Philly Money Moves: City wins $1.47M grant to create EV workforce development program

Both state and federal governments are investing in the region with grants for local workforce development programs and funds to establish investment funds for healthcare companies. Plus, the region’s first life sciences company to go public in 2024.

Philadelphia nabs nearly $1.5M to develop EV workforce

The City of Philadelphia won a $1.47 million grant from the U.S. Joint Office of Energy and Transportation to fund a workforce development program that will train Philadelphians for careers in the electric vehicles industry.

Called Plug in Philly, the initiative will take shape as a pre-apprenticeship program that recruits and trains 45 people for jobs in the electric vehicle supplies and equipment sector. Over a two-year pilot, the program will outreach to people of color and women currently in low-wage jobs to increase awareness about opportunities in the EVe workforce.

“The ‘Plug In Philly’ program will expand economic opportunity for all by removing barriers to employment for Philadelphia residents,” Mayor Cherelle Parker said. “The pre-apprenticeship model will provide participants with training in an electric vehicle field that is booming, and provide increased pathways to local unions responsible for building and maintaining Philadelphia’s infrastructure.”

Plug in Philly will also develop programming to help program participants find jobs after completing the program.

To do so, the city is partnering with Philadelphia Works, Community College of Philadelphia, School District of Philadelphia, National Association of Women in Construction Philadelphia, the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 98 and its training arm, Apprentice Training for the Electrical Industry.

Shapiro administration awards $3 million to investment firms to support early-stage tech companies

Governor Josh Shapiro’s administration awarded $3 million to venture capital firms from the Ben Franklin Technology Development Authority to invest in early-stage tech companies.

The University City Science Center won $1 million to establish the Science Center Health Fund.

This fund will invest in early-stage healthcare and med-tech companies that are connected to programs run by the Science Center.

Sana Capital Partners won $2 million to establish the Sana Capital Fund to invest in early-stage healthcare access and quality of care companies. While Sana Capital is based in New York, the fund will be based in Bucks County.

“Our investments in high-growth, innovative industries and firms are helping position Pennsylvania to be an economic powerhouse,” said Rick Siger, secretary of the Pa. Department of Community and Economic Development. “The Shapiro administration is committed to investing in these cutting-edge companies to help strengthen our communities and drive our economy forward.”

Broad Street Angels invest $1.7M in 2023

The Broad Street Angels (BSA), a group of angel investors that operate as an affinity club of the Union League of Philadelphia, announced the group invested $1.7M total last year at its annual meeting this month.

This includes follow-on investment and investments in seven new companies the group added to its portfolio — BubbleGoods, Cambridge Orthopaedic Labs, Epistemix, Luxtech, Powerlytics, Smart Response Technologies and Tune.fm.

“Our success in 2023 reflects the passion, dedication, and belief our members hold in the transformative power of angel investing,” said Bob Ciaruffoli, chair of the Broad Street Angels. “By investing in the future of our region and supporting the innovative minds that drive progress, we are contributing to a vibrant, entrepreneurial ecosystem.”

More Money Moves:

• Newtown Square biopharmaceutical company ArriVent Biopharma went public in January with a $175 million initial public stock offering. The company sold over 9.7 million shares of its common stock at $18 per share.
• South Jersey-based medical device company Impulse Dynamics raised a $136 million led by Perceptive Advisors, Redmile Group, Alger and Hobart Healthcare.
• The Shapiro Administration awarded $600,000 to three workforce development groups to provide veterans with job opportunities. IT workforce development program NuPaths received $199,998 to expand access to entry-level tech careers.
• Newsprint,  a platform that uses generative artificial intelligence to monitor and analyze news, recently acquired the AI newsletter platform Daily Nugt. Founder Jono Matusky declined to share financial terms of the deal.
• Conshohocken-based food ordering solution maker Zuppler raised $550,000 according to an SEC filing.
• Pharmaceutical company Reunion Neuroscience raised $16.9 million according to an SEC filing.

Sarah Huffman is a 2022-2024 corps member for Report for America, an initiative of The Groundtruth Project that pairs young journalists with local newsrooms. This position is supported by the Lenfest Institute for Journalism.