Mainebiz

V O L . X X X I I N O. V I I I A P R I L 2 0 , 2 0 2 6 14 B A N K I N G / F I N A N C E / I N S U R A N C E F O C U S Ateklo — which tailors its owner- ship take to each company it gets off the ground — uses an "intelligence engine" powered by proprietary data to spot overlooked talent and untapped com- mercial opportunities and then forms a team to launch and fund a business. "We're co-founding the business, de-risking it before we even really deploy any serious capital," Hafner explains. "We feel pretty confident in our model." Marrali says it would have taken much longer to start EliVive without Ateklo, who "really gave us a direction on how we should think about things." While Ateklo got its start small contributions from friends and fam- ily to test its initial idea, the long- term goal is to grow through external fundraising. "We're aiming to raise close to $10 million-plus," Hafner says. "We could maybe do more with less, but that's what we want to target in the near future to really scale things up." Ateklo, which has an office at the University of Maine Graduate and Professional Center in Portland's Old Port, is staffed by a four-person operat- ing team that includes venture capital industry veteran Kevin Compher as chief investment officer. While Compher had already been in Maine, Hafner says Ateklo recruits both within and outside the state "to keep pace with our needs across the platform." To strengthen connections with industry, Ateklo has forged a strate- gic partnership with the Cambridge, Mass.-based Corporate Entrepreneurship Network of senior leaders across advanced manufacturing, critical infrastructure, energy and consumer technology. » C O N T I N U E D F RO M P R E V I O U S PA G E Alliant Insurance Services, Inc 111 Commercial Street, Suite 401 Portland, ME 04101 CA License No. 0C36861 © 2026 Alliant Insurance Services, Inc. May is here. Maine PFML is here. Are you ready? As Maine employers navigate the rollout of Paid Family and Medical Leave, the stakes are high, compliance, cost, and employee experience are all on the line. At Alliant Insurance Services, we help organizations move beyond confusion to clarity-building compliant, cost-conscious strategies that integrate leave, disability, and workforce planning seamlessly. This isn't just a mandate. It's a moment to get it right and we are right in your backyard. alliant.com We're co-founding the business, de-risking it before we even really deploy any serious capital. — Justin Hafner Ateklo P H O T O / J I M N E U G E R Justin Hafner is the CEO and co- founder of Ateklo Inc., a venture studio that aims to turn cutting- edge scientific researchers into "deep tech" entrepreneurs.

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