IoT Showerheads Save Hotels $20 Per Room, How Being Rude to ChatGPT Boosts Accuracy, and Takeaways from Analysis of 101 Angel Deals

Happy Thursday.

In today’s issue:

• Angel Deals of the Week | 104 Deals, 73 Networks

• Bookmarks I think you’ll enjoy

• A Special Podcast Episode breaking down my analysis of “Angel Network Pulse: The First 101 Deals”

🔥 Angel Deals of the Week

Angel funding rounds announced in recent weeks, compiled from public sources. These deals represent the elite few that survived an angel network’s vetting process. Note: I have not personally analyzed these companies and am sharing for informational purposes only.

🤖 Deal summaries generated using dealmemo.ai.

📊 Angel Network Investment Tracker: 104 Deals, 73 Networks.

Shower Stream | IoT motion-activated smart shower system

Participating Groups: North Texas Angel Network

Shower Stream is developing an IoT motion-activated smart showerhead that aims to save hotels $20 per room monthly by reducing water and energy waste by 20%. The company's universally compatible technology launched commercially with Extended Stay America in October 2024 and provides real-time maintenance alerts through its web-connected platform. Shower Stream recently secured $115,000 from nine North Texas Angel Network members to support expansion into the hospitality industry's 15-million-room market.

Greg Floyd | $115,000 Investment | Austin, TX | October 2025 | Source

BMI OrganBank | Developer of organ preservation tech

Participating Group: Band of Angels

BMI OrganBank is developing next-generation perfusion systems for organ preservation and assessment, with an initial focus on kidney transplantation. The company recently secured FDA Breakthrough Device Designation for its room temperature machine perfusion platform, which enables functional assessment of kidneys and extends preservation times. With more than 125,000 Americans requiring kidney transplants annually but only 25,000 procedures performed, BMI OrganBank recently received strategic investments from the National Kidney Foundation and Band of Angels.

Carrie DiMarzio | Winston-Salem, NC | October 2025 | Source

Epion Therapeutics | Minimally-invasive eye treatment tech

Participating Group: New World Angels

Epion Therapeutics is developing EpiSmart™, a minimally-invasive epithelium-on cross-linking treatment for keratoconus and ectatic corneal disease affecting millions of patients worldwide. The clinical-stage company's technology strengthens the cornea without disrupting the epithelium, enabling simultaneous treatment of both eyes with reduced discomfort and recovery time. New World Angels recently announced an investment of $425,500 in Epion’s $18.5M convertible note round to enable completion of Phase 3 trials and advancement toward FDA submission.

Michael D. Webb | $425,500 Investment, $18.5M Round | Burlington, MA | September 2025 | Source

📣 Have an Angel Deal to Announce?

🔖 Bookmarks

1. 🚿🙏 In Defense of “Spray and Pray”: Research from Dan G. at Equidam shows diversified portfolios (100 companies) outperform concentrated ones (20 companies) except for top 5% funds.

2. 🎮 Gaming IPOs are Back: Discord files to IPO after hitting $890M in revenue and rejecting Microsoft's $12B offer - the largest gaming IPO since Roblox in 2021.

3. 🪦 RIP Manners: New research from Cornell shows impolite prompts (84.8% accuracy) outperformed polite ones (80.8%) using ChatGPT 4o.

🎙️ Special Episode: Breaking Down "Angel Network Pulse: The First 101"

Organized Angel Investing is only 30 years old and already spans 15+ countries

This week I released “Angel Network Pulse: The First 101”, a comprehensive analysis of 101 deals from 72 angel networks. I also recorded a special podcast episode breaking down my key findings with some extra color that didn't make it into the written report. Here's my top takeaway:

Three decades ago, organized angel investing didn't exist. Today? It’s a thriving part of the startup ecosystem.

From an article I wrote in 2023 titled “Why do Angel Networks Exist?”:

Fast forward to today: Our 9-month snapshot, which represented just 8-10% of the total ecosystem activity, covered 72 angel networks deploying capital across 27 US states and 12 countries into startups based in 30 US states and 15 countries. Texas alone featured 10 networks that made 22 investments. Networks in India, UK, Latvia, and Italy are actively deploying capital. Regional hubs are forming (looking at you Texas 👀). Syndication is happening across state and national borders.

Many founders think of angel networks as providing small, token investments. And while our data makes it clear that angels indeed aren’t often leading, they DO play a meaningful part. The average angel group check was $329,000 (median $180K), representing 7% of the average $4.7 million funding round. These are material capital contributions in seed and Series A rounds alongside institutional investors.

Takeaway: Organized angel investing is NOT a mature, established asset class with settled best practices. It’s very much still in an early growth phase, and norms around transparency, syndication, check sizes, geographic reach, and portfolio construction are still being written. Every decision that every angel community makes every day about how to operate, what to disclose publicly, and how to collaborate with other angel groups is setting precedent for the next 30 years of organized angel investing.

That’s pretty stinking cool.

Want more? Check out my thoughts on the analysis 👇

*Note: As you can tell from our Angel Deals of the Week, Band of Angels is still very much at it!

Listen now on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, and more.

Until Next Week 👋

Thanks for reading - have a great week.

-Andrew

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