President Donald Trump, who has had a rocky relationship with tech companies during his short administration so far, announced an education initiative Monday that apparently met with their approval. In a White House ceremony, Trump directed his education secretary to allocate at least $200 million a year to fund student access to coursework in science, … Continue reading “Trump Orders Up $200M a Year for STEM, Coding Education”
Category: Boston
Amid Cash Crunch, Genocea to Dump Herpes Vaccine, Focus on Cancer Work
Genocea Biosciences was able to go from startup to publicly traded company, in part, because of the early progress it made developing an experimental vaccine for genital herpes. Yet the Cambridge, MA, company couldn’t get the financial help to take that vaccine, GEN-003, through its final test. Instead it has shifted gears and will try … Continue reading “Amid Cash Crunch, Genocea to Dump Herpes Vaccine, Focus on Cancer Work”
MassTLC’s TRANSFORM
From the event organizer: “TRANSFORM is a who’s who get together exposing industry leaders, policy makers, and academia to the broadest, biggest ideas happening in the world around us today and its impact – both good and bad – on us as individuals, our companies, and our workforce.” For questions, please contact [email protected].
Sarepta Therapeutics Names Basi Chief Scientific Officer
Sarepta Therapeutics (NASDAQ: [[ticker:SRPT]]) has a new chief scientific officer. Guriqbal Basi has been appointed to the post, where he will oversee the Cambridge, MA, company’s rare disease drug pipeline. Basi’s 30 years of pharmaceutical industry experience includes several leadership roles at the former Ireland-based drug company Elan, now part of Perrigo (NYSE: [[ticker:PRGO]]).
Third Rock’s Barbara Weber Appointed CEO of Tango Therapeutics
Barbara Weber, the Third Rock Ventures partner who has been serving as interim CEO of Tango Therapeutics, is now formally the company’s chief executive. Weber will also continue as a partner at Third Rock, the venture capital firm that incubated the cancer drug developer. Cambridge, MA-based Tango spun out of Third Rock in March, backed … Continue reading “Third Rock’s Barbara Weber Appointed CEO of Tango Therapeutics”
Xconomy Q&A: Todd Schulte of Tech Immigration Advocacy Org FWD.us
[Updated 9/25/17, 1:55 p.m. Clarified 9/27/17, 10:01 a.m. See below.] Immigration policy has always been important to the tech industry, but this year is different. Under a steady barrage of nationalist, anti-immigrant policies promulgated by the Trump administration, the tech industry has been forced to respond like never before, in the halls of Congress, the … Continue reading “Xconomy Q&A: Todd Schulte of Tech Immigration Advocacy Org FWD.us”
Tech Execs on the Move: Dell EMC, General Catalyst, Imprivata & More
Here are some of the latest notable hires and departures in the Boston-area tech scene: —Imprivata chief technology officer David Ting has left the healthcare IT security software company, Xconomy has learned. Ting co-founded the Lexington, MA-based company over a decade ago. Imprivata went public in 2014, then agreed to be acquired last year by … Continue reading “Tech Execs on the Move: Dell EMC, General Catalyst, Imprivata & More”
Low-Hanging Fruit Gone, Ag & Food Tech Investors Pay More for Deals
[Updated 9/25/17, 5:18 pm. See below.] Food delivery startups are catching on with more consumers, and that demand is whetting investor appetites. The $400 million that grocery delivery startup Instacart raised in March marked the largest deal for a U.S. food technology company in the first half of the year, according to new data from … Continue reading “Low-Hanging Fruit Gone, Ag & Food Tech Investors Pay More for Deals”
SpringWorks Spins Out of Pfizer With $103M to Give Shelved Drugs New Life
Pfizer is testing out a new biotech experiment this morning. It has taken four drug compounds gathering dust on its shelves, and funneled them into a new startup, SpringWorks Therapeutics, that will try to develop them for diseases that don’t fit the hulking New York pharma giant’s core strategy. This isn’t a small experiment. SpringWorks, … Continue reading “SpringWorks Spins Out of Pfizer With $103M to Give Shelved Drugs New Life”
Boston Tech Watch: Autodesk, HubSpot, ViralGains, MLK Memorial & More
This week in Boston tech, we’ve been tracking another HubSpot artificial intelligence acquisition, investments in advertising and marketing technology startups, the acquisition of a nearly century-old local tech company, and a local entrepreneur’s effort to help build a memorial to Martin Luther King, Jr., in Boston. Read on for details. —HubSpot acquired Chicago-based Motion AI, … Continue reading “Boston Tech Watch: Autodesk, HubSpot, ViralGains, MLK Memorial & More”
Pfizer, Veritas, MGH Join Xconomy’s Healthcare + A.I. Conference on Nov. 2
Like a lot of fields, healthcare is riding the A.I. wave. We’re hearing about machine learning and other artificial intelligence techniques being applied to genomic analysis, drug discovery, imaging and diagnostics, patient-doctor interactions, and other clinical tasks. But there’s a lot of hype and challenges to go along with it. On November 2, Xconomy is … Continue reading “Pfizer, Veritas, MGH Join Xconomy’s Healthcare + A.I. Conference on Nov. 2”
Bio Roundup: RNAi’s Big Day, CAR-T For Kids, Drugs From Fungi & More
It’s been a year of biomedical milestones in the U.S., including the first approval of a CAR-T cellular immunotherapy, the first smartphone app to treat substance abuse, and the first approval of a cancer drug based on genetic signature instead of the tumor’s organ of origin. Add to the list the first successful Phase 3 … Continue reading “Bio Roundup: RNAi’s Big Day, CAR-T For Kids, Drugs From Fungi & More”
Nathan Myhrvold: The Full Xconomy Voices Interview
Episode 3 of our new podcast, Xconomy Voices, features a conversation about nuclear power with Nathan Myhrvold, the founder and CEO of Intellectual Ventures. The former Microsoft chief technology officer is now vice chairman of TerraPower, a Bellevue, WA-based spinout of Intellectual Ventures that aims to revive commercial nuclear energy. The company is researching next-generation … Continue reading “Nathan Myhrvold: The Full Xconomy Voices Interview”
CloudHealth Names Axbey CEO as Enterprise Cloud Spending Accelerates
Fresh off raising a $46 million venture funding round, CloudHealth Technologies is embarking on its next chapter under new leadership. On Thursday, the Boston-based IT management firm named Tom Axbey as its new president and CEO. Axbey previously led Rave Mobile Safety, a Framingham, MA-based company whose software is used to communicate and share data … Continue reading “CloudHealth Names Axbey CEO as Enterprise Cloud Spending Accelerates”
As CarGurus Preps IPO, These 6 Boston Tech Firms Could Be Next
Some predicted the U.S. tech IPO window would open wider this year, but it’s still just a slit. Only 14 tech companies have held initial public offerings in the U.S. this year, Bloomberg reported this week. (Notable IPOs include Snap, Blue Apron, and Redfin.) That follows 19 U.S.-listed tech IPOs last year and 28 in … Continue reading “As CarGurus Preps IPO, These 6 Boston Tech Firms Could Be Next”
Xconomy Voices, Episode 3: Nathan Myhrvold and TerraPower
We’re pleased to bring you the third episode of Xconomy Voices, our new podcast featuring conversations with entrepreneurs, innovators, and investors from Xconomy’s home cities and regions. This week our guest is Nathan Myhrvold, the former Microsoft chief technology officer who, since 2000, has headed Intellectual Ventures, a Bellevue, WA-based firm that buys, develops, and … Continue reading “Xconomy Voices, Episode 3: Nathan Myhrvold and TerraPower”
Landos Joins Garabedian’s Bio Startup Accelerator Xontogeny, Gets $10M
Xontogeny, the Boston-based biotech startup accelerator formed by one-time Sarepta Therapeutics CEO Chris Garabedian, has taken on its first company. The firm has helped secure a $10 million investment for a Blacksburg, VA, startup, Landos Biopharma, that is developing drugs for inflammatory bowel disease. New York life sciences investment firm Perceptive Advisors is the sole … Continue reading “Landos Joins Garabedian’s Bio Startup Accelerator Xontogeny, Gets $10M”
Humatics, $18M Richer, Aims to Equip Robots with Microlocation Tech
A Boston-area robotics firm is starting to make its first big moves. Cambridge, MA-based “microlocation” startup Humatics announced this week it has completed an $18 million Series A funding round. Detroit-based Fontinalis Partners led the investment, with participation from Airbus Ventures, Lockheed Martin Ventures, Intact Ventures, Tectonic Ventures, Presidio Ventures, Blue Ivy Ventures, and others. … Continue reading “Humatics, $18M Richer, Aims to Equip Robots with Microlocation Tech”
Last Chance to Save on Boston’s Life Science Disruptors
There’s just eight days left before Xconomy’s latest biotech event, “Boston’s Life Science Disruptors.” Don’t let the clock run out while you can still save some cash on a ticket. Next Thursday, September 28, we’re bringing together some of the key founders and investors behind three cancer drugmakers—Tesaro, Dragonfly Therapeutics, and IFM Therapeutics—that have each … Continue reading “Last Chance to Save on Boston’s Life Science Disruptors”
Alnylam Data Puts a Nobel Discovery One Step Closer to Approved Drug
[Updated with comments at 9:49 am ET, see below] For the first time ever, a medicine using RNA interference, a method of muting a gene before it can make a harmful protein, is headed for an FDA review. If the agency grants a commercial license, it would be a major victory not just for the … Continue reading “Alnylam Data Puts a Nobel Discovery One Step Closer to Approved Drug”
NVCA Sues Trump Administration for Delaying “Startup Visa” Program
Add another item to the list of tech industry beefs with the new crew in the White House. An organization representing venture capital firms filed a federal suit in Washington, DC, on Tuesday accusing Trump Administration officials of unlawfully delaying a program that would have allowed international entrepreneurs to work at companies they founded within … Continue reading “NVCA Sues Trump Administration for Delaying “Startup Visa” Program”
MIT’s The Engine, Now With $200M, Makes First Bets: 3 Takeaways
[Updated 9/20/17, 8:18 am. See below.] Now the real work begins for The Engine, MIT’s ambitious venture fund and incubator. The organization announced its first batch of seven investments on Tuesday (see below), and revealed that it has raised $200 million, with plans to back 40 to 50 so-called “tough-tech” companies over the next few … Continue reading “MIT’s The Engine, Now With $200M, Makes First Bets: 3 Takeaways”
Matthew Ottmer Joins Voyager Tx as Chief Operating Officer
Voyager Therapeutics (NASDAQ: [[ticker:VYGR]]) has named Matthew Ottmer chief operating officer. Cambridge, MA-based Voyager is developing treatments for neurological diseases. Ottmer comes to the company from another Cambridge biotech, Momenta Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: [[ticker:MNTA]]), where he was chief operating officer.
EiQ Networks Rebrands as Cygilant, Bags $7M to Fend Off Hackers
Cyber threats are mounting, and so are the investments in Boston cybersecurity companies. Earlier this morning, Threat Stack announced it closed a $45 million funding round. Meanwhile, EiQ Networks announced today it raised $7 million in growth capital and changed its name to Cygilant. The investment was led by Arrowroot Capital, an earlier backer of … Continue reading “EiQ Networks Rebrands as Cygilant, Bags $7M to Fend Off Hackers”
Cloud Security Firm Threat Stack Grabs $45M, Plans to Double Staff
Businesses big and small are increasingly storing their data and other IT assets on cloud servers, a move that can augment their operations, but also make them more exposed to cyber attacks. And that means opportunities for companies like Threat Stack, a Boston-based cybersecurity company that announced today it has raised $45 million in a … Continue reading “Cloud Security Firm Threat Stack Grabs $45M, Plans to Double Staff”
Disarm Launches With $30M From Atlas, AbbVie to Battle Neuro Disease
The available drugs for neurodegenerative conditions like multiple sclerosis (MS) can only treat symptoms, or at best slow the disease’s march forward. But recent research has uncovered a new approach that could potentially address what causes nerves to break down in the first place. Startup Disarm Therapeutics aims to turn that research into new drugs … Continue reading “Disarm Launches With $30M From Atlas, AbbVie to Battle Neuro Disease”
On CAR-T’s Edge, Seattle Researchers Plot to Bypass Novartis Therapy
[Corrected, 10/10/17, 2 p.m. ET. See below.] It’s not a stretch to say that Greta Oberhofer is alive thanks to the genetically modified cell therapy called CAR-T. At three and a half months old, she was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia, or ALL, an aggressive blood cancer. At 10 months old, she had a bone … Continue reading “On CAR-T’s Edge, Seattle Researchers Plot to Bypass Novartis Therapy”
Ultragenyx Makes Competing Bid for Gene Therapy Biotech Dimension Tx
[Updated 9/19/17, 10:39 am. See below.] A bidding war has erupted for gene therapy developer Dimension Therapeutics. Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical (NASDAQ: [[ticker:RARE]]) announced Monday that it is ready to pay $5.50 per share in cash, or approximately $136 million, to acquire Cambridge, MA-based Dimension (NASDAQ: [[ticker:DMTX]]). The non-binding proposal from Novato, CA-based Ultragenyx is a 358 … Continue reading “Ultragenyx Makes Competing Bid for Gene Therapy Biotech Dimension Tx”
How Bayer and Ginkgo Teamed Up in a $100M Synthetic Biology Bet
Nitrogen is essential for plant growth and photosynthesis, but plants can’t pull it directly from air. They rely on bacteria on their roots to convert the gas into a usable form. Many major food crops don’t have these bacteria but Bayer wants to change that. The multinational company is teaming up with Boston startup Ginkgo … Continue reading “How Bayer and Ginkgo Teamed Up in a $100M Synthetic Biology Bet”
Race to Mine Fungi for Drugs Revs up as Verdine’s LifeMine Gets $55M
Can the life sciences industry finally begin to efficiently and systematically exploit the potential treasure trove of drugs hidden in fungi? It seems promising, thanks to cheaper DNA sequencing technologies, artificial intelligence, new academic research, and now the largest funding yet for a startup trying to take on the task. This morning, LifeMine Therapeutics, a … Continue reading “Race to Mine Fungi for Drugs Revs up as Verdine’s LifeMine Gets $55M”
Ex-Cubist CEO Bonney Emerges at Kaleido, Flagship’s Latest Microbiome Startup
Flagship Pioneering has been as active as any venture firm at funneling its investment dollars into microbiome drug developers. It’s putting some more of that cash to work as of this morning, unveiling a startup, Kaleido Biosciences, that has been incubated within its walls for two years and is run by a prominent former Boston-area … Continue reading “Ex-Cubist CEO Bonney Emerges at Kaleido, Flagship’s Latest Microbiome Startup”
Formlabs’ New 3D Printing System Enables Custom Xconomy Awards: Video
When it comes to trophies, plaques and gold cups are so 20th century. For Xconomy’s first-ever awards gala, we decided to make custom prizes for the winning Boston-area life sciences companies and individuals, using advanced design software and 3D printers. (See video below. There are blue lasers involved—you’re welcome.) Xconomy partnered with Formlabs, a 3D … Continue reading “Formlabs’ New 3D Printing System Enables Custom Xconomy Awards: Video”
Akili, Emulate, Ginkgo & More: The Innovation at the Intersection Award Finalists
Research that happens at the intersection of different fields can lead to new innovations that tackle pressing problems in the life sciences. This year’s finalists in the Innovation at the Intersection category show the value of bringing different disciplines—engineering and biology, IT and medicine—together. Here are brief introductions to the finalists. The winners of this … Continue reading “Akili, Emulate, Ginkgo & More: The Innovation at the Intersection Award Finalists”
After Biogen Deal Fizzles, Rodin Bags $27M And Heads To First Trial
An option-to-buy deal, when one company agrees to buy another on prearranged terms after a series of milestones are met, doesn’t always lead to an acquisition. Sometimes, as with a 2016 deal between Biogen and Rodin Therapeutics, the arrangement fizzles and the smaller company charts a new course. Rodin, a Cambridge, MA, startup trying to … Continue reading “After Biogen Deal Fizzles, Rodin Bags $27M And Heads To First Trial”
Formlabs 3D Prints Xconomy Awards With New Form Cell System: Photos
For Xconomy’s first-ever industry awards gala, we wanted to make trophies that stand out and represent the winning Boston life sciences innovators in a fun and creative way. These days, it doesn’t get much cooler than making stuff with 3D printers. We partnered with Formlabs, a 3D printing company located in nearby Somerville, MA, to … Continue reading “Formlabs 3D Prints Xconomy Awards With New Form Cell System: Photos”
Boston Tech Watch: Techstars, DraftKings, Kaspersky, PTC
This week in Boston tech, we’re tracking a new Techstars program to support early-stage companies, the latest development in DraftKings’ regulatory battles, a new home for PTC, and more problems for Kaspersky Lab. Read on for details. —Techstars is launching a second startup accelerator program in Boston, this one focused on autonomous technologies, such as … Continue reading “Boston Tech Watch: Techstars, DraftKings, Kaspersky, PTC”
Dealmaker, Thought Leader & More: The X of the Year Xconomy Award Finalists
Given the size and diversity of the life sciences community in the Boston area, we at Xconomy knew that many candidates would be so unique that they wouldn’t fit neatly into a category. So we gave them a category of their own. These finalists represent the wide range of talent—from investors to entrepreneurs and thought-leaders—that … Continue reading “Dealmaker, Thought Leader & More: The X of the Year Xconomy Award Finalists”
Bio Roundup: Phase 3 Fails, Shkreli Jailed, Moderna Flip-Flops & More
It was a week of realignments. President Trump, who used to be known as “The Donald” but now goes by “Amnesty Don,” kept up the parlay-voo with his new friends Chuck and Nancy. Martin Shkreli, who was once known—and still is!—as the “pharma bro,” will have a new perspective for a while, through the bars … Continue reading “Bio Roundup: Phase 3 Fails, Shkreli Jailed, Moderna Flip-Flops & More”
Khosla Backs Ori, BU Creates Fund, Mobee Merges & More Boston Deals
Here are some of the latest venture funding and acquisition headlines from the Boston innovation cluster, including a $100 million endowment for Boston University research, international expansion for Bullhorn’s recruiting software business, and an investment in a robotic furniture startup. Read on for details. —Boston University said it plans to create a $100 million endowment … Continue reading “Khosla Backs Ori, BU Creates Fund, Mobee Merges & More Boston Deals”
Online Portals Challenge WebMD as Patients’ Source for Health Info
Suppose you wake up with a mysterious rash. Or you’ve got back pain, or have come down with a cough unlike any you’ve experienced previously. What’s your first move? Maybe you run a Google search. Maybe you text a doctor or nurse you know. Or maybe you attempt to get through your normal morning routine, … Continue reading “Online Portals Challenge WebMD as Patients’ Source for Health Info”
Going Big or Against the Tide: Meet the Big Idea & Contrarian Award Finalists
[Corrected, 1:25pm ET, see below] All innovation and companies start off as an idea. Some will gain more traction than others over time, but we at Xconomy think that big ideas—and the people and companies in Boston’s life sciences community bold enough to try to implement them—are worth celebrating. Some of those ideas even go … Continue reading “Going Big or Against the Tide: Meet the Big Idea & Contrarian Award Finalists”
Moderna Ends “Venture” Experiment, Dissolves Four Startups
Moderna Therapeutics, the high-flying private company with a $1 billion war chest, is reversing course. Three years ago, it decided to hatch startups as wholly-owned subsidiaries, all working on different aspects of its unproven biomedical technology called messenger RNA. Moderna announced today that it is ending the experiment. It is dissolving the four startups, or … Continue reading “Moderna Ends “Venture” Experiment, Dissolves Four Startups”
GM, Ford, BAE Systems Up the Self-Driving Ante with New Advances
Things are moving quickly in the mobility sector as the race to develop autonomous vehicle technologies revs up. This week brought a spate of mobility news from GM and Cruise, Ford, BAE, and even the federal government. Read on for details. —The Detroit News published a detailed report this week regarding Ford’s Silicon Valley lab, … Continue reading “GM, Ford, BAE Systems Up the Self-Driving Ante with New Advances”
Education Is Unbundling—Three Key Trends to Watch
Technology in the classroom has come a long way since its advent in the 1920s, when teachers would air radio broadcasts about topics relevant to their lesson plans. Ten years later, in the 1930s, the overhead projector debuted to display material for the whole class to see all at once, followed by the launch of … Continue reading “Education Is Unbundling—Three Key Trends to Watch”
Redox Inks Contract with Boston Hospital to Integrate Patient Data
Since launching in 2014, Redox, a Madison, WI-based tech startup, has worked with other healthcare software companies to set up data feeds between their applications and the computerized patient records systems used in hospitals and clinics across the country. Redox has now begun selling its digital tools under a slightly different business model, where healthcare … Continue reading “Redox Inks Contract with Boston Hospital to Integrate Patient Data”
MIT Spinout Affectiva Adds Voice Analysis to Its Emotion-Sensing Tech
Machines are getting better at understanding human speech. Soon, they could also be able to perceive our emotions from the way we talk—and respond accordingly. The latest step toward that longstanding vision comes from Affectiva, an MIT Media Lab spinout that has been developing emotion-sensing technology and products since 2009. In recent years, Boston-based Affectiva … Continue reading “MIT Spinout Affectiva Adds Voice Analysis to Its Emotion-Sensing Tech”
Xconomy Award Finalists in the Eye of the National Drug Price Debate
[Corrected 12:20pm ET; see below.] The national debate over the high cost of healthcare, with prescription drugs at the center, resonates from the chambers of Congress to every American’s pocketbook. And it’s growing fiercer by the day. Last week, the first genetically modified cell therapy came to market with a price tag of $475,000. This … Continue reading “Xconomy Award Finalists in the Eye of the National Drug Price Debate”
Stealthy NY Startup Rocket Pharma Merges With Inotek, Heads to Nasdaq
Rocket Pharmaceuticals, a stealthy gene therapy startup in New York City, has made its first splash. Through a merger with struggling Inotek Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: [[ticker:ITEK]]), Rocket, a company developing treatments for a variety of rare blood diseases, has taken itself public. Rocket shareholders are expected to own 81 percent of the combined company, with Inotek … Continue reading “Stealthy NY Startup Rocket Pharma Merges With Inotek, Heads to Nasdaq”
23andMe Raises $250M For Consumer Disease-Risk Tests, Drug R&D
Once barred from giving consumers disease-related information about their DNA, 23andMe recently received approval to market such genetic tests directly to consumers—and it now has reeled in a boatload of cash to ramp up those efforts, and more. The Mountain View, CA-based genetic testing company said Tuesday it has raised a new $250 million round … Continue reading “23andMe Raises $250M For Consumer Disease-Risk Tests, Drug R&D”
The Winners of the Xconomy Lifetime Achievement Award Are…
The editors at Xconomy have been working hard the last few weeks putting together the program for the Xconomy Awards Gala. We are really excited to announce the two winners of the Xconomy Lifetime Achievement Award. Lita Nelsen, MIT (retired) Lita Nelsen (pictured left) played a pivotal role in transforming Kendall Square and Boston into … Continue reading “The Winners of the Xconomy Lifetime Achievement Award Are…”