Category: Boston

A Physics Rebel Shakes Up the Video Game World, Literally

What’s the connection between hardcore, chest-pounding video game action and Niels Bohr’s interpretation of wave-particle duality? It’s an Iranian-American physicist-turned-entrepreneur named Shahriar Afshar. Five years after Afshar announced the results of one of the most controversial experiments in the recent history of physics—one suggesting that it is possible, contrary to Bohr’s long-accepted theory, to observe … Continue reading “A Physics Rebel Shakes Up the Video Game World, Literally”

Why is Pharma Betting So Big on Innovation in Boston?

What type of drugs have the greatest potential to fill the void in Big Pharma company pipelines, as the industry barrels toward the well-documented patent expiration crisis of coming years? What are the best techniques pharma companies can use to stimulate innovation at smaller biotech companies? How can drugmakers raise the odds of success in … Continue reading “Why is Pharma Betting So Big on Innovation in Boston?”

GSI Commerce Acquires Retail Convergence for $350,000,000

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=31cc936f-902c-489b-a647-66498d7587fa&Preview=1 Date 10/27/2009 Company Name Retail Convergence Mailing Address 10 Milk St Boston, MA 02108 Company Description Retail Convergence is a newly formed corporation that is comprised of e-commerce companies including SmartBargains.com and RueLaLa.com, which officially launched on April 9th. Website Undisclosed Transaction Type M&A Transaction Amount $350,000,000 Transaction Round Proceeds Purposes … Continue reading “GSI Commerce Acquires Retail Convergence for $350,000,000”

Boston-Bred Geothermal Innovator, Foro Energy, Wins Biggest ARPA-E Energy Grant

The list of 37 companies named by the Department of Energy today as grant recipients in the federal government’s first-ever ARPA-E competition contained many local companies, but was topped by a name that virtually no one has heard: Foro Energy. The Littleton, CO, startup is developing a “hybrid thermal/mechanical drilling technology” that could make it … Continue reading “Boston-Bred Geothermal Innovator, Foro Energy, Wins Biggest ARPA-E Energy Grant”

Layoffs at GamerDNA

GamerDNA, the Cambridge, MA-based startup building an online community where avid gamers can find recommendations for new games, has cut its staff nearly in half, shrinking from 13 employees to seven, according to a story today in Mass High Tech. Jon Radoff, the company’s founder and CEO, confirmed the layoffs in an e-mail to Xconomy, … Continue reading “Layoffs at GamerDNA”

Axeda Adds $9M from JMI, MMV

Axeda, the Waltham, MA-based startup that makes a cloud-based system for wireless tracking of company assets, announced today that it has completed a $5 million Series B funding round led by JMI Equity of San Diego and Baltimore. At the same time, the company raised $4 million in venture debt from MMV Financial of Toronto.

American Well Goes to Well for $10M

American Well, the Boston-based company that provides a Web-based system in use by several large health plans to let their members consult with doctors over the Internet, has raised $10 million in new equity funding, according to a regulatory filing today. The documents don’t name the funders in the round, continuing the company’s track record … Continue reading “American Well Goes to Well for $10M”

FloDesign, Five Other Local Organizations Win Multimillion-Dollar ARPA-E Awards

The Department of Energy this morning announced that FloDesign Wind Turbine of Wilbraham, MA, and five other Massachusetts startups and laboratories are among the 37 companies and organizations awarded research and development grants under the department’s new Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E) program. FloDesign has tentatively been awarded $8,325,400 to advance its research on radical … Continue reading “FloDesign, Five Other Local Organizations Win Multimillion-Dollar ARPA-E Awards”

BioAssets Inks $30M Option Deal

Frazer, PA-based Cephalon (NASDAQ: [[ticker:CEPH]]) has agreed to pay $30 million for an option to acquire BioAssets Development Corporation, a Wellesley, MA-based company investigating spinal uses for existing and experimental drugs, according to a press release. Under the terms of the agreement, BioAssets will be eligible for an additional payment if Cephalon exercises the option, … Continue reading “BioAssets Inks $30M Option Deal”

NetProspex Nets $2 Million

NetProspex, a three-year-old Waltham, MA-based startup that provides marketers with sales leads using contact information contributed by users, has completed a new equity financing round led by American City Business Journals of North Carolina, the startup announced on Friday. Mass High Tech—which, along with the Boston Business Journal, is part of the American City Business … Continue reading “NetProspex Nets $2 Million”

Kendall Square Adopts a Motto: “The Future Lives Here”

There is arguably no other place on Earth with the concentrated innovation power of Kendall Square. Within a few-block radius of the Kendall Square T station on Main Street on the edge of the MIT campus, you can find an unprecedented collection of startups, large company labs and offices, and non-profit organizations, from the One … Continue reading “Kendall Square Adopts a Motto: “The Future Lives Here””

Microsoft and Its Competitors Still In Search of Mainstream User Base for Personal Health Records

Microsoft hasn’t yet attracted the millions of patients it would like to its personal health data service, HealthVault, says Peter Neupert, corporate vice president of the company’s Health Solutions Group. Though HealthVault and other products like Google Health that enable patients to store their health information online are free and available to anyone with Internet … Continue reading “Microsoft and Its Competitors Still In Search of Mainstream User Base for Personal Health Records”

Axeda Corporation Garners $9,000,000 Series B Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=9ac9f1a5-8feb-4e11-948b-4c5a2003d4b2&Preview=1 Date 10/26/2009 Company Name Axeda Corporation Mailing Address 25 Forbes Boulevard Foxboro, MA 02035 Company Description Axeda’s products and services are designed with one purpose in mind: to enable you to get the maximum results out of your remote service initiative. We work with you to understand your business goals, and … Continue reading “Axeda Corporation Garners $9,000,000 Series B Round”

NetProspex Obtains $2,000,000 New Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=075e328c-abd4-4641-97ce-5d26f06b3fa9&Preview=1 Date 10/26/2009 Company Name NetProspex Mailing Address 318 Bear Hill Road Waltham, ME 02451 Company Description Get accurate, targeted contacts for your sales and marketing needs. Find the right person, or people, at a target company who will respond to your message. NetProspex was founded with the mission to provide leads … Continue reading “NetProspex Obtains $2,000,000 New Round”

Internet Archive Opens 1.6 Million E-Books to Kids with OLPC Laptops

[Updated 10/24/09 5:30 p.m. with additional interview material] All 1.6 million books digitized so far by the Internet Archive, the San Francisco-based non-profit dedicated to the universal sharing of knowledge, will be available free to children around the world who have laptops built by the Cambridge, MA-based One Laptop Per Child Foundation (OLPC), Internet Archive … Continue reading “Internet Archive Opens 1.6 Million E-Books to Kids with OLPC Laptops”

Reactions to President Obama’s Energy Speech from Boston Technology Leaders

Xconomy didn’t score a ticket to President Obama’s speech on clean energy at MIT today, so we can’t bring you a first-hand report. But we’ve got something that’s arguably even better: perspectives from a range of local community members who were inside MIT’s Kresge Auditorium for the speech, which took place at about 12:45 p.m. … Continue reading “Reactions to President Obama’s Energy Speech from Boston Technology Leaders”

Biogen Shares Drop as Tysabri PML Cases Climb to 23, Europe May Seek Drug ‘Holiday’

[Update: 10/23/09, 1:10 pm Eastern] Shares of Biogen Idec and its Irish partner Elan dropped this morning after European regulators said they are taking a new look at the risk and benefit of natalizumab (Tysabri) for multiple sclerosis, now that 23 patients on the drug have been diagnosed with a rare, potentially fatal brain infection … Continue reading “Biogen Shares Drop as Tysabri PML Cases Climb to 23, Europe May Seek Drug ‘Holiday’”

Wind Power Holdings Aims to Raise $45M

[Corrected 3:35 p.m 10/23/09] Wind Power Holdings, the parent company of Barre, VT-based wind turbine developer Northern Power Systems, intends to raise $45 million in a new private equity offering, according to regulatory documents filed October 21. [A previous version of this news brief stated that the company had already raised the funds; in fact … Continue reading “Wind Power Holdings Aims to Raise $45M”

A Report from Boston’s First “Big Data Summit”

The first meeting of the Boston Big Data Summit was held yesterday. Since the announcement on October 2, the event has had a great reception. Just over a hundred people attended, with an almost even split between “end users” and “vendors.” By a significant margin, the vendors were entrepreneurs or self described “startup types.” Many … Continue reading “A Report from Boston’s First “Big Data Summit””

Tim Berners-Lee Joins Twitter

The inventor of the World Wide Web has arrived, somewhat belatedly, in the Twitterverse. Tim Berners-Lee, head of the Cambridge, MA-based World Wide Web Consortium, set up a Twitter account shortly before making an appearance at O’Reilly Media’s Web 2.0 Summit in San Francisco yesterday. Normally it wouldn’t be news when Twitter gains a new … Continue reading “Tim Berners-Lee Joins Twitter”

President Obama Speaks on Clean Energy Today at MIT; Here’s How to Watch

[Update, 12:05 p.m., 10/23/09: The time for President Obama’s speech has been pushed back to 12:25 p.m., according to the White House. It appears that MIT’s video servers are being overwhelmed by traffic; if you want to watch the speech online, we recommend trying the White House’s own live video stream.] When Air Force One … Continue reading “President Obama Speaks on Clean Energy Today at MIT; Here’s How to Watch”

Big Connected Health Symposium: What Video Games, Social Networking, and Other Tech Innovations Are Doing for Healthcare

Partners HealthCare’s Center for Connected Health is holding its sixth big Connected Health Symposium in Boston this week, and there’s definitely more optimism here that information technology is becoming more mainstream in healthcare than in years past. The big focus of the conference is on technology that is used to extend healthcare outside of traditional … Continue reading “Big Connected Health Symposium: What Video Games, Social Networking, and Other Tech Innovations Are Doing for Healthcare”

HubSpot Spots $16M, Synageva BioPharma Secures $12M, Currensee Sews Up $6M, & More Boston-Area Deals News

Lots of venture news this week, with more than the usual number of software and Web companies making appearances. —Flexion Therapeutics raised $33 million in a Series A round led by Versant Ventures and joined by 5AM Ventures and Sofinnova Partners. The Woburn, MA-based startup believes it can cut the shepherd drugs from early development … Continue reading “HubSpot Spots $16M, Synageva BioPharma Secures $12M, Currensee Sews Up $6M, & More Boston-Area Deals News”

Nuclea Nabs $3.4M Deal

Nuclea Biotechnologies, the Pittsfield, MA-based developer of genomic tests for cancer research, has raised $3.4 million in new equity financing, according to a regulatory filing. The company, which says on its website that it has collaborations with the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston and the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine in Baltimore, is seeking to … Continue reading “Nuclea Nabs $3.4M Deal”

Patrick Details Plans for Holyoke Computing Center

Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick traveled to Holyoke, MA, yesterday to talk about the next steps for the planned Holyoke High Performance Computing Center, a massive project designed to advance the state of the art in “green computing” for life sciences, cleantech, and other applications, while also bolstering business development in economically depressed western Massachusetts. Construction … Continue reading “Patrick Details Plans for Holyoke Computing Center”

Luminus Devices: Finding Its Way Toward the Light With High-Efficiency LEDs

Luminus Devices in Billerica, MA, may hold the record among Massachusetts technology companies for the shortest time between conception and launch. But the journey since then has been anything but straightforward. One summer day in 2002, recent MIT PhD graduate Alexei Erchak and his former advisor, physicist John Joannopolous, were meeting to talk about whether … Continue reading “Luminus Devices: Finding Its Way Toward the Light With High-Efficiency LEDs”

Inside the Mascoma Labs: Tracking Ethanol-Making Microbes from Lebanon to Rome

Microbiologist Larry Feinberg has dug into piles of waste from paper factories and explored hot springs in the West for microbes that he calls “tough bugs,” because of their ability to thrive in adverse conditions. The fierce bacteria are now shipped to the new labs and headquarters of Mascoma, a developer of cellulosic ethanol, in … Continue reading “Inside the Mascoma Labs: Tracking Ethanol-Making Microbes from Lebanon to Rome”

Nuclea Biotechnologies Lands $3,400,000 New Funding

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=cdaca9bc-ace9-4bb6-99c6-670a2332138a&Preview=1 Date 10/22/2009 Company Name Nuclea Biotechnologies Mailing Address 105 South Street Pittsfield, MA 01201 Company Description Nuclea Biotechnologies’ primary mission is to conduct genomic research in the oncology field so as to discover biomarkers and gene or protein expression profiles that are unique to oncologic diseases. Nuclea Biotechnologies seeks to harness … Continue reading “Nuclea Biotechnologies Lands $3,400,000 New Funding”

EnglishCentral Lands $3,500,000 New Financing Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=5abb9c9a-a536-408c-bae4-69af1b853594&Preview=1 Date 10/22/2009 Company Name EnglishCentral Mailing Address 30 Hancock St. Lexington, MA 02420 Company Description EnglishCentral aims to become the premier, web-based conversational English language learning destination for desktop and mobile users. Website http://www.englishcentral.com Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount $3,500,000 Transaction Round Undisclosed Proceeds Purposes Proceeds purposes were not disclosed. … Continue reading “EnglishCentral Lands $3,500,000 New Financing Round”

The Knowledge Economy in Providence: Measuring Progress One Year Later

The Greater Providence Chamber of Commerce and the Innovation Providence and Implementation Council (IPIC) sponsor a briefing on, and a celebration of, progress on efforts to realign Rhode Island around a robust knowledge economy “that not only fosters entrepreneurship locally, but makes our state the location of choice when attracting new and emerging business.” For … Continue reading “The Knowledge Economy in Providence: Measuring Progress One Year Later”

Rapid7 Absorbs Metasploit

Rapid7, the Boston- and El Segundo, CA-based startup that makes software to protect corporate networks, databases, and Web applications from hostile outsiders, said today that it has acquired the Metasploit Project, which has developed an open-source penetration testing system as well as a large public database of tested exploits against computer systems. HD Moore, the … Continue reading “Rapid7 Absorbs Metasploit”

Antigenics Shares Plummet as Cancer Vaccine Application Rejected in Europe

Antigenics, the Lexington, MA-based developer of a personalized treatment to stimulate the immune system to fight cancer, saw its shares plummet today after a European regulatory commission told the company that its lead drug candidate isn’t ready for the marketplace. Shares of Antigenics (NASDAQ: [[ticker:AGEN]]) dropped 40 percent to $1.25 at noon Eastern time after … Continue reading “Antigenics Shares Plummet as Cancer Vaccine Application Rejected in Europe”

Illume Software Adds to Series A to Stop Driving While Texting and Talking on Mobile Phones

Many of us have seen cars swerving on the road ahead and later pull up to catch the driver gabbing on his or her mobile phone. Perhaps a few of us are guilty of the practice, too. Well, Illume Software, based in Concord, MA, said this morning that it has raised an additional $1 million … Continue reading “Illume Software Adds to Series A to Stop Driving While Texting and Talking on Mobile Phones”

Executives Through Experimentation: The B-School Internship Experience

Business school applications require many thousands of words’ worth of essay questions, usually dealing with those universal but ephemeral corporate themes of Teamwork, Impact, and Dealing With Difficult Situations. Somewhere within this morass the applicant is generally expected to answer the question, “What are you going to do with an MBA?” To this there are … Continue reading “Executives Through Experimentation: The B-School Internship Experience”

Isis CEO Vows that Cholesterol Drug, Partnered With Genzyme, Will be “Remarkable” Advance

Isis Pharmaceuticals CEO Stanley Crooke is a man who knows how to make a grand gesture. The market may have been underwhelmed by what Isis and its partner, Genzyme, had to say about their first-of-a-kind cholesterol-lowering drug back in May, but to him that just means they’re missing the point. When I stopped by to … Continue reading “Isis CEO Vows that Cholesterol Drug, Partnered With Genzyme, Will be “Remarkable” Advance”

VC Playoffs: Red Sox (MA) Vs. Yankees (NY)—A Graphic Comparison

[Corrected, October 22, 2009 — see below] I really hate the Yankees (sorry Bijan). Nothing good has come of them for me, except the time back in the early 90s when I was at Yankee Stadium with Trip Hawkins of Electronic Arts fame and Richard Nixon was sitting across the aisle, and two Secret Service … Continue reading “VC Playoffs: Red Sox (MA) Vs. Yankees (NY)—A Graphic Comparison”

Flexion Pulls in $33M, Cubist Teams With Hydra, Charles River Makes Cuts, & More Boston-Area Life Sciences News

There was a steady serenade of news from New England’s life sciences companies this past week, with both the startups and the public firms chiming in. —Ryan profiled Boston BioCom, a Pfizer-backed startup aiming to commercialize life science discoveries from Russia. Based in, of course, Boston, the firm is also developing technology from the Massachusetts … Continue reading “Flexion Pulls in $33M, Cubist Teams With Hydra, Charles River Makes Cuts, & More Boston-Area Life Sciences News”

Synageva BioPharma Corp Receives $12,000,000 Series F Financing Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=4842d742-829e-4fed-b1ad-a1163cf9359e&Preview=1 Date 10/21/2009 Company Name Synageva BioPharma Corp Mailing Address 60 Hickory Drive Waltham, MA 02451 Company Description Synageva BioPharma’s ultimate goal is to improve patient lives by providing access to breakthrough novel, next generation (i.e. significantly improved), and certain follow on protein therapeutics. Synageva’s proprietary platform technologies, including SEPTM, provide a … Continue reading “Synageva BioPharma Corp Receives $12,000,000 Series F Financing Round”

Copanion Receives $10,200,000 Series B Funding Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=fc94429a-5829-4f0e-a3ea-da23ffae173e&Preview=1 Date 10/21/2009 Company Name Copanion Mailing Address One Tech Drive Andover, MA 01810 Company Description With breakthrough innovations in image processing, biometric pattern recognition, and machine learning technology, Copanion GruntWorx “reads” and classifies data from paper-based forms and PDF files with greater than 90% accuracy. That’s far higher than any previous … Continue reading “Copanion Receives $10,200,000 Series B Funding Round”

Cleantech Incubator Opens in Lynn

North Shore Innoventures, a Beverly, MA-based network of technology incubators, announced today that it has opened a new “Cleantech Innoventure Center” in Lynn, MA. Established with funding from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and sponsorship from the Lynn Economic Development and Industrial Corporation, the new incubator space is located at 20 Wheeler Street in Lynn, and … Continue reading “Cleantech Incubator Opens in Lynn”

Arbor Networks Reports on the Rise of the Internet “Hyper Giants”

For 15 years now, we’ve all thought of the World Wide Web as a near-literal web of connections between millions of servers in different locations, with each machine hosting just a tiny slice of the Web’s overall content. But that’s not the new shape of the Web, according to Arbor Networks of Chelmsford, MA. Today, … Continue reading “Arbor Networks Reports on the Rise of the Internet “Hyper Giants””

Mintera Finds $4.1M

Mintera, an Acton, MA-based developer of next-generation optical switches, has raised $4.1 million of a potential $5 million round of equity and options financing, according to an SEC filing. The company could not immediately be reached for comment this morning. Though the SEC document does not list investors in the deal, the company says on … Continue reading “Mintera Finds $4.1M”

The Past and Future of Venture Capital

This is Terry McGuire’s fifth big economic downturn as a venture capitalist, the first being Black Monday in 1987. But when he gets together to chat with Peter Brooke tomorrow night, he’ll be the inexperienced one. That’s why I’m incredibly excited about our Xconomy Forum tomorrow night, which will be held at the offices of … Continue reading “The Past and Future of Venture Capital”

E Ink Partners with Freescale

In a joint announcement, Austin, TX-based Freescale Semiconductor and Cambridge, MA-based E Ink–which makes the “electronic ink” displays used in the Amazon Kindle, the Sony Reader, and other e-book devices—said today they will work together to integrate the electronics that control E Ink’s displays with Freescale’s MX processors to create a single “system on a … Continue reading “E Ink Partners with Freescale”