GMZ Energy is a nanotechnology-based company that’s been spun off from MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology). There was an announcement yesterday, April 18, 2011, that the company has received $7M in funding in its first institutional round. From the announcement,

Newton’s [Massachusetts] GMZ Energy Inc., a maker of thermoelectric materials based on nanotechnology developed at MIT, has raised $7 million from a planned $13 million investment round, the first institutional round for the company.

While the three backers in the round were not identified in the filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, GMZ Energy has been backed with seed capital by West Coast venture capital giant Kleiner Perkins Caulfield & Byers.

The company’s technology (from the announcement),

GMZ Energy uses it nanotechnology to produce thermoelectric material that turn waste heat into electrical power using an environmentally friendly alloy. The material optimizes cooling in refrigerators and air conditioners, generates power from heat sources such as automotive exhaust systems, and enables electricity generation from renewable sources, according to company statements.

The company website can be visited here.

I’ve included this item as it relates to business and investment in nanotechnology and I don’t cover that end of the topic often enough.