Red Cedar Ventures
Red Cedar Ventures is the venture investment arm of the Michigan State University Research Foundation, based in East Lansing, Michigan. It backs early-stage startups commercializing MSU research, from life science to hardware to software. Water is an occasional theme: as of 2026 it has backed 2 water companies across 2 deals.
Compiled by Antoine Walter, (don't) Waste Water, from official filings and direct intelligence in Leviathan.
The take
Red Cedar Ventures takes its name from the river that winds through the Michigan State University campus, which is also exactly where its money comes from and where it goes. It is the wholly-owned venture arm of the MSU Research Foundation, set up in 2014 to turn university research into companies, and it was among the first venture funds anywhere in mid-Michigan.
Red Cedar Ventures is a generalist by design. It writes some of the earliest, smallest checks (the first outside money a startup raises) into companies built on MSU intellectual property, spread across life science, hardware, and software. Water shows up here the way it does at most university funds: occasionally, when a campus spinout happens to be solving a water problem, not because anyone set out to build a water portfolio.
When Red Cedar does back water, the bet is on hard science with a Michigan address. Its two water names are Enspired Solutions, which uses a UV-driven process to chemically destroy PFAS "forever chemicals", and Accelerated Filtration, which builds high-efficiency filtration systems. Two water companies across two deals is the entire water book, which is why (don't) Waste Water scores its water commitment Occasional rather than core.
What makes Red Cedar Ventures worth knowing is less the size of its checks than its timing: it is the capital that shows up first, at the lab-to-company moment most investors sit too far from campus to see. As of late 2025 the MSU Research Foundation's two venture arms together closed 33 investments in a single quarter, which keeps Red Cedar among Michigan's most active early-stage backers, the kind of patient, local money a water spinout often needs before a coastal fund will return the call.
Water Commitment Score
Compiled from official filings, third-party records, and direct intelligence from investors and founders, in Leviathan · recomputed monthly · as of Jun 2026.
How they invest
Portfolio · 2 water companies
Invests alongside
Highlighted = profiled on (don't) Waste Water.
Frequently asked
- What does Red Cedar Ventures invest in?
- Red Cedar Ventures backs early-stage startups commercializing research from Michigan State University, across life science, hardware, and software. It is a generalist university fund, not a water specialist, so water companies make up only an occasional slice of its portfolio, such as PFAS-destruction and filtration startups.
- Is Red Cedar Ventures a water fund?
- No. Red Cedar Ventures is a generalist venture fund tied to Michigan State University, not a water-only investor. (don't) Waste Water rates its water commitment Occasional: as of 2026 it has backed 2 water companies, Enspired Solutions and Accelerated Filtration, across 2 deals.
- Who runs Red Cedar Ventures?
- Red Cedar Ventures is led by Executive Director Jeff Wesley, a former operating-company CEO, alongside investment directors Matt Okoneski and Tommy Skinner and portfolio-management director Pete Martin. The team sits inside the Michigan State University Research Foundation in East Lansing, Michigan.
- Where is Red Cedar Ventures based?
- Red Cedar Ventures is based in East Lansing, Michigan, at the Michigan State University Research Foundation. Founded in 2014, it was among the first venture funds in mid-Michigan and invests mainly in startups built on MSU technology and research.
- How many water companies has Red Cedar Ventures backed?
- Red Cedar Ventures has backed 2 water companies across 2 deals, according to (don't) Waste Water's Leviathan database: Enspired Solutions, a PFAS-destruction startup, and Accelerated Filtration, a filtration company. Its most recent water deal closed in 2023.