the Evergreen team was collaborative and deeply supportive, working closely with our team and prospective investors to help accelerate the round. Their involvement is a testament to New Jersey’s commitment to advancing cleantech innovation and supporting startups addressing urgent environmental challenges. Looking ahead, we’re proud to be expanding our operations by establishing our new headquarters in Kearny. It’s our way of paying forward the Evergreen Fund’s support by building global-scale innovation within the Garden State.”
FYRFLY Venture Partners is a woman-led seed-stage firm with offices in San Francisco and Zurich that focuses on enterprise IT and deep technology sectors; this marks its first investment in a New Jersey business.
“PolyGone Systems is tackling one of the most urgent environmental challenges of our time—removing microplastics from water at scale” said Julie Maples, Founding Partner at FYRFLY Venture Partners. “FYRFLY invests in teams building transformational technologies with enduring value, and we’re proud to partner with NJEDA to help PolyGone grow in New Jersey, a state that’s fast becoming a national hub for climate innovation and advanced manufacturing.”
JOGO Health secured two separate investments: $2 million via Atma Capital’s application and $1.18 million through Creative Ventures Management LLC’s application. JOGO Health develops AI-powered digital therapies for chronic pain and neuromuscular disorders such as back pain or stroke paralysis without drugs or invasive procedures. The company has treated more than 25,000 patients across partnerships with major hospitals including Mayo Clinic and Mount Sinai.
“The NJEDA, and in particular the Evergreen Fund, continues the long tradition of keeping New Jersey at the forefront of the innovation economy,” said Sanjai Murali, Co-Founder & CEO of JOGO Health. “This funding has been key to further commercialization of digital therapies that are a game changer for millions of patients who suffer from migraines, incontinence, and stroke related movement disorders.”
Atma Capital is a women-led seed-stage firm operating out of California as well as internationally; this is its first investment into a New Jersey-based company.
“At Atma Capital, we invest in technologies that elevate human potential through the intelligent integration of mind and body,” said Ying Lee, Managing Partner at Atma Capital. “JOGO’s non-invasive neuro-muscular platform exemplifies this vision—bridging modern neuroscience with holistic wellness to promote healthy, happy aging and empower individuals to take charge of their own vitality.”
Creative Ventures is minority-owned with a focus on early-stage deep-tech companies addressing labor shortages or healthcare costs; JOGO Health represents its initial entry into New Jersey investments.
“We always look for transformative technologies and are excited to partner with JOGO Health. We think their team and technology have incredible potential to positively impact the lives of patients, and bring a new model to management of chronic conditions in the healthcare system,” said James Wang, General Partner at Creative Ventures.
Hill Research received $1.75 million via Covenant Venture Capital’s application after relocating from Boston to Bridgewater Township. Hill Research uses generative AI tools designed for clinical trial processes within pharmaceutical companies—automating tasks like patient screening or compliance reporting while keeping human oversight central.
“Clinical trial data analysis is often repetitive and slow, with processes like double programming taking valuable time away from biostatistics experts. Hill Research changes that process with AI tools that automate routine work while keeping human expertise at the center for accuracy and control,” said Louise Liu, Co-Founder & CEO of Hill Research.“Our platform helps biostatistics teams to interpret data faster and make smarter decisions that accelerate drug development bringing new treatments to patients sooner.Support from NJEDA allows us to expand our R&D team,strengthen partnerships,and scale our technology across biopharma sector.As a women-led company,we’re proud drive innovation create opportunities diverse talent across New Jersey’s innovation ecosystem.”
Covenant Venture Partners is based in New York City focusing on AI-driven technology ventures since 2020.
“The Evergreen Innovation Fund program demonstrates effectiveness public-private partnership when it’s designed achieve specific outcomes including more founders funded,faster growth,stronger talent pipelines,”said René Bastón,Venture Partner at Covenant Venture Partners.“With NJEDA’s support,Covenant led Hill Research’s seed round scale Agentic AI clinical development shorten trial timelines improve submission readiness.This is New Jersey at its best:aligning capital capability community create real economic value.”
