Sage Therapeutics could soon win FDA approval for its postpartum depression (PPD) drug brexanalone, a 60-hour infusion supervised by a medical professional that could become the first drug to the market for the condition. But another experimental Sage drug that works in a similar way—but is a pill that patients could potentially take at home—called … Continue reading “Sage Hits Mark in Postpartum Depression Phase 3 Trial, Stock Surges”
Category: Boston
Eli Lilly Makes an $8B Cancer Genetics Bet with Loxo Acquisition
[Updated 1/7/19, 11 a.m. ET. See below.] Eli Lilly is set to acquire Loxo Oncology for approximately $8 billion—a deal that brings to the Indianapolis pharmaceutical giant a class of drugs that treat cancers with particular genetic signatures. Under the agreement announced Monday, Lilly (NYSE: [[ticker:LLY]]) will pay $235 cash per share of Loxo (NASDAQ: … Continue reading “Eli Lilly Makes an $8B Cancer Genetics Bet with Loxo Acquisition”
Frequency Nabs $42M for Hearing Loss Drugs, Clinical Data On The Way
Hearing loss drug development continues to attract investment, with Frequency Therapeutics announcing today that it has brought in $42 million in a Series B financing to help it move its treatment through clinical testing. Boston area-based Frequency is working on small molecule drugs that stimulate the growth of dormant stem cells in the body, and … Continue reading “Frequency Nabs $42M for Hearing Loss Drugs, Clinical Data On The Way”
Wayfair’s Steve Conine on the Amazon Threat, Adopting A.I. & More
The prospect of Amazon putting your business in its crosshairs is enough to give any executive some sleepless nights. Wayfair co-founder Steve Conine seems undaunted. Over the past 17 years, Conine and Wayfair co-founder and CEO Niraj Shah have built the Boston-based company (NYSE: [[ticker:W]]) into one of the largest online sellers of home goods, … Continue reading “Wayfair’s Steve Conine on the Amazon Threat, Adopting A.I. & More”
Tech Leaders Weigh In on Tim Berners-Lee’s “Contract for the Web”
Looking back over the past two years, it seems that public perceptions of tech companies have shifted, compared with the eager acceptance that often prevailed as innovations from these businesses transformed social interactions, transportation, and other aspects of life. In early 2017, a more critical mood began to take hold as Uber’s allegedly biased employment … Continue reading “Tech Leaders Weigh In on Tim Berners-Lee’s “Contract for the Web””
Allena Promotes Brenner to CEO, Margolin Becomes Board Chair
Louis Brenner, president and chief operating officer at Allena Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: [[ticker:ALNA]]), will become CEO starting Feb. 1. He will also join the Newton, MA, company’s board of directors. Allena co-founder and current CEO Alexey Margolin will shift to a new role as chairman of the board. Launched in 2011, Allena went on to raise … Continue reading “Allena Promotes Brenner to CEO, Margolin Becomes Board Chair”
Bio Roundup: $74B for Celgene, Two CAR-T Tales, Ready for SF & More
In 2018, my Exome colleagues and I published hundreds of stories about health, medicine, the biopharma industry, government policy, and more. You’ll find a few of our favorite stories in this review of some of the year’s best from across the Xconomy network. Topics ranged from the worries over CRISPR genome editing and Wild West … Continue reading “Bio Roundup: $74B for Celgene, Two CAR-T Tales, Ready for SF & More”
From Immigration to Taxes, Execs Talk Trump Effect on Innovation
When it comes to developing and promoting innovation, external factors beyond the control of company founders, investors, and other business leaders can also determine whether a startup succeeds or fails. In 2018, geopolitical events—in particular, President Donald Trump’s hard-line stances on trade and immigration, and the repeal of net neutrality rules—were top of mind for … Continue reading “From Immigration to Taxes, Execs Talk Trump Effect on Innovation”
Ribon Raises $65M to Pursue PARP-Blocking Pills for Cancer
A new class of ovarian and breast cancer drugs that thwart a DNA repair mechanism ushered in a novel approach to treating cancer. The first PARP inhibitor was approved in 2014. That drug, and others that followed, block a PARP enzyme that plays a key role in this repair process. But it turns out there’s … Continue reading “Ribon Raises $65M to Pursue PARP-Blocking Pills for Cancer”
Forge Therapeutics Gets up to $11.1M to Advance “Superbug” Drugs
[Updated 1/4/19, 9:10 p.m. PT. See below.] As strains of bacteria evolve to fight back against common antibiotics, a slew of biotechnology companies are working to develop ways to combat these “superbugs.” San Diego’s Forge Therapeutics is among those targeting gram-negative bacteria, a type of bacteria that has a protective outer membrane that makes it … Continue reading “Forge Therapeutics Gets up to $11.1M to Advance “Superbug” Drugs”
SQZ Biotech Appoints Oliver Rosen Chief Medical Officer
Oliver Rosen has joined SQZ Biotechnologies as the Watertown, MA, company’s chief medical officer. Rosen was most recently chief medical officer of Deciphera Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: [[ticker:DCPH]]) in Waltham, MA. His experience also includes senior roles at Millenium Pharmaceuticals and Genentech. SQZ is developing cell therapies based on its technology that inserts therapeutic proteins into a … Continue reading “SQZ Biotech Appoints Oliver Rosen Chief Medical Officer”
For CAR-T Cancer Fighters in the Real World, Two Roads Diverge
[Corrected, 1/4/19, 3:55pm ET. See below.] A generation ago, cancer treatments made from a patient’s own living immune cells would have been science fiction. Now they’re here. The first two products, approved in 2017 and known in shorthand as CAR-T, have brought some people with otherwise untreatable blood cancers back from the brink of death. … Continue reading “For CAR-T Cancer Fighters in the Real World, Two Roads Diverge”
How a San Antonio Physician Went From a Spy Plane to Olifant Medical
San Antonio — Entrepreneurship wasn’t something that Steven Venticinque expected to pursue in his life. Like many tinkerers and inventors, Venticinque took to entrepreneurship in order to fix a problem. Intubation—the process of quickly inserting a breathing tube into someone, such as an emergency room patient who needs help breathing—isn’t as easy as you might think. … Continue reading “How a San Antonio Physician Went From a Spy Plane to Olifant Medical”
In a Huge Biopharma Shakeup, Bristol-Myers to Buy Celgene For $74B
Bristol-Myers Squibb has agreed to acquire Celgene in a deal that would create one of the largest biopharma organizations in the world and send ripples throughout the life sciences sector. Bristol (NYSE: [[ticker:BMY]]) on Thursday morning inked a deal to buy Celgene (NASDAQ: [[ticker:CELG]]) in a deal that values the Summit, NJ, drugmaker at $74 … Continue reading “In a Huge Biopharma Shakeup, Bristol-Myers to Buy Celgene For $74B”
Tiburio Launches from Cydan with $31M to Tackle Pituitary Tumors
Biotech startup creator Cydan is unveiling a new company, Tiburio Therapeutics, which is backed by $31 million to support its work on treatments for rare endocrine diseases. Cambridge, MA-based Cydan was started by New Enterprise Associates (NEA) six years ago to scour the world for compounds that can be turned into rare disease treatments, and … Continue reading “Tiburio Launches from Cydan with $31M to Tackle Pituitary Tumors”
LÜM’s Music Discovery App Aims to Help Emerging Artists Find Fans
[Corrected 10/14/19, 3:36 pm CT. See below.] The music streaming wars are far from over. While big players like Spotify, Apple, and Amazon fight to make their music apps the go-to option for listening to the latest hit tracks from well-known artists such as Beyoncé, Drake, and Mumford & Sons, young startups still see room … Continue reading “LÜM’s Music Discovery App Aims to Help Emerging Artists Find Fans”
Endeavor Robotics Sues Rival QinetiQ Over Stair-Climbing Patents
Endeavor Robotics is suing QinetiQ, its lone competitor in a heated competition for a $429 million defense contract, for using two of Endeavor’s patented methods to get a robot to climb stairs. Endeavor, based in Chelmsford, MA, is asking the U.S. District Court in Delaware to declare that Waltham, MA-based QinetiQ North America is infringing … Continue reading “Endeavor Robotics Sues Rival QinetiQ Over Stair-Climbing Patents”
MyoKardia Goes Solo as Sanofi Ends Precision Heart Drug Deal
MyoKardia rode a partnership with Sanofi to the public markets a few years ago. But the two companies are cutting ties today, with MyoKardia regaining full rights to its drug programs and assuming all the upside—and risk—of their success or failure. MyoKardia (NASDAQ: [[ticker:MYOK]]) said the deal, which started in September 2014, will wrap up … Continue reading “MyoKardia Goes Solo as Sanofi Ends Precision Heart Drug Deal”
Atlas Venture Bags $250M For New Growth Capital Fund
Atlas Venture says it has raised a $250 million fund meant to continue backing its startups as they grow. The Cambridge, MA, life sciences venture firm, known for seeding and incubating biotech startups, will use the new “Atlas Venture Opportunity Fund I” to invest in portfolio companies that have progressed to a Series B round … Continue reading “Atlas Venture Bags $250M For New Growth Capital Fund”
Copps: Key Ingredient As A.I. Permeates Daily Life is Building Trust
The promise, and pitfalls, of artificial intelligence became more apparent in the last year, and for Dave Copps, founder of A.I. companies such as Brainspace and Hypergiant Sensory Sciences, the pace of adoption will only accelerate in 2019. What can help to smooth the transition to our new machine learning-enabled future is an effort on … Continue reading “Copps: Key Ingredient As A.I. Permeates Daily Life is Building Trust”
Three Ways 5G Is More Than Just Fast Video Streaming
In 2019, we will finally see commercial deployment of the much-anticipated 5G (fifth-generation) wireless network. 5G brings us closer to the possibility and promise of ubiquitous, un-tethered connection between every device and every entity. The projected exponential increase in bandwidth, low latency, ultra-reliable connections, and highly configurable network solutions enabled by 5G will go beyond … Continue reading “Three Ways 5G Is More Than Just Fast Video Streaming”
New Year to Bring New Data Security Threats, Cyber Investor Warns
Bob Ackerman is one of the venture capitalists whose funding has long fed the growth of the burgeoning cybersecurity industry. So, you might imagine that his outlook on data protection for 2019 would be more optimistic than in past years, because businesses now take advantage of a broad choice of security services to protect themselves. … Continue reading “New Year to Bring New Data Security Threats, Cyber Investor Warns”
NY’s Research Institutions Must Keep Working Together in ‘19
[Corrected, 1/7/19, 5:15 pm. See below.] [Editor’s Note: Euan Robertson, the Director of Strategic Planning & Special Projects at Columbia Technology Ventures, co-wrote this article.] It is a commonly held belief that academic research institutions, including those in New York City, are fierce competitors. In some ways, that may be true: Universities battle with each … Continue reading “NY’s Research Institutions Must Keep Working Together in ‘19”
In 2019, the Dam Will Break: Student Debt Predictions and Solutions
With the density of colleges and universities in the Boston area, we don’t often recognize how inaccessible higher education has become for the majority of the country. In fact, seven out of 10 college graduates today have outstanding student loans. And while many of us believe that education is a “must-have,” it’s alarming how structurally … Continue reading “In 2019, the Dam Will Break: Student Debt Predictions and Solutions”
From Alnylam to Zayner: Xconomy’s Top Innovation Stories of 2018
2018 was a year of ups and downs for the business and technology community. It was a year of big exits—both IPOs and acquisitions—for tech and life sciences companies. Venture funding remained strong, but more money went to fewer (and later-stage) companies overall. As the year winds down, we’re reflecting on the big innovation trends … Continue reading “From Alnylam to Zayner: Xconomy’s Top Innovation Stories of 2018”
Saxena: More Than a Tool, A.I. Must Be Used With Society in Mind
[Updated 12/27/18, 9:54 am] Manoj Saxena is bullish on artificial intelligence. As chairman of Austin, TX-based A.I. startup CognitiveScale and managing director of The Entrepreneur Fund, which makes investments in early-stage machine learning companies, Saxena believes A.I. can transform how we work and play—creating opportunities for business. But he’s also aware that the technology, if … Continue reading “Saxena: More Than a Tool, A.I. Must Be Used With Society in Mind”
CFOs: Prepare To Become Your Company’s Data Czar This Year
In mid-2018, Tom Bogan was the leader of business planning software company Adaptive Insights as it planned its own next steps. The Palo Alto, CA-based company was on the point of raising about $115 million in a June IPO that would have set its market value at around $705 million, according to PitchBook. But like … Continue reading “CFOs: Prepare To Become Your Company’s Data Czar This Year”
Boston A.I. Leaders Call for Focus on Diversity, Global Mindset in 2019
It was an eventful year for the artificial intelligence industry. The sector saw more big venture capital deals and acquisitions, while researchers kept plugging away on technology advances. Meanwhile, A.I. developers continued to grapple with issues around transparency, trust, and ethics. As part of Xconomy’s series of year-end posts, we asked a pair of CEOs … Continue reading “Boston A.I. Leaders Call for Focus on Diversity, Global Mindset in 2019”
Gossamer Bio Files for IPO at End of Year in Which It Raised $330M
Gossamer Bio, headed by former Receptos executives, made its debut in January with $100 million in financing. Seven months later, it tacked on another $230 million. Now, the San Diego-based startup is looking to Wall Street for additional funds. The company last Friday outlined plans for an initial public offering to advance its development of … Continue reading “Gossamer Bio Files for IPO at End of Year in Which It Raised $330M”
Gates Foundation, Bristol-Myers Join $27M Funding for Vedanta Bio
Microbiome drug developer Vedanta Biosciences has raised $27 million in funding to press forward with clinical trials for four therapeutic candidates. Vedanta’s experimental treatments are compositions of live bacteria that the Cambridge, MA, company says trigger a targeted immune response. By shifting the ecosystem of gut bacteria, Vedanta says its therapies can potentially treat autoimmune … Continue reading “Gates Foundation, Bristol-Myers Join $27M Funding for Vedanta Bio”
Acorda Gets FDA Nod for New Parkinson’s Drug, But Rival Looms
The FDA late Friday approved a new treatment meant to help Parkinson’s disease patients cope with “off” episodes, when their medications stop working. The drug, Inbrija, from Acorda Therapeutics (NASDAQ: [[ticker:ACOR]]), is one of two similar treatments—along with APL-130277, from Sunovion Pharmaceuticals—expected to come to market in 2019. And its commercial success is critical for … Continue reading “Acorda Gets FDA Nod for New Parkinson’s Drug, But Rival Looms”
VCs May Face Backlash if Profits Come at Expense of Responsibility
Venture capital is, by nature, an optimistic industry, and venture capitalists have historically gone about their work comfortable that they were making positive societal contributions. When looking at VC activity over the past half century, one can see venture capital’s role in championing endeavors that advanced knowledge, improved health, increased worker productivity, and preserved natural … Continue reading “VCs May Face Backlash if Profits Come at Expense of Responsibility”
Bio Roundup: 2019 Trials, Pilgrim Price Chat, Pre-Xmas Sales & More
It’s beginning to look a lot like, well, the last roundup of the year, with plenty of news to pack in before our holiday breather. Whew. Before you fly off, or drive, or simply unplug, check out our preview of what could be next year’s top clinical studies; the tumult in big pharma’s on again-off … Continue reading “Bio Roundup: 2019 Trials, Pilgrim Price Chat, Pre-Xmas Sales & More”
Boston Tech Watch: Underscore VC, Piaggio, SoftBank & Sea Machines
A pair of massive Boston-area investments from the Japanese SoftBank Group’s $100 billion Vision Fund, a moonshot power storage spinout from Alphabet’s X labs, and some local robotics moves are found in this week’s Boston technology news. —Underscore VC, a Boston-based venture capital firm focused on early-stage tech startups, is capping off its second fund … Continue reading “Boston Tech Watch: Underscore VC, Piaggio, SoftBank & Sea Machines”
Gilbert Foundation to Pursue Gene Therapy for Neurofibromatosis
The Gilbert Family Foundation, a charitable organization founded by Quicken Loans chairman Dan Gilbert and his wife Jennifer, is making its first foray into gene therapy research. The foundation will spend $12 million in an initiative to develop new treatments that target the underlying genetic abnormalities in neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1), a disorder that can result … Continue reading “Gilbert Foundation to Pursue Gene Therapy for Neurofibromatosis”
Aristea Therapeutics Raises $15M to Develop Anti-Inflammatory Drugs
New biopharma company Aristea Therapeutics has raised $15 million from Novo Holdings, the Danish investment company, and secured global rights to an investigational AstraZeneca drug that’s ready for Phase 2 study. The San Diego, CA, company made its public debut this week after starting up quietly earlier this year. Aristea expects its lead program, RIST4721, … Continue reading “Aristea Therapeutics Raises $15M to Develop Anti-Inflammatory Drugs”
Gilead Sciences Commits $150M to Agenus in Cancer Drug R&D Pact
For the second time this week, Gilead Sciences has partnered with a Boston-area biotech, this time with a deal that covers up to five experimental cancer immunotherapies being developed by Agenus. Under the deal terms, Foster City, CA-based Gilead (NASDAQ: [[ticker:GILD]]) will pay Agenus (NASDAQ: [[ticker:AGEN]]) $120 million cash up front and make a $30 … Continue reading “Gilead Sciences Commits $150M to Agenus in Cancer Drug R&D Pact”
With New Results, FibroGen’s Anemia Pill Inches Closer to FDA Review
There was a new development today in the high-stakes race to use pills, not injectable biologic drugs, to treat anemia. San Francisco, CA-based FibroGen and partners AstraZeneca and Astellas Pharma have reported that their experimental drug, roxadustat, has succeeded in five more Phase 3 trials, which bolster its chances of approvals in the U.S. and … Continue reading “With New Results, FibroGen’s Anemia Pill Inches Closer to FDA Review”
Relay Raises $400M to Kick Protein Motion Drug R&D into High Gear
The line dividing biotechnology and high tech is blurring as drug companies find new ways to apply computer advances in the hunt for new drugs. Relay Therapeutics uses these techniques to better understand a protein’s role in disease and develop a drug to address it. Cancer is Relay’s first target. The Cambridge, MA, biotech is … Continue reading “Relay Raises $400M to Kick Protein Motion Drug R&D into High Gear”
$500M and 1.2B Cars: Cambridge Mobile Telematics Talks SoftBank Deal
Ask Cambridge Mobile Telematics cofounder Hari Balakrishnan about the $500 million his business raised from SoftBank’s Vision Fund and he’ll bring up two bigger numbers: 1.2 billion and 875 million. The first is an estimate of the number of vehicles globally. The second is the number of insurance policies on those vehicles. Then there’s a … Continue reading “$500M and 1.2B Cars: Cambridge Mobile Telematics Talks SoftBank Deal”
From Google to Gates: Malta Targets Power Storage With Molten Salt
A new and unconventional power storage startup is preaching the gospel of salt and antifreeze as the long-sought answer to how to bottle up renewable electricity from intermittent solar and wind projects. Malta, based in Cambridge, MA, announced today it has graduated from Alphabet’s X, the Moonshot Factory—where it was known as Project Malta—and is … Continue reading “From Google to Gates: Malta Targets Power Storage With Molten Salt”
Gilead, Scholar Rock Sign $80M Up Front Deal for Fibrosis Drugs
Drugmakers are increasingly turning their attention toward fibrosis, the excessive growth of connective tissue that can lead to scarring and dysfunction of multiple organs including the lungs, liver and kidneys. In the latest deal centered on this disorder, Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ: [[ticker:GILD]]) will pay Scholar Rock of Cambridge, MA (NASDAQ: [[ticker:SRRK]]) $80 million up front … Continue reading “Gilead, Scholar Rock Sign $80M Up Front Deal for Fibrosis Drugs”
SoftBank Vision Fund Pours $500M Into Cambridge Mobile Telematics
Last month, Xconomy asked tech CEOs what $100 million in venture capital can buy. How about $500 million? Cambridge Mobile Telematics said Wednesday morning it has pulled in half a billion dollars in an investment from—you guessed it—the SoftBank Vision Fund. That’s Japan-based SoftBank Group’s reportedly $100 billion fund that has made waves in the … Continue reading “SoftBank Vision Fund Pours $500M Into Cambridge Mobile Telematics”
Pfizer, GSK to Merge Consumer Health Units, Focus on Prescription Drugs
Two of the world’s top drugmakers want to focus on making prescription drugs. Pfizer and GlaxoSmithKline have agreed to merge their consumer health businesses and spin them off into a joint venture, a move that will both create a new consumer healthcare giant and increase the pressure on each company to churn out innovative medicines. … Continue reading “Pfizer, GSK to Merge Consumer Health Units, Focus on Prescription Drugs”
Can Pay-For-Results Drug Pricing Work? A Q&A With Michael Sherman
[Editor’s note: This is part of a series of posts sharing thoughts from industry and technology leaders about 2018 trends.] It’s been almost a year since Harvard Pilgrim Health Care signed what’s known as a “value-based agreement” with Spark Therapeutics to cover Luxturna, Spark’s $850,000 gene therapy for a form of vision loss. In doing so, Harvard … Continue reading “Can Pay-For-Results Drug Pricing Work? A Q&A With Michael Sherman”
Graphcore Scores $200M to Scale Up A.I. Chip Production
One of the leading contenders in the A.I. chip race, Graphcore, announced Tuesday it pulled down $200 million in a Series D fundraising round that set its valuation at $1.7 billion. The Bristol, U.K.-based startup, founded in 2016, has now secured a total of more than $300 million in financing from venture capital firms and … Continue reading “Graphcore Scores $200M to Scale Up A.I. Chip Production”
Safety Signal Prompts Surface Oncology to Scale Down Lead Program
Signs of a safety problem have Surface Oncology cutting back clinical trial plans for its lead drug only eight months after the company completed a $108 million IPO to finance clinical tests of the drug. The discovery of potential toxic effects of the drug, SRF231, in the dose-escalation portion of a Phase 1 study has … Continue reading “Safety Signal Prompts Surface Oncology to Scale Down Lead Program”
David Lebwohl Leaves Novartis for Chief Medical Post at Semma
Semma Therapeutics has appointed David Lebwohl to serve as chief medical officer. Lebwohl comes to the Cambridge, MA, regenerative medicine company from Novartis (NYSE: [[ticker:NVS]]), where he was senior vice president and franchise global program head of the CAR-T team. In other moves, Semma named David DiGiusto its chief technology officer. DiGiusto comes to Semma … Continue reading “David Lebwohl Leaves Novartis for Chief Medical Post at Semma”
$100M Round Turns San Diego’s Seismic into Region’s Newest Unicorn
Seismic, an enterprise software company with ambitious growth plans, has raised $100 million in a Series E financing and added Microsoft chairman John W. Thompson to its board of directors. The venture investment, which the San Diego startup announced Tuesday, is one of only a few so-called mega-rounds—$100 million or more—recorded this year in the … Continue reading “$100M Round Turns San Diego’s Seismic into Region’s Newest Unicorn”
With $42M, Ex-Ignyta CEO Aims At Cancer Again With Startup, Erasca
A year after steering cancer drug developer Ignyta into a $1.7 billion sale to Roche, Jonathan Lim is back at it again. Ignyta’s former co-founder and head executive has co-founded another biotech in San Diego, Erasca, which also wants to make new cancer therapies. Erasca on Tuesday closed a $42 million Series A round led … Continue reading “With $42M, Ex-Ignyta CEO Aims At Cancer Again With Startup, Erasca”