Sergio Santillana will become the next chief medical officer of Merrimack Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: [[ticker:MACK]]). Cambridge, MA-based Merrimack said that Santillana will start on June 12. Santillana most recently served as chief medical officer of Ariad Pharmaceuticals, a Cambridge company that was acquired by Japan-based Takeda Pharmaceutical earlier this year. His experience also includes posts at … Continue reading “Former Ariad Exec Santillana to Join Merrimack Pharmaceuticals”
Category: Boston
AstraZeneca’s Zelenkofske Joins UniQure as Chief Medical Officer
Steven Zelenkofske is joining uniQure to become the company’s chief medical officer. He succeeds Christian Meyer, who had served as uniQure’s chief medical officer since 2013. Zelenkofske will be based in the Lexington, MA, offices of Netherlands-based uniQure. Zelenkofske was most recently an executive overseeing cardiovascular and metabolism therapeutics for AstraZeneca (NYSE: [[ticker:AZN]]). His experience … Continue reading “AstraZeneca’s Zelenkofske Joins UniQure as Chief Medical Officer”
Getting Women On Boards: Three Ways to Increase the Numbers
The hot topic of getting more qualified women on corporate boards continues unabated. Recent statistics show how companies with women prominently serving in such capacities experience higher-than-average financial performance. A major investment group even declared earlier this year that it would push to get women on the boards of the companies in their portfolio. Yet … Continue reading “Getting Women On Boards: Three Ways to Increase the Numbers”
Robot Reshuffle: Alphabet Sells Boston Dynamics & Schaft to SoftBank
In a deal that was a long time coming, Google’s parent company Alphabet has sold robotics firms Boston Dynamics and Schaft to Japanese tech giant SoftBank. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Boston Dynamics was rumored to be on the market for the past year, with potential suitors including Toyota and Amazon. The robotics … Continue reading “Robot Reshuffle: Alphabet Sells Boston Dynamics & Schaft to SoftBank”
Bio Roundup: ASCO Digested, Juliet Unveiled, PTC Slated & More
The New York Times Magazine wrote a few weeks ago about the extraordinary metabolic changes in a python after it gulps down a 50,000 calorie meal. The biomedical world was like a postprandial python this week; after extending its maw around the supersized meal of news and data from the American Society for Clinical Oncology … Continue reading “Bio Roundup: ASCO Digested, Juliet Unveiled, PTC Slated & More”
Boston Tech Watch: Uber, Causeway Media, Cure Forward, Tive & More
This week in Boston tech, we’re tracking a second fund for a venture capital firm co-led by the co-owner of the Boston Celtics, a high-profile hire for Uber, a new cybersecurity startup, and the end of the road for a digital health company. Read on for details. —Causeway Media Partners raised $207.3 million for its … Continue reading “Boston Tech Watch: Uber, Causeway Media, Cure Forward, Tive & More”
Athenahealth Gets Personal Assistant, A.I. With $63M Praxify Buyout
Athenahealth is further building out its suite of applications and programs that help physicians and patients interact with electronic medical records with its largest acquisition since 2013, announcing today that it has bought Palo Alto, CA-based Praxify Technologies for $63 million. With Praxify, Watertown, MA-based Athenahealth (NASDAQ: [[ticker:ATHN]]) is getting a company that has built … Continue reading “Athenahealth Gets Personal Assistant, A.I. With $63M Praxify Buyout”
Grubhub Gobbles Foodler as Online Food-Ordering Sector Consolidates
The shakeout of the crowded field of online food-ordering and delivery companies continues. Chicago-based Grubhub (NYSE: [[ticker:GRUB]]) has signed an agreement to acquire Boston-based rival Foodler. Terms of the all-cash transaction weren’t disclosed. The deal will add more than $80 million of annualized gross food sales to Grubhub’s business in 2017, according to a press … Continue reading “Grubhub Gobbles Foodler as Online Food-Ordering Sector Consolidates”
Microsoft Confirms Acquisition of Cybersecurity Firm Hexadite
Microsoft announced on Thursday that it has signed an agreement to purchase Boston-based cybersecurity startup Hexadite. The acquisition hasn’t closed yet. The deal was first reported on May 24 by Israeli publication Calcalist, but Microsoft didn’t confirm the acquisition until today’s announcement. No terms were disclosed in the news release, but Calcalist previously reported the price … Continue reading “Microsoft Confirms Acquisition of Cybersecurity Firm Hexadite”
LogMeIn, Riding Stock Growth After Citrix Deal, Launches CRM Product
LogMeIn today introduced a new digital customer service product, continuing the Boston-based company’s efforts to expand its offerings beyond its long-time calling card of remote computer access and troubleshooting software. The announcement marks LogMeIn’s first significant product launch since its $1.8 billion merger with the GoTo business of California rival Citrix Systems, a spokeswoman says. … Continue reading “LogMeIn, Riding Stock Growth After Citrix Deal, Launches CRM Product”
Harvard Biotech Spinout Lands $10M to Make Platelets From Stem Cells
If you’ve donated blood, you probably received a follow-up message asking you to consider a platelet donation. Donation centers must constantly replenish their blood supplies, but the need for platelets is particularly acute. Compared to other components of blood, platelets are fragile and short lived, which puts high demand on the small supply of these … Continue reading “Harvard Biotech Spinout Lands $10M to Make Platelets From Stem Cells”
States Seek Slice of $7 Trillion Autonomous Vehicle Industry
As U.S. states and cites vie to capture some of the trillions of dollars of economic activity expected to flow from a shift to autonomous vehicles in the coming decades, Washington on Wednesday joined about two dozen states that have paved the way for testing driverless cars. Washington Gov. Jay Inslee directed relevant state agencies … Continue reading “States Seek Slice of $7 Trillion Autonomous Vehicle Industry”
San Antonio’s Geekdom Fund Adds to Investments With $20M Second Fund
San Antonio—The Texas IT-focused venture capital firm Geekdom Fund has closed a $20 million fund, which it started raising last year. The San Antonio venture firm was founded in 2014 by Michael Girdley, Don Douglas, Mike Troy, and Cole Wollak, and closed its first fund at $3.4 million in 2015. Geekdom Fund has always invested … Continue reading “San Antonio’s Geekdom Fund Adds to Investments With $20M Second Fund”
The Engine, Carbonite, Lola, and More: Here’s the Agenda for IMPACT
[Updated, 6/8/17 8:50am. See below] Hard to believe we are just over two weeks away from Xconomy’s big annual tech event in June. IMPACT will bring together leaders from New England’s technology and business community to discuss the future of their fields, but also issues of broader importance: things like influencing policy and making a … Continue reading “The Engine, Carbonite, Lola, and More: Here’s the Agenda for IMPACT”
Madison Startup Asto Tests Its CT Scanner on a Standing Horse
Asto CT, a Madison, WI-based startup developing a computed tomography (CT) device for performing scans of animals, has taken a major step forward this spring in its effort to commercialize its machine. The results could impact the field of CT technology for veterinarians and other specialists. In late April, one of the company’s scanners was … Continue reading “Madison Startup Asto Tests Its CT Scanner on a Standing Horse”
“It’s Shame On Us If We Blow It”: Highlights From NY Seizes the Momentum
Mike Foley, a drug industry veteran and director of the Tri-Institutional Therapeutics Discovery Institute, has a pointed message for the New York life sciences industry: Don’t waste the moment. Changing the course of New York biotech has been a saga that dates back to the 1990s, and as Xconomy has detailed, progress has been made … Continue reading ““It’s Shame On Us If We Blow It”: Highlights From NY Seizes the Momentum”
Freight Farms Lands $7.3M as Agriculture Meets Data & Automation
Investors have planted $7.3 million in Freight Farms to help the Boston-based startup bring its micro-farms to more places around the globe—and potentially even beyond. The investors in the Series B round include return backer Spark Capital, also based in Boston. The news was first reported by the Wall Street Journal on Monday. Freight Farms’ … Continue reading “Freight Farms Lands $7.3M as Agriculture Meets Data & Automation”
ASCO Roundup: Checkpoint Combos, Tumor Profiling, Financial Toxicity
[Note: Ben Fidler coauthored this report.] The American Society of Clinical Oncology conference is wrapping up, and the closely watched medical meeting-slash-hype machine produced its usual array of data. There were a few big business-focused “horse race” stories—one company’s stumble was another company’s gain—but much of the news consisted of mid-trial updates that companies produce … Continue reading “ASCO Roundup: Checkpoint Combos, Tumor Profiling, Financial Toxicity”
Lyft, NuTonomy Team Up on Self-Driving Cars as Alliances Proliferate
As companies rev up their work on self-driving vehicles, they’re increasingly forming alliances with each other to help deliver on the technology’s potential—and fend off competitors. The latest example is a partnership announced Tuesday between Lyft, the San Francisco-based ride-hailing app company, and NuTonomy, a Boston-based developer of software for driverless vehicles. The research and … Continue reading “Lyft, NuTonomy Team Up on Self-Driving Cars as Alliances Proliferate”
Ex-Inotek Exec to Lead Flex Pharma as Westphal Steps Down
Christoph Westphal has stepped down as the CEO of Flex Pharma (NASDAQ: [[ticker:FLKS]]). William McVicar, a former Inotek Pharmaceuticals executive and currently Flex’s president of R&D, will serve as Flex’s interim CEO. Westphal, who helped form the company, will remain chairman.
Tulip Downloads $13M Round, Led by NEA, for Manufacturing Apps
Robots and other automation technologies are a growing presence on factory floors, but there are still opportunities to equip human workers with new tools to help them perform better. That’s part of the pitch from Tulip, a startup with roots at MIT, which today announced it received a $13 million investment to help it sell … Continue reading “Tulip Downloads $13M Round, Led by NEA, for Manufacturing Apps”
Of Catfish & Fickle Lovers: Aste CEO Talks Online Dating’s Downsides
There are millions of fish in the sea, and dating apps have made it easier to quickly find and connect with a lot more of those would-be catches. But the ease of creating an online dating profile—and the lack of oversight by the companies running such services—means that users can, and often do, misrepresent themselves. … Continue reading “Of Catfish & Fickle Lovers: Aste CEO Talks Online Dating’s Downsides”
Precision Steps: Can Loxo Drug Help Broaden Use of Cancer DNA Tests?
When the FDA last week approved Merck’s cancer drug pembrolizuamb (Keytruda) for tumors with a specific genetic signature, regardless of what body part they originated in, it was a watershed moment for oncology and a victory for the concept of precision medicine. But Merck isn’t alone; others are following suit with similar plans, and their … Continue reading “Precision Steps: Can Loxo Drug Help Broaden Use of Cancer DNA Tests?”
Mersana Plans IPO to Finance Clinical Trials for Breast Cancer Drug
Mersana Therapeutics has filed for an initial public stock offering that would help fund clinical trials for the company’s experimental treatment for breast cancer. The paperwork filed with securities regulators lists a $75 million stock offering, but that figure will likely change as Cambridge, MA-based Mersana determines how many shares it will offer and at … Continue reading “Mersana Plans IPO to Finance Clinical Trials for Breast Cancer Drug”
SIGINT Wins Midway: Milestones of Innovation 13
In these days of internet disruptions of complex systems like medical care and even elections, our obsession with data security is swelling. We’re all too aware of how signals from myriad sources can help us construct patterns of human behavior and make plans to take advantage of that behavior. Although it may be no comfort … Continue reading “SIGINT Wins Midway: Milestones of Innovation 13”
Bio Roundup: ASCO Combo Frenzy, Maine’s Free DNA Tests, Sema4 & More
Over the next four days, the Second City will be the center of the biomedical world. The American Society of Clinical Oncology’s annual meeting in Chicago brings together thousands of researchers from across the globe to discuss the latest progress in the war against cancer. On tap this year: the crush of immunotherapy drug combinations, … Continue reading “Bio Roundup: ASCO Combo Frenzy, Maine’s Free DNA Tests, Sema4 & More”
Boston Tech Watch: Zerto, Flywire, eClinicalWorks, CustomMade & More
Here are some of the latest headlines from the Boston-area tech community, including the acquisition of brain rehab app Constant Therapy, the makeover of online crafts marketplace CustomMade, and the expansion of data-recovery firm Zerto. Read on for details. —Boston University spinout Constant Therapy was acquired by San Diego-based Digital Health Corp for an undisclosed … Continue reading “Boston Tech Watch: Zerto, Flywire, eClinicalWorks, CustomMade & More”
Energy Leaders React to Trump’s Withdrawal From Paris Climate Accord
[Updated 6/2/17, 10:10 pm ET. See below.] President Donald Trump today announced the United States would withdraw from complying with what’s known as the Paris climate accord, a landmark international agreement to combat climate change. In December 2015, nearly all the countries in the world—195 of them—agreed to the pact, which aims to reduce emissions of … Continue reading “Energy Leaders React to Trump’s Withdrawal From Paris Climate Accord”
Dell Leads $12M Investment in Security Assessments Firm RiskRecon
It’s hard enough for businesses and organizations to secure their own networks against cyber attackers. But with the rise of cloud computing and increased outsourcing of business operations to third parties, companies must also worry about the cyber defenses of vendors and partners who have access to their sensitive data and other digital assets. Just … Continue reading “Dell Leads $12M Investment in Security Assessments Firm RiskRecon”
Bitterman Jumps From Polaris to Atlas to Build More Bio Startups
Kevin Bitterman has left Polaris Partners, where he spent more than a decade helping build biotech companies, to become a partner at another Boston-area life sciences venture firm, Atlas Venture. Bitterman was the founding CEO of Editas Medicine (NASDAQ: [[ticker:EDIT]]), Visterra, and Morphic Therapeutic, helped co-found Genocea Biosciences (NASDAQ: [[ticker:GNCA]]), and is also the chairman … Continue reading “Bitterman Jumps From Polaris to Atlas to Build More Bio Startups”
Seattle Startup WiBotic Readies Wireless Recharge System for Drones
For drones and other autonomous vehicles to carry out lengthy, meaningful assignments such as ongoing aerial surveillance or a day of delivering packages, they will need a reliable way to recharge their batteries with little or no human intervention. Seattle-based startup WiBotic, a spinout from the University of Washington, is developing a suite of wireless … Continue reading “Seattle Startup WiBotic Readies Wireless Recharge System for Drones”
Bicycle Therapeutics Maps Course to Clinic Backed by $52M Investment
One of the problems with cancer drugs is their broad effect: Besides killing cancer cells, they also harm healthy tissue. Bicycle Therapeutics is developing a new class of drugs that it says can offer a more targeted approach, and it has raised $52 million to support plans to bring its lead drug into clinical trials. … Continue reading “Bicycle Therapeutics Maps Course to Clinic Backed by $52M Investment”
Countering Cybersecurity Turnover: 57 Companies That Do It Best
What does it take to keep highly skilled cybersecurity employees? Salary and benefits are table-stakes. Challenging work, ongoing training, an opportunity to advance without having to become a manager, and a talented peer group all help companies recruit and retain these sought-after “ninjas”—the individuals who can do what artificial intelligence security tools can’t. Research from … Continue reading “Countering Cybersecurity Turnover: 57 Companies That Do It Best”
Bolt Goes Bigger, Raises $80M for Third Early-Stage Hardware Fund
Bolt just raised over $80 million for its third venture fund, its largest to date. But the hardware investor and manufacturing consultant says it remains committed to backing early-stage startups that sometimes struggle to secure capital and other support. Bolt announced the new fund Wednesday in a blog post. An SEC filing indicates the firm … Continue reading “Bolt Goes Bigger, Raises $80M for Third Early-Stage Hardware Fund”
With Gene Therapy for Diabetes, San Antonio Researcher Eyes Funding
San Antonio — Most diabetes treatments work by giving the body the insulin it needs to break down sugar. But that approach deals with the symptoms of diabetes. In recent years, scientists and companies have taken aim at the root cause of the condition by attempting to stimulate or replace the cells in the pancreas responsible … Continue reading “With Gene Therapy for Diabetes, San Antonio Researcher Eyes Funding”
128 Technology Takes In $21.5M to “Transform People’s Networks”
Don’t look now, but 128 Technology is looking to go big. The Burlington, MA-based startup says today it has raised $21.5 million in Series C funding. The company, led by veterans of Acme Packet (now part of Oracle), is on a quest to reinvent routing technologies for the Internet and other networks. The new money … Continue reading “128 Technology Takes In $21.5M to “Transform People’s Networks””
In Maine, Making Cancer DNA Tests Free—And Asking Tough Questions
Has the era of genetic oncology arrived? Last week, the biomedical world took a notable step in that direction when the FDA said Merck’s drug pembrolizumab (Keytruda), already one of the world’s most successful cancer immunotherapies, could now treat any tumor with a particular genetic fingerprint. It was the first time a drug has been … Continue reading “In Maine, Making Cancer DNA Tests Free—And Asking Tough Questions”
Woodcock: New Approvals Show FDA Is Adapting to Precision Medicine
The randomized controlled trial has long been held up as the gold standard for testing new drugs. But the nation’s top drug evaluator, Janet Woodcock, believes they aren’t necessary for all new experimental treatments. Randomized trials are long, expensive to run, and ultimately produce limited answers, she said at a medical conference last week. The … Continue reading “Woodcock: New Approvals Show FDA Is Adapting to Precision Medicine”
CounterTack Nabs $20M, Predicts More Demand After Trump Cyber Order
[Updated 5/30/17, 9:39 am. See below.] Cybersecurity firm CounterTack announced today it has expanded its coffers with a new $20 million funding round from investors. It could be good timing for the Waltham, MA-based company. The recent WannaCry ransomware cyber attack and President Donald Trump’s executive order laying out federal cybersecurity priorities could spell new … Continue reading “CounterTack Nabs $20M, Predicts More Demand After Trump Cyber Order”
At the Alexandria Center Tomorrow: Can NY Biotech Seize the Moment?
A few weeks ago at the annual NewYorkBio conference, Xconomy asked a variety of folks about the state of New York biotechnology in 2017: is the momentum that has been gathering in life sciences in New York still building, or has it stalled? Their answers were mixed. Some expressed frustration with some of the same … Continue reading “At the Alexandria Center Tomorrow: Can NY Biotech Seize the Moment?”
On ASCO’s Eve, Experts Fret Over Backlash to Cancer Combo Frenzy
When thousands of cancer researchers from around the world gather in Chicago this weekend for the American Society of Clinical Oncology’s annual meeting, drugs that fight tumors by boosting a patient’s immune system will take center stage, as they have in previous years. But the stage is more crowded, as researchers have begun in earnest … Continue reading “On ASCO’s Eve, Experts Fret Over Backlash to Cancer Combo Frenzy”
Bio Roundup: Skinny Cuts, Genomic Approvals, Unfrozen FDA & More
Team Trump unveiled its 2018 federal spending proposal—the so-called “skinny budget”—with health and science in the crosshairs. The NIH is looking at a 22 percent cut and the FDA 31 percent, although the administration wants to backfill the FDA loss with a huge boost in user fees, which drug and device companies pay to have … Continue reading “Bio Roundup: Skinny Cuts, Genomic Approvals, Unfrozen FDA & More”
Boston Tech Watch: Acquia, ShoeBuy, Lola, MassChallenge & More
We’ve got lots of Boston-area tech news to catch up on this week. Here are some of the latest developments: New funds —Scansorial has raised $2.2 million from investors, according to an SEC filing. The Lexington, MA-based company makes Root, a robot intended to help teach software coding in an interactive way. The startup’s technology … Continue reading “Boston Tech Watch: Acquia, ShoeBuy, Lola, MassChallenge & More”
Uber, Lyft Return to Austin With Tech Edge, But Upstarts Grew Roots
Austin—[Updated 5/25/17, 4:42 p.m. See below.] A year after Uber and Lyft had a bad breakup with Austin, the software companies are returning to town Monday. That’s thanks to Texas state law makers who last week approved legislation that wiped out the city-imposed restrictions that caused Uber and Lyft to leave in the first place. … Continue reading “Uber, Lyft Return to Austin With Tech Edge, But Upstarts Grew Roots”
Rackspace Buys Boston Area’s TriCore in Largest-Ever Acquisition
San Antonio—Rackspace has acquired a Norwell, MA-based company called TriCore Solutions that the cloud computing giant says is its largest acquisition ever, both financially and by the number of employees. The news comes less than a year after Rackspace itself was bought for $4.3 billion by Apollo Global Management, a New York-based private equity firm that … Continue reading “Rackspace Buys Boston Area’s TriCore in Largest-Ever Acquisition”
DataRobot Buys Nutonian in Union of Accomplice-Backed A.I. Startups
[Updated 5/25/17, 2:30 pm. See below.] Here is some noteworthy consolidation in the Boston data science and artificial intelligence sectors: DataRobot has snapped up Nutonian for an undisclosed price, in a deal involving two young companies. The deal shows that five-year-old DataRobot is getting more aggressive in its efforts to become a leader in some … Continue reading “DataRobot Buys Nutonian in Union of Accomplice-Backed A.I. Startups”
Constellation Reboots With Eye On Immuno-Oncology, Hires New CEO
[Updated 5/25/17, 12:44 p.m. See below.] Constellation Pharmaceuticals, a Cambridge, MA-based biotech that up until 2015 had a sprawling alliance with Genentech, has made sweeping changes this morning. The firm has replaced its president and CEO, will transition its chief scientific officer out of his position in July, and is now embarking on a new … Continue reading “Constellation Reboots With Eye On Immuno-Oncology, Hires New CEO”
Amid Budget Concerns, NIH Preps Beta Test for Precision Medicine Plan
An ambitious plan to recruit 1 million U.S. volunteers and amass a treasure trove of their health information will start next week with a “beta test” that health officials hope to eventually expand nationwide. National Institutes of Health director Francis Collins said Wednesday that the Precision Medicine Initiative will begin in Pittsburgh, where the agency … Continue reading “Amid Budget Concerns, NIH Preps Beta Test for Precision Medicine Plan”
Report: Microsoft Buying Cybersecurity Firm Hexadite for $100M
Microsoft is acquiring cybersecurity startup Hexadite for $100 million, according to a report by Israeli publication Calcalist. Xconomy has not yet confirmed the report. A Microsoft spokesperson said the company has “nothing to share at this time.” Hexadite CEO and co-founder Eran Barak and the company’s public relations representative have not yet responded to requests for … Continue reading “Report: Microsoft Buying Cybersecurity Firm Hexadite for $100M”
New Rackspace CEO Joe Eazor Previously Held Roles at EarthLink, EMC
San Antonio—Cloud computing company Rackspace has a new CEO: Joe Eazor, who was most recently the CEO of EarthLink, the company best known for providing dial-up Internet since the 1990s. Eazor is replacing Taylor Rhodes, who left Rackspace this month to take the top job at Chicago-based software company SMS Assist. Rackspace President Jeff Cotten, … Continue reading “New Rackspace CEO Joe Eazor Previously Held Roles at EarthLink, EMC”