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Belmont, CA – April 19, 2005 – Today Red Herring announced that PolyFuel has been named one of the two hundred Finalists for the Red Herring 100 Private Companies of North America award program. Over nine hundred nominations were submitted for consideration. The Red Herring 100 Winners will be unveiled at the Red Herring Spring 2005 conference, May 17-19, 2005 in Monterey, CA. Dedicated to celebrating the most exciting private North American companies, the three-day conference will feature keynote speeches, lively dialogue, and company presentations by the CEOs of the Red Herring 100.
"There were many strong candidates for the Red Herring 100 list this year, so making it onto the list is quite an achievement," said Joel Dreyfuss, Editor-in-chief of Red Herring. "In the post-bubble era, North American technology companies have focused on making sure management is strong and that the business model makes sense."
PolyFuel, which is the leader in engineered membranes for fuel cells, has pioneered technology that has the potential to change both the economics and the performance characteristics of fuel cells for portable devices and for automobiles. PolyFuel's technology, a sophisticated film of "plastic" that is the heart of the fuel cell — and dictates its performance — is a breakthrough. The membrane uses a new chemistry, based on hydrocarbons, instead of an older one based upon fluorocarbons — used in most commonly available fuel cell membranes until now.
"Our goal as a company is both to continue to create breakthrough technology and to significantly help build the market for portable devices — and in the longer term — for fuel cell powered automobiles," said Jim Balcom, PolyFuel's president and CEO. "We are very proud that Red Herring, which has the opportunity to review virtually all important technology developments, has recognized our potential in the market."
Balcom noted that the company has received other recognition as well, citing a grant from the US Department of Energy, which chose PolyFuel to work on a portable fuel cell application alongside Intel Corporation; from Frost & Sullivan, which named the company's technology "Enabling Technology of the Year for 2004 for Power Supplies and Batteries"; and from the World Economic Forum, which named the company a "World Economic Forum Technology Pioneer for 2005."
To date, PolyFuel has launched two versions of its new fuel cell membrane technology for portable device applications using methanol as the fuel, and hydrogen-based fuel cell technology for use in automobiles. The company, which has developed three breakthroughs in less than three years, credits a unique and sophisticated membrane engineering process for the speed and quality of its new developments.
The two hundred Finalists will be evaluated to determine the Red Herring 100 that embody innovation, technology, and strategy. The Red Herring editorial team has completed a thorough analysis of business model, competitive advantage, alliances, customers, and technology for each company.
Companies selected to the Red Herring 100 award program will present their business model and technology at the Red Herring Spring 2005 conference. The awards ceremony will take place during the Welcome Dinner on May 17th. The three-day intimate event is themed "The Dynamics of Disruptions" and will shine its light on the business of technology, featuring keynotes and roundtable discussions. A complete overview and agenda can be found at http://www.redherring.com/rhspring05. Red Herring Spring conference is an invitation-only gathering for CEOs, venture capitalists, and select senior executives. To request an invitation, please contact Sean Raman at 650.428.2900 or via email at sraman@redherring.com
Red Herring covers technology innovation, venture financing, and the deals that make a difference. Its award-winning journalists go deeper, providing a comprehensive, critical analysis of what's new and why it matters. Red Herring covers the business trends with insight that counts, serving today's entrepreneurs and the technology of tomorrow. Head to www.RedHerring.com for articles, newsletters, and research reports that matter. To subscribe to the Red Herring Magazine call 866.311.9582 or email redherring@neodata.com.
PolyFuel is a world leader in engineered membranes that provide breakthrough performance in fuel cells for portable electronic and automotive applications. The state of the art of fuel cells is essentially that of the membrane, and PolyFuel's leading-edge, hydrocarbon-based membranes enable a new generation of fuel cells that for the first time can deliver on the long-awaited promise of clean, long-running, and cost-effective portable power, based upon renewable energy sources.
PolyFuel's unmatched capability to rapidly translate the system-level requirements of fuel cell designers and manufacturers into engineered polymer nano-architectures has led to its introduction of best-in-class hydrocarbon membranes for both portable direct methanol fuel cells and for automotive hydrogen fuel cells. Such capability — based on PolyFuel's over 140 combined years of fuel cell experience, world-class polymer nano-architects, and a fundamental patent position covering more than 15 different inventions — also makes PolyFuel an essential development partner and supplier to any company seeking to advance the state of the art in fuel cells. Polymer electrolyte fuel cells built with PolyFuel membranes can be smaller, lighter, longer-running, more efficient, less expensive and more robust than those made with other membrane materials.
PolyFuel was spun out of SRI International (formerly Stanford Research Institute) in 1999, after 14 years of applied membrane research. The company is based in Mountain View, California, and is privately held. Investors include Mayfield, Ventures West, CDP Capital — Private Equity, Technology Partners, Intel Capital, Chrysalix Energy, Conduit Ventures, KTB Ventures, Hotung Venture Partners, Yasuda Enterprise Development, and BiNEXT, a part of the Daesung Group.