[Updated, 11:40 a.m. ET, see below] The road to potential approval for Voyager Therapeutics’ experimental gene therapy for Parkinson’s disease got a bit longer, and more expensive, last year. So this morning the company cut a deal with Neurocrine Biosciences to bankroll the journey—and forfeit some of the financial upside for the product, known as … Continue reading “Neurocrine Pays $165M to Bankroll Voyager’s Gene Therapy for Parkinson’s”
Category: National
Gilead, Gates Foundation Join Lyndra’s $55M Funding for Phase 2 Tests
Lyndra Therapeutics, a startup whose technology turns daily pills into extended-release formulations intended to last a week or longer, has raised $55 million to advance several of its drugs into mid-stage studies. The Series B round of funding was led by Polaris Partners, the firm that also led Lyndra’s Series A financing nearly two years … Continue reading “Gilead, Gates Foundation Join Lyndra’s $55M Funding for Phase 2 Tests”
Roundup: Erie Hack, MedHealth Summit, PlanetM, DTX Detroit, WMU
Now that the holidays are over—heck, January is almost over—Michigan’s innovation hubs are hard at work. Here is a selection of recent tech news from around the state: —Do you wonder what the deal is with driverless cars? Do you have questions as a consumer about safety, technology, or cost? The University of Michigan will … Continue reading “Roundup: Erie Hack, MedHealth Summit, PlanetM, DTX Detroit, WMU”
Moving HQ to Boston, AtScale CEO Chris Lynch Talks VCs, Tech Scene
There are more than a couple reasons why former Accomplice partner Chris Lynch is relocating the headquarters of his big data startup AtScale from San Mateo, CA, to Boston. He rattled them off last week, sitting in the newly wired-up but still empty first-floor office on Atlantic Avenue that Lynch plans to fill with sales, … Continue reading “Moving HQ to Boston, AtScale CEO Chris Lynch Talks VCs, Tech Scene”
Former Zavante Executive Tapped as Abide Therapeutics President
Abide Therapeutics, which is developing medicines to treat neurological diseases, has appointed Kevin Finney as its president and chief operating officer, a new role for the company. The company, which has about 40 employees, is co-located in San Diego, where the majority of its workers are based, and Princeton, NJ. Abide’s drug candidates, small-molecule inhibitors, … Continue reading “Former Zavante Executive Tapped as Abide Therapeutics President”
Healthcare Technology Bubble Concerns Are Likely Overblown
By nearly every measure, 2018 was a banner year for the venture capital industry, particularly in the healthcare technology sector. Over $130 billion of venture capital was invested across all sectors in the U.S., easily eclipsing the prior high-water mark in 2000 and nearly 4.8 times what was invested a decade ago. While certain sectors … Continue reading “Healthcare Technology Bubble Concerns Are Likely Overblown”
Norwest VC Eyes Waves of Change in A.I., Marketing, Cloud for 2019
Venture capital firms invest in potentially disruptive technologies with the hope of profit, then keep watch for further advances that could overtake their existing portfolio companies. All this is done while they guide startups through other external challenges such as fundraising droughts and overall market downturns. Scott Beechuk, a partner at Norwest Venture Partners, is … Continue reading “Norwest VC Eyes Waves of Change in A.I., Marketing, Cloud for 2019”
Sigma IQ Nabs $3.5M to Save Bean Counters Time on End-of-month Tasks
Businesses nearing the end of a financial reporting period roll up their sleeves for the task of reconciling the books, with accounting and finance teams responsible for making sure everything adds up the way it should. A Seattle software startup, Sigma IQ, believes it can make this process, which involves validating an organization’s financial accounts … Continue reading “Sigma IQ Nabs $3.5M to Save Bean Counters Time on End-of-month Tasks”
MEDC Leader Details Michigan’s Road to the Waymo AV Factory Deal
This week, Michigan’s economic development office notched a win when it announced that Waymo, Google’s mobility arm, had chosen the Great Lakes State as the location for a new manufacturing operation. According to a press release from the Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC), Waymo will invest $13.6 million in a factory that will integrate Waymo’s … Continue reading “MEDC Leader Details Michigan’s Road to the Waymo AV Factory Deal”
TX Tech News: Techstars Austin, Essentium, Ontic, & More Startup Funds
Let’s catch up with the latest innovation news in Texas. —Essentium, maker of a 3-D printing system for manufacturers, has raised $22.2 million in a Series A funding round led by BASF Venture Capital. Materialise, Genesis Park, and previous seed round investors also participated in the deal, according to a press release. The funding will be … Continue reading “TX Tech News: Techstars Austin, Essentium, Ontic, & More Startup Funds”
America Should Welcome Immigrant Entrepreneurs
When I came to America in 1987, as a wide-eyed University of Texas grad student, I arrived with just a suitcase and a few hundred dollars — money that my mother, back in India, had scraped together by selling her beloved jewelry collection. Three decades later, I’m a successful biomedical researcher and serial entrepreneur with … Continue reading “America Should Welcome Immigrant Entrepreneurs”
Neurable, Vectorform Partner on Brain-Computer Interface Applications
Neurable, a brain-computer interface (BCI) startup spun out of the University of Michigan and now based in Boston, has found a new partner in a familiar place. Vectorform, headquartered in Royal Oak, MI, is a software development and digital design firm that is collaborating with Neurable on BCI products for its clients in the automotive, … Continue reading “Neurable, Vectorform Partner on Brain-Computer Interface Applications”
What $1M in Bay Area Startup Dollars Buys You in 12 Other Cities
The cost of doing business is always on the mind of startup executives. Salaries, rent, and other expenses like software licenses can often make or break a company. Much of the math comes down to how much money you can raise for your business, and startups often look to San Francisco and Silicon Valley to … Continue reading “What $1M in Bay Area Startup Dollars Buys You in 12 Other Cities”
Bio Roundup: Bosley’s Editas Exit, Bridge Bucks, CRISPR Crime & More
In a week of big personnel moves, none was more surprising than Editas Medicine CEO Katrine Bosley’s departure. After guiding the CRISPR-Cas9 genome-editing startup from scientific breakthrough toward the development of a potential cutting-edge medicine, slogging victoriously through a legendary patent fight, and reaching the cusp of an historic clinical trial, the well-traveled Bosley is … Continue reading “Bio Roundup: Bosley’s Editas Exit, Bridge Bucks, CRISPR Crime & More”
Boston Tech Watch: The Predictive Index, Catalant, ZoomInfo, Notarize
A work week shortened by the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday didn’t seem to slow new capital from venture firms and strategic investors from flowing into Boston technology businesses this week. Read on for more: —The Predictive Index, a workforce talent optimization technology company in Westwood, MA, has raised $50 million in growth-stage capital led … Continue reading “Boston Tech Watch: The Predictive Index, Catalant, ZoomInfo, Notarize”
San Diego’s DeskHub Snapped Up by Co-Working Company Cross Campus
Cross Campus, a shared office-space provider with five locations in the Los Angeles, CA, region, has snapped up DeskHub in the latest step in a plan to expand its West Coast presence. DeskHub, one of San Diego’s oldest co-working companies, has about 500 members across two locations: a 23,000-square-foot space in Little Italy and about … Continue reading “San Diego’s DeskHub Snapped Up by Co-Working Company Cross Campus”
Air Taxis Are on the Horizon with Boeing’s Test of Autonomous Plane
Many aviators use autopilot to control the trajectory of aircraft between takeoff and landing, but Boeing is among those in the industry seeking to advance autonomous flying technology even further. Boeing (NYSE: [[ticker:BA]]), which is headquartered in Chicago but has roots and extensive operations in the Seattle area, announced this week it conducted a successful … Continue reading “Air Taxis Are on the Horizon with Boeing’s Test of Autonomous Plane”
EBSCO Health Buys HealthDecision to Push Joint Decision-Making Tools
[Updated 1/25/19, 10:39 am CT, with comments from CEO.] Cardiologist Jon Keevil’s decision three years ago to hang up his stethoscope and focus full time on his digital health startup, HealthDecision, seems to have paid off. His startup was just acquired by EBSCO Health, a business of Ipswich, MA-based EBSCO Information Services, which provides libraries with … Continue reading “EBSCO Health Buys HealthDecision to Push Joint Decision-Making Tools”
With International Growth in Mind, LegalTech Firm Disco Nabs $83M
Austin—Legal tech startup Disco announced Thursday it has raised $83 million in new funding. The round was led by Toronto-based Georgian Partners, with participation from existing investors Bessemer Venture Partners, LiveOak Venture Partners, The Stephens Group, and venture-debt provider Comerica. Disco has now raised a total of $135 million, the company said. Disco sells subscription … Continue reading “With International Growth in Mind, LegalTech Firm Disco Nabs $83M”
Autonomic CEO Gavin Sherry on Mobility, China, and Data Privacy
In a tech culture that looks toward self-driving cars as the pinnacle of mobility innovation, we’re still debating whether fully autonomous vehicles are an imminent reality for our roads or an ever-receding Shangri-La. But looking back from the viewpoint of 2019, it’s worth considering whether the really pivotal, world-changing advances in transportation have not already … Continue reading “Autonomic CEO Gavin Sherry on Mobility, China, and Data Privacy”
Trust & Will Raises $2M to Advance Digitization of Estate Planning
[Updated 9:30 a.m., see below.] Roughly half of American adults have no legal document that details how their assets should be distributed when they die. The team at Trust & Will, a San Diego-based startup founded in October of 2017, is betting that a good chunk of those people would shell out some money to … Continue reading “Trust & Will Raises $2M to Advance Digitization of Estate Planning”
In Another Lung Cancer Setback, Bristol Yanks FDA App For Drug Combo
Bristol-Myers Squibb has lost yet more ground in its ongoing cancer immunotherapy battle with rival Merck. Along with its earnings, the pharma firm reported Thursday that it has pulled a key approval application to use a combo regimen of its already approved immunotherapies, nivolumab (Opdivo) and ipilimumab (Yervoy), in a portion of patients with newly … Continue reading “In Another Lung Cancer Setback, Bristol Yanks FDA App For Drug Combo”
Nominations for Xconomy Awards San Diego Close Soon
San Diego is chock-full of companies and people doing innovative work in life science and digital health. From the many unsung heroes toiling in labs countywide, to paradigm-shifting startup founders working on the next life-altering medicine or digital health tool, to executives with multiple exits under their belts, Xconomy will recognize the region’s best this … Continue reading “Nominations for Xconomy Awards San Diego Close Soon”
Amazon Deploys Autonomous Delivery Vehicles on WA County’s Sidewalks
Amazon may still have a long way to go before realizing its vision of a network of package-carrying drones, which it discussed five years ago on an episode of “60 Minutes.” But the online retailing and technology giant says it’s begun testing a similar—if a bit less futuristic—concept involving unmanned delivery vehicles rolling around a … Continue reading “Amazon Deploys Autonomous Delivery Vehicles on WA County’s Sidewalks”
Report: BMW, Daimler Form Mobility Services Biz Called … Jurbey?
If you needed more evidence that automobile companies are taking self-driving cars and other emerging mobility tech seriously, look no further than this week’s report that German automakers BMW and Daimler have formed a new mobility services company, which will operate out of a central Berlin building that Daimler formerly used to host Mercedes-Benz Fashion … Continue reading “Report: BMW, Daimler Form Mobility Services Biz Called … Jurbey?”
PR Software Maker TrendKite Sold to Cision for $225M Cash and Stock
Austin—TrendKite has sold to Cision, a Chicago-based public relations and marketing software company, in a $225 million in a cash-and-stock deal. Cision (NYSE: [[ticker:CISN]]) is paying $94 million in cash and offering Austin-based TrendKite shareholders 10.2 million Cision shares. The company’s stock dipped 2.6 percent to $12.16 each as of midday in New York after … Continue reading “PR Software Maker TrendKite Sold to Cision for $225M Cash and Stock”
DermaClip Ramps Up for U.S. Sales Push of Wound-Healing Device
Houston—Sutures or staples are the norm to close deep wounds that won’t otherwise heal on their own. But a Houston medtech company says it has a better way. DermaClip makes an eponymous device that the company says is a non-invasive way to foster wound healing. The DermaClip device is an adhesive strip placed across a … Continue reading “DermaClip Ramps Up for U.S. Sales Push of Wound-Healing Device”
Access HealthNet Snags $1M to Help Lower Employers’ Healthcare Costs
Access HealthNet, a startup developing software designed to help employers save money on their workers’ healthcare, has raised $1 million in debt funding from a dozen investors, according to a securities filing. Wauwatosa, WI-based Access HealthNet works with its business clients to help them find the lowest prices for common medical procedures. Specifically, the digital … Continue reading “Access HealthNet Snags $1M to Help Lower Employers’ Healthcare Costs”
BridgeBio Pharma Hauls in $299M for Genetic Disease Drugs R&D
Biotech startup creator BridgeBio Pharma has raised $299.2 million to support its work developing new drugs to treat rare, genetic diseases. Palo Alto, CA-based BridgeBio searches for promising drug research at universities, academic medical centers, and drug companies. After acquiring rights to a compound, BridgeBio forms a subsidiary company to develop it. Operating under a … Continue reading “BridgeBio Pharma Hauls in $299M for Genetic Disease Drugs R&D”
“At a Critical Juncture,” Desktop Metal Gets $160M From Koch Fund
[Updated 11:41 am ET. See below.] Desktop Metal, a metal 3D-printing company, has raised $160 million in a funding round led by the technology arm of Koch Industries, the multinational industrial conglomerate owned by billionaire philanthropists and right-leaning political donors Charles and David Koch. With the Series E funding from Koch Disruptive Technologies and other investors, … Continue reading ““At a Critical Juncture,” Desktop Metal Gets $160M From Koch Fund”
2019 Will See Progress on Personalization’s Last Frontier: Education
Today, technology and data science have combined to create artificial intelligence—data-driven algorithms that seemingly provide us with options for a fully personalized life. Gone are the days of Henry Ford’s “You can have any color so long as it’s black.” There are way more than three major network TV channels. We live in an era … Continue reading “2019 Will See Progress on Personalization’s Last Frontier: Education”
LunaDNA Health Data Platform to Merge with Genetic Alliance Database
LunaDNA, a startup that is offering individuals company stock in exchange for personal genomic and health information in a bid to build a database that could help advance scientific research, is merging its research platform with the Genetic Alliance’s Platform for Engaging Everyone Responsibly (PEER). The Genetic Alliance is a longstanding nonprofit organization based in … Continue reading “LunaDNA Health Data Platform to Merge with Genetic Alliance Database”
Bevi Lands $35M for Smarter Water Cooler That Gets to Know You
The water cooler will see you now. The beverage engineers at Boston-based startup Bevi are hard at work building a drink dispenser that can call up the finest details of your workplace drink order. How much lime flavoring is enough? How effervescent should the carbonation be? What mix of vitamins should be added? “We see … Continue reading “Bevi Lands $35M for Smarter Water Cooler That Gets to Know You”
Dosh Adds $40 Million in New Funding For Cash-Back Advertising App
Austin—[Updated and corrected, 2:36 p.m.] Dosh has added $40 million in new funding to further develop its mobile app that offers users cash back on certain purchases. The money is Dosh’s Series B round of financing, and includes $20 million in equity financing and $20 million in venture debt. Goodwater Capital and Western Technology Investment … Continue reading “Dosh Adds $40 Million in New Funding For Cash-Back Advertising App”
Plymouth Growth Partners Backs Fort Wayne’s Allied Payment Network
Plymouth Growth Partners has made another investment in an Indiana tech company. The Ann Arbor, MI-based venture capital fund has invested an undisclosed amount in Allied Payment Network, which is located in Fort Wayne, IN. Plymouth partner Jeff Barry says the deal was valued in the “multi-millions.” Barry will join Allied’s board as part of … Continue reading “Plymouth Growth Partners Backs Fort Wayne’s Allied Payment Network”
Editas CEO Katrine Bosley to Depart on Cusp of CRISPR Clinical Trial
Editas Medicine has the regulatory blessing to test its experimental gene-editing therapy in humans, and a $25 million check from its partner, Allergan, for hitting that milestone. But Editas will conduct the clinical trial without Katrine Bosley, the CRISPR biotech’s top executive for nearly the last five years. Bosley is leaving her post as president … Continue reading “Editas CEO Katrine Bosley to Depart on Cusp of CRISPR Clinical Trial”
Geekdom Co-Working Space Opens Six-Week Entrepreneurship School
San Antonio—Co-working space Geekdom is starting a short-term night program for people interested in learning about entrepreneurship. The school, to be called The District, is accepting 36 students for its first six-week session, which begins Feb. 4. The program will run three times a year, Geekdom says. Classes will take place Monday through Thursday from … Continue reading “Geekdom Co-Working Space Opens Six-Week Entrepreneurship School”
FDA Places Clinical Hold on Translate Bio’s mRNA Drug Study
Translate Bio’s plans to test a messenger RNA (mRNA) drug in patients who have a rare metabolic disorder have been halted by the FDA. Lexington, MA-based Translate Bio (NASDAQ: [[ticker:TBIO]]) said Tuesday that the regulator verbally notified it of “additional clinical and nonclinical questions” about the company’s submission. Until those questions are resolved, the FDA … Continue reading “FDA Places Clinical Hold on Translate Bio’s mRNA Drug Study”
A Healthier Lifestyle Helped Lead This Tech Exec to His Next Venture
Austin—Douglas Ferguson needed a change after his diagnosis of Type 1 diabetes at age 30. As a career software engineer and technology executive, Ferguson has been a part of the Austin, TX, tech scene since its first heyday in the 1990s. The diagnosis, which he received in the mid-2000s, was a product of that sleepless, … Continue reading “A Healthier Lifestyle Helped Lead This Tech Exec to His Next Venture”
Detroit Trends in 2018? More Traction, Diversity, and Collaboration
Editor’s note: This is part of a series of posts sharing thoughts from industry and technology leaders about 2018 trends. A few trends come to mind that continue to shape and define the startup ecosystem in Detroit: —Marketplaces continue to evolve and attract funding (initial and follow-on), and gain traction that has to be recognized and respected. … Continue reading “Detroit Trends in 2018? More Traction, Diversity, and Collaboration”
Zipwhip Gets $51.5M for Software That Lets Businesses Text Customers
Texting has grown well beyond person-to-person communications. To remind customers about upcoming appointments or notify diners their restaurant tables are ready, for example, text messages have in many businesses replaced phone calls and light-up buzzer systems. But text-based communications between businesses and their customers are becoming more of a two-way dialogue, with organizations increasingly allowing … Continue reading “Zipwhip Gets $51.5M for Software That Lets Businesses Text Customers”
Failed Clinical Trial Puts Eli Lilly Cancer Drug in Limbo
An Eli Lilly drug on the market for a rare form of cancer is now in limbo, after it failed a trial needed to retain the FDA approval the treatment, known as olaratumab (Lartruvo), won two years ago. Lilly (NYSE: [[ticker:LLY]]) said Friday that patients in a Phase 3 study with soft tissue sarcoma who … Continue reading “Failed Clinical Trial Puts Eli Lilly Cancer Drug in Limbo”
How 3 Detroit Founders Built Tech Startups Despite City’s Bankruptcy
On July 18th, 2013, the city of Detroit filed for Chapter 9 bankruptcy, becoming the largest city in American history to do so. Just four years earlier, Chrysler and General Motors—automobile companies that were long a staple of the Detroit economy—had filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. “You hear stories about the Great Depression in the … Continue reading “How 3 Detroit Founders Built Tech Startups Despite City’s Bankruptcy”
Outdoorsy’s Big Haul & Other Startup Fundraising in TX Tech News
Let’s catch up with the latest innovation news in Texas. —TeVido, an Austin biotech, has raised $1.2 million to help fund a new facility in which the company can use a patient’s own cells to create personalized pigment cell grafts to treat vitiligo, a loss of skin color that affects about 1 percent of the … Continue reading “Outdoorsy’s Big Haul & Other Startup Fundraising in TX Tech News”
Despite Buyout, Celgene Dealmaking Rolls On With Kyn, Obsidian Tie-Ups
[Updated 12:35pm ET with comments from Michael Gilman, Obsidian CEO, see below.] Bristol-Myers Squibb’s huge proposed buyout of Celgene earlier this month has left many in biotech circles concerned that the Summit, NJ, drugmaker’s days of creative, aggressive dealmaking with smaller companies might be over. So far, however, that isn’t the case. Two Boston-area biotechs, … Continue reading “Despite Buyout, Celgene Dealmaking Rolls On With Kyn, Obsidian Tie-Ups”
Michigan Mobility Institute Aims to Expand AV Talent, Ecosystem
A new tech education effort is forming in Detroit—created by Fontinalis Partners co-founder Chris Thomas—that focuses on teaching adult students the skills they need to compete for the increasingly large number of open jobs in the mobility industry. Called the Detroit Mobility Lab, it has two goals: to build the mobility talent infrastructure necessary to … Continue reading “Michigan Mobility Institute Aims to Expand AV Talent, Ecosystem”
Bio Roundup: Aimmune Drama, Shutdown Blues, Perlmutter Talks Cancer
The partial government shutdown, now the longest in U.S. history, began to take a bite out of biotech this week, served with a hot side dish of confusion. On Tuesday, Aimmune Therapeutics (NASDAQ: [[ticker:AIMT]]) said the shutdown would delay the review—and potential approval—of its experimental treatment for peanut allergy. Aimmune said it received a letter … Continue reading “Bio Roundup: Aimmune Drama, Shutdown Blues, Perlmutter Talks Cancer”
WI Watchlist: Fiserv, Promega, Arrowhead, Basic-code, EnSync & More
The biggest news of the week from Wisconsin’s high-tech sectors was by far Brookfield-based Fiserv’s (NASDAQ: [[ticker:FISV]]) massive $22 billion deal to acquire First Data (NYSE: [[ticker:FDC]]). Meanwhile, here are some headlines and happenings you might’ve missed: —Basic-code raised nearly $250,000 in equity funding, according to an SEC filing. The Brookfield, WI-based startup, which offers … Continue reading “WI Watchlist: Fiserv, Promega, Arrowhead, Basic-code, EnSync & More”
Boston Tech Watch: Nantucket, Lionbridge, Nano-C, Barac & Quick Base
Nantucket entrepreneurs welcome, and acquisitions abound. There are also new owners, new offices and new money in the bank for Boston-area technology companies this week. Read on for the details. —Sense, the Cambridge, MA-based home electricity management technology startup, has partnered with Swiss utility technology company Landis+Gyr to put Sense’s technology in Landis’ Internet-of-things platform, … Continue reading “Boston Tech Watch: Nantucket, Lionbridge, Nano-C, Barac & Quick Base”
Microsoft Pledges $500M for Housing in Growth-Strained Seattle
Microsoft announced a new, $500 million initiative late Wednesday that’s aimed at making housing more affordable and available to low- and middle-income residents of the Seattle area. The Redmond, WA-based software giant pointed to data indicating that in this decade, population increases in the metropolitan area that Microsoft (NASDAQ: [[ticker:MSFT]]) calls home have outpaced growth … Continue reading “Microsoft Pledges $500M for Housing in Growth-Strained Seattle”