Category: Boston

Microsoft’s New Head of FUSE Labs, Lili Cheng, on Strategy, Social Computing, and Bicoastal Life

Microsoft’s latest reorganization, which involves labs in both the Seattle and Boston areas, has a new face. It’s Lili Cheng, a 14-year Microsoftie with experience in both research (social computing) and products (Windows Vista user experience). Cheng now officially leads three separate groups that are being rolled into one: her Creative Systems Group within Microsoft … Continue reading “Microsoft’s New Head of FUSE Labs, Lili Cheng, on Strategy, Social Computing, and Bicoastal Life”

Amgen’s Seattle and Boston Teams Seek to Boost Biotech Hit Rate 20 to 30 Percent

One of the inconvenient truths of the biotech and pharmaceutical industry is that only about one out of every 10 drug candidates good enough to enter clinical trials passes all the tests to graduate as an FDA-approved therapy. Every major drugmaker is searching for ways to boost that success rate, and yesterday I got an … Continue reading “Amgen’s Seattle and Boston Teams Seek to Boost Biotech Hit Rate 20 to 30 Percent”

Public Biotechs’ Finances Foundering, Epizyme Banks $32M, Paratek Cuts Deal with Novartis, & More Boston-Area Life Sciences News

It was a busy week in the land of New England life sciences. Let’s dive in. —Luke did a massive analysis of the financial health of all the public biotech companies we follow the Boston area and the news… Well, it wasn’t good. —Cambridge, MA-based Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:[[ticker:VRTX]]) brought in $155 million in cash by … Continue reading “Public Biotechs’ Finances Foundering, Epizyme Banks $32M, Paratek Cuts Deal with Novartis, & More Boston-Area Life Sciences News”

ShopText Garners $700,000 New Funding Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=bc292922-93f9-48a0-ab8f-2d0d9d22867a&Preview=1 Date 10/9/2009 Company Name ShopText Mailing Address 20 Marshall Street Norwalk, CT 06854 Company Description ShopText is a mobile commerce and promotions company. Our software platform transforms any advertisement into a point of sale opportunity. ShopText technology creates a secure, direct-to-consumer marketplace where consumers can shop, sample and save. Website http://www.shoptext.com … Continue reading “ShopText Garners $700,000 New Funding Round”

Inmagic Obtains $1,800,000 New Funding Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=e3920726-273d-42fa-b198-5145e73aad11&Preview=1 Date 10/9/2009 Company Name Inmagic Mailing Address 200 Unicorn Park Drive Fourth Floor Woburn, MA 01801 Company Description Inmagic is a pioneer in helping organizations tap the value of their intellectual and digital assets to improve knowledge collaboration and community. More than 5,000 organizations around the world have placed their trust … Continue reading “Inmagic Obtains $1,800,000 New Funding Round”

Polaris Picks Immuneering, Developer of Personalized Cancer Test, as First Life Sciences Startup in Dog Patch Incubator

Immuneering, the Cambridge, MA-based developer of computer models that aim to predict which patients are likely to respond to certain cancer drugs, has found a new home as the first life sciences startup to join Polaris Venture Partners‘ new Dog Patch Labs startup incubator in Cambridge. Immuneering is the brainchild of CEO Ben Zeskind, a … Continue reading “Polaris Picks Immuneering, Developer of Personalized Cancer Test, as First Life Sciences Startup in Dog Patch Incubator”

2009 Legislative Innovation Day

Innovation Day is an opportunity for legislators and their staff to get to know venture-backed companies and the venture community that supports this vital part of the Massachusetts economy. The program includes welcoming remarks by legislators, a showcase of innovation companies, and a panel discussion about innovation in Massachusetts. The public is welcome. For more … Continue reading “2009 Legislative Innovation Day”

Fundraising Tide Remains Low for Venture Capital Firms

Fundraising by U.S. venture capital firms continues to lag. A survey released overnight by Dow Jones Private Equity Analyst shows that 26 VC funds raised about $3.5 billion during the three months that ended September 30—down about 51 percent from the same quarter last year. The findings nevertheless represented an improvement over the previous quarter, … Continue reading “Fundraising Tide Remains Low for Venture Capital Firms”

Paratek and Novartis Strike Antibiotic Deal

Paratek Pharmaceuticals, a Boston-based firm focused on treating infections that are immune to existing antibiotics, said it has struck an exclusive deal with Swiss drug giant Novartis for worldwide development and commercialization of its experimental aminomethylcycline antibiotic drug, classified as PTK 0796. The deal could bring as much as $485 million in initial fees and … Continue reading “Paratek and Novartis Strike Antibiotic Deal”

Reed Sturtevant Leaves Microsoft Startup Labs

Barely two years after he joined Microsoft here in Cambridge, MA, to launch its new Startup Labs, Reed Sturtevant is leaving the company to “pursue other interests,” Microsoft announced today. Sturtevant’s departure was part of a broader announcement that Ray Ozzie, to whom Sturtevant reported, had reorganized his group to create the new Future Social … Continue reading “Reed Sturtevant Leaves Microsoft Startup Labs”

The Boston Biotech Survival Index: Big Fish Still Swimming, Minnows Getting Eaten

New England has a deep pond with many of the very biggest fish in the global life sciences industry, but it also has its share of minnows, and they are getting eaten alive in the downturn. That finding leaped out at me after I scoured through financial data on 85 publicly traded life sciences companies … Continue reading “The Boston Biotech Survival Index: Big Fish Still Swimming, Minnows Getting Eaten”

$1.5M for LegiTime Technologies

LegiTime Technologies, a Farmington, CT-based developer of software that organizes and secures text messages on mobile phones, has raised $1.5 million in equity financing, according to an SEC filing. Company executives could not be immediately reached this morning. The regulatory filing does not identify the investors in the round, but the firm’s website says that … Continue reading “$1.5M for LegiTime Technologies”

“Not Your Father’s Route 128”: Jason Schupbach Promotes Massachusetts’ Creative Economy

In his 2006 run for the Massachusetts governor’s office, Deval Patrick campaigned on the need to make the most of the state’s “creative economy,” meaning industries such as advertising, architecture, design, digital media, film, gaming, marketing, music, publishing, tourism, and the arts. It’s a sector that employs at least 100,000 people in the state, and … Continue reading ““Not Your Father’s Route 128”: Jason Schupbach Promotes Massachusetts’ Creative Economy”

Bigtime Biotech Thinkers Steven Burrill and Gary Pisano Agree on Bright Future of Industry, Disagree on How to Build Value

Harvard Business School professor Gary Pisano is considered a leading scholar of biotech industry economics, and has developed a reputation for providing treatises on how biotech firms have been unable to generate profits throughout history. Steven Burrill gives his own critiques in his life sciences banking and investment firm Burrill & Company’s industry reports. These … Continue reading “Bigtime Biotech Thinkers Steven Burrill and Gary Pisano Agree on Bright Future of Industry, Disagree on How to Build Value”

Venture Model Makeover & Diet Plan—Step Two

The venture capital model is being remade. It must happen from the ground up, via its relationship with entrepreneurs, as Daphne Zohar has previously described here. But it must also happen from the top down, via its relationship with limited partners (the investors in venture funds). Limited partners in venture capital funds aren’t very happy … Continue reading “Venture Model Makeover & Diet Plan—Step Two”

MIT Plans New Online Publication About Entrepreneurship

MIT is planning to launch a student-led online publication focused on entrepreneurship by the end of the year, a leader of the effort tells Xconomy. The fledgling publication will be called the MIT Entrepreneurship Review (MITER) and will aim to serve as a resource for entrepreneurs and to raise the already high profile of the … Continue reading “MIT Plans New Online Publication About Entrepreneurship”

Legislators Hear Testimony on Non-Compete Restrictions

Today marked a milestone in the legislation relating to non-competes in Massachusetts. The Joint Committee on Labor and Workforce Development held its public hearing on two house bills that would attempt to redefine the rules governing “restrictive employee covenants and non-compete agreements.” This effort began in early January when Rep. William N. Brownsberger (24th Middlesex … Continue reading “Legislators Hear Testimony on Non-Compete Restrictions”

LegiTime Technologies Lands $1,500,000 New Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=b674bdbb-5cee-47b4-97f8-146db4912b1f&Preview=1 Date 10/8/2009 Company Name LegiTime Technologies Mailing Address 321 Main St Farmington, CT 06032 Company Description LegiTime licenses and integrates its Demonstration of Legitimacy (DOL) technology to secure electronic communications. The company has developed a unique security solution for the mobile communication and mobile commerce market, with a future product roadmap … Continue reading “LegiTime Technologies Lands $1,500,000 New Round”

BLI Messaging Receives Series B Financing

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=3206a9bc-0a3c-4fe6-95f5-019399316b60&Preview=1 Date 10/8/2009 Company Name BLI Messaging Mailing Address 125 Whipple Street Providence, RI 02908 Company Description The company provides mass email, voice, fax and SMS marketing solutions. Website http://www.blimessaging.com Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount Undisclosed Transaction Round Series B Proceeds Purposes The funding will be used to execute the company’s … Continue reading “BLI Messaging Receives Series B Financing”

Epizyme Snags $32M Round to Make Drugs Against Cancer and More

Epizyme, the Cambridge, MA-based biotech company developing drugs based on insights from epigenetics into how to turn specific genes on and off, said today it has raised $32 million in a Series B venture round. San Francisco-based Bay City Capital led the round, which included Amgen Ventures, Astellas Venture Partners and the company’s original investors, … Continue reading “Epizyme Snags $32M Round to Make Drugs Against Cancer and More”

Deshpande Center Awards 8 Grants

The Deshpande Center for Technological Innovation at MIT today announced the recipients of its Fall 2009 research grants. The funds, $600,000 in all, will go to eight teams working on early-stage projects the areas of composite materials, diagnostics, disease therapies, drug discovery, diabetes treatment, high power electronics, energy efficient displays, and sensors. Recipients include Vladimir … Continue reading “Deshpande Center Awards 8 Grants”

Xconomy Forum: Pharma’s Bet on Boston Innovation

It’s no secret: Big Pharma faces big challenges. The industry could lose tens of billions in sales to generics over the next five years as patented drugs lose protected status. Pharmaceutical firms are fighting back by pumping record dollars into R&D, yet companies only won FDA approval last year for 21 new drugs. To increase … Continue reading “Xconomy Forum: Pharma’s Bet on Boston Innovation”

Gomez Takes $295M Buyout Offer

It’s good to be Gomez. The Lexington, MA-based software firm has agreed to be purchased by Detroit’s Compuware (NASDAQ:[[ticker:CPWR]]) for $295 million in cash, the companies report today. Gomez, which provides performance-management software for Web and mobile applications, was already in registration for an $80.5 million IPO and had raised, according to PeHub, $66 million … Continue reading “Gomez Takes $295M Buyout Offer”

PermissionTV Reinvents Itself as VisibleGains, Offers Interactive Video for Sales and Marketing

Sometimes, you need to keep the diamond and replace the ring. That’s how Cliff Pollan, recruited in March to be president and CEO of Waltham, MA-based VisibleGains, describes the process his company has been through over the last six months. In this case, the company has kept its core technology, an interactive video engine that … Continue reading “PermissionTV Reinvents Itself as VisibleGains, Offers Interactive Video for Sales and Marketing”

Royalty-Based Venture Financing, Born in Boston, Could Shake Up VCs and Startups from New England to the Northwest

Every once in a while, an investment model comes along that turns the innovation community on its head. The venture capital industry, still less than 50 years old, is one example. Now an emerging paradigm called royalty-based financing, applied to early-stage startups, may be another. The approach has its roots in the Boston area, and … Continue reading “Royalty-Based Venture Financing, Born in Boston, Could Shake Up VCs and Startups from New England to the Northwest”

Alnylam Chief Foresees Another Gene-Silencing Spin-Off, and More News Tidbits from Boston’s MassBio Investors Forum

Alnylam Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:[[ticker:ALNY]]) had more than $470 million in the bank as of the last official count at the end of June, so it struck me as odd that the Cambridge, MA-based developer of gene-silencing drugs was a presenter along with dozens of cash-starved biotech startups at the MassBio Investors Forum in Boston yesterday. Alnylam … Continue reading “Alnylam Chief Foresees Another Gene-Silencing Spin-Off, and More News Tidbits from Boston’s MassBio Investors Forum”

As Legislators Ponder Non-Compete Agreements, A Look at Massachusetts’ Innovation History

This article was written with Geoff Mamlet. Today, some of our legislators will hold a hearing at the State House to discuss changes in Massachusetts’ non-compete laws. They would do well to heed our own past as an open employment state. In the mid-1780s, Samuel Slater was a young apprentice in England working for the … Continue reading “As Legislators Ponder Non-Compete Agreements, A Look at Massachusetts’ Innovation History”

Epizyme Receives $32,000,000 Series B Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=f4d32d67-b420-4ae2-9f3c-00fceb305f0f&Preview=1 Date 10/7/2009 Company Name Epizyme Mailing Address 840 Memorial Drive Cambridge, MA 02139 Company Description Epizyme is a biopharmaceutical company located in Cambridge, MA. Founded in late 2007, the company has brought together premier academic and industry leaders to rapidly translate the exciting discoveries emerging from epigenetic research into specific programs … Continue reading “Epizyme Receives $32,000,000 Series B Round”

Compuware Acquires Gomez for $295,000,000

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=9c09ddaa-b603-4ff1-9e8e-ccfbda8df5a5&Preview=1 Date 10/7/2009 Company Name Gomez Mailing Address 10 Maguire Road Lexington, MA 02421-3110 Company Description Gomez works with companies to increase profitability and eliminate the risks associated with failed or slow delivery of their mission-critical Internet applications. We provide actionable insights and process improvement techniques that enable customers to define, achieve, … Continue reading “Compuware Acquires Gomez for $295,000,000”

Genzyme Drug Fails to Win FDA Nod

The FDA turned down Genzyme’s application to market clofarabine (Clolar) for patients over age 60 with acute myeloid leukemia, saying the Cambridge, MA-based company should conduct another randomized, controlled clinical trial. The agency’s decision comes about a month after one of its advisory panels recommended the drug not be cleared for the new group of … Continue reading “Genzyme Drug Fails to Win FDA Nod”

Qteros Making Ethanol from Sewage

It’s petrol from poop: Marlborough, MA-based Qteros today unveiled a joint development agreement with Israeli commodities recycler Applied CleanTech under which the two companies are using Qteros’ modified microorganisms to turn Applied CleanTech’s “Recyllose” feedstock, which is made from the solid matter in municipal wastewater, into ethanol for vehicle fuel and other uses. The process … Continue reading “Qteros Making Ethanol from Sewage”

Abimab Snags $8.2M in Equity

Adimab, the Lebanon, NH-based developer of technology to quickly make antibody drugs, has raised $8.2 million in a venture round, according to a regulatory filing. Adimab collected the Series D financing from Google Ventures, SV Life Sciences, Polaris Venture Partners, OrbiMed Advisors, and Borealis Ventures, as Ryan reported last week before the dollar amount became … Continue reading “Abimab Snags $8.2M in Equity”

How Twitter Got an App Store: The Oneforty Story (Part 1)

“Ohh, Twitter needs an app store.” It was coming up on Christmas of 2008. Laura Fitton was writing a chapter on the top 10 applications for Twitter for her book Twitter for Dummies when the thought struck her like a tweet out of the blue. She jumped up from her office in Brighton, MA, and … Continue reading “How Twitter Got an App Store: The Oneforty Story (Part 1)”

Springpad Relaunches Personal Organizer, Adds Wine Library’s Vaynerchuk

Charlestown, MA-based Spring Partners announced today that it has relaunched Springpad, its online personal organizer, to include a number of new features that help users find, personalize, and share content. For example, Springpad now comes with a “Web clipper” tool that makes it easier for users to add material discovered at websites, such as restaurant … Continue reading “Springpad Relaunches Personal Organizer, Adds Wine Library’s Vaynerchuk”

Dart Boston: The Hub’s New Hub for Twenty-Something Entrepreneurs

Apparently, social media services like Facebook and Twitter aren’t everything they’re cracked up to be, even for the twenty-somethings who are supposedly their most devoted users. Here in Boston, there’s a new group for young startup types who prefer to talk about their entrepreneurial ambitions in person at actual bars, of all places. It’s called … Continue reading “Dart Boston: The Hub’s New Hub for Twenty-Something Entrepreneurs”

Allurent Names New CEO As Co-Founder Chung Moves Upstairs

Allurent co-founder Joe Chung today stepped down (or rather up to executive chairman) as CEO of the online shopping interface and e-commerce company, Xconomy has learned. Graeme Grant, formerly the chief operating officer, has been named to take his place at the helm of the Cambridge, MA-based company. Reached by phone, Chung, an Xconomist, confirmed … Continue reading “Allurent Names New CEO As Co-Founder Chung Moves Upstairs”

Nuance Buys eCopy

Burlington, MA-based Nuance Communications (NASDAQ: [[ticker:NUAN]]) said today it has purchased image scanning and indexing company eCopy of Nashua, NH, for $54 million in Nuance stock. ECopy’s software for touchscreen-driven multifunction printers (MFPs) helps companies scan business documents and easily incorporate them into accounting and records systems. “Nuance and eCopy share a vision of connecting … Continue reading “Nuance Buys eCopy”

2009 MITX Interactive Awards

The Massachusetts Innovation and Technology Exchange hosts its 14th annual Interactive Awards ceremony, honoring the most innovative New England-area companies and projects in categories such as Applied Technology, Biotechnology/Pharmaceuticals, Consumer Goods, Education and Learning, Financial Services, Games and Entertainment, News, Rich Internet Application, Social Influence Applications, and Technology. Event details here and here.

Group from Atlas Venture, General Catalyst Form Non-Profit to Promote Youth Entrepreneurship and Social Innovation

For the past three years, Jeff Fagnan of Atlas Venture and Hemant Taneja of General Catalyst Partners have teamed up to hold a charity wine tasting and auction event to raise money for select non-profit groups. This year, the pair tell me, they are going themselves one better—setting up their own organization to more directly … Continue reading “Group from Atlas Venture, General Catalyst Form Non-Profit to Promote Youth Entrepreneurship and Social Innovation”

Vivox Opens Facebook Voice Chat

Natick, MA-based Vivox said today that it’s opening its new “Vivox Web Voice for Facebook” service to all Facebook members. The application—which allows Facebook users to set up free voice chat rooms and invite their friends to participate from within Facebook—is one of the first creations of Vivox Labs, a new R&D arm of the … Continue reading “Vivox Opens Facebook Voice Chat”

Revolutionary Angels Launches Pay-to-Play Business Plan Competition

Depending on who you talk to, you get conflicting views about where real innovation and growth come from in today’s economy. One school, well represented at the established venture capital firms on Winter Street in Waltham or Sand Hill Road in Palo Alto, says that there are only a few truly disruptive technology ideas in … Continue reading “Revolutionary Angels Launches Pay-to-Play Business Plan Competition”

Making Science Cool: Inspiring Students and Giving Society Something to Celebrate

Just a few days before we kicked off the month-long San Diego Science Festival in March, I wrote a post for the Xconomist Forum that concluded, “if we mean to achieve the essential goal of reviving American Science, the San Diego Science Festival is poised to provide an important start.” It proved to be a … Continue reading “Making Science Cool: Inspiring Students and Giving Society Something to Celebrate”

“Don’t Touch My Bags If You Please, Mr. Customs Man”

Imagine the following scenario for a minute: A middle-aged man books a round trip ticket from San Francisco to Shanghai. His reservation indicates this will be a short trip; he is going to be in China less than one full day. Upon arrival at the airport in Shanghai, the immigration control officer asks him “What … Continue reading ““Don’t Touch My Bags If You Please, Mr. Customs Man””

Ironwood Recruits Genentech, Facebook Star as Company Knocks on Wall Street Doors

Personnel moves usually make for boring news, but sometimes they carry deeper meaning. I couldn’t help but wonder about the deeper meaning when Cambridge, MA-based Ironwood Pharmaceuticals said last month it had recruited David Ebersman, the former chief financial officer of Genentech, to join its board. Ebersman, a boyish-looking guy just 39, took the chief … Continue reading “Ironwood Recruits Genentech, Facebook Star as Company Knocks on Wall Street Doors”

NanoViricides Lands $4,300,000 New Financing

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=22847dae-7359-4bfe-9f0a-5ad92903f26e&Preview=1 Date 10/5/2009 Company Name NanoViricides Mailing Address 135 Wood Street West Haven, CT 06516 Company Description We have assembled a world class team to lead us to success. We have brought together highly experienced individuals with strong expertise in their respective areas. Our team possesses the combined expertise of having performed … Continue reading “NanoViricides Lands $4,300,000 New Financing”

A123Systems IPO Could Bring $10M-Plus Windfall for Boston University, Sources Say. (MIT’s Stake Likely Not Too Shabby, Either.)

In early 2002, a little startup named A123Systems was looking for a place to, well, start up. Even though the company had been formed to commercialize technology invented at MIT, the lithium-ion battery developer found just the space it needed across the river at Boston University, inside what’s now called the Photonics Center Incubator. The … Continue reading “A123Systems IPO Could Bring $10M-Plus Windfall for Boston University, Sources Say. (MIT’s Stake Likely Not Too Shabby, Either.)”