Date: 2026-09-03 Source: Email - Julian Rios (julian.rios@edenmed.com) and Ben Ornstein (ben@foundingjourney.com) thread, CC’d michael@ryevalley.co Thread: “Moving forward with the campaign”
Signal
Deal is advancing to contract and invoicing stage. Julian Rios (EdenMed) is requesting the following from Dr. Daniel Medina (evacenter.com) within hours:
- Company entity name and address
- Signatory name and email
- Invoice destination
Ben Ornstein is handling legal document delivery to Daniel for review. Michael was added to the thread as a stakeholder.
This is a new BD relationship not previously captured in the brain. Ben Ornstein (foundingjourney.com, Michael’s rep/partner channel) originated the deal.
Business Fact
- New prospect: EVACenter (dr. daniel.medina@evacenter.com) moving to signed deal
- EdenMed appears to be the content partner or vendor side (Julian Rios coordinating)
- Ben Ornstein is acting as intermediary/closer
- No prior brain entries on EVACenter, EdenMed, or Julian Rios
- Service type unclear from thread context; legal docs in motion suggests imminent signed engagement
Status
Active contract redline. PandaDoc sent by Ben (Sep 4). Stripe invoice sent to legal@edenmed.com.
Dr. Medina returned a marked-up roster access agreement (Sep 4, tracked changes). Comments are narrow and legal is engaged:
- Wants the Roster delivered as a written, dated list (not implicit via introductions)
- Added standard exceptions (public info, prior knowledge, required by law)
- Made NDA obligations mutual (Rye Valley also receives EdenMed business info)
- Reduced creator restriction from 12 to 6 months from identification; restriction lapses if no campaign agreement within 60 days
EdenMed’s legal entity: Higia, Inc., 1881 Page Mill Road, Palo Alto, CA 94304. Signatory: Daniel Medina, Chief Legal and Compliance Officer and Secretary.
Update - 2026-09-04
Deal is at active contract negotiation. Legal comments are narrow; Dr. Medina says “we are ready to move quickly.” Ben is handling the PandaDoc and invoice. Waiting on signature + payment before campaign launches.
Update - 2026-09-05
Michael responded directly to Dr. Medina (daniel.medina@edenmed.com) via email, setting Rye Valley’s two non-negotiable terms for the roster access agreement:
- Any creator list Rye Valley sends cannot be fed into an AI system and resold to third-party users.
- If Devan is not already personally in contact with a creator on the list, he must go through Rye Valley for any further partnerships with that creator for the next 12 months (holding the 12-month period as stated; does not accept EdenMed’s proposed 6-month reduction).
Michael’s message closes with: “Assuming we have an understanding on that then I’m good to proceed.”
Ball is now in EdenMed’s court to confirm acceptance of these terms before deal advances.
Update - 2026-09-08
Ben Ornstein followed up with Michael (email, Sep 8) asking: “would love to get things rolling! LMK if the 12 month clause is a deal breaker on your end?”
This indicates EdenMed (or Ben) is pushing back on Michael’s 12-month creator restriction. Michael had held firm on this (Sep 5), reducing it from EdenMed’s proposed 6 months was already rejected. Ben is now checking if Michael has any flexibility.
Signal: deal is stalled at the 12-month clause. Risk: deal falls through if neither side moves.
Update - 2026-09-10
Michael escalated privately to Robbie Crabtree (forwarded the thread, private side conversation). Asked Robbie “everything ok here with this on their end.” Robbie replied: “I’ll check in with Julian and see.” Michael responded: “Appreciate it brother.”
Michael also sent a new check-in to the full thread (Daniel Medina, Ben Ornstein, Julian Rios, Robbie Crabtree) asking if there are any questions.
Current status: Michael held firm on 12 months. Now working Robbie as a back-channel to Julian. Deal still live but stalled on the clause. Robbie is a key intermediary. Watch for Robbie or Julian response.
Update - 2026-09-15 - DEAL LOST
Julian Rios relayed to Robbie Crabtree (Sep 15): “One of his investors suggested another firm. He decided to go with them to keep his investor happy.” Robbie forwarded to Michael as FYI.
Michael’s reaction: “Dang that’s a shame. Anything we could have done? Idk if my 12 month timeline came off too aggressive, it wasn’t meant to. Just our standard, it’s never been a dealbreaker before.”
Robbie’s read: “I’m not sure why they involved their legal or had that type of pushback but ultimately it seems like it was more keeping their investor happy.” Robbie flagged he has other prospects who could use help - Michael confirmed he wants to connect on those.
Final status: CLOSED-LOST. EVACenter/EdenMed went with another firm at investor direction. 12-month roster clause was a friction point but likely not the deciding factor.
Next step: Michael and Robbie to meet week of Sep 22 (Michael traveling Friday Sep 25; flexible before that) to explore Robbie’s other referral leads.