The 2017 Nobel Prizes with a biomedical bent were announced this week. Three researchers shared the physiology and medicine prize for their work shining light on the circadian rhythms that govern the wake-and-sleep cycles of all organisms. That basic research is working its way into applications such as drugs that help regulate our body clocks. … Continue reading “Bio Roundup: Nobel Pursuit, Fundraising Fruit, A Rhythmic IPO & More”
Category: Indiana
Indiana Center for Biomedical Innovation Aims to Get Ideas to Market
The Indiana University School of Medicine is the largest in the country, producing more doctors each year than any other American university. IU is also home to an estimated 900 scientist-researchers. What IU didn’t have, until recently, was a central place in which to anchor a medtech ecosystem and help get innovations from faculty and … Continue reading “Indiana Center for Biomedical Innovation Aims to Get Ideas to Market”
AltspaceVR Finds New Home in Microsoft’s Mixed Reality Ecosystem
AltspaceVR, one of the forerunners of shared social experiences in virtual reality spaces, has been saved from extinction by Microsoft, which announced Tuesday that it is acquiring the four-year-old company. The Redwood City, CA-based startup had sounded its own death knell on July 28, announcing that it planned to shut down Aug. 3 due to the … Continue reading “AltspaceVR Finds New Home in Microsoft’s Mixed Reality Ecosystem”
Celebrating Boston Life Sciences: Xconomy Awards Gala Slideshow
We at Xconomy were thrilled to see such a great turnout at our first-ever Awards Gala—350 people from the Boston life sciences community filled a Hynes Convention Center ballroom. As Bob Buderi, our founder and editor-in-chief, said in his opening remarks on September 26 before a sold-out crowd: We clearly struck a chord. Top scientists, … Continue reading “Celebrating Boston Life Sciences: Xconomy Awards Gala Slideshow”
Endocyte Adds Phase 3-Ready Prostate Cancer Drug with ABX Deal
Four months after two Endocyte drug candidates stumbled in early-stage studies, sparking a corporate shakeup, the company has signed a deal landing an experimental prostate cancer treatment that it says is ready for Phase 3 clinical trials. West Lafayette, IN-based Endocyte (NASDAQ: [[ticker:ECYT]]) says it paid $12 million up front to German biochemicals company ABX … Continue reading “Endocyte Adds Phase 3-Ready Prostate Cancer Drug with ABX Deal”
Twitter Joins Facebook in Political Hot Seat Over Election Hacking
Ordinarily, Twitter’s announcement that some of its users can now send tweets twice as long as its signature 140-character limit, and that this freedom could be broadened to others, would have been the company’s top news of the week. But instead, Twitter, like Facebook before it, is under the national microscope as government investigations of … Continue reading “Twitter Joins Facebook in Political Hot Seat Over Election Hacking”
Bio Roundup: Graham-Cassidy, Axovant Fail, SpringWorks Launches & More
After drug pricing, count drug shortages among the hot button issues sparking patient ire. Last year, the FDA says, 23 drug shortages were reported, down from 26 the previous year (and 251 in 2011). But Hurricane Maria’s direct strike on Puerto Rico might put the progress made on reducing shortages to the test. The Pharmaceutical … Continue reading “Bio Roundup: Graham-Cassidy, Axovant Fail, SpringWorks Launches & More”
Google, Apple Offer Salvation from the Horrors of Autoplay
Tech giants are under a lot of pressure these days to make the world a better place—to ferret out Russian hackers trying to fix elections; to combat gender bias in hiring; to stamp out sexual harassment; and to lend their voices to the protests over President Trump’s immigration policies. Despite efforts they’ve made on these … Continue reading “Google, Apple Offer Salvation from the Horrors of Autoplay”
The Winners of the 2017 Xconomy Awards Are…
We are excited to announce the recipients of the first-ever Xconomy Awards. Big Idea Bridge Project The Bridge Project was hatched by MIT’s Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research in Cambridge and the Dana-Farber/Harvard Cancer Center in Boston to fund collaborative research between cancer researchers from MIT and Harvard-affiliated hospitals and schools. Its aim is … Continue reading “The Winners of the 2017 Xconomy Awards Are…”
No Effect: Axovant Drug Is Latest Casualty in Alzheimer’s Battle
Another high-profile attempt to produce an Alzheimer’s treatment has failed. An unusual biotech company called Axovant Sciences (NASDAQ: [[ticker:AXON]]) reported today that its drug intepirdine did not show a meaningful difference between the patients taking a combination of intepirdine and donepezil (Aricept) and the patients taking only donepezil, which is one of just a handful … Continue reading “No Effect: Axovant Drug Is Latest Casualty in Alzheimer’s Battle”
Trump Orders Up $200M a Year for STEM, Coding Education
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”
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”
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”
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”
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”
Costello’s A.I.-Driven Software Aims to Improve Sales Rep Performance
Artificial intelligence technologies are evolving at a rapid pace, remaking everything from vehicles to video games. An Indianapolis startup called Costello, armed with $1 million in investment capital, is launching this month to bring A.I. to deal management software, which the company says will help to better prepare sales reps while also offering managers increased … Continue reading “Costello’s A.I.-Driven Software Aims to Improve Sales Rep Performance”
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”
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”
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”
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”
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”
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”
Indiana Life Sciences Summit
The BioCrossroads 14th Annual Indiana Life Sciences Summit is expanding the scientific track and adding TED-like talks for the two-day conference at the JW Marriott in Indianapolis 10/9 & 10/10. Thought leaders will talk about breakthroughs and innovation in global health, capital formation, evidence based medicine and more. For more information, visit the event site.
To Win Amazon’s HQ2, Incentives Are Nice, But Talent Is Required
Amazon lists one requirement in the stunning request for proposals it issued Thursday, which invites cities across North America to compete to host a second corporate headquarters for the tech and commerce giant. Economic development officials are justifiably salivating at the once-in-a-generation opportunity to attract what is arguably the 21st century’s most important company, and … Continue reading “To Win Amazon’s HQ2, Incentives Are Nice, But Talent Is Required”
Bio Roundup: RNAi Drama, Immunotherapy Data, Lasker Winners & More
The summer doldrums are over. Biotech news came at a breakneck pace this week both before and after Labor Day, starting with the surprise resignation of Novartis’s top executive just days after the Swiss company notched an historic FDA approval. From there, the week featured big headlines, both good and bad, from several trials in … Continue reading “Bio Roundup: RNAi Drama, Immunotherapy Data, Lasker Winners & More”
Five Regions That Could Draw Amazon’s Next Headquarters
[Updated 4:26 p.m. See below.] Amazon sent cities across North America into a frenzy Thursday after announcing plans to build a second headquarters outside of Seattle, bringing with it tens of thousands of jobs and billions of dollars in economic development benefits. The tech and commerce giant says it wants cities and states to apply … Continue reading “Five Regions That Could Draw Amazon’s Next Headquarters”
Levin, Holtzman, 183 Other Bio Leaders Urge White House to Preserve DACA
Biotech CEOs Jeremy Levin and Steve Holtzman are continuing their recent push to spur the life sciences industry to speak out against government policies it doesn’t agree with. Levin, CEO of Ovid Therapeutics (NASDAQ: [[ticker:OVID]]) and Holtzman, the head of Decibel Therapeutics, co-authored a letter to the Trump administration and congressional leaders asking them to … Continue reading “Levin, Holtzman, 183 Other Bio Leaders Urge White House to Preserve DACA”
Time Zones Matter: Why Kronos Opened an Indy Tech Center
[Correction, 9/7/17, 11:45 a.m. See below.] Kronos, a Lowell, MA-based company focused on workforce management software and services, has operations across the world. It serves customers in more than 100 countries, raking in over a billion dollars in revenue annually. So it might be surprising that, according to chief services officer and senior vice president … Continue reading “Time Zones Matter: Why Kronos Opened an Indy Tech Center”
Lasker Award Goes to HPV Vaccine Developers Lowy, Schiller
A top prize in American biomedical science was awarded today to two scientists for their discoveries that led to the development of a human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine, which prevents cervical cancer caused by the sexually transmitted virus. Douglas Lowy (pictured right), acting director of the National Cancer Institute (NCI), and John Schiller (left), also at … Continue reading “Lasker Award Goes to HPV Vaccine Developers Lowy, Schiller”
Bio Roundup: CAR-T’s Huge Week, Merck’s ‘Pib Choice & More
[Corrected 9/5/17, 12:22 p.m. See below.] The far-out idea of reprogramming a patient’s immune cells to fight cancer, known as CAR-T, entered the mainstream this week, and two numbers highlight the tale. The first is $11.9 billion, the price Gilead Sciences is paying for Kite Pharma and its cancer-fighting cell therapy pipeline. It’s one of … Continue reading “Bio Roundup: CAR-T’s Huge Week, Merck’s ‘Pib Choice & More”
Bee Corp. Closes on Series A Funding for Hive-Monitoring Software
Bloomington, IN-based agtech startup the Bee Corp. announced this week that it has closed on a Series A investment led by Village Ventures’ Jane Martin. Elevate Ventures, High Alpha’s Scott Dorsey, and angel investors also contributed to the round. Wyatt Wells, co-founder and chief marketing officer of Bee Corp., declined to discuss financial details of … Continue reading “Bee Corp. Closes on Series A Funding for Hive-Monitoring Software”
Novartis: CAR-T Results In One Month, Or No Charge. Why One Month?
Novartis said Wednesday that it would not charge for its newly approved cellular immunotherapy, tisagenlecleucel (Kymriah)—the first so-called CAR-T product to ever come to market—if it fails to help patients within a month. If the cell therapy, approved for kids with leukemia who have run out of other options, starts to work within a month, … Continue reading “Novartis: CAR-T Results In One Month, Or No Charge. Why One Month?”
Embracing the Inevitable Changes of Self-Driving Vehicles
Read today’s news and you’d think fully autonomous vehicles—commercial vehicles, in particular—will be everywhere in the very near future. With headlines like these, it’s no wonder: Self-Driving Trucks Could be on Highways in 3 to 4 Years U.S. and Europe Race to be First to Self-Driving Trucks Ford Plans Self-Driving Car for Ride Share Fleets … Continue reading “Embracing the Inevitable Changes of Self-Driving Vehicles”
Novartis Wins Historic FDA Nod, Prices CAR-T For Leukemia at $475,000
Ahead of schedule, Novartis has received the first-ever approval of a genetically modified living cell therapy called CAR-T, which uses a cancer patient’s own immune cells as the medicine. Within days, children and young adults with a severe form of acute lymphoblastic leukemia could receive the treatment at a handful of centers across the U.S. … Continue reading “Novartis Wins Historic FDA Nod, Prices CAR-T For Leukemia at $475,000”
Eli Lilly Preps Rejected Rheumatoid Arthritis Drug for Resubmission
Eli Lilly is preparing to file again for FDA approval of rheumatoid arthritis drug baricitinib (Olumiant) by the end of January—this time with new information about the drug’s safety and efficacy. The FDA rejected the Indianapolis pharmaceutical company’s initial drug application in April. In July, Lilly (NYSE: [[ticker:LLY]]) said discussions with the regulator included the … Continue reading “Eli Lilly Preps Rejected Rheumatoid Arthritis Drug for Resubmission”
Taking Tech Ideas Global: Connecting an Innovation Ecosystem
The word ecosystem conjures up a rain forest in Ecuador, where sunlight, soil, water, and a multitude of species exist together in a self-sustaining environment that is constantly evolving. This image from biology translates perfectly into what many people like to call an innovation ecosystem. Think of a group of people developing a new idea, … Continue reading “Taking Tech Ideas Global: Connecting an Innovation Ecosystem”
Will Merck Seek FDA Filing For Heart Drug After Lackluster Results?
News from Merck this morning on a large trial known as Reveal might signal the end of the road for a once-promising group of cholesterol-lowering medicines. It all depends on what New York drug giant Merck (NYSE: [[ticker:MRK]]) intends to do now that it has the results of the four-year, 30,449-patient trial, which tested a … Continue reading “Will Merck Seek FDA Filing For Heart Drug After Lackluster Results?”
Who is Dara Khosrowshahi, Uber’s Pick to be CEO?
The news broke Sunday night that Uber has offered the job of CEO to Dara Khosrowshahi, the outspoken steady hand guiding Bellevue, WA-based online travel giant Expedia (NASDAQ: [[ticker:EXPE]]) for the last dozen years. Khosrowshahi and Uber have not officially confirmed the news as of Monday evening. An internal e-mail from Barry Diller, Expedia chairman, … Continue reading “Who is Dara Khosrowshahi, Uber’s Pick to be CEO?”
SetPoint Nabs $30M For More Tests of Bioelectric Device as RA Therapy
SetPoint Medical is trying to use tiny pulses of electricity to treat inflammation in the body, and it now has an additional $30 million in funding to continue testing its approach in humans. The capital infusion announced Monday for SetPoint is a Series D round of investment. The company says it plans to use the … Continue reading “SetPoint Nabs $30M For More Tests of Bioelectric Device as RA Therapy”
Power to the Patient: Meet Xconomy’s Patient Partnership Award Finalists
It’s clear at this point that patients are no longer just subjects in clinical trials. Thanks to the growing power of patient advocacy groups—and an FDA eager to hear their perspective—patients and drug developers are increasingly finding creating ways to work together, as we’ve seen with the four finalists in the Patient Partnership category of … Continue reading “Power to the Patient: Meet Xconomy’s Patient Partnership Award Finalists”
Bio Roundup: Drug Price Debates, NY Bio Blooms & CEOs Take Social Stand
In these politically divided times, Americans this week found near universal agreement on one thing: A celestial event that plunges a summer day into temporary darkness is a captivating experience. The totality of the solar eclipse lasted less than 3 minutes. If you missed it, you’ll have to wait until 2024 for the next one. … Continue reading “Bio Roundup: Drug Price Debates, NY Bio Blooms & CEOs Take Social Stand”
Stand Up to “Bully” Trump: Bio CEOs Levin, Holtzman Call to Their Peers
Biotech CEOs Jeremy Levin and Steve Holtzman have watched the violence in Charlottesville, VA, and its continuing aftermath with disgust. But they aren’t just upset about the rally, the violence and death, and President Trump’s equivocating blame of “many sides.” Levin, of Ovid Therapeutics (NASDAQ: [[ticker:OVID]]), and Holtzman, of Decibel Therapeutics, have been disappointed with … Continue reading “Stand Up to “Bully” Trump: Bio CEOs Levin, Holtzman Call to Their Peers”
The Downside of Immersive Tech: An Increasingly Isolated World
As an entrepreneur who has been involved in tech and media for over two decades, I have seen my share of disruptions (I so hate that word!) and even participated in a few. Back in the 1990s, while we were developing some broadband technologies at Sourcecom, my first startup, we also had to develop the … Continue reading “The Downside of Immersive Tech: An Increasingly Isolated World”
Marketing Startup Sigstr Gets $5M From Hyde Park, HubSpot & Others
Sigstr, an e-mail marketing startup based in Indianapolis, says it has raised $5 million in Series A funding. The investment was led by Hyde Park Venture Partners, which was joined by HubSpot (NYSE: [[ticker:HUBS]]), Battery Ventures, Grand Ventures, and High Alpha Capital. Investors have pumped a total of $7 million into Sigstr, a company spokeswoman … Continue reading “Marketing Startup Sigstr Gets $5M From Hyde Park, HubSpot & Others”
HubSpot Dips Toe Further Into Startup Investing With Sigstr Deal
HubSpot is ramping up its startup investments as part of a larger strategic effort to augment the capabilities of its sales and marketing software tools. Some of the young companies HubSpot backs may become its partners—if they’re not already—by integrating their services with the larger company’s. The 12-year-old Cambridge, MA-based company made its first investment … Continue reading “HubSpot Dips Toe Further Into Startup Investing With Sigstr Deal”
On Drug Pricing: FDA Backs Up Its Calls for Increased Competition
FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb has been very public in expressing his desire to provide increased competition and greater choice to American consumers in a bid to drive down prices of prescription medicines. Recently, the agency he oversees took some unusual steps to back up those statements with action. Last week, the FDA approved the use … Continue reading “On Drug Pricing: FDA Backs Up Its Calls for Increased Competition”
Bio Roundup: Frazier v. Trump, Data Dumps, New York Steps & More
The CEO of a major U.S. pharmaceutical company was in the news this week, but for a change not because of the cost of drugs. Merck CEO Kenneth Frazier (pictured) was the first of what quickly became a line of CEOs to exit President Trump’s manufacturing council, leading to its dissolution altogether. Frazier was widely … Continue reading “Bio Roundup: Frazier v. Trump, Data Dumps, New York Steps & More”
Alzeca Receives $11M for Early Alzheimer’s Detection Technology
Houston—Alzeca, which is developing an imaging agent to help doctors detect Alzheimer’s disease at its earliest stages, announced Thursday it has raised $11 million in a Series A round of funding. The Houston-based company has developed an imaging agent that it says can, when used with an MRI, detect the presence of abnormal brain proteins … Continue reading “Alzeca Receives $11M for Early Alzheimer’s Detection Technology”