Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=a2615def-faf0-4fa7-ac45-1235fe4cf864&Preview=1 Date 12/16/2011 Company Name Desktone Mailing Address 100 Apollo Drive Chelmsford, MA 01824 Company Description The company was founded in 2006 to address market demands for easy-to-implement, low-maintenance enterprise desktops. Website http://www.desktone.com Transaction Type Debt Transaction Amount $1,630,794 Transaction Round Undisclosed Proceeds Purposes Proceeds purposes were not disclosed. SEC regulatory filing. … Continue reading “Desktone Obtains $1,630,794 New Financing Round”
Category: Boston
The Genetics Institute Impact: Some Great Memories and Photos
Genetics Institute, one person told me last night, “was like college, only more fun.” When’s the last time you heard anybody describe a corporate workplace that way? There was something special about the culture and people who made up Genetics Institute, one of Boston’s original biotech highfliers from the ’80s and ’90s. We felt the … Continue reading “The Genetics Institute Impact: Some Great Memories and Photos”
Xconomist of the Week: Stefan Savage on Computer Security
The evolution of computer security is not merely some dark mirror, passively reflecting advances in technology. While technology provides new opportunities for threats, these become true dangers only when there is a motivation to exploit them and a means to do so. Stefan Savage, writing in The New York Times, Dec. 5, 2011. By his … Continue reading “Xconomist of the Week: Stefan Savage on Computer Security”
Ariad Loads Up With $200M Stock Deal, After Big Medical Meeting
Cambridge, MA-based Ariad Pharmaceuticals was one of the stars of the show at a recent blood cancer meeting, and now it’s striking while the iron is hot to raise more than $200 million in new cash. Ariad (NASDAQ: [[ticker:ARIA]]) said today it has agreed to sell 21.5 million new shares of common stock at $10.42 … Continue reading “Ariad Loads Up With $200M Stock Deal, After Big Medical Meeting”
Atlas Venture, Shire to Create Startups to Tackle Rare Diseases
Atlas Venture has been spending a lot of time lately figuring out how to create new drugs, and new companies, in untraditional ways—and it is showing the results of its strategizing again today through a new partnership with Shire Human Genetic Therapies. Cambridge,MA-based Atlas said it has formed a multi-year collaboration with Shire to look … Continue reading “Atlas Venture, Shire to Create Startups to Tackle Rare Diseases”
Cerulean Pharma Adds $15M to Further Nano-Drug Platform
Cambridge, MA-based Cerulean Pharma announced today that it has raised $15 million in a Series D financing round, which included one new investor: CVF, an affiliate of Henry Crown and Company. Also participating in this round were existing investors Polaris Venture Partners, Venrock, Lilly Ventures, Lux Capital, and Bessemer Venture Partners. Cerulean’s lead drug candidate, … Continue reading “Cerulean Pharma Adds $15M to Further Nano-Drug Platform”
IBM Eats Up Emptoris, 20th Acquisition in MA Since 2003
News flash: Another Massachusetts software company is joining Big Blue. Armonk, NY-based IBM (NYSE: [[ticker:IBM]]) said today it is acquiring Emptoris, a Burlington, MA-based maker of supply and contract management software. Terms of the deal weren’t given, but it is expected to close in the first quarter of next year. This will be the 20th … Continue reading “IBM Eats Up Emptoris, 20th Acquisition in MA Since 2003”
Vertex Names Jeff Leiden as New CEO, Staring Down Tough Competition
[Update: 10:40 am ET] Vertex Pharmaceuticals is getting a new CEO, as it faces tough new competition with its flagship hepatitis C drug and prepares to roll out a second new medicine for cystic fibrosis. Cambridge, MA-based Vertex (NASDAQ: [[ticker:VRTX]]) said today that Jeff Leiden, a member of the company’s board and a managing director … Continue reading “Vertex Names Jeff Leiden as New CEO, Staring Down Tough Competition”
Swipely Expands Card-Linked Customer Loyalty Program to Boston
Providence, RI-based Swipely is kicking off a discount program in Boston that it says will give shoppers discounts and earn local merchants a more loyal, consistent customer base. Swipely first got started as a platform that enabled consumers to broadcast and review purchases they made on their debit and credit cards, but switched its focus … Continue reading “Swipely Expands Card-Linked Customer Loyalty Program to Boston”
Third Rock Looks to Fight Fat in a New Way, With Ember Therapeutics
Obesity is one of the biggest public health problems of the 21st century, and now a Boston biotech startup is looking to fight it in an unorthodox way. The bet at Ember Therapeutics is that it can coax the body to burn off some of that unwanted fat. The company is emerging from stealth mode … Continue reading “Third Rock Looks to Fight Fat in a New Way, With Ember Therapeutics”
IBM Acquires Emptoris for Undisclosed Sum
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=a65f5717-ab0c-4ebb-b848-0d2827884d87&Preview=1 Date 12/15/2011 Company Name Emptoris Mailing Address 200 Wheeler Rd. Burlington, MA 01803 Company Description Emptoris integrates spend analysis, sourcing, contract management, compliance, supplier performance management, and program management solutions in an integrated suite that helps customers optimize their business to quickly and successfully. Website http://www.emptoris.com Transaction Type M&A Transaction Amount … Continue reading “IBM Acquires Emptoris for Undisclosed Sum”
Ember Therapeutics Garners $34,000,000 Series A Funding
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=dcb8a5d0-04c8-4d90-b854-ab75678a8112&Preview=1 Date 12/15/2011 Company Name Ember Therapeutics Mailing Address 29 Newbury Street Boston, MA 02116 Company Description Ember Therapeutics is a product-focused company translating its world-class biology in the emerging area of brown fat and recent breakthroughs in understanding the mechanisms of selective insulin sensitivity into a proprietary pipeline of peripherally-acting treatments … Continue reading “Ember Therapeutics Garners $34,000,000 Series A Funding”
Hipmunk Homecoming: CEO Adam Goldstein Talks Travel Site Usability
Into the lair of beasts strode Adam Goldstein. Armed only with his wits and a mean set of slides, he descended on the Boston area on a warm, early winter day. He was no stranger to the premises. Goldstein had been an MIT undergrad before moving to San Francisco to participate in the Y Combinator … Continue reading “Hipmunk Homecoming: CEO Adam Goldstein Talks Travel Site Usability”
See You Later at “The Genetics Institute Impact”
We are getting ready this afternoon to head over to the Koch Institute for Xconomy’s biggest life sciences event of the year, “The Genetics Institute Impact.” This event, a reunion of one of Boston’s pioneering biotech companies, is sold out, with more than 275 people registered. We expect standing room only in the back, and … Continue reading “See You Later at “The Genetics Institute Impact””
MIT Enterprise Forum Innovation Series Event: The Future of the Personal Genome
This event will explore how cheaper genome sequencing is driving a surge in personalized medicine opportunities and startups. The all-star panel will include George Church of The Personal Genome Project, as well as entrepreneurs from GNS Healthcare, PatientsLikeMe, and Foundation Medicine. Event details and registration are here.
Startup Clinic with Vuuch and SchoolCNXT
This event offers startups a dress rehearsal opportunity for pitching to investors. SchoolCNXT, a provider of online and mobile parent directories, and Vuuch, a problem-solving software maker, will test their skills. More details are here.
Winter 2012 Start Smart
This MIT Enterprise Forum course aims to teach early-stage tech entrepreneurs the fundamentals of kicking off a company. Over the span of nine Mondays, attendees will learn about getting started, building a team, raising capital, positioning a product, pitching to investors, and more. Sign up here.
MIT Enterprise Forum Innovation Series Event: Intelligent Green Buildings
Jim Hunt, Boston’s chief of environmental and energy services, will moderate this panel on building energy efficiency. They’ll chat on the designs, financing models, tools, and software applications that are supporting intelligent green buildings. Register here.
TaskRabbit Runs Down $17.8M More for Expansion
TaskRabbit, a San Francisco service-networking startup with roots in Boston, said it has closed $17.8 million in Series B financing led by Lightspeed Venture Partners. Previous investors Baseline Ventures, First Round Capital, Floodgate Fund, Collaborative Fund, and Shasta Ventures, as well as other new investors, participated in the round. TaskRabbit announced a $5 million Series … Continue reading “TaskRabbit Runs Down $17.8M More for Expansion”
Fate Therapeutics Names Biotech Vet Bill Rastetter as Chairman, Interim CEO
Fate Therapeutics has been quiet during a down time for the stem cell business, but now it’s making news by luring a big name into its inner management circle. Bill Rastetter, the CEO of Idec Pharmaceuticals during its long journey to develop the blockbuster lymphoma drug rituximab (Rituxan), has agreed to become the chairman and … Continue reading “Fate Therapeutics Names Biotech Vet Bill Rastetter as Chairman, Interim CEO”
AesRx Navigates “Valley of Death” to Get Sickle Cell Drug Into Trials
Last week, Newton, MA-based AesRx announced that it has begun human trials of its lead drug, Aes-103, to treat sickle cell disease. To biotech observers, this may not have seemed like a big deal—sickle cell is a rare disease that affects only about 75,000 people in the U.S.—but for AesRx CEO Stephen Seiler, just getting … Continue reading “AesRx Navigates “Valley of Death” to Get Sickle Cell Drug Into Trials”
Kinvey, Zink, ImmusanT, and More of this Week’s Boston Dealmakers
IT and life sciences companies around New England shared the deals news pool this week. —Zink pinned down $35 million in a Series B round led by Genii Capital. The Bedford, MA-based company, whose name stands for “zero ink,” is developing technology for inkless printers that can connect to devices like digital cameras. Zink also … Continue reading “Kinvey, Zink, ImmusanT, and More of this Week’s Boston Dealmakers”
TaskRabbit Receives $17,800,000 Series B Round
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=7c55fd11-4dc5-4224-89ab-0c3c1e1f6cdd&Preview=1 Date 12/14/2011 Company Name TaskRabbit Mailing Address 102 Bartlett St. Charlestown, MA 02129 Company Description The company operates a website that enables users to find people to do tasks for them. Website http://www.TaskRabbit.com Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount $17,800,000 Transaction Round Series B Proceeds Purposes With the support of our … Continue reading “TaskRabbit Receives $17,800,000 Series B Round”
CityVoter Receives $1,584,582 New Round
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=09fc99b7-f5aa-457b-96b2-8d879a51941d&Preview=1 Date 12/14/2011 Company Name CityVoter Mailing Address 84 Hamilton Street Cambridge, MA 02139 Company Description CityVoter is a technology and market research company that builds image-based city guides for leading media companies. Website http://www.cityvoter.com Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount $1,584,582 Transaction Round Undisclosed Proceeds Purposes Proceeds purposes were not disclosed. … Continue reading “CityVoter Receives $1,584,582 New Round”
What’s Next – E-Commerce Summit: Building Customer Love in the Digital Age
This conference will take a look at how online stores can spruce up their business with analytics, user feedback, social ratings, personalization, mobile commerce, and more. Keynote speakers and panelists come from area companies such as Staples, Wayfair, Gemvara, and Newbury Comics. Register here.
The Startup Team
Individuals play the game, but teams beat the odds. —SEAL team saying Over the last 40 years technology investors have learned that the success of a startup is not just about the technology, “it’s about the team.” We spent a year screwing it up in our Lean LaunchPad classes until we figured out it was … Continue reading “The Startup Team”
MITX Fireside Chat with Joi Ito, the Director of the MIT Media Lab
MITX co-founder Larry Weber will moderate this conversation with Joi Ito. They’ll chat about what the MIT Media Lab is working on as far as mobile, social, and design innovations go. Check out the full event details here.
ImmusanT, Developing Celiac Disease Treatments, Closes $20M Series A
Cambridge, MA-based ImmusanT, a new biotech working on therapies targeting celiac disease, announced today that it has wrapped up $20 million in Series A financing from New York-based Vatera Healthcare Partners. The money will go to development of ImmusanT’s vaccine and diagnostic and monitoring tool for patients with celiac disease, a condition that is normally … Continue reading “ImmusanT, Developing Celiac Disease Treatments, Closes $20M Series A”
Fiksu Releases Service to Make Paid Mobile Apps Free for Consumers
Boston-based Fiksu, a startup focused on mobile app marketing, is introducing a new service today that it says will get consumers paid mobile apps for free, while still bringing mobile app developers revenue and traffic. The service, FreeMyApps, allows consumers to rack up credits by trying free, mostly advertising-supported apps from select sponsors, and then … Continue reading “Fiksu Releases Service to Make Paid Mobile Apps Free for Consumers”
Alnylam Racing to Prove RNAi Works, For a Disease You’ve Never Heard Of
Alnylam Pharmaceuticals has been in the doghouse for a while now, as its technology of choice has fallen out of favor in the industry. But while many people have written it off, the Cambridge, MA-based company has started to show hints that it might—just might—be onto something that works against a rare and deadly disease. … Continue reading “Alnylam Racing to Prove RNAi Works, For a Disease You’ve Never Heard Of”
Jason Baptiste of OnSwipe Talks Tablets, TV, & Taking On Google
Beware of CEOs who dress like their company logo. Beware of Jason Baptiste. Just kidding. Baptiste is one of the most intensely likable startup founders around (emphasis on intense). His company, New York-based OnSwipe, is trying to take the tablet publishing world by storm. And not just with its aggressively stylish magenta-and-black color scheme. OnSwipe … Continue reading “Jason Baptiste of OnSwipe Talks Tablets, TV, & Taking On Google”
Catabasis Pharmaceuticals Garners $8,000,000 Series A Round
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=a6ddbabb-9301-4008-8ee8-b5045f9d550d&Preview=1 Date 12/13/2011 Company Name Catabasis Pharmaceuticals Mailing Address One Kendall Square Bldg. 1400E Cambridge, MA 02139 Company Description At Catabasis we are dedicated to the discovery and development of innovative, effective and safe medicines to treat inflammatory and metabolic diseases. We have assembled a team of highly motivated and experienced scientists … Continue reading “Catabasis Pharmaceuticals Garners $8,000,000 Series A Round”
ImmusanT Secures $20,000,000 Series A Round
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=125496fc-974b-40d2-ad62-39328ba3a460&Preview=1 Date 12/13/2011 Company Name ImmusanT Mailing Address One Broadway 14th Floor Cambridge, MA 02142 Company Description ImmusanT is an early stage biotechnology company focused on developing a treatment, and a set of diagnostic and monitoring tools to manage patients with celiac disease. Website http://www.immusant.com Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount $20,000,000 … Continue reading “ImmusanT Secures $20,000,000 Series A Round”
RichRelevance Acquires Searchandise Commerce for Undisclosed Sum
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=49e7caa2-8bea-456a-800a-9d366ed2ae44&Preview=1 Date 12/13/2011 Company Name Searchandise Commerce Mailing Address 100 Cummings Center Beverly, MA 01915 Company Description Searchandise Commerce, is the leading provider of Internet decision-making systems and a next-generation paid search company. Website http://www.searchandise.net Transaction Type M&A Transaction Amount Undisclosed Transaction Round Proceeds Purposes M&A Terms Financial terms of the transaction … Continue reading “RichRelevance Acquires Searchandise Commerce for Undisclosed Sum”
Avila Shows Progress in Covalent Cancer Drugs at Prominent ASH Confab
Boston-based Avila Therapeutics announced data today from early human trials of its lead cancer drug, AVL-292, which the company is presenting at the American Society of Hematology (ASH) annual meeting in San Diego. The results support the company’s plans to move the drug into more extensive Phase 2 trials next year, says CEO Katrine Bosley. … Continue reading “Avila Shows Progress in Covalent Cancer Drugs at Prominent ASH Confab”
Energy Subsidies: A Historical Perspective
As we turn the page on the year 2011, there is no shortage of topics about which the entire world seems to be debating. One that interests me the most is the renewed debate on the role of government in the energy sector, specifically in the United States. Budget shortages, deficit increases, front-page analysis of … Continue reading “Energy Subsidies: A Historical Perspective”
The Hepatitis C Market: Biotech’s Version of the Daytona 500
Biotech rivalries are sometimes a bit like boxing matches, where you have two lone fighters vying for the prize. But the hepatitis C market is turning into a battle royal that’s more wide open and unpredictable, with all the competitive maneuvering, surprise crashes, and comebacks you might expect from the Daytona 500. The medical advances … Continue reading “The Hepatitis C Market: Biotech’s Version of the Daytona 500”
Curisma Beckons Consumers to Find Cool Tech, Go Gadget Shopping
Gadget girl walks in carrying a red umbrella. It’s not just any red umbrella, though. This one is a “blunt” umbrella. It has round tips, instead of pointy ones, so you don’t poke people in the eye as you walk down a crowded street. It also has what looks like a special tensioning system along … Continue reading “Curisma Beckons Consumers to Find Cool Tech, Go Gadget Shopping”
LiveWire Mobile Receives $1,465,000 New Financing
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=cb29d475-743a-4cb9-a2ae-f9ab44e0bd25&Preview=1 Date 12/12/2011 Company Name LiveWire Mobile Mailing Address One Monarch Drive Littleton, MA 01460 Company Description LiveWire Mobile, a division of NMS Communications, is redefining mobile personalization with a suite of caller, message and subscriber services designed to empower your customers and fuel the success of your business. Our breakthrough services … Continue reading “LiveWire Mobile Receives $1,465,000 New Financing”
Greenstart Accelerator Hatches Four Energy Startups
Will the startup accelerator model that’s proved so popular and successful in the Web and mobile sectors also help to boost entrepreneurship in other industries, such as healthcare and cleantech? In a tottering economy that needs all the job-creating companies it can get, that’s a crucial question. And here in the Bay Area, it’s been … Continue reading “Greenstart Accelerator Hatches Four Energy Startups”
LifeImage Wraps Up $8M in New Funding
[Updated 12/9/11 at 11:45 am. See below.] LifeImage, a Newton, MA-based startup that develops technology for sharing digital medical images via the Internet cloud, has taken in $8 million in new equity-based funding, according to a document filed with the SEC. In January LifeImage boosted its Series B financing to $12 million, with money from Stamford, CT-based … Continue reading “LifeImage Wraps Up $8M in New Funding”
MTLC Software Development Summit: Rapid Development & Deployment
This MTLC event is about sharing—software entrepreneurs sharing the stories of what helped their products and companies take off. Panelists represent companies like VMware, Acquia, Kayak, Akamai, TripAdvisor, and more. Register here.
Seattle Genetics, Millennium Look to Broaden Reach of Hodgkin’s Drug
Seattle Genetics and its partner, Millennium: The Takeda Oncology Company, are following one of the well-traveled roads in cancer drug development. It’s about first gaining experience in the market by treating a small group of the very sickest patients, then working backwards until your drug eventually becomes part of the standard of care for more … Continue reading “Seattle Genetics, Millennium Look to Broaden Reach of Hodgkin’s Drug”
EnVivo, Biogen, Momenta, & Other Boston-Area Life Sciences Newsmakers
Drugs, conglomerates, medical nutrition companies, and biotechs dominated the New England life sciences news this week. —EnVivo Pharmaceuticals of Watertown, MA, said its experimental schizophrenia drug EVP-6124 demonstrated statistically significant improvements in patient cognitive function in a Phase 2b study. Patients also demonstrated improvements in what are known as negative schizophrenia symptoms, such as inability … Continue reading “EnVivo, Biogen, Momenta, & Other Boston-Area Life Sciences Newsmakers”
Life Image Garners $8,050,000 New Financing
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=d862094b-f3c3-4f47-99fe-fa6db8f58104&Preview=1 Date 12/9/2011 Company Name Life Image Mailing Address 300 Washington St. Newton, MA 02458 Company Description Life Image, Inc. is a venture-backed startup company developing Web-based applications and services that help eliminate the problems associated with lack of access to patients’ medical-imaging history.The founders of the company are veterans of this … Continue reading “Life Image Garners $8,050,000 New Financing”
Lessons on Bouncing Back From Disaster
Disaster is defined by Merriam-Webster as a sudden or great misfortune or failure. In 2006, NPS Pharmaceuticals had certainly experienced its own “disaster.” With much of the company’s resources dedicated to building a commercial infrastructure in anticipation of FDA approval of its lead product for osteoporosis, the company was thrown a curve ball. NPS received … Continue reading “Lessons on Bouncing Back From Disaster”
Mobile Startups Kinvey and Urban Airship Team Up, Share Stories
This is a tale of two CEOs whose reputations precede them. It is a short tale. The news today is that Cambridge, MA-based Kinvey and Portland, OR-based Urban Airship have formed a technology partnership involving mobile applications. Basically, Kinvey will handle the data back-end for mobile app developers whose apps reach end users through “push … Continue reading “Mobile Startups Kinvey and Urban Airship Team Up, Share Stories”
The Genetics Institute Impact: Agenda for Xconomy’s Big Event Dec. 14
[Update: Noon ET, 12/9/11] We’re less than a week away from Xconomy’s biggest event of the year for the Boston biotech community, “The Genetics Institute Impact.” This is shaping up to be a truly special reunion for the people who built one of Boston’s pioneering life sciences companies, and who are still making waves in … Continue reading “The Genetics Institute Impact: Agenda for Xconomy’s Big Event Dec. 14”
Xconomist of the Week: Stephen Wolfram on Big Ideas & Companies
Stephen Wolfram is not one to be summed up in a few pithy quotes. Well, too bad. Here is his life in a nutshell: “I grew up in England and went to all sorts of good schools that I thought were completely irrelevant.” “By the time I was 20 years old, I was a physics … Continue reading “Xconomist of the Week: Stephen Wolfram on Big Ideas & Companies”
Cambrooke Foods Aims to Help Nourish Patients with Metabolic Disorders
Ayer, MA-based Cambrooke Foods might be a bit deceiving on the surface. It is not a maker of packaged foods the average shopper would pick up at the grocery store. And its founders have no background in the food, health, or nutrition industries. Cambrooke’s founders, David and Lynn Paolella, come from architecture and jeweler backgrounds, … Continue reading “Cambrooke Foods Aims to Help Nourish Patients with Metabolic Disorders”