Zui Founders Unveil Team Group, Offering Startup Services and Funding

[Corrected 8/14/13, 11:45 am spelling of partner Tom Broadhead.] It wasn’t long after San Diego Web entrepreneurs Cliff Boro and Tom Broadhead sold their kid-friendly Internet startup Zui (founded as KidZui) to Saban Brands of Los Angeles that the wheels began turning. The Zui deal was announced last September. By January, the business partners were … Continue reading “Zui Founders Unveil Team Group, Offering Startup Services and Funding”

Kyriba Raises $18.2M to Grow Services for Corporate Finance Clients

Kyriba, a cloud-based provider of cash-management software for multi-national corporations and other customers, says today it has raised $18.2 million in a Series B round of financing that will be used to enhance its technology and fuel further growth. A new investor, Daher Capital, led the round, and was joined by existing investors Bred Banque … Continue reading “Kyriba Raises $18.2M to Grow Services for Corporate Finance Clients”

Duane Roth: The Connector Who Wired Up an Innovation Economy

The seating capacity of the University of San Diego’s Church of the Immaculata is approximately 900, and it is telling that the memorial service held late Friday morning for Connect CEO Duane Roth was standing room only. The Spanish style church on the USD campus is one of the biggest in San Diego. Somber guests … Continue reading “Duane Roth: The Connector Who Wired Up an Innovation Economy”

San Diego Life Sciences Roundup: Sophiris, Isis, Qualcomm, & More

Another San Diego life sciences company is in line for an IPO, and the untimely death of Connect CEO Duane Roth has left a void in the leadership of San Diego’s innovation community. Here’s our review of developments over the past week. —San Diego’s Sophiris Bio is nearing its debut as a U.S. public company, … Continue reading “San Diego Life Sciences Roundup: Sophiris, Isis, Qualcomm, & More”

Freedom Meditech Raises $7M to Market New Diabetes Screening Device

San Diego-based Freedom Meditech says today it has raised $7 million in a Series B financing round to roll out a new medical technology that would enable optometrists and ophthalmologists to screen their patients for diabetes during routine eye exams. “This is a first-in-kind product,” Freedom Meditech CEO Craig Misrach told me a few weeks … Continue reading “Freedom Meditech Raises $7M to Market New Diabetes Screening Device”

Isis Ends Program, Still Has Options For Rheumatoid Arthritis Drug

Wall Street showed little reaction today after Carlsbad, CA-based Isis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: [[ticker:ISIS]]) said it would halt development of its antisense drug ISIS-CRPRx for treating rheumatoid arthritis. Isis shares lost 58 cents, or slightly less than 2 percent, in regular trading today, closing at $28.65 a share. Isis said data from a mid-stage trial of … Continue reading “Isis Ends Program, Still Has Options For Rheumatoid Arthritis Drug”

A Light Goes Out: Some Reflections on the Passing of Duane Roth

I am saddened to report this morning that Connect CEO Duane Roth died Saturday at UC San Diego Medical Center, where he had been hospitalized since July 21 after sustaining a head injury while bicycling in the Cuyamaca Mountains east of San Diego. He was 63. In my conversations with his brother, Ted Roth, it … Continue reading “A Light Goes Out: Some Reflections on the Passing of Duane Roth”

San Diego Life Sciences News: Trius, Optimer, aTyr, Ligand, and More

It’s been a week of big deals for San Diego’s life sciences sector. I also got an update on Connect CEO Duane Roth, who remains hospitalized with a head injury. —Lexington, MA-based Cubist (NASDAQ: [[ticker:CBST]]) agreed to pay over $1.2 billion to buy San Diego’s Trius Therapeutics (NASDAQ: [[ticker:TSRX]]) and Optimer Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: [[ticker:OPTR]]), which … Continue reading “San Diego Life Sciences News: Trius, Optimer, aTyr, Ligand, and More”

La Jolla Institute Extends 25-Year Partnership with Japanese Pharma

[Corrected 8/01/13, 00:30 am. See below.] The La Jolla Institute for Allergy and Immunology says it has extended its industry-academic collaboration with the California-based subsidiary of Kyowa Hakko Kirin (KHK), the Japanese specialty pharmaceutical company. Financial terms of the six-year agreement were not disclosed. The collaboration that began in 1988 combines the institute’s expertise in … Continue reading “La Jolla Institute Extends 25-Year Partnership with Japanese Pharma”

After Raising Private Equity, Sapphire Energy Repays Loan Guarantee

San Diego’s Sapphire Energy, a leading developer of algae-based biofuels, says today it has repaid a $54.5 million federal loan guarantee. As a result of the loan guarantee, made in 2009 through the Department of Agriculture’s Biorefinery Assistance Program, Sapphire says it is now producing the world’s first renewable “green” crude oil at its demonstration … Continue reading “After Raising Private Equity, Sapphire Energy Repays Loan Guarantee”

As ReVision Raises $55M, Domain’s Dovey Assesses Rusnano Gambit

Almost 18 months ago, Domain Associates and the Russian state technology firm Rusnano agreed to jointly invest as much as $760 million in life sciences deals in the U.S. and Russia. Yesterday, the partners said they have completed their fifth deal—joining a $55 million equity round in ReVision Optics, a Lake Forest, CA-ophthalmic company. ReVision, … Continue reading “As ReVision Raises $55M, Domain’s Dovey Assesses Rusnano Gambit”

After Raising $59M, aTyr Plans Physiocrines Proof-of-Concept Trials

San Diego’s aTyr Pharma says today it has closed on $59 million in a Series D financing to advance its development of a new class of protein-based drugs for treating rare immune diseases. The $59 million deal includes $49 million in venture funding raised in recent months from an unnamed “global public investment fund” and … Continue reading “After Raising $59M, aTyr Plans Physiocrines Proof-of-Concept Trials”

Connect CEO Improving From Head Injury After Bike Crash in Mountains

Connect CEO Duane Roth, who sustained a head injury while bicycling Sunday in the Cuyamaca Mountains east of San Diego, has passed through the most-critical period after undergoing emergency surgery to relieve pressure on his brain, according to his brother Ted. “We’re certainly moving in the right direction,” Ted Roth told me today by phone. … Continue reading “Connect CEO Improving From Head Injury After Bike Crash in Mountains”

San Diego Life Sciences Roundup: Illumina, Conatus, Isis, and More

San Diego biotech companies are continuing to take advantage of Wall Street’s goodwill toward the life sciences sector, but venture capital funding in the area dropped to a four-year low. Here’s our roundup of news over the past week. —After setting the price range of its planned IPO earlier this month, San Diego’s Conatus Pharmaceuticals … Continue reading “San Diego Life Sciences Roundup: Illumina, Conatus, Isis, and More”

Amid Strong Demand, Illumina CEO Sees Need for More “Tuck-in” Deals

Shares of San Diego-based Illumina (NASDAQ: [[ticker:ILMN]]) climbed today by more than $7 a share, or roughly 10 percent, after the gene sequencing equipment maker posted quarterly results that exceeded Wall Street expectations. The stock was above $81 a share in heavy trading this afternoon. Illumina reported its seventh consecutive quarter of sequential revenue growth—driven … Continue reading “Amid Strong Demand, Illumina CEO Sees Need for More “Tuck-in” Deals”

ForwardMetrics Combines SaaS, Networking for Business Consultants

ForwardMetrics, an Encinitas, CA-based startup, says it has raised $1 million from individual investors to expand its Web-based platform for consultants and business leaders. The Web startup says the fresh capital brings its total funding to $1.75 million since the company was founded in late 2011. Co-founders Ozzie DiVinere and Scott Warner started ForwardMetrics to … Continue reading “ForwardMetrics Combines SaaS, Networking for Business Consultants”

Connect CEO Remains Critical, Family Expects a Prolonged Recovery

Connect CEO Duane Roth remains in critical condition in the intensive care unit at UC San Diego Medical Center following a biking accident Sunday morning, according to a statement his wife Renee released yesterday through a hospital spokeswoman. “Many thanks to all of you for your kind notes and wishes for Duane as he recovers,” … Continue reading “Connect CEO Remains Critical, Family Expects a Prolonged Recovery”

Connect CEO Duane Roth in Coma with Head Injury After Bike Accident

[Updated 7/22/13 5:30 pm. See below.] Connect CEO Duane Roth has been hospitalized with a head injury after he slammed into a rock embankment in a bicycling accident Sunday morning near Lake Cuyamaca, about 52 miles east of San Diego. The impact broke his bicycling helmet, and Roth was flown by helicopter to the UC … Continue reading “Connect CEO Duane Roth in Coma with Head Injury After Bike Accident”

Yapert Steps into Limelight with $1.2M, Mobile Celebrity App Watcher

San Diego-based Yapert says it has raised $1.2 million in seed funding from Southern California’s Tech Coast Angels to roll out its social media mobile app for celebrity pix and vids. The startup raised $500,000 when it was founded last year, and the latest infusion brings total funding to $1.7 million. Yapert plans to use … Continue reading “Yapert Steps into Limelight with $1.2M, Mobile Celebrity App Watcher”

VC Funding Levels Out as Early Stage Turns Up & Top 10 Deals

Consistent and modest are the words that seem to best describe U.S. venture capital activity during the second quarter, as VC investments remained more or less level with the first three months of 2013, according to recent data from several venture-tracking surveys. But the pace of venture investing is down in comparison to the second … Continue reading “VC Funding Levels Out as Early Stage Turns Up & Top 10 Deals”

San Diego Life Sciences Roundup: Regulus, Ocera, Lithera, and More

A number of San Diego life sciences companies appeared to be taking advantage of the strengthening biotech market on Wall Street by raising capital or repositioning themselves—or both. Here’s my rundown on the deals and other news. —San Diego-based Lithera, which is developing an injectable fat-reduction drug, said it has raised an additional $6.7 million … Continue reading “San Diego Life Sciences Roundup: Regulus, Ocera, Lithera, and More”

CyberFlow Analytics Raises $2M from Toshiba for Cybersecurity SaaS

CyberFlow Analytics, a San Diego network security startup officially incorporated just four months ago, said it already has landed a $2 million investment and strategic alliance with Toshiba America Electronic Components. CyberFlow said it plans to use the funding to commercialize its Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) security technology, which is intended to protect the proprietary and confidential … Continue reading “CyberFlow Analytics Raises $2M from Toshiba for Cybersecurity SaaS”

Enbridge Funding Extends Series C Round to $31M for On-Ramp Wireless

It took longer than expected, but On-Ramp Wireless says today it has raised an additional $15 million in an expansion of the Series C funding round the San Diego company began last year. Much of the new capital came from Enbridge, the pipeline transport company based in Calgary, Alberta, and reflects the pipeline industry’s growing … Continue reading “Enbridge Funding Extends Series C Round to $31M for On-Ramp Wireless”

U.S. Venture Activity Remains Steady as IPOs Rise in Second Quarter

Venture-backed IPOs staged something of a comeback during the second quarter, as 22 VC-backed startups went public with an aggregated valuation of about $9.6 billion. Healthcare companies made up about half of those IPOs, according to the venture-data tracking firm, CB Insights. Still, it was a relatively modest period for VC activity. CB Insights says … Continue reading “U.S. Venture Activity Remains Steady as IPOs Rise in Second Quarter”

GIS Moves Online, Enhances Disaster Response with New Data Sources

John Heltzel may have delivered the deadpan quote of the week at the 2013 Esri Users Conference in San Diego, when he told a group of senior business executives, “It is not a good day in emergency management when the guy on The Weather Channel says he is coming to your state.” It happened to … Continue reading “GIS Moves Online, Enhances Disaster Response with New Data Sources”

San Diego Life Sciences Roundup: Conatus, ViaCyte, Organovo, and More

Much of the activity among San Diego’s life sciences companies seemed to focus on raising capital and striking partnership deals. We’ve got it all wrapped up here. —San Diego-based Conatus Pharmaceuticals, a biotech developing novel compounds to treat liver disease, was one of 10 companies that set terms for their IPO this week. The eight-year-old … Continue reading “San Diego Life Sciences Roundup: Conatus, ViaCyte, Organovo, and More”

Esri Adds GIS to Business Intelligence, Promotes “Location Analytics”

This week marks the 33rd annual users conference for Esri, a leading provider of mapping software and geospatial information systems (GIS). In Internet time, that should qualify the privately held company for elder statesman status. The Redlands, CA-based software developer (founded in 1969 as Environmental Systems Research Institute) currently holds an estimated 40 percent or … Continue reading “Esri Adds GIS to Business Intelligence, Promotes “Location Analytics””

ViaCyte Raises $10.6M as Artificial Pancreas Moves Toward Key Trials

ViaCyte, the San Diego regenerative medicine startup with a big idea for using stem cell-derived therapy to treat diabetes, says today it has raised $10.6 million through a private equity financing. The deal included the company’s largest existing investors—Johnson & Johnson, Sanderling Ventures, and the Johnson Trust. ViaCyte says the funding matches the $10.1 million … Continue reading “ViaCyte Raises $10.6M as Artificial Pancreas Moves Toward Key Trials”

ServiceNow Acquires Dutch Provider of Performance Analytics Software

San Diego-based ServiceNow (NYSE: [[ticker:NOW]]) has acquired Mirror42, a nine-year-old software developer based in Amsterdam that helps companies measure their business performance. Financial terms were not disclosed in a statement released after regular trading ended today. ServiceNow says additional details will be disclosed in conjunction with second-quarter financial results that ServiceNow plans to release on … Continue reading “ServiceNow Acquires Dutch Provider of Performance Analytics Software”

San Diego’s Conatus Pharmaceuticals Sets Price Range for IPO Shares

After disclosing a planned IPO last month, San Diego’s Conatus Pharmaceuticals said in an updated filing yesterday that it plans to offer 5 million shares at a price between $10 and $12 per share. An additional 750,000 shares would be sold if underwriters exercise their option to extend the offering. Conatus estimates the offering would … Continue reading “San Diego’s Conatus Pharmaceuticals Sets Price Range for IPO Shares”

New Carlsbad “Germinator” Opens for Startups as DIY Biology Blooms

As an activist and founder of the Bay Area’s annual Open Science Summit, Joseph Jackson posed an intriguing question on Xconomy a few years ago: “Can a generation of “DIY” biology hobbyists help kickstart a new biotech revolution the way the home brew computer club did for personal computing?” Jackson answered his own question a … Continue reading “New Carlsbad “Germinator” Opens for Startups as DIY Biology Blooms”

Zebit, Operated by Global Analytics, Raises $30M for U.S. Expansion

As a Web-based financial services company, Global Analytics is not exactly a household name—even in San Diego, where the company was founded in 2003. That seems likely to change in coming months, however. Global Analytics is announcing today it has raised $30 million in debt financing, as the company lays the groundwork to bring its … Continue reading “Zebit, Operated by Global Analytics, Raises $30M for U.S. Expansion”

San Diego Life Sciences Roundup: Halozyme, Pathway Genomics, Avanir

The short week before the July 4th holiday made for a quick wrap-up of news from San Diego’s life sciences community. Here’s my rundown. —An important committee of the European Medicine Agency (EMA) gave a positive recommendation for a new formulation of Roche’s trastuzumab (Herceptin) that incorporates Hylenex, the FDA-approved drug delivery method from San … Continue reading “San Diego Life Sciences Roundup: Halozyme, Pathway Genomics, Avanir”

Outerwall, aka Coinstar, Pays $350 Million for San Diego’s EcoATM

Bellevue, WA-based Coinstar says today that it has agreed to pay $350 million in cash to acquire EcoATM, the San Diego cleantech startup that operates kiosks for recycling electronic mobile devices. The automated retailer, which already was a major investor in EcoATM, with a 23 percent stake, also has changed its name Outerwall, along with … Continue reading “Outerwall, aka Coinstar, Pays $350 Million for San Diego’s EcoATM”

San Diego Tech Week Reflects Gains as Web Startups Amass Downtown

As the founding CEO of San Diego’s OpenCandy and its sister startup SweetLabs, Darrius Thompson says he usually keeps his head down and his attention focused on the nuts and bolts of building both companies, and on creating new Web-based software. So it’s understandable that Thompson was unaware of a grassroots effort to help boost … Continue reading “San Diego Tech Week Reflects Gains as Web Startups Amass Downtown”

San Diego Life Sciences Roundup: Isis, Elcelyx, Acutus, and More

Much of the big news in San Diego’s life sciences community over the past week was coming out of Chicago, where the American Diabetes Association was holding its annual meeting. We’ve got it all wrapped up here. —San Diego’s Acutus Medical, founded in 2011 to develop minimally invasive technology for creating a 3-D mapping system … Continue reading “San Diego Life Sciences Roundup: Isis, Elcelyx, Acutus, and More”

MD Revolution Offers Blueprint for “Health Management” Practice

On the seventh floor of a medical office building near Scripps Memorial Hospital La Jolla, Dr. Samir Damani has established a prototype medical practice of the future. The suite looks more like a spa than a doctor’s office, with modern art mounted on chalk white walls and white-washed wooden floors that bespeak understated elegance and … Continue reading “MD Revolution Offers Blueprint for “Health Management” Practice”

Fatskunk Pioneers Security Innovation as Mobile Cybercrime Looms

In the “Spy vs. Spy” world of cyber security and malicious software, Mark Grandcolas says the bad guys usually have an advantage with the element of surprise. The traditional approach of anti-virus software compares programs being downloaded against the known universe of malware, and determines if a snippet of code matches anything on the blacklist … Continue reading “Fatskunk Pioneers Security Innovation as Mobile Cybercrime Looms”

San Diego’s Salka Looks to Develop Renewable Energy Throughout U.S.

There’s a new renewable energy development firm in town. Jiddu Tapia, who previously oversaw wind farm development for the U.S. subsidiary of the Spanish wind turbine manufacturer Gamesa Technology, plans to pursue similar deals in wind and solar energy for Salka, a business he’s recently established in San Diego to arrange financing, develop, build, and … Continue reading “San Diego’s Salka Looks to Develop Renewable Energy Throughout U.S.”

San Diego Life Sciences Roundup: Aragon, Santarus, Tocagen, and More

The $1 billion buyout of San Diego’s Aragon Pharmaceuticals is expected to greatly expand Johnson & Johnson’s drug pipeline for treating prostate cancer. We have that at the top of San Diego’s life sciences news, along with other developments over the past week. —Moving to capitalize on the success of its prostate cancer drug, abiraterone … Continue reading “San Diego Life Sciences Roundup: Aragon, Santarus, Tocagen, and More”

Ernst & Young Names 2013 Entrepreneurs of the Year for San Diego

Santarus (NASDAQ: [[ticker:SNTS]]) CEO Gerald Proehl has been named as the 2013 Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year for San Diego in the life sciences category, and EcoATM CEO Tom Tullie won as Entrepreneur of the Year in technology. Both executives were selected from a list of regional finalists by an independent panel of … Continue reading “Ernst & Young Names 2013 Entrepreneurs of the Year for San Diego”

In Challenge to SurveyMonkey, SlimSurveys Bets Big on Brevity

In this “always on” era of online products and services, there is a time-saving appeal to the product introduced today by San Diego-based SlimSurveys. It’s designed to help businesses gather feedback from customers without sucking up too much of their time. “We wanted to build a company from the perspective of the survey respondent,” CEO Sean … Continue reading “In Challenge to SurveyMonkey, SlimSurveys Bets Big on Brevity”

New Ambrx CEO Discusses Latest Deal, with China’s Zhejiang Medicine

San Diego’s Ambrx, co-founded in 2003 by the prominent chemist Peter Schultz (who remains on its board), has advanced its technology for antibody-drug conjugates by forging a series of drug discovery and development partnerships with Big Pharmas like Merck, Eli Lilly, Astellas, and Bristol-Myers Squibb. Now, in what a spokeswoman calls a “significant departure” from … Continue reading “New Ambrx CEO Discusses Latest Deal, with China’s Zhejiang Medicine”

Conatus Pharmaceuticals Files for $69M IPO to Advance Liver Drugs

San Diego’s Conatus Pharmaceuticals, founded in 2005 and developing new drugs to treat chronic liver disease, plans to raise as much as $69 million through an IPO, according to a regulatory filing unsealed Friday. The biotech plans to take advantage of reduced reporting requirements as an “emerging growth company” under the JOBS Act of 2012, … Continue reading “Conatus Pharmaceuticals Files for $69M IPO to Advance Liver Drugs”

San Diego Life Sciences Roundup: Arena, Organovo, Isis, & More

[Corrected 6/15/13, 11:45 pm. See below.] It seemed to be a week of positive news for San Diego’s life sciences community. We have the details wrapped up here. —CalBio 2013 convened at the San Diego Convention Center yesterday with an opening keynote talk by J. Craig Venter, the human genome pioneer and founding CEO of … Continue reading “San Diego Life Sciences Roundup: Arena, Organovo, Isis, & More”

UCSD “Entrepreneur Challenge” Awards Top Honors to DevaNano, GrollTex

A student-led startup with technology for encapsulating enzymatic drugs in nano-size wiffle balls won the top prize in the biotech and medical technology category, while a team with technology to produce enormous sheets of thin-film graphene conductive electrodes took the first-place technology prize in the 2013 UC San Diego Entrepreneur Challenge. The first-place winners, selected … Continue reading “UCSD “Entrepreneur Challenge” Awards Top Honors to DevaNano, GrollTex”

San Diego Life Sciences Roundup: Zogenix, Isis, Cellana, and More

Much of the life sciences news this week was coming out of the American Society of Clinical Oncology meeting in Chicago. Yet San Diego somehow managed to generate a lot of other news as well. —Finland’s Biotie Therapies said it has an exclusive option to acquire San Diego’s Neurelis, a biotech that specializes in developing … Continue reading “San Diego Life Sciences Roundup: Zogenix, Isis, Cellana, and More”

FDA Delay on New Drug Triggers Layoffs at San Diego’s Zogenix

Pressed by unexpected delays in a ruling from the FDA, San Diego-based Zogenix (NASDAQ: [[ticker:ZGNX]]) says it has laid off 55 employees—or 37 percent of its workforce—in an effort to conserve cash through the summer. The pharmaceutical company, which specializes in developing drugs for pain and central nervous system disorders, had expected the FDA to … Continue reading “FDA Delay on New Drug Triggers Layoffs at San Diego’s Zogenix”

Isis Execs Upbeat as AstraZeneca Expands Cancer Drug Collaboration

Executives at Carlsbad-based Isis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: [[ticker:ISIS]]) were upbeat in a conference call this week, after the company reported encouraging news on several fronts. The company said Monday it had received a $10 million milestone payment from AstraZeneca after the London-based pharmaceutical giant advanced their joint development of a drug for liver cancer and added … Continue reading “Isis Execs Upbeat as AstraZeneca Expands Cancer Drug Collaboration”

With $1.3M in Seed Funding, Arcturus Adds to RNAi Hub in San Diego

San Diego-based Arcturus Therapeutics, a startup founded earlier this year to develop new drugs based on RNA interference (RNAi) technology, says it has raised $1.3 million in seed funding from multiple individual investors in the United States and Canada. The startup, founded by pharmaceutical scientists and former Nitto Denko executives Joseph Payne and Pad Chivukula, … Continue reading “With $1.3M in Seed Funding, Arcturus Adds to RNAi Hub in San Diego”