—Indio Technologies, an insurance tech startup, has raised $20 million in funding, and plans to spend half of that amount to boost its Austin office, the company said. The Series B investment round was led by Menlo Ventures with participation from 8VC. San Francisco-based Indio, which makes software that insurance companies can white-label to digitize paper-based processes, has now raised more than $30 million and employs 50. The startup plans to add 50 more employees in engineering, sales, and customer development in Austin in the next two years, a spokeswoman said.
—Expedia Group is changing the name of Homeaway, which it acquired in 2015 for $3.9 billion, to Vrbo because the company believes Vrbo is its strongest brand. Vrbo has outperformed Homeaway as a US search term, Expedia (NASDAQ: [[ticker:AWAY]]) says, citing Google Trends data. Vrbo, which was founded in 1995 and acquired by Homeaway in 2006, accounted for a significant majority of the “alternative accommodations” segment of Expedia’s business, the company says. Seattle-based Expedia is planning to open a new 16-story corporate headquarters for the Vrbo division in north Austin.
—Caris Life Sciences has acquired Pharmatech in a move to better cancer treatment by connecting patients with the right clinical trial in as little as 10 days, according to a press release. Caris, which is based in the Dallas suburb of Irving, uses a precision medicine approach—identifying treatments that work best with an individual’s genetic makeup—in order to help doctors make treatment decisions. Denver-based Pharmatech says its “just-in-time” research software and network of cancer research sites can match patients to the appropriate clinical trial for them. “This acquisition allows Caris to facilitate interactions between drug developers who are seeking patients with specific cancer profiles and physicians who are seeking new treatment options for their patients,” David Halbert, Caris’ chairman and CEO, said in the prepared statement.
— The Texas Medical Center unveiled its construction and architectural partners, as well as new renderings, of its new Translational Research Campus, or the TMC3. The TMC announced the TMC3 project last year, saying it is being designed to place Houston among the country’s top bioscience hubs. The 30-acre, $250-million site—which is a collaboration among the TMC, Baylor College of Medicine, Texas A&M University Health Science Center, the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, and the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center—will be constructed in the shape of a double-helix and would include restaurants, bars, retail, housing, and a conference center and hotel.
—A Cloud Guru has raised $33 million in funding, in a round led by Summit Partners, with participation from AirTree Ventures and earlier investor Elephant, according to a press release. The Austin-based startup, which was founded in 2015, uses cloud technologies to provide companies computer training and talent development for employees. The company says it has helped more than 850,000 users across 186 countries acquire new skills and certifications.
—Kerv Interactive, an Austin adtech company, has raised $11 million in funding, according to a press release. Vestech Partners, a private equity firm, led the investment. Kerv uses interactive video to help brands reach customers. Among the companies it works with include eBay (NASDAQ: [[ticker:EBAY]]), LG Electronics, Lamborghini, and others. Kerv’s technology uses artificial intelligence and machine learning to recognize objects in a video and allow viewers to click on them to learn more about products and services, Silicon Hills News reported.
Xconomy National Correspondent David Holley contributed to this report.
