Category: National

How Will Apple Innovate Beyond the iPhone 7? With Next-Gen Siri

Apple’s iPhone 7 is due out next month. According to the Wall Street Journal, PFWTMs (“people familiar with the matter”) say the new device will look pretty much the same as the iPhone 6s. The biggest change: no more headphone plug. Customers who want to listen to music or podcasts on their iPhones will need … Continue reading “How Will Apple Innovate Beyond the iPhone 7? With Next-Gen Siri”

Xconomy Q&A: Vuforia, Pokémon Go, and Augmented Reality

Talk about auspicious timing. It’s been less than a year since Needham, MA-based PTC (NASDAQ: [[ticker:PTC]]) shelled out $65 million to acquire Vuforia, the augmented reality technology created by San Diego-based Qualcomm (NASDAQ: [[ticker:QCOM]]). Qualcomm had worked to develop its Vuforia technology for at least five years before a maturing smartphone market and new economic … Continue reading “Xconomy Q&A: Vuforia, Pokémon Go, and Augmented Reality”

Roundup: Owlchemy, TheWaveVR, Fe3 Medical, & Rackspace Buyout?

Let’s catch up with the latest innovation news from Xconomy Texas. —Rackspace Hosting, the San Antonio, TX-based cloud computing company, is reportedly nearing a sale to a New York-based private equity firm. Reuters has reported that Apollo Global Management (NYSE: [[ticker:APO]]) is considering a $3.5 billion offer for Rackspace (NYSE: [[ticker:RAX]]). In 2014, the company … Continue reading “Roundup: Owlchemy, TheWaveVR, Fe3 Medical, & Rackspace Buyout?”

California Agency Awards Humacyte $9.9M for Blood Vessel Technology

Humacyte hopes its regenerative medicine approach to blood vessels can offer a better and longer-lasting alternative to synthetic implants used to replace blocked veins. Now it has $9.9 million more to support its work in late-stage clinical trials. The Durham, NC-based biotech company said Monday that it has received $9.9 million from the California Institute … Continue reading “California Agency Awards Humacyte $9.9M for Blood Vessel Technology”

Analysis: With a Tight Smile, Trump Details Economic Plan in Detroit

I wasn’t sure what to expect when Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump and his running-mate, Indiana governor Mike Pence, were the featured speakers at a Detroit Economic Club luncheon today. Trump has spent most of the summer lurching from one controversy to another, but in Detroit, he appeared to be well-coached and almost singularly focused … Continue reading “Analysis: With a Tight Smile, Trump Details Economic Plan in Detroit”

Cleave Bio Gets $37M From Celgene, Others For Clinical Push

Celgene has taken an interest in another budding biotech. The big Summit, NJ, drugmaker joined with a group of venture capitalists to give Cleave Biosciences a $37 million Series B round to help pay for the startup’s first human clinical studies. Burlingame, CA-based Cleave is developing an experimental cancer drug, CB-5083, that is currently in … Continue reading “Cleave Bio Gets $37M From Celgene, Others For Clinical Push”

Brookings Report, Imbed, & Coinigy: This Week’s Wisconsin Watchlist

Keep up with the latest news from Wisconsin’s innovation community with these recent headlines: —The Washington-based Brookings Institution released a report on trends in what the think tank calls “America’s advanced industries,” a group of 50 sectors with large numbers of STEM professionals. Madison, the 88th largest metropolitan area in the U.S. by population, was … Continue reading “Brookings Report, Imbed, & Coinigy: This Week’s Wisconsin Watchlist”

Austin VR Gaming Startup Owlchemy Brings in $5M from Investors

Austin—Virtual reality startup Owlchemy Labs has raised $5 million in Series A funding from investors such as Qualcomm Ventures, The Venture Reality Fund, HTC, Colopl Next, and Capital Factory. The startup is best known for its “Job Simulator” game, which is paired with the HTC Vive virtual reality headset. CEO Alex Schwartz says the startup … Continue reading “Austin VR Gaming Startup Owlchemy Brings in $5M from Investors”

Walmart Makes It Official, Acquires Jet.com for $3 Billion

After word leaked last night via Recode, Walmart officially announced Monday in an e-mailed statement that it has agreed to acquire Hoboken, NJ-based e-commerce site Jet.com for $3 billion cash, a strategic move touted by some as a way for the big box retailer to be more competitive with Amazon. Further sweetening the deal, Walmart said it will pay … Continue reading “Walmart Makes It Official, Acquires Jet.com for $3 Billion”

Untethered Summit to Look at Managing the BYOD Landscape

A few years ago, the hottest trend in workplace innovation was Bring Your Own Device (BYOD), which called for large corporations to allow employees to use their personal smartphones, computers, and other devices at work as a way to open up innovation and collaboration. Companies are unable to prevent employees from bringing their devices to … Continue reading “Untethered Summit to Look at Managing the BYOD Landscape”

Texas Government Adds $3.5M to Fe3 Series B for Anemia Treatment

San Antonio — Fe3 Medical, a startup housed at the InCube Labs facility in San Antonio, has added $3.5 million to the Series B funding round it announced in March, bringing the total to $14.5 million. The add-on to the Series B came from the state of Texas, which also invested $2.8 million in Fe3 … Continue reading “Texas Government Adds $3.5M to Fe3 Series B for Anemia Treatment”

MEI Pharma Partners with Helsinn on Drug with Potential $464M Payoff

After reporting encouraging news last week from a mid-stage trial of its lead anti-cancer drug, San Diego’s MEI Pharma (NASDAQ: [[ticker:MEIP]]) said it has signed a drug development deal with the Swiss pharmaceutical group Helsinn that could eventually be worth over $464 million. Under terms of their agreement announced today, Helsinn will pay MEI $15 … Continue reading “MEI Pharma Partners with Helsinn on Drug with Potential $464M Payoff”

Report: Seattle Machine Learning Star Turi Acquired by Apple

One of Seattle’s foremost machine learning startup companies, Turi—formerly known as GraphLab and then Dato—appears to have been acquired by Apple, according to press reports. GeekWire first reported the news, citing anonymous sources close to the deal. TechCrunch also reported the acquisition. Both quote an Apple statement indicating the tech giant has purchased the company. … Continue reading “Report: Seattle Machine Learning Star Turi Acquired by Apple”

National Cancer Institute Awards Cellectar $2M For Clinical Study

Cellectar Biosciences has received a $2 million grant from the National Cancer Institute (NCI) that will support a Phase 2 clinical study of its leading drug candidate, the biotech company said earlier this week. Madison, WI-based Cellectar (NASDAQ: [[ticker:CLRB]]) said that the funding is aimed at advancing CLR 131, which has the potential to treat … Continue reading “National Cancer Institute Awards Cellectar $2M For Clinical Study”

Seattle Week in Review: Up in the Sky, It’s Prime Air and Blue Angels

The U.S. Navy’s Blue Angels—and Amazon Prime Air—are rumbling the (currently) blue Seattle skies and the Thunder Boats are ready to rip around Lake Washington. It’s Seafair Weekend, Seattle’s annual celebration of speed and noise. Meanwhile, in this edition of Xconomy Seattle’s Week in Review, we’re reading a new report on U.S. venture investing trends … Continue reading “Seattle Week in Review: Up in the Sky, It’s Prime Air and Blue Angels”

Merging Medicine and Entrepreneurship: UW Health Docs Share Lessons

[Editor’s note: This is part of a series of stories on physicians at the University of Wisconsin Hospital and Clinics who have become full- or part-time entrepreneurs.] By the time Hans Sollinger helped launch a company for the first time, in 2004, he had performed hundreds of pancreas transplants. In the process, he had built a reputation … Continue reading “Merging Medicine and Entrepreneurship: UW Health Docs Share Lessons”

Metis Foundation, Targeting Military Researchers, Plans Fund Raise

San Antonio — [Corrected 1:20 p.m. See below.] A San Antonio nonprofit that aims to help medical researchers earn grants is beginning to raise money for a program that it says may be able to provide funding to both researchers working on new cancer vaccines and patients who participate in early stage clinical trials. The Metis … Continue reading “Metis Foundation, Targeting Military Researchers, Plans Fund Raise”

Merck Surges As Bristol’s Immunotherapy Drug Stumbles in Lung Cancer

Over the past few years, Bristol-Myers Squibb and Merck have brought to market two rival immunotherapy drugs, so-called checkpoint inhibitors, that have begun to change the way certain cancers are treated. But immunotherapy still has a long way to go, and Bristol provided the latest evidence Friday morning, when its drug, nivolumab (Opdivo), failed a … Continue reading “Merck Surges As Bristol’s Immunotherapy Drug Stumbles in Lung Cancer”

U-M Startup Clinc is on a Mission to Democratize A.I. Technologies

After building Lucida, an open-source intelligent personal assistant, University of Michigan spinout Clinc has a new $225,000 grant from the National Science Foundation to help get its artificial intelligence technologies to market. That’s on top of closing a $1.2 million seed round disclosed in March. The equity funding round was led by Ann Arbor’s eLab … Continue reading “U-M Startup Clinc is on a Mission to Democratize A.I. Technologies”

Seeking to Bring Concerts Into the Virtual World, WaveVR Raises $2.5M

Austin—The WaveVR, which aims to connect fans with musicians and DJs in the virtual world, has raised $2.5 million in a seed round of funding. Investors in the virtual reality music platform include Presence Capital and Rothenberg Ventures, both in San Francisco; RRE Ventures in New York; The VR Fund; and Seedcamp. The funds will … Continue reading “Seeking to Bring Concerts Into the Virtual World, WaveVR Raises $2.5M”

Biotech Roundup: Biogen Rumors, Theranos, Electro-Drugs & More

Biogen was once again all over the biotech newswire this week. First came a positive surprise; data that could set the stage for the first-ever drug approved for spinal muscular atrophy, a rare and debilitating muscle disease. Then came the rumor mill: Companies may or may not be approaching Biogen about a sale, and Biogen … Continue reading “Biotech Roundup: Biogen Rumors, Theranos, Electro-Drugs & More”

New Schools Venture Fund Offering $7M More To Education Entrepreneurs

It’s still mid-summer, but in some districts where school starts in only a few weeks, teachers are already digging out their lesson plans and preparing to resume their classroom routines. But some of them would rather toss those lessons in the bin, and in fact, scrap the whole design of their schools and build new … Continue reading “New Schools Venture Fund Offering $7M More To Education Entrepreneurs”

Zeta Interactive Acquires Acxiom Impact, Gets Bigger in Silicon Valley

As Thursday comes to a close, Zeta Interactive has announced a new acquisition that increases its footprint in Silicon Valley. If that sounds like a familiar growth pattern for this New York-based big data and analytics company, it should. About a year ago, Zeta Interactive raised a $125 million round, and then several months later … Continue reading “Zeta Interactive Acquires Acxiom Impact, Gets Bigger in Silicon Valley”

At Third Birthday, the DEC Takes Stock of Its Impact on Startups

Dallas—Last night, the Dallas Entrepreneur Center threw itself a third birthday party of sorts, a fete that also introduced an expanded facility for startups that have grown to need more than a co-working desk. The gathering was also an opportunity for DEC co-founder and CEO Trey Bowles to give concrete examples of the center’s impact … Continue reading “At Third Birthday, the DEC Takes Stock of Its Impact on Startups”

Inspyr, Formerly GenSpera, Replaces Co-Founder Dionne With New CEO

San Antonio—Inspyr Therapeutics, a biotech company based in San Antonio formerly known as GenSpera, has hired Christopher Lowe as its new CEO and president, replacing co-founder Craig Dionne after he abruptly left the company in March. Inspyr announced its name change Monday. Lowe, who had been on Inspyr’s board of directors since March, is a … Continue reading “Inspyr, Formerly GenSpera, Replaces Co-Founder Dionne With New CEO”

Qualcomm Making Inroads with Wireless EV Charging Technology

If there’s one thing that’s become clear in the five years since Qualcomm (NASDAQ: [[ticker:QCOM]]) acquired its Halo wireless automotive charging technology, it’s that building a new business—and a new industry—takes time. As the global market for mobile phones has matured, Qualcomm has been seeking new opportunities in the wireless technology business. The San Diego … Continue reading “Qualcomm Making Inroads with Wireless EV Charging Technology”

FanDuel, DraftKings Return to NY as Fantasy Sports Laws Proliferate

The future of the online daily fantasy sports industry seemed in jeopardy toward the end of last year, after an insider trading-like scandal prompted intense scrutiny and triggered efforts nationwide to regulate or even shut down the companies in some states, like New York. What a difference a few months make. New York Gov. Andrew … Continue reading “FanDuel, DraftKings Return to NY as Fantasy Sports Laws Proliferate”

Coding Dojo Takes Its Software Bootcamp Courses to Campus

Coding Dojo, which runs software development bootcamps in San Jose, Seattle, and other cities, will be offering some of its programming courses at Bellevue College near Seattle this fall in what it hopes will be the first of several college partnerships. Coding Dojo instructors will go on-campus evenings and weekends at the large public college … Continue reading “Coding Dojo Takes Its Software Bootcamp Courses to Campus”

Foundry Group, Autodesk Lead $35M Deal With Formlabs in 3D Printing

Here’s the classic life cycle of an emerging technology: a big hype curve, a trough of disillusionment, and then slow but steady adoption. 3D printing looks to be right on schedule. Now, one of the leading startups in the sector is solidifying its position for the long haul. Formlabs, based in Somerville, MA, said today … Continue reading “Foundry Group, Autodesk Lead $35M Deal With Formlabs in 3D Printing”

Alcohol Delivery Firm Drizly Gulps $15M to Fend Off Amazon, Startups

In some ways, Drizly’s mobile app-enabled alcohol shopping service is so ’90s. “It’s going to sound kind of boring … but what we’re doing is very tech 1.0,” says Nick Rellas, Drizly’s co-founder and CEO. “We’re bringing a world of over $100 billion a year [in alcohol sales] that is almost entirely physically based, onto … Continue reading “Alcohol Delivery Firm Drizly Gulps $15M to Fend Off Amazon, Startups”

Trump’s Wall, Remittances, and Immigration in Washington

Donald Trump plans to finance construction of a wall on the U.S.-Mexico border by holding hostage money sent home by undocumented Mexican immigrants until their government agrees to pay for it. The Republican presidential nominee’s written plan would require money transfer companies—such as Seattle-based remittances startup Remitly—to verify the lawful residency of anyone seeking to … Continue reading “Trump’s Wall, Remittances, and Immigration in Washington”

Pawn Shops Finally Go Digital, Helping Underbanked Find Quick Cash

In May and June, the financial industries that serve low-income Americans began to change in big ways. First, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau proposed new rules for payday lenders. The first banned lenders from withdrawing money directly from their customers’ bank accounts, while the second restricted their ability to lend by imposing credit limits. Then … Continue reading “Pawn Shops Finally Go Digital, Helping Underbanked Find Quick Cash”

Israeli-Born CyberX Nabs $9M to Guard Industrial Internet of Things

[Updated 8/3/16, 9:04 p.m., with information from the CEO.] Another Boston-area cybersecurity firm with Israeli ties is making a splash. CyberX announced Tuesday it raised $9 million from investors. The company got started in Tel Aviv in 2013 and later opened an office in California, according to a VentureBeat article from 2014. Earlier this year, the … Continue reading “Israeli-Born CyberX Nabs $9M to Guard Industrial Internet of Things”

U.S. Army Awards Phoenix Nuclear Labs $3.6M in Contracts

Phoenix Nuclear Labs, which has developed particle accelerator-driven technology with applications in areas such as weapons inspections and medical imaging, said on Tuesday that it had been awarded two contracts by the U.S. Army worth a combined $3.6 million. Under the terms of the first contract, valued at $2.6 million, Monona, WI-based Phoenix will deliver to the … Continue reading “U.S. Army Awards Phoenix Nuclear Labs $3.6M in Contracts”

Tour of Texas: CognitiveScale, Cariloop, Pageboy, CS Disco, Dropoff

Let’s catch up with the latest innovation news from Xconomy Texas. Austin: —CognitiveScale, an artificial intelligence/cognitive computing startup, announced it has raised $21.8 million in venture funding to promote global sales. The two-year-old startup has developed software to create a cloud-computing platform that uses machine learning to mine very large databases. —Most delivery startups have … Continue reading “Tour of Texas: CognitiveScale, Cariloop, Pageboy, CS Disco, Dropoff”

Shire Steps Back in Hemophilia Gene Therapy Race, Scraps Baxalta Drug

When Shire bought Baxalta earlier this year, one of the programs it inherited was a treatment that, at one point, was the leader in an emerging race to treat hemophilia with gene therapy. Competition has changed the landscape significantly, however, and now Shire has tossed that program onto the scrap heap. On a conference call … Continue reading “Shire Steps Back in Hemophilia Gene Therapy Race, Scraps Baxalta Drug”

With Linux for Ladies, Rackspace Aims to Bring More Women to IT

San Antonio—The tech industry is notorious for its boys’ club history, problems with misogyny, and gaps in pay equality between men and women. In San Antonio, cloud computing giant Rackspace is leading one effort to help turn around the persistent gender problem in tech. Three years ago, Rackspace opened a technical career school called Rackspace … Continue reading “With Linux for Ladies, Rackspace Aims to Bring More Women to IT”

Empty-Handed Again, MA Noncompete Reformers Seek More Progress

After another Massachusetts legislative session ended without passage of noncompete reform, stakeholders on both sides of the issue expressed disappointment that a deal didn’t get done. It’s not the outcome anyone wanted—or so they say—but that alone is evidence of how the debate shifted during the latest attempt to make changes to the state’s rules … Continue reading “Empty-Handed Again, MA Noncompete Reformers Seek More Progress”

Austin AI Startup Cognitive Scale Brings in $21.8M in Series B Funding

Austin—AI startup CognitiveScale has raised $21.8 million in a Series B round of funding. The startup, which makes software that has created a cognitive cloud platform that can mine very large databases, reported Tuesday that the funding comes from investors Norwest Venture Partners and Intel Capital. The two-year-old company said this round brings total financing … Continue reading “Austin AI Startup Cognitive Scale Brings in $21.8M in Series B Funding”

In Battle Between Promega and Shareholders, Linton Heads to Court

To say that Bill Linton has a long-term vision for Promega, the Fitchburg, WI-based biotech business he founded in 1978 and continues to lead as chairman and CEO, would qualify as an understatement. In 2013, he told the Isthmus newspaper that he was working to arrange a corporate structure that would allow Promega “to celebrate … Continue reading “In Battle Between Promega and Shareholders, Linton Heads to Court”

Delphi’s Autonomous Vehicle Pilot to Test Mobility On-Demand in Singapore

Delphi Automotive is leading a new driverless car pilot project with the Singapore Land Transport Authority; the goal of the project is to advance autonomous vehicle technology and open new markets to the tier-one auto supplier. According to a Delphi press release, the U.K.-based supplier with operations across the United States will provide a fleet … Continue reading “Delphi’s Autonomous Vehicle Pilot to Test Mobility On-Demand in Singapore”

More Gene Therapy Momentum as Startup Avrobio Grabs $25M From Atlas, SV

Gene therapy developers are on bit of a roll. Last week saw the release of promising data on gene therapies for hemophilia and the acquisition by Pfizer of a startup dedicated to the technology. And now another recently launched company, Avrobio, just grabbed a $25 million round of funding. The Cambridge, MA-based company was formally … Continue reading “More Gene Therapy Momentum as Startup Avrobio Grabs $25M From Atlas, SV”

Houston’s CS Disco Raises $18.75M to Boost Legal IT Software

Houston—Legal IT firm CS Disco announced today it has raised $18.75 million in a Series C funding round, accounting for just over half of its total investment raised of $35 million. Private equity firm The Stephens Group in Little Rock, AR, led the round, with participation from existing investors Bessemer Venture Partners in Menlo Park, … Continue reading “Houston’s CS Disco Raises $18.75M to Boost Legal IT Software”

PacketSled Raises $5M for Automated Cybersecurity Monitoring System

PacketSled, a cybersecurity startup based in suburban San Diego, has raised $5 million in a Series A funding round led by Keshif Ventures, a local angel investment fund that has put money into dozens of tech startups in the San Diego area. Two other small funds, Blu Ventures and JHS Ventures joined in the round. … Continue reading “PacketSled Raises $5M for Automated Cybersecurity Monitoring System”

GSK, Verily Team Up For Electro-Implants That Monitor, Treat Patients

Three years ago, international drug firm GlaxoSmithKline (NYSE: [[ticker:GSK]]) unveiled a new effort to create tiny implantable devices that would use electricity, not drugs, to alter the course of a range of diseases. Today GSK and Verily Life Sciences, the biotech unit of Google’s parent company Alphabet (NASDAQ: [[ticker:GOOG]]), said they would start a new … Continue reading “GSK, Verily Team Up For Electro-Implants That Monitor, Treat Patients”

Robotic Kitchens, Sports Apps, Hedge Fund Bets & More Boston Tech

[Updated 8/2/16, 3:18 p.m. See below.] We’ve officially entered the dog days of summer, although it already felt like that with the recent heat wave. Now that temperatures in Boston have cooled down a little, take a moment to catch up on some recent local tech headlines that you might’ve missed: —In one of the … Continue reading “Robotic Kitchens, Sports Apps, Hedge Fund Bets & More Boston Tech”