From the event organizer: The eleventh annual BIO-Europe Spring® international partnering conference will be held in Barcelona, Spain March 20–22, 2017 at the CCIB Convention Centre Barcelona. Produced by EBD Group, the event is co-hosted by Biocat, BIOCAT, the organization that coordinates and promotes the health and life sciences sector in Catalonia, and the ACCIO … Continue reading “BIO-Europe Spring”
Category: San Francisco
Allergan to Acquire Fat-Busting Medical Tech Firm Zeltiq for $2.4B
Botox-maker Allergan is filling out its medical aesthetics portfolio with a $2.4 billion agreement to acquire Zeltiq Aesthetics, a company that has commercialized a medical device that gets rid of unwanted fat. Under the cash deal, Dublin, Ireland-based Allergan (NYSE: [[ticker:AGN]]) will pay $56.50 per share to buy Zeltiq (NASDAQ: [[ticker:ZLTQ]]), which is based in … Continue reading “Allergan to Acquire Fat-Busting Medical Tech Firm Zeltiq for $2.4B”
TMCx Brings On Largest Class, HealthIT Startups from US & Abroad
Houston—The Texas Medical Center’s TMCx accelerator announced today its largest class of health IT startups, the fourth cohort for the program. The 24-member class includes three Australian companies that are taking part through the TMC’s new BioBridge health technology startup exchange, a program with the Health Informatics Society of Australia that allows Australian entrepreneurs to … Continue reading “TMCx Brings On Largest Class, HealthIT Startups from US & Abroad”
Amid Fake News, Authenticated Reality Launches “The New Internet”
Austin—At a time of fake news and “alternative facts,” it makes sense that a tech entrepreneur would try to find a way to innovate to ensure our encounters on the Internet are real. Chris Ciabarra, co-founder and CTO of Authenticated Reality, says the startup’s new browser—one that would require users to prove they are who … Continue reading “Amid Fake News, Authenticated Reality Launches “The New Internet””
Dear Tom Price: Bundled Payments Help Patients and Reduce Costs
With all the talk of repealing Barack Obama’s Affordable Care Act (ACA), people have been taking a closer look at what the law has done for our healthcare system. It turns out the ACA is about a lot more than the problematic healthcare marketplaces. There’s the extension of parental insurance coverage to age 26 and … Continue reading “Dear Tom Price: Bundled Payments Help Patients and Reduce Costs”
After Leadership Change, Zenefits Announces Sweeping Layoffs
What has already been a week of significant change at Zenefits, the embattled San Francisco-based startup that provides health insurance and other human resources services to businesses, continued Thursday with news the company plans to lay off nearly half of its workforce, according to a report originally published by Buzzfeed News. Once heralded as one … Continue reading “After Leadership Change, Zenefits Announces Sweeping Layoffs”
Senate Confirms Price for HHS, But Stock Deals Still Raise Questions
The Senate confirmed Tom Price as Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services early Friday morning by a 52-47 vote that, as expected, fell largely on party lines. Price is an orthopedic surgeon by training who has been a member of Georgia’s congressional delegation since 2004. He will now oversee a department that … Continue reading “Senate Confirms Price for HHS, But Stock Deals Still Raise Questions”
Bio Roundup: Travel Ban Block, Gilead Shock, Dean Kamen Talk & More
The biotech community pushed back against President Donald Trump’s order to block travelers and refugees this week, and not much later, a federal court did, too. Patient advocates have scored big wins with recent approvals of rare disease treatments, but they’re not as happy with insurers’ coverage decisions or with Trump’s promises of massive FDA … Continue reading “Bio Roundup: Travel Ban Block, Gilead Shock, Dean Kamen Talk & More”
Often Advocates Of Faster FDA, Patient Groups Wary Of Trump Deregulation
In the biomedical world, perhaps the biggest question looming over President Donald Trump’s upcoming pick for Food and Drug Administration commissioner is how drastically that person will help roll back FDA regulations. Trump said at last week’s meeting in Washington D.C., with pharmaceutical executives that he wanted to slash FDA rules by 75 to 80 … Continue reading “Often Advocates Of Faster FDA, Patient Groups Wary Of Trump Deregulation”
San Francisco Appeals Court Upholds Stay on Trump’s Travel Ban—For Now
The Trump administration’s travel ban will remain on a temporary hold under an order issued today by a federal appeals court in San Francisco, which held that the government had failed to make its case for lifting a stay won through a court challenge by the state of Washington. That means that for the time … Continue reading “San Francisco Appeals Court Upholds Stay on Trump’s Travel Ban—For Now”
Xconomy Is Growing: We Need Great Salespeople in SF, Texas, and NY
Since Xconomy’s founding nearly a decade ago, we have grown from a single bureau in Boston to having editors covering 11 innovation clusters around the United States. And over this time, we have cultivated a reputation for outstanding news coverage and events across high-tech business sectors—from information technology to life sciences and beyond. In the … Continue reading “Xconomy Is Growing: We Need Great Salespeople in SF, Texas, and NY”
BlackThorn Therapeutics Appoints Gregory Vontz CEO
Neurobehavioral drug developer BlackThorn Therapeutics has named Gregory Vontz its CEO. Vontz comes to the South San Francisco-based company from Topica Pharmaceuticals, where he was president and CEO. His experience also includes positions at Connetics, Genentech, and Merck. Last October, BlackThorn raised $40 million in a Series A round that the company planned to apply … Continue reading “BlackThorn Therapeutics Appoints Gregory Vontz CEO”
Higher Ed’s Warning: Travel Ban Undermines U.S. Tech Training & Hiring
The more than 125 U.S. tech companies that joined the ongoing court battle against the Trump administration’s travel ban have detailed the many business hindrances it could pose, such as stranding foreign-born employees outside the country, and discouraging talented workers abroad from taking jobs here. But all companies, including tech leaders such as Apple, Google, … Continue reading “Higher Ed’s Warning: Travel Ban Undermines U.S. Tech Training & Hiring”
AI Without the Costly GPU Chips? Seattle Startup Xnor.ai Sees a Way
Picture a world in which cameras, sensors, watches, and other devices, equipped with commodity computer chips, recognize and understand what’s happening around them. The basic devices are there now—billions of them—but they can’t handle the complex, resource-hungry algorithms that identify objects in pictures or translate text from one language to another, the kinds of inferences … Continue reading “AI Without the Costly GPU Chips? Seattle Startup Xnor.ai Sees a Way”
Trump’s Immigration Policies Threaten to Thwart Economic Growth
For the entire staff at Global Detroit, the Executive Orders from President Trump on immigration, refugees, the so-called Muslim ban, and the wall have been devastating and deeply distressing. They challenge our sense of American values and history. Beyond our personal and moral reactions, however, the Executive Orders also may have some impact on the … Continue reading “Trump’s Immigration Policies Threaten to Thwart Economic Growth”
Biotech Leaders Sign Letter Condemning Trump’s Travel Ban
The blowback from U.S. business leaders to President Trump’s travel ban continues—today from a throng of biotech executives. This morning, 165 U.S. biotech leaders have signed a letter voicing “deep concern and opposition” to the order, which bars entry to the U.S. to refugees and immigrants from seven Muslim-majority countries. The Jan. 27 order placed … Continue reading “Biotech Leaders Sign Letter Condemning Trump’s Travel Ban”
Kentucky Biotech CEO’s Message For McConnell: I’ll Be Muslim, Too
President Trump’s order to bar refugees and immigrants from seven Muslim-majority countries is on temporary hold, and a court hearing later today could eventually force a ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court. One of the latest biotech executives to speak out against the ban is in the backyard of Mitch McConnell (R-KY), the top Republican … Continue reading “Kentucky Biotech CEO’s Message For McConnell: I’ll Be Muslim, Too”
MyoKardia Hires Chief Operating Officer, and VP of Medical Affairs
June Lee is joining MyoKardia (NASDAQ: [[ticker:MYOK]]) to become the South San Francisco-based heart drug developer’s chief operating officer. Lee comes to MyoKardia from the faculty of the University of California, San Francisco. Before joining UCSF, Lee worked in clinical development at Genentech. MyoKardia also named Radhika Tripuraneni the company’s vice president of medical affairs. … Continue reading “MyoKardia Hires Chief Operating Officer, and VP of Medical Affairs”
Tesora Bought by Stratoscale in Data Center Tech Consolidation
The deal-making and investment in New England’s enterprise IT sector continues. Today, Stratoscale announced its acquisition of Cambridge, MA-based Tesora, a database-as-a-service provider. Deal terms weren’t disclosed, but the purchase price probably wasn’t huge. Herzliya, Israel-based Stratoscale has raised about $70 million from investors including Battery Ventures, Bessemer Venture Partners, Cisco Investments, Intel Capital, and … Continue reading “Tesora Bought by Stratoscale in Data Center Tech Consolidation”
Bio Roundup: Travel Ban, Pharma in DC, Biogen Splits, PCSK9 Wins
Folks had just clocked out last Friday when the Trump Administration announced a travel ban that threw airports around the country into chaos. That announcement set the tone for this week in life sciences. Many in biopharma blasted Trump’s order and tried to grapple with its implications. At the same time, a handful of the … Continue reading “Bio Roundup: Travel Ban, Pharma in DC, Biogen Splits, PCSK9 Wins”
Robots Might Eat Your Job, But Being Human Could Get You A New One
Robots and artificial intelligence software could eventually render human workers obsolete in virtually every industry, but that shift will likely take at least 30 to 50 years to play out. In the meantime, it’s important to focus on properly preparing people for the jobs that will be available over the next decade or so, and … Continue reading “Robots Might Eat Your Job, But Being Human Could Get You A New One”
No Details Yet, But Amgen Touts Success in Big Heart Drug Study
Amgen revealed on Thursday that its cholesterol lowering drug, evolocumab (Repatha)—part of a new class of heart treatments called PCSK9 inhibitors—has reduced the risk of heart attacks and strokes in a massive, 27,500 patient trial. Thousand Oaks, CA-based Amgen (NASDAQ: [[ticker:AMGN]]) didn’t disclose the actual magnitude of the benefit evolocumab produced in the study, an … Continue reading “No Details Yet, But Amgen Touts Success in Big Heart Drug Study”
Synthetic Genomics Exec Joins Agenovir as Chief Scientific Officer
Bolyn Hubby is joining antiviral drug developer Agenovir to become the company’s chief scientific officer. Hubby comes to South San Francisco-based Agenovir from Synthetic Genomics, where she was vice president of vaccines and antimicrobials research and development. Her experience also includes posts at Liquidia Technologies and AlphaVax. Last year, Agenovir raised $10.6 million to apply … Continue reading “Synthetic Genomics Exec Joins Agenovir as Chief Scientific Officer”
Royalty Pharma Pays $90M to Cytokinetics for Heart Drug Royalties
Royalty Pharma, a New York-based company that buys up rights to royalty streams of potentially revenue-producing drugs, is paying $90 million for a for a chance to reap 4.5 percent royalty on possible sales of an experimental heart drug being developed by Cytokinetics and its partner, Amgen. South San Francisco-based Cytokinetics (Nasdaq:[[ticker:CYTK]]) plans to use … Continue reading “Royalty Pharma Pays $90M to Cytokinetics for Heart Drug Royalties”
Seed-Stage Deals Show Growing Diversity of Agtech Investments
Fundraising is tough for startups but it’s particularly difficult in agriculture, a sector that has fewer firms focused on agtech investments. The dynamics are starting to change, though. A growing number of early-stage agtech startups are raising money and they’re pulling capital from a broader pool of sources, according to a new report from AgFunder, … Continue reading “Seed-Stage Deals Show Growing Diversity of Agtech Investments”
Investors Sour on Data Debut For Dimension’s Hemophilia Gene Therapy
Despite the early and in some cases stunning results produced by gene therapy treatments in handfuls of hemophilia patients, significant questions remain about their durability, safety, and how broadly they’ll be used if they are ultimately shown to work. The first human data produced by Dimension Therapeutics, one of several companies developing hemophilia gene therapies, … Continue reading “Investors Sour on Data Debut For Dimension’s Hemophilia Gene Therapy”
Still No Official Word From Biopharma Groups About Trump Travel Ban
Four days after President Donald Trump issued an order to temporarily ban U.S. entry for people from seven Muslim-majority countries—and for all refugees—the drug industry’s two main lobbying groups have remained silent, even while individual executives in the industry have voiced opposition. The main life science trade group in California has also stayed on the … Continue reading “Still No Official Word From Biopharma Groups About Trump Travel Ban”
Ex-Xerox CTO Vandebroek Named Chief Operating Officer of IBM Research
When I last spoke to Sophie Vandebroek in December, it was for a kind of exit interview as she prepared to leave her longtime job as Xerox’s CTO and head of its worldwide research organization. We went over highlights of her Xerox tenure, her outlook on key technology trends for 2017 and beyond—the Internet of … Continue reading “Ex-Xerox CTO Vandebroek Named Chief Operating Officer of IBM Research”
FibroGen Pushes Forward With Anemia Pill in China, But Big Test Awaits
The race to treat kidney disease patients’ anemia with a pill, rather than an injectable biologic, continues. FibroGen this morning announced positive interim results from two Phase 3 trials that could support the first approval application for its anemia pill, roxadustat, in China. But longer studies that could prove how safe the drug is are … Continue reading “FibroGen Pushes Forward With Anemia Pill in China, But Big Test Awaits”
Cybersecurity in 2017: Goal, Illusion, or Oxymoron?
Here at the (relative) beginning of 2017, we can safely say that the previous year was among the most significant in history from a cybersecurity standpoint. Nation-state actions, in the form of the assumed Russian interference in the U.S. elections (especially the presidential race) and in the leaks of e-mails from the Clinton campaign, dominated … Continue reading “Cybersecurity in 2017: Goal, Illusion, or Oxymoron?”
Non-Profit Aims For Market Transparency In K-12 Edtech Purchases
Teachers were not only the earliest adopters of educational technology. They were also savvy consumers of it, sharing tips on social media about the best free apps they’d found. Now edtech is a big business, and school districts are spending billions on purchases of tablets, laptops, and educational software. But the districts haven’t been so … Continue reading “Non-Profit Aims For Market Transparency In K-12 Edtech Purchases”
Bio Roundup: Trump News, Anthem’s Stand, Diversity by 2056 & More
It was a wild week in biotech and on Capitol Hill. A new study showed it may take another 40 years to achieve gender parity in public biotech boardrooms. Tensions continued to mount between drugmakers and payers over the rising costs of rare disease drugs. A flurry of deals took place, headlined by Johnson & … Continue reading “Bio Roundup: Trump News, Anthem’s Stand, Diversity by 2056 & More”
Just Four Months After Series A, Delinia Sells to Celgene For $300M
It didn’t take long for startup Delinia to entice a big drug developer: Just over four months after emerging from stealth and raising a Series A round, the company, developing drugs for a range of autoimmune diseases, has been acquired by Celgene. Celgene (NASDAQ: [[ticker:CELG]]) will pay $300 million up front to buy Cambridge, MA-based … Continue reading “Just Four Months After Series A, Delinia Sells to Celgene For $300M”
Degreed, CodeFights Ready Alternative Credentials To Rival Diplomas
Two San Francisco educational technology startups that don’t offer classes, MOOCs, or other online coursework are nevertheless preparing to issue credentials that, like a college degree, may help learners land a job. Degreed and CodeFights are among the companies adding new twists to the ecosystem of alternative credentials, which are proliferating as the edtech sector … Continue reading “Degreed, CodeFights Ready Alternative Credentials To Rival Diplomas”
Report: Biotech VCs Perpetuate Boardroom Gender Gap
If power in the business world is centered in the boardroom, women in biotech have a long way to go to get their fair share—and the venture community deserves much of the blame. That’s according to British recruitment firm Liftstream and its new study of biotech companies that went public in the recent boom years. … Continue reading “Report: Biotech VCs Perpetuate Boardroom Gender Gap”
Ex-FDA Commish Califf Gives Props to Patient Groups—With Caveats
The nation’s former Food and Drug Administration commissioner Robert Califf, appearing for the first time since he resigned last week, told a Silicon Valley crowd this morning that the FDA will have to be flexible in coming years, allowing greater patient input into drug evaluation and leaning on outside watchdogs for help weeding out “imposters.” … Continue reading “Ex-FDA Commish Califf Gives Props to Patient Groups—With Caveats”
Business Leaders Talk Trump’s Impact on Visas, Drug Pricing, Insurance
Perhaps you’ve heard about the inauguration of one Donald J. Trump. Xconomy has been asking prominent members of the national innovation community for their thoughts on the incoming administration and its potential impact on their companies and industries. Here are responses from four business leaders in different cities across Xconomy’s network. Alex Lash, our national … Continue reading “Business Leaders Talk Trump’s Impact on Visas, Drug Pricing, Insurance”
Bio Roundup: Tom Price, Patient Conflicts, Orphan Games & More
The new president of the United States, Donald Trump, is being sworn in today amid a storm of questions about the plans that he, and those who might work for him, have in store for American healthcare and medicine. Trump’s nominee to run the $1 trillion Health and Human Services Department, Tom Price, answered—or didn’t … Continue reading “Bio Roundup: Tom Price, Patient Conflicts, Orphan Games & More”
Kellogg’s VC Fund Bets on Superfood Trend with Kuli Kuli Investment
My sister has worked as a food scientist, inventing new crackers and cookies, for a number of different corporations over her 15-year career. Because of that, I’ve been involved in many exceptionally nerdy discussions about global food trends and how what we eat gets made, and I’ve picked up a few fun tidbits along the way. … Continue reading “Kellogg’s VC Fund Bets on Superfood Trend with Kuli Kuli Investment”
Want to Ruin Your Relationships? Ask Family and Friends to Fund Your Startup
When you need cash to fuel your startup, it’s tempting to “think local.” The people with the strongest ties to you—relatives, friends, college roommates, running buddies, and co-workers—are the ones who believe in you. You’d probably turn first to them for financial support. Capital fronted by these folks might be the quickest, easiest cash you’ll … Continue reading “Want to Ruin Your Relationships? Ask Family and Friends to Fund Your Startup”
Dems Grill HHS Nominee Price About Trump Comments, Stock Holdings
[Note: This report was co-authored by deputy biotech editor Ben Fidler.] Tom Price, the man who could oversee an overhaul of the U.S. healthcare system, answered often pointed questions this morning from U.S. senators about his views, his plans for Obamacare, and personal financial transactions. Price, an orthopedic surgeon by training, is President-elect Donald Trump’s … Continue reading “Dems Grill HHS Nominee Price About Trump Comments, Stock Holdings”
HPE Scoops Up MA “Unicorn” SimpliVity for $650M, Ending IPO Talk
SimpliVity, a Massachusetts “unicorn” tech company with aspirations to go public, has opted instead to sell itself to Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) for $650 million in cash. The purchase price is about 2.4 times the amount of venture capital—$276 million—that eight-year-old SimpliVity had raised from Waypoint Capital, Accel, CRV, DFJ Growth, Kleiner Perkins Caufield & … Continue reading “HPE Scoops Up MA “Unicorn” SimpliVity for $650M, Ending IPO Talk”
With Another Migraine Drug Bet, Lilly Snaps Up CoLucid For $960M
Eli Lilly may have dealt a migraine drug called lasmiditan to CoLucid Pharmaceuticals 12 years ago, but the Indianapolis giant has clearly kept an eye on it, and now wants more than just some royalties if the treatment succeeds in clinical testing this year. Lilly (NYSE: [[ticker:LLY]]) will acquire Cambridge, MA-based CoLucid (NASDAQ: [[ticker:CLCD]]) in an … Continue reading “With Another Migraine Drug Bet, Lilly Snaps Up CoLucid For $960M”
Video Trends Point to Changing Ways Companies Reach Consumers
The top emerging trends that will affect our business in 2017 are a mixture of how consumers digest information online, video trends, and the continued growth of live video. The way people digest information online has shifted over time from being text based to photo based to now being very video based. Facebook forecasts that … Continue reading “Video Trends Point to Changing Ways Companies Reach Consumers”
Biotech Roundup: JPM Deals, Gender Diversity, PCSK9 Battle & More
[Corrected, 1/14/16, see below] This past week, the biopharma industry made its annual January pilgrimage to San Francisco for the J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference. 2016 was a whirlwind year in biotech, and the biopharma gods rewarded attendees with a multi-day monsoon to slog through to get from one meeting to the next. Earlier today, Alex … Continue reading “Biotech Roundup: JPM Deals, Gender Diversity, PCSK9 Battle & More”
Notes From The JPM ’17 Vortex: Trump, Rainstorms & The Price You Pay
[Editor’s note: Ben Fidler contributed to this report] The week of frenetic data sharing, deal talking, and party hopping of the J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference—and the events that have mushroomed around it—took a punch to the gut just as most attendees were wrapping up and checking their outbound flight status. The incoming party-pooper-in-chief, Donald Trump, … Continue reading “Notes From The JPM ’17 Vortex: Trump, Rainstorms & The Price You Pay”
Startup Resolution 2017: Embrace Believers, Bounce Skeptics & Keep Moving
The holiday period is a great time for reflection and then behavior modification – often referred to as resolutions. While a bit artificial to the logical engineer, this opportunity can be helpful. This year, my favorite insight came from a former student and employee, Elliot Cohen, co-founder of PillPack. While thinking about the major aspirational … Continue reading “Startup Resolution 2017: Embrace Believers, Bounce Skeptics & Keep Moving”
Warrior Suit R&D Paves Road to Robotics for the Aging and Disabled
When Rich Mahoney was director of the robotics program at SRI International, one of his main projects was an advanced robotic warrior suit that SRI was working on with the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), a U.S. military research institute responsible for cutting-edge R&D in fields related to national security. The idea was to … Continue reading “Warrior Suit R&D Paves Road to Robotics for the Aging and Disabled”
Cyber Attackers Targeted Our Trust, Not Just an Election
The cyber attacks on political organizations and election infrastructure added a level of intrigue to this year’s U.S. presidential election – culminating in the U.S. government officially blaming the Russian government for trying to influence the election. If the Cold War has taught us anything, it’s that global espionage is a game of chess, not … Continue reading “Cyber Attackers Targeted Our Trust, Not Just an Election”
Social Fund-raising Website GoFundMe Buys Detroit Rival CrowdRise
GoFundMe, the Redwood City, CA-based fund-raising platform for charities and nonprofits, has acquired CrowdRise, a Detroit, MI-based rival founded by entrepreneurs Robert Wolfe and Jeffrey Wolfe, and Hollywood philanthropists Edward Norton and Shauna Robertson. Financial terms were not disclosed in a statement issued Tuesday by GoFundMe. Brad Damphousse and Andy Ballester founded GoFundMe in San … Continue reading “Social Fund-raising Website GoFundMe Buys Detroit Rival CrowdRise”