Category: Boston

Spineology Inc. Obtains $7,500,000 New Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=c7c3110d-66d3-431f-98d5-91f298b3ad8b&Preview=1 Date 7/15/2008 Company Name Spineology Inc. Mailing Address 7200 Hudson Boulevard North St. Paul, ME 55128-7055 Company Description Spineology was founded in 1996 by Dr. Stephen Kuslich. Dr. Kuslich was a pioneer in minimally invasive spine surgery, being one of the first in the U.S. to use the operating microscope. During … Continue reading “Spineology Inc. Obtains $7,500,000 New Round”

Collegium Pharmaceutical, Inc. Lands $20,000,000 Series D Funding Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=6f5d478e-63ac-42c4-9e7b-a9c9ffaec05e&Preview=1 Date 7/15/2008 Company Name Collegium Pharmaceutical, Inc. Mailing Address 400 Highland Corporate Drive Cumberland, RI 02864 Company Description Collegium Pharmaceutical is dedicated to the development of proprietary, late stage pharmaceutical products that add market value and clinical benefit to existing drugs. We apply customized pharmaceutical formulations and intellectual property (IP) strategies … Continue reading “Collegium Pharmaceutical, Inc. Lands $20,000,000 Series D Funding Round”

Dicerna Pharmaceuticals Garners $8,400,000 Series A Funding

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=7cc4b138-0131-42dd-a220-b548acdfd631&Preview=1 Date 7/15/2008 Company Name Dicerna Pharmaceuticals Mailing Address 15 Peterson Circle Sudbury, MA 01776 Company Description Dicerna Pharmaceuticals is a venture-backed startup developing novel therapeutics in multiple therapeutic areas based on Dicer substrate technology, which makes use of the RNA interference mechanism. Website http://www.dicerna.com Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount $8,400,000 … Continue reading “Dicerna Pharmaceuticals Garners $8,400,000 Series A Funding”

Infinity Pharmaceuticals Pulls Plug on Treatment for Prostate Cancer

Infinity Pharmaceuticals, the Cambridge, MA-based developer of cancer drugs, said today it has halted enrollment in a mid-stage study of IPI-504 for patients with prostate cancer, after it didn’t see evidence the drug was working. The treatment, being developed in partnership with AstraZeneca, will continue to be tested against non-small cell lung cancer and gastrointestinal … Continue reading “Infinity Pharmaceuticals Pulls Plug on Treatment for Prostate Cancer”

With New $9.5 Million Funding Round, ThingMagic Gets a Fix on Smaller RFID Readers

The RFID business is getting hot again. A few weeks ago, Waltham, MA-based RFID software maker OATSystems was gobbled up by New Jersey’s Checkpoint Systems, and last week Greg reported that Seattle-based Impinj had sold off its memory business and bought Intel’s RFID division. Now Cambridge, MA-based ThingMagic, an MIT spinoff that makes hardware for … Continue reading “With New $9.5 Million Funding Round, ThingMagic Gets a Fix on Smaller RFID Readers”

NeoSaej Collects $7 Million More for MoneyAisle

MoneyAisle.com, a reverse-auction site where lenders compete to offer potential banking customers the highest rates for certificates of deposit and high-yield savings accounts, is getting a big boost from the financial industry itself. NeoSaej, the Burlington, MA-based company behind MoneyAisle (profiled here last month), said today that it has raised over $7 million in new … Continue reading “NeoSaej Collects $7 Million More for MoneyAisle”

Skyhook Launches in Europe

Boston-based Skyhook Wireless, which makes embedded location-finding software for a range of devices from mobile phones to digital camera memory cards, said today that it has launched sales and operations efforts in Europe. It will make its formal European debut at a Mobile Monday London gathering tonight, and it’s already working with companies like UK-based … Continue reading “Skyhook Launches in Europe”

InnovationRx Launches

Newton, MA-based InnovationRx, a medication reminder service that we profiled on June 24, has officially opened its doors to patients. The service, organized with Northeastern University’s School of Pharmacy, lets patients upload lists of their medications, then helps them create a customized plan for taking and refilling their prescription drugs on time—in part via e-mail, … Continue reading “InnovationRx Launches”

GT Solar Sees Brighter IPO Skies; Pfizer, Merck, and Eli Lilly Back Boston Startup; GSI Group Beams out $360M for Excel Technology & More Deals News

Last week must have been a good one, because I’ve got more than $100 million worth of venture financings, along with a couple of other deals, to tell you about. —Merrimack, NH-based GT Solar expanded its 15-month-old IPO plans. Originally targeting a $200 million offering, the manufacturer of solar-cell-making equipment is now aiming for an … Continue reading “GT Solar Sees Brighter IPO Skies; Pfizer, Merck, and Eli Lilly Back Boston Startup; GSI Group Beams out $360M for Excel Technology & More Deals News”

Sand 9 Shrinks Electronic Clocks, Expands with $8 Million Round

Two local venture firms, Flybridge Capital Parners and General Catalyst Partners, have joined forces with Khosla Ventures of Menlo Park, CA, and invested in Boston University spin-off Sand 9, a start-up founded in 2006 to develop “nano-mechanical resonators” for wireless devices. Flybridge led the $8 Million A series round. A resonator can be regarded as … Continue reading “Sand 9 Shrinks Electronic Clocks, Expands with $8 Million Round”

Sand 9, Inc. Receives $8,000,000 Series A Funding Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=127ecfd7-89bd-477b-ae56-4fb25c3970b6&Preview=1 Date 7/14/2008 Company Name Sand 9, Inc. Mailing Address 8 St. Mary’s Street, Room 628 Boston, MA 02215 Company Description Sand 9, Inc. is a venture funded startup company, dedicated to the design of Radio Frequency components that will dramatically improve the performance and increase the capabilities of wireless devices. Our … Continue reading “Sand 9, Inc. Receives $8,000,000 Series A Funding Round”

NeoSaej Corporation Secures $7,000,000 New Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=60ceef4c-d17d-4994-827e-51754cb85f65&Preview=1 Date 7/14/2008 Company Name NeoSaej Corporation Mailing Address 77 South Bedford Street Burlington, MA 01803 Company Description The company is conveniently located in Burlington, Massachusetts, and our mission is to be a leader in the e-commerce software space. NeoSaej’s innovative architecture, among other things, enables unique and disruptive technologies to address … Continue reading “NeoSaej Corporation Secures $7,000,000 New Round”

ThingMagic Inc. Secures $9,500,000 New Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=4d31e12c-173e-4bf9-aef2-d8663dc9bfa3&Preview=1 Date 7/14/2008 Company Name ThingMagic Inc. Mailing Address One Broadway, 5th Floor Cambridge, MA 02142 Company Description ThingMagic is a privately held company headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts, specializing in RFID (radio frequency identification) readers, sensors, and other embedded and low cost computing technologies. Website http://www.thingmagic.com Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount … Continue reading “ThingMagic Inc. Secures $9,500,000 New Round”

Alnylam Loses RNAi Patent in Europe; Analyst Says No Worries

Alnylam Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: [[ticker:ALNY]]) isn’t used to losing patent cases, but it happened yesterday in Europe to one of the company’s RNA interference patents, known as Glover. The company said it plans to appeal. What does it all mean to the Cambridge, MA-based company and its quest to develop new drugs through the gene silencing … Continue reading “Alnylam Loses RNAi Patent in Europe; Analyst Says No Worries”

Venrock, Panorama Lead $7 Million Round for Shopflick

Los Angeles-based Shopflick, creator of a platform for Web-based video product tours and advertisements, announced today that it has raised a $7 million Series A venture round. The round was led by Menlo Park, CA-based Panaroma Capital and Venrock, which has offices in New ork, Menlo Park, CA, and Cambridge MA.

Momenta Gets Some Mojo As FDA Agrees To Review Application of Generic MS Drug

Shares of Cambridge, MA-based Momenta Pharmaceuticals rose more than 11 percent today after the FDA agreed to review an application filed by its partner, Sandoz, to sell a generic version of Copaxone, a billion-dollar drug for multiple sclerosis. Momenta, (NASDAQ: [[ticker:MNTA]]) doesn’t have any marketed products of its own. So, naturally, the application to market … Continue reading “Momenta Gets Some Mojo As FDA Agrees To Review Application of Generic MS Drug”

You’re Listening to Radio Lab—Or You Should Be

I drove from Boston to northern Michigan last weekend to hang out with my parents over the 4th of July. It’s a 15-hour trek—plus another two or three hours if you forget your passport and you have to go south around Lake Erie instead of straight through Canada. But I didn’t mind the drive, because … Continue reading “You’re Listening to Radio Lab—Or You Should Be”

Spilling the Beans at the Taqueria

When I visited Palo Alto earlier this year, an attorney at a big law firm specializing in intellectual property told me about a mythical eatery in Silicon Valley—Mountain View’s Taqueria La Bamba. At lunchtime, a mix of suits and engineers line up outside the small Tex-Mex restaurant. According to the story, while they are waiting … Continue reading “Spilling the Beans at the Taqueria”

Courion Automates Computer Access To Keep Data Where It’s Supposed to Be

January, 2008: French bank Societe Generale discloses that it has lost $7.1 billion, thanks to unauthorized trading by a single employee, Jerome Kerviel, who apparently breached various controls on access to the bank’s computer systems. March, 2008: UCLA Medical Center fires 13 workers and disciplines a dozen others for snooping in the confidential medical files … Continue reading “Courion Automates Computer Access To Keep Data Where It’s Supposed to Be”

EO University Boston

The Entrepreneurs’ Organization’s EO University Boston is about Revolutionary Ideas. The packed agenda includes speakers as diverse as Bill Aulet, Senior Lecturer at MIT’s Sloan School of Management, and Jim Craig, the goalie for the U.S. Miracle on Ice Olympic Hockey Team. Scheduled events range from offsite Learning programs to breakout sessions on business strategies … Continue reading “EO University Boston”

North Shore Web Geeks

From their web site: North Shore Web Geeks is a monthly meetup for web folks north of Boston, MA…. about all things web, from Facebook to standards compliance, startups to Apple and everything in between. Our meetups attract all sorts of people from the web community including developers, designers, managers, SEO specialists, agency folk, freelancers, … Continue reading “North Shore Web Geeks”

Tech Cocktail Boston 2

Xconomy attended Tech Cocktail Boston 1 back in September and came away with ringing ears and a collection of business cards. Sign up early—the last one had a waiting list. More information and signup here.

Apple Launches iPhone App Store Ahead of Schedule; Boston and Seattle Startups Featured

Apple had promised to unveil the new App Store section of iTunes—where, for the first time, iPhone and iPod Touch owners will be able to get third-party applications for their devices—on July 11, the same day that the new iPhone 3G goes on sale. But in a typical bit of Apple surprise marketing, the App … Continue reading “Apple Launches iPhone App Store Ahead of Schedule; Boston and Seattle Startups Featured”

From Rags to Riches—Money-Paper Maker Crane Accepts First Investment

Could anything be a more secure investment than buying into the very paper that dollars and a bunch of other currencies are printed on? The over-200-year-old Crane & Co paper mill in Dalton, MA, has manufactured paper for U.S. dollar bills since 1879. Up until now, the company has been family-owned. But in order to … Continue reading “From Rags to Riches—Money-Paper Maker Crane Accepts First Investment”

Aspect Acquires BlueNote Networks

Chelmsford, MA-based Aspect Software, which makes call center equipment and software, said yesterday that it has bought most of the assets of BlueNote Networks, a Tewksbury, MA, company with technology that helps companies integrate Internet-based communications into their existing business software. Aspect CEO Jim Foy said the acquisition would help Aspect’s customers treat their call … Continue reading “Aspect Acquires BlueNote Networks”

Spire Aspires to Greater Things with $9 Million Infusion

Spire.com, the Boston-based social networking site for the affluent—not be confused with Bedford, MA-based photovoltaic equipment maker Spire Corporation—said this week that it has raised $9 million in Series A venture financing, in a round led by Hearst Interactive Media, Trident Capital, TL Ventures and private investors. The company, whose network is aimed at high-net-worth … Continue reading “Spire Aspires to Greater Things with $9 Million Infusion”

MIT and Harvard Profs Team with BlackBerry Lawsuit Lawyers in Patent Suit Against Affymetrix—Could MIT Get Caught in the Middle?

It’s an impressive and even intimidating group. Two world-renowned professors, one from MIT, the other from Harvard Medical School; MIT itself; and the lawyers who won a $612 million settlement from Research in Motion, the Blackberry folks. They’ve joined forces in a patent lawsuit, filed without fanfare last week in federal court, against one of … Continue reading “MIT and Harvard Profs Team with BlackBerry Lawsuit Lawyers in Patent Suit Against Affymetrix—Could MIT Get Caught in the Middle?”

Big Drugmakers Pool Resources, Creating New Company Built to Improve R&D

Three of the world’s biggest drugmakers can agree on this—the research and development model for creating new drugs needs a serious kick in the rear. Pfizer, Merck, and Eli Lilly, through a collaboration hatched by Boston-based PureTech Ventures, have agreed to put $39 million into a new Boston company called Enlight Biosciences, whose job will … Continue reading “Big Drugmakers Pool Resources, Creating New Company Built to Improve R&D”

MIT-Supported Energy Institute at Center of Abu Dhabi’s Dream City

During the last academic year, the entire faculty of a brand new university has enrolled at MIT, immersing themselves in the institute’s culture, values, and way of doing research. They are the staff of the Masdar Institute of Science and Technology in Abu Dhabi, which will admit its first post-graduate students in 2009. The institute … Continue reading “MIT-Supported Energy Institute at Center of Abu Dhabi’s Dream City”

Aspect Software Acquires BlueNote Networks for Undisclosed Sum

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=a746c382-3c61-4faf-85f4-e32906a55f37&Preview=1 Date 7/10/2008 Company Name BlueNote Networks Mailing Address 3 Highwood Drive Tewksbury, MA 01876 Company Description BlueNote Networks is pioneering the collision of real-time interactive communications with service oriented architectures (SOA) by delivering the first enterprise-class interactive communication platform. Website http://www.bluenotenetworks.com Transaction Type M&A Transaction Amount Undisclosed Transaction Round Proceeds Purposes … Continue reading “Aspect Software Acquires BlueNote Networks for Undisclosed Sum”

DimDim Raises $6 Million

DimDim, a Boston startup that has created a free, open-source, Web-based multimedia conferencing system as an alternative to paid services such as WebEx, said today that it has raised $6 million in Series B venture financing. Existing investors Index Ventures, Nexus India Capital, and Draper Richards led the round, which expands on a $2.4 million … Continue reading “DimDim Raises $6 Million”

MIT Enterprise Forum Names Richard Kivel as New Global Chair

The MIT Enterprise Forum, a networking organization for entrepreneurs, said today that Richard Kivel has been named as chairman of its global board of directors. Kivel, a member of the Enterprise Forum’s board since 2006, is the CEO of TheraGenetics, a personalized medicine company based in London. He replaces Joe Hadzima, managing director of Main … Continue reading “MIT Enterprise Forum Names Richard Kivel as New Global Chair”

The Camera is Watching You: VideoIQ Puts Smarts into Surveillance

Even before events like 9/11, the Madrid train bombings, and the London Underground bombings, governments and corporations were busy blanketing outdoor and indoor spaces with networked cameras, reasoning that video surveillance can help security professionals spot criminal activity in progress, or at least get it on tape. But there’s one big problem with the blanket … Continue reading “The Camera is Watching You: VideoIQ Puts Smarts into Surveillance”

A Tribute to Alex d’Arbeloff, Boston Innovator and Visionary

I was very sad to learn that Alex d’Arbeloff, one of the towering figures of New England innovation, passed away yesterday at the age of 80. In 1960, d’Arbeloff founded Teradyne with Nick DeWolf, a classmate from MIT. Working initially in a rented space above a downtown Boston hot dog stand, d’Arbeloff helped build the … Continue reading “A Tribute to Alex d’Arbeloff, Boston Innovator and Visionary”

Look Who’s Coming to the Investment Dinner—Diversity Increasing in Venture Capital, But Barely

The typical venture capital investor is still a white, middle-aged man. But the picture might be changing, albeit at a slow pace, according to a report released yesterday by Dow Jones and the National Venture Capital Association. In fact, the report notes, the percentage of VCs with ethnic backgrounds other than Caucasian is already slightly … Continue reading “Look Who’s Coming to the Investment Dinner—Diversity Increasing in Venture Capital, But Barely”

Genocea Teams With Nonprofit PATH on Vaccine for Children in Developing World

Genocea Biosciences is aiming to upstage the best-selling vaccine ever. The Cambridge, MA-based biotech startup, through funding from Seattle-based PATH, a nonprofit that supports global health technologies, has started pursuing a next-generation pneumococcus vaccine that may offer broader protection to infants in the developing world than Prevnar, a vaccine made by drug giant Wyeth, and … Continue reading “Genocea Teams With Nonprofit PATH on Vaccine for Children in Developing World”

Boston Scientific Wins Stent Approval, Resolvyx Moves Closer to Fish-Oil Drug Trials, Codon Cuts Algae Fuel Deal, & More Life Sciences News

One of the things I find most interesting about New England life sciences firms is the diversity of the technologies they are commercializing. This week’s news from the sector illustrates that nicely. —Boston Scientific (NYSE: [[ticker:BSX]]) won FDA approval for a new type of drug-coated artery-propping stent. The device, called Promus, is manufactured by Abbott … Continue reading “Boston Scientific Wins Stent Approval, Resolvyx Moves Closer to Fish-Oil Drug Trials, Codon Cuts Algae Fuel Deal, & More Life Sciences News”

Ceradyne Acquires SemEquip Inc. for $25,000,000

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=992e2cc1-21a2-48e5-b659-c488a8dad55a&Preview=1 Date 7/9/2008 Company Name SemEquip Inc. Mailing Address 34 Sullivan Road North Billerica, MA 01862-2000 Company Description SemEquip, Inc. is a technology leader in the development of ion implantation systems and advanced ion source materials for the manufacture of logic and memory chips. SemEquip’s technologies enable the utilization of cluster beam … Continue reading “Ceradyne Acquires SemEquip Inc. for $25,000,000”

Rising Above the Virtualization Drumbeat

TiE-Boston’s Software SIG sponsors an evening debate on the potential and pitfalls of virtualization. From the event website: “Network World rates Virtualization as the hottest technology for 2008. Even after the recent market collapse, VMWare boasts a market cap of $25B with projected 2008 sales of $2B. Citrix acquired XenSource last year for over $500M … Continue reading “Rising Above the Virtualization Drumbeat”

Highland Backs Custom Jewelry Maker

Boston-based Paragon Lake, a two-year-old customized jewelry maker that emerged from the Summer@Highland incubator program at Lexington, MA-based Highland Capital Partners, said today that it has raised $5.8 million in Series A funding from Highland and Westport, CT-based Canaan Partners. The startup’s Web-based platform helps jewelers create CAD specifications for custom rings, earrings, and pendants … Continue reading “Highland Backs Custom Jewelry Maker”

Fidelity Biosciences and Flagship Ventures Back Maker of Smaller, Cheaper Cell Analysis Machines

Accuri Cytometers sees the day coming when every biomedical research lab has a flow cytometer—a high-speed cell analyzer—as a basic tool, alongside microscopes and petri dishes. The company took a step toward its goal today, raising $13 million in a third-round venture financing led by a pair of Cambridge, MA-based venture firms, Fidelity Biosciences and … Continue reading “Fidelity Biosciences and Flagship Ventures Back Maker of Smaller, Cheaper Cell Analysis Machines”

EMC Cloud Chief Takes CEO Reins at VMware; Investors Spooked

In a surprise announcement this morning, Palo Alto, CA-based virtualization software maker VMware (NYSE: [[ticker:VMW]]) said that president and CEO Diane Greene has stepped down, and that Paul Maritz, formerly the director of the nascent cloud computing division at VMware’s parent company, Hopkinton, MA-based EMC (NYSE: [[ticker:EMC]]), has been appointed to replace her. The company … Continue reading “EMC Cloud Chief Takes CEO Reins at VMware; Investors Spooked”

Codon Signs Partnership to Develop Biofuels From Algae

Codon Devices, the Cambridge, MA-based company working on commercial uses of synthetic biology, said today it has formed a multi-year partnership with Naples, FL-based Algenol Biofuels to work on alternative fuel made from algae. Codon will offer its BioLogic protein engineering techniques to the collaboration, which it has begun emphasizing as part of a new … Continue reading “Codon Signs Partnership to Develop Biofuels From Algae”

Private Equity Fundraising Dipped in Year’s First Half, But Still Strong: Venture and Mezzanine Segments Rise

Despite a near complete shutdown of the IPO market, U.S. private equity fundraising remained reasonably strong throughout the first half of this year—185 funds brought in $133 billion, coming in just under last year’s record pace, according to a new report from Dow Jones Private Equity Analyst. The venture capital segment performed particularly well, with … Continue reading “Private Equity Fundraising Dipped in Year’s First Half, But Still Strong: Venture and Mezzanine Segments Rise”

Perhaps Seeing a Crack in the IPO Clouds, GT Solar Expands its Offering

GT Solar has evidently spied a few rays of sunshine on the overcast IPO market. In a filing with the SEC yesterday, the Merrimack, NH, maker of equipment for producing photovoltaic solar cells dusted off—and expanded—15-month-old plans to go public. The company now plans to offer 30.3 million shares of common stock at a price … Continue reading “Perhaps Seeing a Crack in the IPO Clouds, GT Solar Expands its Offering”

Spire Company Associates, Inc. Obtains $9,000,000 Series A Financing Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=fb6360db-e395-408c-aef5-820cd71808f4&Preview=1 Date 7/8/2008 Company Name Spire Company Associates, Inc. Mailing Address 300 Summer Street Boston, MA 02210 Company Description The company develops lifestyle websites and provides related services. Website http://www.spire.com Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount $9,000,000 Transaction Round Series A Proceeds Purposes Funds will be used as working capital to support … Continue reading “Spire Company Associates, Inc. Obtains $9,000,000 Series A Financing Round”

Agios, Developer of Drugs That Starve Cancer Cells, Scarfs Up $33 Million in Venture Funds

Agios Pharmaceuticals has made some noise coming out of the holiday weekend. The Boston-area company, a developer of new drugs that starve cancer cells of essential nutrients, has snagged $33 million in an initial round of venture capital from Third Rock Ventures, Flagship Ventures, and Arch Venture Partners. Agios plans to take advantage of new … Continue reading “Agios, Developer of Drugs That Starve Cancer Cells, Scarfs Up $33 Million in Venture Funds”