Category: National

How Pozen’s Tribute Pharma Deal Paves New Path for “Safer Aspirin”

Pozen’s drug pipeline yielded two products that successfully reached the market. For the third, it is changing up its business strategy to try something it has never done before—take a drug into the market on its own. Partnerships had enabled Pozen (NASDAQ: [[ticker:POZN]]) to leverage the sales forces of larger pharma companies to commercialize a … Continue reading “How Pozen’s Tribute Pharma Deal Paves New Path for “Safer Aspirin””

BlackSky Global Aims to Blanket the Globe with Small Imaging Satellites

BlackSky Global, a new offshoot of Seattle-based Spaceflight Industries, aims to launch a constellation of imaging satellites that would provide one-meter resolution pictures of almost any place of the earth, delivered on-demand to customers hours after they place an order. Chief technology officer Peter Wegner, who previously led the Defense Department’s Operationally Responsive Space Office, … Continue reading “BlackSky Global Aims to Blanket the Globe with Small Imaging Satellites”

After Reinvention, Pulmatrix Wraps Up Ruthigen Deal, Heads to Nasdaq

In a friendly IPO market for biotechs, going public the other way—reverse merging with a shell company—is understandably the path less trodden. But after a strategic reinvention, it was the best road forward for Lexington, MA-based Pulmatrix. Today, Pulmatrix will begin trading on the Nasdaq under the ticker symbol “PULM.” It’s completed a previously announced … Continue reading “After Reinvention, Pulmatrix Wraps Up Ruthigen Deal, Heads to Nasdaq”

Digital Agency Northern Ground Hatches Employee-owned Incubator

Northern Ground has spent the last three years designing and building websites, mobile apps, and marketing campaigns for clients ranging from local startups to international corporations. Now, the nine-person Milwaukee digital agency wants to create its own products. Last week, Northern Ground announced it has formed an in-house, employee-owned incubator called Quarry that will develop … Continue reading “Digital Agency Northern Ground Hatches Employee-owned Incubator”

McNealy Talks About Building Billion-Dollar Companies at VC Summit

When you get the CEOs of tech companies in a room with venture capitalists, there’s usually one thing on their mind—making money. A lot of it. Scott McNealy knows a few things about making a billion-dollar tech company. He founded and was CEO of Sun Microsystems, one of the most important and successful companies to … Continue reading “McNealy Talks About Building Billion-Dollar Companies at VC Summit”

Lawrence, Gotsch, Tantoco & Others Talk Growing Startups in Cities

Everyone expects technology communities to spur growth, and seeing it happen outside of Silicon Valley is far from guaranteed—but it could be crucial for the economy. That was the crux of a discussion on strategies for encouraging startups to develop and scale up in various cities. “For us as a country, to have all of … Continue reading “Lawrence, Gotsch, Tantoco & Others Talk Growing Startups in Cities”

MI Roundup: Brightmoor Maker Space, Ford, Rockwell Medical

Here’s a look at news you may have missed from around Michigan’s innovation hubs: —The University of Michigan and the Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC) announced last week that they’re launching a crowdfunding campaign on Patronicity to transform a vacant 3,200-square-foot building on the Detroit Community Schools campus into the Brightmoor Maker Space, a place where … Continue reading “MI Roundup: Brightmoor Maker Space, Ford, Rockwell Medical”

Avalon Debuts Three More Tiny Biotechs In Risk-Share Deal With GSK

We fly, you buy. That’s been the formula for the Avalon Ventures-GlaxoSmithKline biotech collaboration, with Avalon scouting for ideas around the country and GSK bankrolling them into startups that it can ultimately acquire. Avalon announced three more tiny startups today to bring the total so far to six. Today’s debuts are Adrenergics, going after treatments … Continue reading “Avalon Debuts Three More Tiny Biotechs In Risk-Share Deal With GSK”

John Harthorne, David Manfredi, Frank Moss Join Boston 2035 on 6/17

We’re in the final stages of preparing for our biggest local event of the year: Boston 2035, a wide-ranging look at the future of New England innovation over the next 20 years. It’s all going down at Babson College this Wednesday. I’m pleased to update you about a few additions to the program. John Harthorne, … Continue reading “John Harthorne, David Manfredi, Frank Moss Join Boston 2035 on 6/17”

Speech Startup VocaliD Creates Personalized Voices With Crowd’s Help

[Updated, 10am. See below.] Losing the ability to speak is harrowing, and particularly poignant in conditions such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (known as ALS), stroke, or cerebral palsy. Yet many who can’t speak still can make some sounds with their voice—think gleeful yelps of joy or sorrowful shrieks of pain. Those sounds are key to the work … Continue reading “Speech Startup VocaliD Creates Personalized Voices With Crowd’s Help”

No Joke, New York Tech Meetup Matures with Techstars NYC, ERA Alumni

More and more the New York Tech Meetup is featuring sophisticated demos from graduates from local accelerators. At the June demo night, held this week, some recently-minted alumni of Techstars NYC and the Entrepreneurs Roundtable Accelerator presented their technology along with other fledgling idea makers—including a few actual comedians. This monthly gathering has always been … Continue reading “No Joke, New York Tech Meetup Matures with Techstars NYC, ERA Alumni”

Texas Entrepreneur Networks to Host Later-Stage Funding in Austin

Hall T. Martin, founder and CEO of the Texas Entrepreneur Networks, wants to help innovative Texas companies get over the Series B hump. That’s why he—along with Seattle-based venture capital data provider PitchBook—has created the Texas Venture Growth Forum to be held in the Texas state capitol in October. The two-day event will focus on … Continue reading “Texas Entrepreneur Networks to Host Later-Stage Funding in Austin”

Seattle Roundup: Modumetal, Envelop VR, Oculus VR, Socrata

Modumetal had little to say about its big funding round, revealed in SEC filings earlier this week. Meanwhile, the Seattle-area’s virtual reality industry gained momentum with funding for Envelop VR and a large, new office space for Oculus VR. Details on these stories, as well as a new “utility” product from government data platform Socrata, … Continue reading “Seattle Roundup: Modumetal, Envelop VR, Oculus VR, Socrata”

Skedaddle Over to Babson for Boston 2035 on Wednesday

Interested in attending our Boston 2035 conference, but don’t have a car? Or don’t want to fight the traffic between Boston and Wellesley? We’ve got a solution for you. Boston startup Skedaddle is providing complimentary round-trip transportation from South Station in downtown Boston to the Babson College campus for event attendees next Wednesday, June 17. … Continue reading “Skedaddle Over to Babson for Boston 2035 on Wednesday”

#Hack4detroit Seeks to Improve City Services Through Open Data Portal

We started the week out talking about hackathons in Detroit, and we’ll finish the week the same way, although #hack4detroit has a twist: Participants are using the city of Detroit’s open data portal to create apps that will benefit city residents or help streamline operations. Automation Alley’s #hack4detroit event starts at 7 p.m. tonight at … Continue reading “#Hack4detroit Seeks to Improve City Services Through Open Data Portal”

East Coast Biotech Roundup: XTuit, Spero, Unum, RNAi Feud & More

New startups. New data. Financings. Acquisitions. Legal tussles. FDA advisory panels. It’s been that kind of week in East Coast biotech. So grab some coffee and let’s roll through this week’s headlines. —This week a new type of cholesterol-lowering drug was in the spotlight, a class of injectable therapies that block the protein known as … Continue reading “East Coast Biotech Roundup: XTuit, Spero, Unum, RNAi Feud & More”

Copenhagen Wheel Rides and Hands-On Drones at Boston 2035 on June 17

Experience the future first hand. We are less than a week away from Xconomy’s full day innovation extravaganza, Boston 2035, which will take place at Babson College next Wednesday, June 17. The speaker lineup for this event exploring the Boston region’s long-term future is already off the charts—with legendary entrepreneur Desh Deshpande, David Cohen from Techstars, … Continue reading “Copenhagen Wheel Rides and Hands-On Drones at Boston 2035 on June 17”

With $2M, Codagenix Becomes Accelerate LI’s First VC-Backed Grad

Accelerate Long Island’s main mission has been to turn the science at its nearby research institutions into full-fledged companies with venture investors of their own. With a small funding round being announced today, Codagenix has become the first one of those projects that can make that claim. Codagenix has raised a $2 million Series A … Continue reading “With $2M, Codagenix Becomes Accelerate LI’s First VC-Backed Grad”

Milestones of Innovation 8: Ten Minutes in White House Shapes World War II

Seventy-five years ago today, science took a seat next to the American presidency. It was a move of immense and continuing consequences for innovation in this country and across the world, not only in a war to the death but in the decades of uneasy peace that followed. The actual event on June 12, 1940 … Continue reading “Milestones of Innovation 8: Ten Minutes in White House Shapes World War II”

Microsoft Pledges $10M for New UW Computer Science Building

The University of Washington’s plans for a new computer science building to accommodate surging interest from students—and the tech company employers who would hire them—is getting a $10 million boost from Microsoft. The Redmond, WA, company synonymous with the state’s tech industry pledged the cash to kick off a private fundraising campaign whose target would … Continue reading “Microsoft Pledges $10M for New UW Computer Science Building”

West Coast Biotech Roundup: PCSK9, Amgen, SeaGen, Twist, Serenus

The biggest West Coast news happened near the nation’s capital this week. Amgen (NASDAQ: [[ticker:AMGN]]) of Thousand Oaks, CA, saw its next-generation anti-cholesterol drug evolocumab (Repatha) get a thumbs-up, with caveats, from an FDA advisory panel. Next comes the agency’s decision later this summer whether to approve the drug, and for which patients. The panel … Continue reading “West Coast Biotech Roundup: PCSK9, Amgen, SeaGen, Twist, Serenus”

Austin’s Dean Drako Buys Maryland-Based Security Manager Brivo for $50M

Dean Drako, an Austin, TX, businessman known for starting security companies Barracuda Networks and Eagle Eye Networks, is paying $50 million to buy Brivo, another security business. Brivo, based in Bethusda, MD, sells a security management system called Brivo OnAir, which offers cloud-based physical access control and video surveillance. Drako will serve as chairman, and … Continue reading “Austin’s Dean Drako Buys Maryland-Based Security Manager Brivo for $50M”

Texas Roundup: Drizly, Vinli, Medical Informatics, Curb, TabbedOut

Here is the latest innovation news from Xconomy Texas: —Drizly, a Boston-based alcohol delivery company, has expanded into Dallas. The north Texas city is the company’s 15th market. Last month, Drizly said it had raised $13 million in a Series A round. Its mobile app lets users order beer, wine, and liquor from local alcohol … Continue reading “Texas Roundup: Drizly, Vinli, Medical Informatics, Curb, TabbedOut”

Lycera’s End Game? $104M Celgene Deal Could Lead to Buyout

It’s been a big week for Lycera, a biotech firm focused on immunotherapy that spun out of the University of Michigan nearly a decade ago. On Tuesday, the company announced a deal with Celgene, of Cranbury, NJ, that could spell the beginning of the end for the Michigan biotech. Celgene has taken an option to … Continue reading “Lycera’s End Game? $104M Celgene Deal Could Lead to Buyout”

Head for the Exits, Security Firms: Rapid7 Files for IPO

Tech IPOs have not been very fashionable as of late. But cybersecurity has. Now a Boston tech company is putting those elements together—and foreshadowing a number of other exits in the sector. Rapid7 has filed paperwork to go public on the Nasdaq. It lists its maximum aggregate offering price as $80 million, but that’s mostly … Continue reading “Head for the Exits, Security Firms: Rapid7 Files for IPO”

From Africa to Seattle, Building Businesses to Solve Big Problems

Listening to a Zambian entrepreneur pitch his goat meat business in the middle of a first-world technology hub, I glimpsed the degree to which entrepreneurship and capitalism have been called upon to address the problems of the world’s poor. Seattle-based Fledge, billed as a “conscious company” accelerator providing investment and Techstars-like mentorship and coaching to startups … Continue reading “From Africa to Seattle, Building Businesses to Solve Big Problems”

IPO “On the Horizon” for Unum After $65M Series B, CEO Says

It’s been quite a week for Unum Therapeutics. Just three days after inking its first partnership, the emerging cellular immunotherapy startup has bagged its biggest funding round to date, and an initial public offering may not be far behind. Cambridge, MA-based Unum this morning raised a $65 million Series B round from a large group … Continue reading “IPO “On the Horizon” for Unum After $65M Series B, CEO Says”

Yesware Says Yes to $13M VC Funding, No to Tech Bubble

Somewhere between the early-stage rocket ships and later-stage unicorns, there is a group of tech companies quietly building their businesses. Yesware is one of those companies. The Boston-based maker of software for salespeople occupies a mid-stage niche in the startup market. The 70-person company has been around since 2010 and has been growing steadily. No … Continue reading “Yesware Says Yes to $13M VC Funding, No to Tech Bubble”

JAMF Software Names New CEO, Continues Growing in Eau Claire

JAMF Software has come a long way since it was just a two-man operation in the early 2000s, with founder Zach Halmstad handling product development and business partner Chip Pearson focusing on sales and marketing. The Minneapolis-based company—which provides enterprise software for companies, schools, and government agencies running on Apple devices—has since grown into an … Continue reading “JAMF Software Names New CEO, Continues Growing in Eau Claire”

XTuit Gets $22M From NEA, Polaris to Battle Cancer, Liver Disease

Call it ground zero in a patient’s battle with cancer: the tumor microenvironment, the tissue around a cancerous cell that gets tricked into doing its bidding. That critical terrain is becoming the focus of a lot of fresh ideas for scientists—and one of them is taking shape today, with the emergence of a startup called … Continue reading “XTuit Gets $22M From NEA, Polaris to Battle Cancer, Liver Disease”

Rare Heart Disease Advocate: “I’m More Relieved Than I’ve Ever Been”

[Corrected 6/10/15, 10:14pm. See below.] Katherine Wilemon had a celebratory glass of wine a couple hours ago, which some say is good for the heart. Even better for Wilemon, however, is the reason she’s celebrating: In a two-day discussion about two new drugs aimed at high cholesterol, a panel of outside advisors recommended that the FDA … Continue reading “Rare Heart Disease Advocate: “I’m More Relieved Than I’ve Ever Been””

WERCBench Accelerator Picks Startups in Drones, Virtual Reality, & More

Startups working on underwater drones and virtual reality products were among the companies chosen for the inaugural WERCBench Labs accelerator launching this summer in Milwaukee. WERCBench, backed by a $350,000 grant from the Wisconsin Economic Development Corp., will run from June 10 to Aug. 27 at the Energy Innovation Center, a research and development hub … Continue reading “WERCBench Accelerator Picks Startups in Drones, Virtual Reality, & More”

With Quickstep Sale, WI Professor Patel Flips Third Startup

Jignesh Patel seems to have a knack for spinning university research into startups that attract a buyer. The University of Wisconsin-Madison computer sciences professor and serial entrepreneur scored his latest win this week, when San Francisco-based Pivotal snapped up Quickstep Technologies, a big data startup launched in January after six years of research by Patel … Continue reading “With Quickstep Sale, WI Professor Patel Flips Third Startup”

Failed Trial for Hepatitis B Drug Leads to Layoffs at GlobeImmune

The bad news for GlobeImmune keeps coming. The Louisville, CO-based drug company announced today it is slashing the majority of its workforce and is evaluating its strategic options in the wake of a failed trial for the chronic hepatitis B drug it was developing. GlobeImmune (Nasdaq: [[ticker:GBIM]]) announced the negative results in late May, and … Continue reading “Failed Trial for Hepatitis B Drug Leads to Layoffs at GlobeImmune”

EdCast Recruits Experts to Lead Informal Video Learning Channels

One sign that a Silicon Valley company has made its mark is that a new verb arises from its name. People these days Google, they tweet, they Uber across town. Now a Bay Area educational technology company is hoping its own action verb will catch on: EdCasting. Mountain View, CA-based EdCast, which provides a cloud … Continue reading “EdCast Recruits Experts to Lead Informal Video Learning Channels”

Surge Focusing on More Mature Energy Companies, Raising Bigger Fund

The change of one word can signify a lot. Surge Accelerator has become Surge Ventures, a name change that reflects the maturing mission of the cleantech accelerator in Houston. The shift comes amid a downturn in the oil and gas industry as a whole: Oil prices are down to about half of their peak of … Continue reading “Surge Focusing on More Mature Energy Companies, Raising Bigger Fund”

Wisconsin Roundup: Kauffman Index, Startup Funding, Ward 4, & More

Here’s a collection of recent headlines in Wisconsin’s innovation and technology community: —Wisconsin dropped to dead last in a closely watched national ranking of startup activity conducted annually by the Kauffman Foundation, with 170 out of every 100,000 adults in the state counted as entrepreneurs in any given month. Wisconsin was 45th in last year’s Kauffman Index. … Continue reading “Wisconsin Roundup: Kauffman Index, Startup Funding, Ward 4, & More”

Techstars Mobility Launches with Office at Ford Field, New Partners

At long last, the inaugural session of the Techstars Mobility program officially launched Tuesday from its 10,000-square-foot office at Ford Field, home of the Detroit Lions. Ten companies working on a range of mobility-related products and services will spend the next three months developing their ideas in Detroit, culminating with a demo day on Sept. … Continue reading “Techstars Mobility Launches with Office at Ford Field, New Partners”

Advisors to FDA: Approve New Cholesterol Drug, But With Caveats

One down, one to go, and a lot of questions left unanswered. A panel of FDA advisors voted 13-3 today to recommend that the agency give the green light to alirocumab (Praluent), one of two new cholesterol-lowering injectable drugs the panel is reviewing this week. Beyond the main positive vote, however, some panelists also indicated … Continue reading “Advisors to FDA: Approve New Cholesterol Drug, But With Caveats”

What Do the Heads of Techstars & Boston Children’s Hospital Have in Common?

David Cohen and Sandra Fenwick both believe that Boston’s innovation community is poised to do huge things. Cohen, the founder and managing partner of Techstars, says Boston’s startup ecosystem will be “off the charts” in the next 20 years. Fenwick, the CEO of Boston Children’s Hospital, says the city’s healthcare and analytics expertise “will change … Continue reading “What Do the Heads of Techstars & Boston Children’s Hospital Have in Common?”

Rockwell Helping Manufacturers (Slowly) Join the Internet of Things

Just as connected devices are slowly but surely making their way into our homes, the Internet of Things is also starting to impact the manufacturing industry. The going is slow: Less than 14 percent of U.S. manufacturers have linked up their factory machines with their enterprise software, says Keith Nosbusch, CEO of Milwaukee-based Rockwell Automation … Continue reading “Rockwell Helping Manufacturers (Slowly) Join the Internet of Things”

Betaworks Talks Traction, When to Dig In, and When to Kill an Idea

Somewhere between gut instinct and customer reception is the answer to a question most every startup faces. Pull the plug, or keep building a product in the hopes it becomes a hit? That was one of the key topics during a panel discussion comprised of some folks from New York-based Betaworks, who came out to … Continue reading “Betaworks Talks Traction, When to Dig In, and When to Kill an Idea”

Good Times Roll on for Biotech VCs As Clarus Bags New $500M Fund

Take a poll of most of biotech’s venture capitalists—the ones that survived the financial crash, anyway—and you might find that just about all of them have reloaded with new funds over the past few years. Today, you can add Clarus Ventures to the list. Clarus—a VC firm with offices in the bi-coastal biotech hotbeds of … Continue reading “Good Times Roll on for Biotech VCs As Clarus Bags New $500M Fund”

Take a Grain of Salt (Or Two) With New Cholesterol Drug Predictions

My mother always warned me never to start a column with a reference to management consultants. Sorry, Mom. Cover your eyes. But anyone else with personal health or personal finance interest in the latest cholesterol-fighting drugs, read on. Two years ago, three McKinseyites published a study about forecasts for drug sales. The upshot: To predict … Continue reading “Take a Grain of Salt (Or Two) With New Cholesterol Drug Predictions”

A Small Biz COO App: Five Questions for Shopventory’s Rares Saftoiu

Rares Saftoiu and Bach Le were working on the TurboTax engineering team at Intuit in San Diego when they decided to quit in 2013 to work full-time on Shopventory, a software startup they founded to serve small business owners. It was their second attempt at a startup while they were still working full-time at Intuit. … Continue reading “A Small Biz COO App: Five Questions for Shopventory’s Rares Saftoiu”

Sprinkle Camp Offers Hackers an All-Expense-Paid Weekend in Detroit

Detroit in 2015 reminds a lot of people of New York City (minus the functional public transportation system, of course) before former mayors Rudy Giuliani and Michael Bloomberg helped transform it into a bright, shiny playground for the upwardly mobile. The edge that used to attract artists and innovative thinkers of all stripes to the … Continue reading “Sprinkle Camp Offers Hackers an All-Expense-Paid Weekend in Detroit”