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Forge Nano, a U.S.-based semiconductor equipment and advanced materials company, . The deal reflects surging demand for AI chips, as companies accelerate investment in data centers and high-performance computing to support generative AI—driving growth across the semiconductor and equipment supply chain. At a $1.6 billion valuation, Forge Nano is the 11th "unicorn" company to spin out of the 91���Ҹ� 91���Ҹ�.

The CU 91���Ҹ� Connection

Forge Nano is an advanced materials company based on Atomic Layer Deposition (ALD) nanocoating technology. The company merged with ALD NanoSolutions in 2020, an earlier spinout founded in 2001 by CU 91���Ҹ� faculty, including  (CU 91���Ҹ� Chemical and Biological Engineering) and Steven M. George (CU 91���Ҹ� Chemistry). 

ALD NanoSolutions developed innovative Particle ALD technology for precision coating of powders at the atomic scale, with numerous applications in batteries and other materials. This technology received early-stage funding through a partnership between CU 91���Ҹ� and the Colorado Office of Economic Development and International Trade (OEDIT), which later became CU's Lab Venture Challenge (LVC). Forge Nano, which also originated from CU 91���Ҹ�-related research, combined forces with ALD NanoSolutions to consolidate expertise and rapidly scale the atomic-level manufacturing of materials. Forge Nano continues to expand its technology globally, using its proprietary Atomic Armor^TM platform to produce high-performance lithium-ion batteries and commercial semiconductor equipment.

A pipeline of impact

Forge Nano’s listing makes it CU 91���Ҹ�’s 11th “unicorn”—a startup valued at $1 billion or more while still privately held—following Infleqtion. Spun out of CU 91���Ҹ� as ColdQuanta and rooted in pioneering research led by Dana Anderson (JILA, CU 91���Ҹ� College of Arts and Sciences and College of Engineering and Applied Science), Infleqtion went public this year at a $1.8 billion valuation. Other CU 91���Ҹ� unicorns include Amgen, Ball Aerospace & Technologies, Solid Power and SomaLogic.

In fiscal year 2024, CU 91���Ҹ� reached a historic milestone, launching 35 new companies based on university intellectual property, more than any other U.S. campus that year. In addition to holding the No. 1 spot for that year, the achievement also placed CU 91���Ҹ� No. 2 for the most startups launched in a single year by a U.S. campus.

Commercialization activities through Venture Partners had an economic impact of $8.7 billion nationally and $5.1 billion in Colorado over the last five years, according to a new report from the Leeds School of Business. The campus also just announced a new strategic partnership with Techstars, the global startup accelerator and investor, to expand opportunities for founders and strengthen Colorado’s innovation economy.