Aspen Technology (NASDAQ: [[ticker:AZPN]]), a Burlington, MA-based provider of software for optimizing manufacturing, announced today that it has priced a secondary public offering of 18 million shares at $9 per share. Private equity firm Advent International is selling all of the shares, and originally expected to sell 15 million shares, Aspen said. J.P. Morgan Securities … Continue reading “Aspen Prices Secondary Public Offering”
Author: Erin Kutz
Erin Kutz has a background in covering business, politics and general news. She holds a bachelor’s degree in journalism from Boston University. Erin previously worked in the Boston bureau of Reuters, where she wrote articles on the investment management and mutual fund industries. While in college, she researched for USA Today reporter Jayne O’Donnell’s book, Gen Buy: How Tweens, Teens and Twenty-Somethings Are Revolutionizing Retail. She also spent a semester in Washington, DC, reporting Capitol Hill stories as a correspondent for two Connecticut newspapers and interning in the Money section of USA Today, where she assisted with coverage on the retail and small business beats. Erin got her first taste of reporting at Boston University’s independent student newspaper, as a city section reporter and fact checker and editor of the paper’s weekly business section.
KangoGift Platform Sends Gift Vouchers Via Text, Brings Virtual Goods Convenience to Real-World Use
Virtual gifts are a nice way to send someone good thoughts online. But if you’re going to spend real money to get someone a virtual gift like a digital cupcake or bouquet of flowers, why not spend a bit more to get them something concrete? Now Cambridge, MA-based KangoGift makes online gift-giving just as convenient … Continue reading “KangoGift Platform Sends Gift Vouchers Via Text, Brings Virtual Goods Convenience to Real-World Use”
Accio Energy, With New CEO, Uses Physics to Harvest Wind Energy Without Turbines
It’s hard to hear the term “wind power” without picturing the giant, bladed turbines that are currently used to generate this kind of renewable energy. Ann Arbor, MI-based Accio Energy is trying to shake this up. The company is using fundamental physics to produce wind power without turbines—a transformation that could make wind energy more … Continue reading “Accio Energy, With New CEO, Uses Physics to Harvest Wind Energy Without Turbines”
August Startup Financings in MA Rose Slightly to $143M, With Plenty of Smaller Deals
Startup deal-making in Massachusetts rebounded slightly last month. Thirty companies brought in $143.6 million in equity-based financing deals, which was almost a 10 percent increase from July’s total of $131.4 million, according to data provided by private company intelligence platform CB Insights. It’s not anything like the surge we saw in June, when Bay State … Continue reading “August Startup Financings in MA Rose Slightly to $143M, With Plenty of Smaller Deals”
L-1 Acquired by Safran and BAE in $1.6B Merger Deal
L-1 Identity Solutions, a Stamford, CT-based maker of biometric technologies for security and identification, said today it has agreed to be acquired by French aerospace and defense company Safran for $12 per share in a merger transaction. As part of the deal, L-1 is first selling off a chunk of its business to U.K.-based BAE … Continue reading “L-1 Acquired by Safran and BAE in $1.6B Merger Deal”
Kabongo Takes School-Based Learning Games to the Consumer, Focuses on Being Both Fun and Effective
Kids usually don’t do schoolwork at home purely for fun. But Terry Anderson, president and CEO of educational gaming company Kabongo, thinks that his company’s products could provide an exception to that rule. The startup—headquartered in Emeryville, CA, with research operations in Ann Arbor, MI—first marketed its learning-skills-building games directly to schools. But earlier this … Continue reading “Kabongo Takes School-Based Learning Games to the Consumer, Focuses on Being Both Fun and Effective”
Accio Adds New CEO
Ann Arbor, MI-based Accio Energy, a developer of technology for converting wind to energy without using turbines, announced yesterday that it has added Jennifer Baird as its chief executive officer. Baird most recently served as president and CEO of venture-backed Accuri Cytometers of Ann Arbor, a maker of affordable instruments for examining microscopic particles in … Continue reading “Accio Adds New CEO”
Lantos Closes Series A
MIT imaging spinout Lantos Technologies announced today that is has closed a $1.6 million Series A round of funding, led by Catalyst Health Ventures and joined by Excel Venture Management and Mass Medical Angels. Ryan wrote about part of the funding earlier this summer, but a filing with the SEC this week shows that Lantos … Continue reading “Lantos Closes Series A”
Entrepreneurial Walk of Fame Gets Some Legs at Cambridge City Hall Meeting
What happens when entrepreneurship meets politics? A task force forms and an idea inches its way forward. The idea I’m talking about is an Entrepreneurial Walk of Fame, akin to Hollywood’s celebration of movie stars, in Cambridge’s own Kendall Square, a proposal that Xconomy’s CEO Bob Buderi first wrote about last month. MIT Entrepreneurship Center … Continue reading “Entrepreneurial Walk of Fame Gets Some Legs at Cambridge City Hall Meeting”
Grasshopper Group Rolls Out Spreadable, A New Way to Create Buzz at the Brand Level
It’s common advice in the tech startup world that entrepreneurs should focus on developing solutions to problems that they’d like to see fixed, rather than look to innovating in more obscure areas. Needham, MA-based Grasshopper Group definitely follows this ethic. The startup has a suite of technology answers to basic entrepreneurial business problems, such as … Continue reading “Grasshopper Group Rolls Out Spreadable, A New Way to Create Buzz at the Brand Level”
SimpliVT Brings in $9.2M
SimpliVT, a Waltham, MA-based stealth-mode startup founded by software entrepreneur Doron Kempel, has wrapped up a $9.2 million equity-based round of funding from eight unnamed investors, according to an SEC filing. The company does not yet have a website revealing its products or technology, though Kempel told me on the phone that his startup is … Continue reading “SimpliVT Brings in $9.2M”
Lightower Buys Lexent
Boxborough, MA-based Lightower Fiber Networks, a bandwith service provider and operator of data-transporting fiber networks, said today that it is acquiring New York City-based Lexent Metro Connect, which provides custom-built dark fiber networks. The company is not revealing how much it paid for Lexent, but has said that the acquisition will expand its base in … Continue reading “Lightower Buys Lexent”
Book of Odds, With Book Deal in Tow, Is Updating Website to Help Consumers Make Sense of Risks in Everyday Life
The Book of Odds isn’t betting its future on any one thing, and founder and president Amram Shapiro see that as one of its strengths. “A lot of websites and startups are one-trick ponies,” Shapiro says. “Everything really has to work or pretty much they’re out of it. We think of ourselves as a 10- … Continue reading “Book of Odds, With Book Deal in Tow, Is Updating Website to Help Consumers Make Sense of Risks in Everyday Life”
Lithium-Ion Battery Maker Sakti3 Gets $4.2 Million from GM, Itochu to Speed Up Commercialization Efforts
Sakti3, an Ann Arbor, MI-based lithium-ion battery maker, announced today that it has brought in $4.2 million from General Motors Ventures and Itochu Technology Ventures to put toward the manufacturing and commercialization of its battery cells. Sakti3 was co-founded by Ann Marie Sastry, a University of Michigan engineering professor, in 2007, and is working on … Continue reading “Lithium-Ion Battery Maker Sakti3 Gets $4.2 Million from GM, Itochu to Speed Up Commercialization Efforts”
Allied Minds Injects $3 Million Into Ann Arbor-based Biotectix to Support Conductive Polymer Technology for Implantable Medical Devices
Allied Minds, which makes seed investments in technology developed at universities and national labs, said yesterday it has invested $3 million in Ann Arbor, MI-based Biotectix to advance research and development of its novel conductive polymer technology. The company, which was formed out of the University of Michigan, is working on polymer materials and coatings … Continue reading “Allied Minds Injects $3 Million Into Ann Arbor-based Biotectix to Support Conductive Polymer Technology for Implantable Medical Devices”
CombinatoRx Becomes Zalicus
Cambridge, MA-based drug developer CombinatoRx announced today that it has changed its name to Zalicus to better reflect its assets and focus, following its merger last year with Vancouver-based Neuromed Pharmaceuticals. The company garnered its first drug approval earlier this year for the pain treatment hydromorphone HCL (Exalgo), which is being marketed by healthcare products … Continue reading “CombinatoRx Becomes Zalicus”
Powerhouse Dynamics, With Another $400K, Is Out to Monitor Energy Use at the Circuit Level and Sell Through Dealers
Not using energy you don’t need has become an attractive way of going green, and has given birth to companies out to track and target your energy consumption, or retrofit your home for greater efficiency. Newton, MA-based Powerhouse Dynamics, founded in 2008, is a player in the energy-monitoring software field, but it’s been going about … Continue reading “Powerhouse Dynamics, With Another $400K, Is Out to Monitor Energy Use at the Circuit Level and Sell Through Dealers”
ByAllAccounts Brings In $5M
Woburn, MA-based ByAllAccounts, a maker of technology that enables financial advisors to aggregate account data, announced it has grabbed a $5 million financing, led by Castile Ventures. Previous ByAllAccounts investor Commonwealth Capital Ventures also participated in the funding round, which will go to expanding the company’s presence in the financial advisory market and advancing into … Continue reading “ByAllAccounts Brings In $5M”
VoltDB Grabs $5M
VoltDB, a Billerica, MA-based maker of database software for rapid transaction-based processes, has wrapped up a $5 million equity-based round of funding, according to an SEC filing. The document notes that the money comes from four investors, and lists members of Sigma Partners and Kepha Partners as VoltDB directors. The company, which targets its products … Continue reading “VoltDB Grabs $5M”
Reality Show Project Seeks to Capture MassChallenge Competitors in Their Entrepreneurial Element
Pick an activity, an industry, or a social phenomenon and there’s probably a reality show about it, from fashion design to wilderness survival to the nightlife of 20-somethings in shore towns. But Warren Anderson, a local entrepreneur and Harvard Extension School master’s student, can name one area that he says hasn’t been depicted by the … Continue reading “Reality Show Project Seeks to Capture MassChallenge Competitors in Their Entrepreneurial Element”
VMware Makes Two Acquisitions, Mascoma Picks Up SunOpta Unit, Vela Gets $6M, & More Boston-Area Deals News
The holiday weekend hasn’t seemed to slow down deal-making in New England. We’ve seen acquisitions, funding rounds, and even an IPO registration for companies in the life sciences, software, and energy spaces. —Drugmaker giant Pfizer said it had agreed to purchase FoldRx Pharmaceuticals, a Cambridge, MA-based developer of drugs for rare diseases like the neurodegenerative … Continue reading “VMware Makes Two Acquisitions, Mascoma Picks Up SunOpta Unit, Vela Gets $6M, & More Boston-Area Deals News”
Bruker Supercon Unit Files for IPO
Bruker Energy & Supercon Technologies, a unit of Billerica, MA-based Bruker, registered for an initial public offering on Friday, worth an estimated $100 million, according to regulatory documents. Two years ago Bruker EST was set up as a subsidiary of scientific instrument company Bruker (NASDAQ: [[ticker:BRKR]]), which will also offer some of its shares as … Continue reading “Bruker Supercon Unit Files for IPO”
Pfizer, Celldex Deal Ends
Pfizer has terminated an agreement with Needham, MA-based Celldex Therapeutics (NASDAQ: [[ticker:CLDX]]), in which it licensed the experimental cancer vaccine rindopepimut, because it says the drug is no longer one of its strategic priorities, Celldex announced today. Celldex will regain full rights to develop and commercialize the treatment, effective November 1 of this year. The … Continue reading “Pfizer, Celldex Deal Ends”
PerkinElmer Sells Unit for $500M, Aveo Stock Climbs, Pfizer Buys FoldRx, & More Boston-Area Life Sciences News
This week we saw news of acquisitions from drug giants, and got updates on several New England biotechs. —The FDA alerted South San Francisco-based Genentech that it was not going to review its application for accelerated approval of its “empowered antibody” drug, developed with technology from Waltham, MA-based ImmunoGen. The FDA said that T-DM1, which … Continue reading “PerkinElmer Sells Unit for $500M, Aveo Stock Climbs, Pfizer Buys FoldRx, & More Boston-Area Life Sciences News”
Buzzient Makes Social Media Analytics Software, Attracting Business Customers From Gaming to Financial Services
You’ve been sleeping under a rock if you haven’t realized yet that what’s being said on Twitter, Facebook, user forums, wikis, YouTube videos, and personal blogs has a big impact on what people think about a brand. And there’s no shortage of companies developing technology to monitor this ever-changing buzz to paint a picture of … Continue reading “Buzzient Makes Social Media Analytics Software, Attracting Business Customers From Gaming to Financial Services”
Salary.com Acquired by Kenexa
Salary.com (NASDAQ: [[ticker:SLRY]]), a Needham, MA-based maker of on-demand software for managing employee pay and performance, will be acquired by Wayne, PA-based Kenexa (NASDAQ: [[ticker:KNXA]]) for $4.07 per share in cash, for a total of roughly $80 million, the companies announced today. Kenexa, a human resources software, services, and consulting firm, said it expects the … Continue reading “Salary.com Acquired by Kenexa”
VMware Adds Integrien and TriCipher to Up Its Cloud Computing Power
[Updated, 9/1/10 at 12:00pm. See below.] VMware (NYSE: [[ticker:VMW]]), the Silicon Valley virtualization unit of Hopkinton, MA-based storage giant EMC (NYSE: [[ticker:EMC]]), announced at its annual conference in San Francisco that it had scooped up two IT startups to add to its cloud computing infrastructure. The company bought Irvine, CA-based Integrien, a maker of real-time … Continue reading “VMware Adds Integrien and TriCipher to Up Its Cloud Computing Power”
Cisco Acquires ExtendMedia, Genzyme Rejects Sanofi Bid, Yottaa Grabs $4M, & More Boston-Area Deals News
We saw news of acquisitions and financing rounds for New England’s tech, life sciences, and energy firms—including some developments in what could be one of the biggest buyouts in some time (see below). —NKT Therapeutics, a Newton, MA-based developer of drugs to stimulate natural killer T cells, brought in a $4 million equity round, according … Continue reading “Cisco Acquires ExtendMedia, Genzyme Rejects Sanofi Bid, Yottaa Grabs $4M, & More Boston-Area Deals News”
HubCast, an Amazon.com for Commercial Print Jobs, Takes a Traditional Process to the Cloud
It’s no surprise that many traditionally brick-and-mortar industries and activities are being improved or even replaced by Internet technologies. Wakefield, MA-based HubCast is looking to do the same thing for commercial printing, which is far more complex than the few clicks required for printing an essay off of a personal computer, say. Traditionally, commercial printing … Continue reading “HubCast, an Amazon.com for Commercial Print Jobs, Takes a Traditional Process to the Cloud”
Yottaa Gets $4M, Releases Website Performance Monitoring Service
Cambridge, MA-based Internet startup Yottaa announced today that it has wrapped up a $4 million Series A financing round and has launched a free, beta version of its tool for analyzing website performance. The funding comes from General Catalyst Partners, Stata Venture Partners, and Cambridge West Ventures. Yottaa‘s first product, Yottaa Insights, enables consumers to … Continue reading “Yottaa Gets $4M, Releases Website Performance Monitoring Service”
MassChallenge Company FitVirtual Uses Social Media to Crowdsource Customized Exercise Programs that Really Work
Thanks to sites like YouTube and online fitness publications, it seems like tutorials on virtually any form of exercise—from yoga to barefoot running—are at your fingertips. But personally, I’ve found that it’s difficult to manage the slew of content on the often-exotic exercise styles, and make sense of it with my everyday fitness routines. Boston-based … Continue reading “MassChallenge Company FitVirtual Uses Social Media to Crowdsource Customized Exercise Programs that Really Work”
ImmunoGen and Genentech “Empowered Antibody” Cancer Drug Fails to Garner Accelerated Approval from FDA
[Updated, 8/27/10 at 5:00pm] The FDA has refused to review an application for accelerated approval of the breast cancer drug T-DM1, developed by Genentech, the South San Francisco unit of Swiss drug giant Roche, with technology from ImmunoGen (NASDAQ: [[ticker:IMGN]]), a Waltham, MA-based maker of cancer-fighting therapies, the companies announced today. [Editors Note: This sentence … Continue reading “ImmunoGen and Genentech “Empowered Antibody” Cancer Drug Fails to Garner Accelerated Approval from FDA”
New CEO for Desktone
Chelmsford, MA-based Desktone, a maker of desktop virtualization software, announced yesterday that it had added Peter McKay as president, CEO, and a member of the company’s board. McKay has held executive roles at enterprise software companies such as IBM, Parametric Technology, and Watchfire, as well as positions at North Bridge Venture Partners and Insight Ventures. … Continue reading “New CEO for Desktone”
MedNetworks Partners with Healthways, NKT Gets $4M, Aileron Lands Deal With Roche, & More Boston-Area Life Sciences News
We saw news from drugmakers, device companies, and health IT firms this week. —Anchor Therapeutics, a Cambridge, MA-based biotech formerly named Ascent Therapeutics, brought in $10 million in a Series B round, with investments from TVM Capital, HealthCare Ventures, and the Novartis Option Fund. Anchor is working on drugs it calls “pepducins”—short pieces of proteins … Continue reading “MedNetworks Partners with Healthways, NKT Gets $4M, Aileron Lands Deal With Roche, & More Boston-Area Life Sciences News”
Wavemark Gets $3.9
Littleton, MA-based Wavemark, a maker of radio-frequency identification technologies for tracking hospital inventory, raised $3.9 million in an equity funding round, an SEC filing reveals. The filing indicates that the financing includes the conversion of some notes, and that the money raised will go to working capital for the company. Wavemark, whose RFID tags enable … Continue reading “Wavemark Gets $3.9”
SocialSci Releases Beta Version of Online Scientific Survey Platform, With Rewards for Participants
Spit was Leon Noel’s inspiration for the startup, SocialSci, that caused him and co-founder Harley Trung to leave Yale University just months before graduating. Well, more broadly, it was the hassle of getting participants for research studies while he was a biological anthropology student at Yale, Noel says. But spitting was part of the ordeal. … Continue reading “SocialSci Releases Beta Version of Online Scientific Survey Platform, With Rewards for Participants”
NKT Brings In $4M
Waltham, MA-based NKT Therapeutics, a developer of drugs targeting lesser-known immune cells potentially linked to a number of major illnesses, raised $4 million in an equity round from three unnamed investors, according to an SEC filing. Last year, the company raised an $8 million Series A round led by SV Life Sciences and MedImmune Ventures. … Continue reading “NKT Brings In $4M”
MedNetworks Partners With Healthways
Newton, MA-based MedNetworks, a provider of social network analytics software for the healthcare sector, has partnered with Tennessee-based Healthways, a maker of personalized health management programs. Healthways will use the MedNetworks technology, which was developed by Harvard professor and social scientist Nicholas Christakis, for population health management and tracking how individuals influence each other’s health … Continue reading “MedNetworks Partners With Healthways”
Taking a VC Approach to Charity, Greylock Veteran’s Alzheimer’s Research Foundation “Dares to Be Great”
When Henry McCance started at Greylock Partners in 1969, the venture capital industry had less than $100 million of capital flowing into it each year, he approximates. Now, it’s roughly a $20 billion-a-year sector of the financial world that has backed companies whose products are, in many cases, staples of modern living. Five years ago, … Continue reading “Taking a VC Approach to Charity, Greylock Veteran’s Alzheimer’s Research Foundation “Dares to Be Great””
Anchor Sinks $10M Series B, Aileron Lands Deal with Roche, C Change Launches Fund With Vanterra, & More Boston-Area Deals News
A flurry of tech and life sciences startup financings has kept us busy on the deals news front. —Andover, MA-based NewRiver, a maker of investor disclosure software, said it will be acquired for $77 million by Lake Success, NY-based Broadridge Financial Solutions (NYSE: [[ticker:BR]]). NewRiver’s investors include Ironside Ventures, FirstMark Capital, and Lazard Technology Partners. … Continue reading “Anchor Sinks $10M Series B, Aileron Lands Deal with Roche, C Change Launches Fund With Vanterra, & More Boston-Area Deals News”
C Change Partners on $100M Fund With Vanterra
Fund manager C Change Investments, with offices in Cambridge, MA and San Francisco, has partnered with New York-based private equity firm Vanterra Capital to launch a new fund, with a $100 million initial close earlier in August, the firms announced on Monday. The Vanterra C Change Transformative Energy & Materials Fund I (TEM) will be managed … Continue reading “C Change Partners on $100M Fund With Vanterra”
AmberWave Systems Shut Down After Raising $91M in Venture Backing—New Company Formed With Its Assets
Earlier this year, Salem, NH-based semiconductor company AmberWave Systems Corp quietly shut its doors, and a new company called AmberWave, Inc. has been formed with its assets, according to multiple sources close to the companies. The news comes to light after an SEC filing on Thursday revealed that AmberWave, Inc., incorporated this year, had raised … Continue reading “AmberWave Systems Shut Down After Raising $91M in Venture Backing—New Company Formed With Its Assets”
Startup Investing in Massachusetts Shrinks to $131M in July, Big Drop From June Surge
It looks like the lazy days of summer are in full swing. While equity financing deals for Massachusetts startups surged in June to hit a total of $307 million, investors took a bit of a break in July. Last month, Bay State tech and life sciences startups raised less than half their June sum, $131.4 … Continue reading “Startup Investing in Massachusetts Shrinks to $131M in July, Big Drop From June Surge”
RatePoint Brings in $7M Series C
Needham, MA-based RatePoint, a maker of Web-based platforms for managing customer feedback, announced it has scored a $7 million Series C round led by Prism VentureWorks, .406 Ventures, and Castile Ventures. The newest funding brings RatePoint‘s funding pot to $23.5 million, which includes a $10 million Series B financing it raised last year. The company … Continue reading “RatePoint Brings in $7M Series C”
Visual IQ Grabs $3M From Fog City
Visual IQ, a Needham, MA-based maker of enterprise software for marketing intelligence, has wrapped up $3 million in an equity-based funding round. The funding, which represents Visual IQ’s first institutional round, comes from San Francisco-based Fog City Capital, the company says. Its website lists CVS, Wachovia, Radio Shack, and Microsoft as its customers.
$2.8M for Tokutek
Tokutek, a developer of software for improving database performance, has brought in $2.8 million of an equity-based financing that could total $3.7 million, an SEC filing shows. Tokutek, which has offices in Lexington, MA and New York City, is led by John Partridge, the co-founder of Lexington-based event processing software maker StreamBase Systems.
Vanu Gets $2M
Cambridge, MA-based Vanu, a provider of wireless infrastructure software, raised $2.1 million of a planned $5.2 million offering of equity, options, and warrants, according to an SEC filing. The company, whose software radio technology uses software to mimic functions typically handled by hardware in traditional radios, raised $32 million in a Series B financing two … Continue reading “Vanu Gets $2M”
Biogen Strikes Deal with Knopp for ALS Drugs, Selecta Gets New CEO, Avantra Scores $7M, & More Boston-Area Life Sciences News
News of funding and partnerships for area biotechs, plus an in-depth interview with a state life sciences administrator, made it a busy news week for us. —Last week Ryan broke the news that former executives of Sirtris Pharmaceuticals, the biotech known for developing drugs based on the red wine chemical resveratrol, were selling a dietary … Continue reading “Biogen Strikes Deal with Knopp for ALS Drugs, Selecta Gets New CEO, Avantra Scores $7M, & More Boston-Area Life Sciences News”
TechStars Alum Baydin Launches Gmail Plug-In to Keep You From Forgetting to Send Important E-mails
It’s no secret that consumers are looking for technology to help better handle e-mail communications. We’ve written about strategies for keeping the volume of your inbox down, and applications for reminding you to follow up on an e-mail conversation. Alexander Moore’s Cambridge-based startup Baydin was originally focused on helping consumers better bring in relevant files … Continue reading “TechStars Alum Baydin Launches Gmail Plug-In to Keep You From Forgetting to Send Important E-mails”
IBM Buys Unica, A123 Spinout Raises $10M, Zynga Acquires Conduit, & More Boston-Area Deals News
Acquisition news from big IT, Web, and biotech names, plus funding announcements for newer tech and life sciences companies, kept us buzzing with deals news in New England this week. —Watertown, MA-based Dicerna Pharmaceuticals, a startup developing gene-silencing drugs, raised $25 million in Series B funding. New investor Domain Associates led the round, which also … Continue reading “IBM Buys Unica, A123 Spinout Raises $10M, Zynga Acquires Conduit, & More Boston-Area Deals News”