Hartford Business Journal

18 Hartford Business Journal • November 2, 2020 • www.HartfordBusiness.com By Liese Klein lklein@hartfordbusiness.com F or some kids with autism, interacting with teach- ers and peers can be one of the biggest challenges they confront in school. Facial cues and vocal tones may be difficult for them to interpret and social interactions may be stressful and frustrating. Enter Kebbi, one of a suite of robots designed by Bristol-based Movia Robotics Inc. "Robots are not judgmental, they're not confusing," said Movia CEO Jean- Pierre Bolat. "Children can learn from robots and it's a really effective tool. There's efficacy in using robots to teach children on the spectrum." Now Movia is ramping up market- ing of its robot-assisted instruction system to parents and schools nation- wide thanks to a $500,000 investment from Clean Feet Investors, an Avon- based fund that seeks to make money for clients while supporting a broad- based vision of global sustainability. "This investment has really given us the runway to grow our team, grow our marketing efforts," Bolat said. Movia robots are currently in use in 145 elementary-school classrooms worldwide through a contract with the Department of Defense (DOD), in addition to homes nationwide. When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, the company pivoted to principally of- fering the systems to families, at a cost of $800 per robot plus $80 a month for software and curriculum support. The Clean Feet investment, in the form of a debt note, will help Movia add to its 15-person staff and position it to fund- raise for a $3 million seed round. Movia's 2019 revenue was $273,000 and forecast revenue for 2020 is $380,000. Clean Feet historically has invested in a range of renewable energy proj- ects and most recently took a stake in a company that makes hydroponic greenhouses. But Bernie Zahren, CEO of Clean Feet fund manager Zahren Financial Co. LLC, said that Movia helped his company broaden its range. "The [Clean Feet] management team is proud to expand the overall mission of 'doing well by doing good' by diver- sification into this groundbreaking Movia technology," Zahren said. He added that his fund has adopted the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals, which define 17 broad categories designed to help cre- ate a more eco-friendly and equitable world economy. The goals include clean water, better health care, gender equality and productive employment. "They have taken a much more ho- listic view of the world and said all of these things matter if we really want to preserve the planet," Zahren said. Movia's products come under the goal of improving education, he added. Social benefit Movia's products grew out of robotics research that company founder and chief scientist Timo- thy Gifford conducted at UConn's Center for the Ecological Study of Perception & Action. Gifford's wife, a schoolteacher, told him about the increasing number of students di- Avon fund seeks profit in green projects By Liese Klein lklein@hartfordbusiness.com U nlike most environmentalists, Bernie Zahren of Clean Feet Investors came to his activ- ism through a career in boardrooms and executive suites. Now he wants to give small inves- tors the chance to make money while fighting climate change. Clean Feet's pitch is that you can make money by taking care of the environment. "If you can't pay the bills and give somebody a return then you can't also help the planet," Zahren said. "You can't get investors to invest unless they're going to get a reasonable return." Zahren's Avon- based Zahren Financial Co., which operates as a private equity firm, has invested about $30 million in 11 different companies through its Clean Feet Investors I fund since its offering in 2010, with regular quarterly cash distributions to investors. Clean Feet 2 launched this year and is seek- ing its first projects. "We're going to put some unique options in there for investors," Zahren said. Beyond renewable energy, the fund seeks to boost promising startups in the spirit of the United Nations Sus- tainable Development Goals, which range from clean water to quality education. Clean Feet's recent invest- ment in Bristol-based Movia Robotics, a creator of robot-assisted instruc- tion for autistic children, exemplifies that broader view of sustainability, he added. "We're trying to do unique things that you don't find a great big Wall Street house doing," Zahren said. Many so-called "green" funds from major firms are simply portfolios that have stripped out their oil and gas and utility holdings, he added. A serial entrepreneur who got his start as an insurance executive at the company now known as Cigna, Zahren started learning about climate change AI Support With new investment, Bristol educational robotics maker seeks growth Bernie Zahren, CEO, Zahren Financial Co. LLC PHOTO | CONTRIBUTED CEO Jean-Pierre Bolat (standing) with his team at Movia Robotics in Bristol.

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