ARCH Venture Partners and Ardesta LLC to Join the Sponsorship of First Annual MI2NT Award.

CHICAGO -- ARCH Venture Partners, a leading provider of seed- and early-stage capital for technology firms, and Ardesta LLC, a pioneer in investing in "small tech" companies, have agreed to join the sponsors of the first annual Most Innovative Nanotechnology company (MI2NT) award, a competition to find the most innovative Israeli nanotechnology companies currently commercializing their product or technology. ARCH Venture Partners (www.archventure.com) has six funds and manages more than $1 billion. Ardesta (www.ardesta.com) manages more than $100 million. Representatives of ARCH and Ardesta will meet with the MI2NT award winners at meetings in Chicago and New York.

ARCH has a long history of activity in the micro- and nanotechnologies, funding companies such as Nanophase Technologies Corporation, Caliper, Nanosys, Cambrios, and Innovalight. Ardesta is one of the first firms to focus exclusively on funding and developing "small tech" companies including Konarka Technologies, Discera, HandyLab, Sensicore, NeoPhotonics and Small Times Media.

"This competition underscores the global importance of innovative Israeli nanotechnology products and companies," said Steve Johns, Ardesta's senior VP and co-founder. "The MI2NT award will serve to showcase Israeli ingenuity in micro or nanotechnology applications and products to potential strategic partners and investors."

Other MI2NT sponsors are The U.S.-Israel Science and Technology Foundation, Chicago Microtechnology & Nanotechnology Community, O'lala Foods, and The Trendlines Group.

Finalists for the award will be chosen by a group of nanotechnology experts. Among the benefits to the two MI2NT award winners:

--VIP invitation to the NanoBusiness Conference in New York, the premier nanotechnology business conference, including complementary participation in meetings and workshop

--Private meetings with leading nanotechnology VCs, such as Lux Capital's Josh Wolfe, industry leaders such as Sean Murdock, executive director of the Nanotechnology Business Alliance, and CEOs and researchers with potential strategic partners and/or customers

--Recognition at a special awards ceremony in Chicago with leading investors, nanotechnology company CEOs, and regional development directors

--Business development services from The Trendlines Group and Chicago Microtechnology & Nanotechnology Community, including identifying and contracting potential partners in the United States and preparing executive summaries and presentations for meetings in NY and Chicago

--Public relations support in Israel and the United States throughout the program

Applications to the program are due by Thursday, March 17, 2005. Additional information and applications are available at www.trendlines.com/min2nt.asp.

Program Sponsors

--ARCH Venture Partners (www.archventures.com) is a provider of seed- and early-stage venture capital for IT, life sciences, and physical sciences companies.

--Ardesta LLC (www.ardesta.com) is a leader in building a portfolio of companies committed to bringing "small tech" products to the global marketplace.

--Chicago Microtechnology & Nanotechnology Community (www.chicagonano.org) is a Chicago-based organization dedicated to promoting the practitioners of micro and nanotechnologies through seminars, special events and collaborations.

--O'lala Foods (www.olalafoods.com) is a Chicago-based firm leveraging micro- and nanotechnology for better functional foods and beverages.

--The Trendlines Group (www.trendlines.com), Israel's leading business development and marketing consulting firm.

This program is underwritten by the U.S.-Israel Science and Technology Foundation (www.usistf.org), which promotes collaborative opportunities in high technology for American and Israeli entities.