5 new investments and 1 successful exit in 2025

2025 was a pivotal year for Ajinomoto Group Ventures. We expanded our portfolio with five exciting new investments and celebrated one exit. Each one reaffirms our commitment to partnering with disruptive founders and unlocking collaborative innovations across healthcare, AI/ML infrastructure, food tech, energy transition, and agricultural sustainability.

Portfolio highlights:

• Cellular Intelligence (formerly Somite AI): A tech-bio startup building foundational models for human stem cells. The vision is to enable a future where we can produce any cell type for any person and thus unlock new therapies derived from iPS cells.  

• Mixx Technologies: Optical platform merging photonics and advanced packaging. The goal is to enable faster, more parallelized AI infrastructure while improving manufacturability.  

• Lasagna: High-voltage solid-state batteries for fast charging, stable operations over a wide temperature range. The company is advancing safer and denser energy storage solutions to power next-generation mobility.  

• Athian: Carbon inset platform targeting livestock greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The investment supports Ajinomoto Group's sustainability mission and its feed additive innovation strategy to promote climate-smart animal agriculture.

• V2food: Australia’s leading plant-based company that also operates US chicken and meal brand Daring Foods. The strategic investment supports Ajinomoto Group’s strategy in green and affordable protein solutions.  

A Notable Exit:

In the fall, our optical interconnect portfolio company Nubis Communications was acquired by Ciena in a $270M all-cash transaction—a milestone that underscores our thesis on the urgent need for new AI/ML data movement solutions. This was our one of three bets in optical communications, alongside new portfolio Mixx Technologies and Xscape Photonics, a company innovating a programmable laser platform for high-bandwidth AI deployment.  

Team Growth:

We welcomed two stellar additions to our team: Mark Ide, our first Boston-based investment team member, and Ying Liu, who joined as a venture fellow. The expansion strengthens our capabilities as we support our portfolio companies and build new investment theses.  

Looking Ahead:  

In 2026, we are curious about what is possible in AI-enabled materials and manufacturing, gene and cell therapy and human nutrition, sustainable agriculture and food processing. We are excited for the journey ahead as we team up with remarkable innovators to build the future.