School is in session with education technology startups earning good grades from investors. Last Thursday, New York’s Knewton raised $33 million in a funding round led by Founders Fund and education and media company Pearson. The new cash will go towards further development of Knewton’s adaptive learning platform, which customizes education content for each student. … Continue reading “Founders Fund-Backed Knewton And Other Education-Tech Companies Move to the Head of the Class”
Category: National
Computing in the Age of the $1,000 Genome: Here’s the Program for Monday’s Conference
[Updated: 11:18 am PT] One of the most fastest-moving, highest-impact innovation stories in history is happening in genomics. Lucky for those of us who follow the business on the West Coast, this epic story is playing out right where we live, right now. Everyone in the Valley knows about Moore’s Law, and how computing power … Continue reading “Computing in the Age of the $1,000 Genome: Here’s the Program for Monday’s Conference”
Got Some Immunex Memorabilia in the Closet? Break it Out at the Immunex Impact Dec. 1
If you ever worked at Immunex, chances are you got a T-shirt, pen, coffee mug or some other piece of swag with a logo on it. The stuff might have been shipped off to Goodwill a long time ago, but if it’s still sitting there in the closet, I have an idea for what you … Continue reading “Got Some Immunex Memorabilia in the Closet? Break it Out at the Immunex Impact Dec. 1”
Oracle Scoops Up Endeca, Kleiner Perkins and Google Ventures Back Foundation Medicine, Care.com Collects $25M, & More Boston-Area Deals News
New England’s tech and life sciences companies have been inking deals all over the place this past week. First up, the big surprise… —Cambridge, MA-based Endeca Technologies, an enterprise search and e-commerce company that was founded in 1999, agreed to be acquired by Silicon Valley database and business software giant Oracle. Terms of the deal … Continue reading “Oracle Scoops Up Endeca, Kleiner Perkins and Google Ventures Back Foundation Medicine, Care.com Collects $25M, & More Boston-Area Deals News”
DNAnexus, With Google Ventures and TPG’s Cash, Seeks Edge in $100B Genome Computing Market
If there’s anybody in the world of genomic computing with dreams of world domination, like a Bill Gates or a Mark Zuckerberg, it might be Andreas Sundquist. Others may have similar ambitions, but the co-founder of Mountain View, CA-based DNAnexus is one of the few with the chutzpah to say that he thinks a cottage … Continue reading “DNAnexus, With Google Ventures and TPG’s Cash, Seeks Edge in $100B Genome Computing Market”
GSK Malaria Vaccine Stands Out at Gates Foundation Confab, But Cost Still the Big Question
The buzz at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation’s malaria conference yesterday was all about clinical trial results from a new vaccine the foundation developed with pharma giant GlaxoSmithKline. But there’s a big question about how much this vaccine will cost, and nobody is willing to offer specifics about that yet. To recap, here’s what … Continue reading “GSK Malaria Vaccine Stands Out at Gates Foundation Confab, But Cost Still the Big Question”
Arteaus, With $18M From Atlas and OrbiMed, Forges Ahead on Migraine-Prevention Drug
Cambridge, MA-based Arteaus Therapeutics is emerging from stealth mode today, announcing it is has raised an $18 million funding round and is developing a molecule licensed from drug giant Eli Lilly (NYSE: [[ticker:LLY]]) to prevent migraine headaches. The financing came from Cambridge, MA-based Atlas Venture and New York-based OrbiMed Advisors. Arteaus was founded in June, says … Continue reading “Arteaus, With $18M From Atlas and OrbiMed, Forges Ahead on Migraine-Prevention Drug”
MoneyTree Report Sees Third-Quarter Slowdown in U.S. Venture Investments
Venture capital firms invested $6.95 billion in 876 deals throughout the United States during the three months that ended Sept. 30, according to the MoneyTree Report by PricewaterhouseCoopers and the National Venture Capital Association. The numbers marked a slowdown from the preceding quarter, when venture capitalists put $7.9 billion in 1,015 deals. But look at … Continue reading “MoneyTree Report Sees Third-Quarter Slowdown in U.S. Venture Investments”
How to Make It in (The New) America
[Corrected on 10/19/11 at 4:45 pm. See below.] Miguel Yeoman—known as the artist BeloZro and, now, as cofounder of the startup company BeloZro Visual Energy—was born and raised on Detroit’s hardscrabble east side. As he tried to stay out of trouble in 1980s Detroit—an extraordinarily violent period in the city’s history—he found his way to … Continue reading “How to Make It in (The New) America”
NYC TechStars Holds Demo Day for Startups from Its Summer Program
On a drizzly Tuesday morning in New York’s Chelsea neighborhood, the twelve graduates from the New York TechStars summer program took the stage to pitch their companies to investors and mentors. Though many of the startups hail from the city, some came from as far as Venezuela to participate in the New York branch of … Continue reading “NYC TechStars Holds Demo Day for Startups from Its Summer Program”
Mobile Madness, VC Dollars, Appature’s Growth: Wrapping up Seattle’s Tech Headlines
The biggest news out of Xconomy Seattle this past week is the announcement of Mobile Madness NW, our December 6 half-day forum presented with the Washington Technology Industry Association and hosted by F5 Networks. We’ve got a stellar lineup of speakers, including Wesley Chan from Google Ventures, Tom Alberg from Madrona Venture Group, Bernie Yee from Bungie … Continue reading “Mobile Madness, VC Dollars, Appature’s Growth: Wrapping up Seattle’s Tech Headlines”
Agenus Rejoices Over Positive Trial of Partner Glaxo’s Malaria Vaccine
Today European drug giant GlaxoSmithKline (NYSE: [[ticker:GSK]]) announced that the prestigious New England Journal of Medicine published results from a late-stage trial of its malaria vaccine, which showed that the vaccine provided significant protection against the disease in young African children. The results were announced in Seattle at a forum hosted by the Bill & … Continue reading “Agenus Rejoices Over Positive Trial of Partner Glaxo’s Malaria Vaccine”
Raising Funds: AnaptysBio, Sonexa, Eclipse, NextDx, Naviscan
There’s been a flurry of funding deals among San Diego life sciences companies in recent weeks, led by AnaptysBio, a six-year-old startup that named a new executive chairman and chief business officer just last week. Here’s a rundown of recent activity: —AnaptysBio, founded in 2005 with technology to discover and optimize potent antibodies to fight … Continue reading “Raising Funds: AnaptysBio, Sonexa, Eclipse, NextDx, Naviscan”
Dropbox, Tidemark, Livefyre: Bay Area BizTech News by the Numbers
Numbers make the world go round—and Dropbox is seeing some big ones this week. $1.2 billion—The likely closing size of the tenth fund at San Francisco- and Chicago-based private equity firm Thoma Bravo, according to a report today from peHub. Nine digits—The dollar value of Apple’s rejected bid for document sharing startup Dropbox back in 2009, … Continue reading “Dropbox, Tidemark, Livefyre: Bay Area BizTech News by the Numbers”
How the iPhone Got Tail Fins—Part 1 of 2
It was the most advanced consumer product of the century. The industry started with its innovators located in different cities over a wide region. But within 20 years it would be concentrated in a single entrepreneurial startup cluster. At first it was a craft business, then it was driven by relentless technology innovation and then … Continue reading “How the iPhone Got Tail Fins—Part 1 of 2”
Endeca to Be Acquired by Oracle; Earth Shifts
Big news out of Boston and the Bay Area today. Oracle, the Silicon Valley database and business software giant, said it has agreed to acquire Endeca Technologies, the Cambridge, MA-based enterprise search and e-commerce tech company. Terms have not been announced, but the deal is expected to close before the end of the year. Endeca … Continue reading “Endeca to Be Acquired by Oracle; Earth Shifts”
Blaze Bioscience, Fred Hutch Spinoff with Zymo Vet at the Helm, Seeks to “Paint” Tumors
Heather Franklin had a lot to think about in September 2010. She was a senior vice president at Seattle-based ZymoGenetics, when it agreed to be acquired by Bristol-Myers Squibb for $885 million. Now that the big company was calling the shots, it was time to think about a new move in her career. Jim Olson, … Continue reading “Blaze Bioscience, Fred Hutch Spinoff with Zymo Vet at the Helm, Seeks to “Paint” Tumors”
Third Rock Launches Sage Therapeutics with $35M Series A and Plan to Tackle Brain Diseases
Can brain disorders be treated more effectively by fine-tuning key receptors in the brain, rather than turning them completely on or off? That’s the question Boston-based Third Rock Ventures’ latest startup, Sage Therapeutics, hopes to answer with a new class of treatments it is developing to treat diseases such as schizophrenia and depression. Third Rock … Continue reading “Third Rock Launches Sage Therapeutics with $35M Series A and Plan to Tackle Brain Diseases”
NextBio Sees Growth in Next Market: Physicians Seeking Help Interpreting Individual Genomes
The first few years at NextBio were about serving research customers. Then came Big Pharma and biotech companies. But now, as genomics has outpaced Moore’s Law in terms of speed and cost improvements, a new type of customer is sniffing around. Physician/scientists are suddenly leaning on NextBio’s software to comb through genomic reports in order … Continue reading “NextBio Sees Growth in Next Market: Physicians Seeking Help Interpreting Individual Genomes”
Johnson & Johnson Creates Innovation Center for Life Sciences Startups in San Diego
In a bid to foster life sciences startups, Johnson & Johnson is refurbishing part of its pharmaceutical research and development facility in San Diego to create an “innovation center” for new biotech and health IT companies. The New Jersey pharmaceutical and healthcare giant anticipates housing from 18 to 20 life sciences startups in the new … Continue reading “Johnson & Johnson Creates Innovation Center for Life Sciences Startups in San Diego”
Ginger.io Raises $1.7M for Mobile Health IT, Rides Wave of MIT Media Lab Startups Trying to Understand People
First of all, the name is Ginger.io, not Gingerd. The latter is how the company was incorporated; but the former is its real name. And real is what Ginger.io is becoming. Since graduating with the most recent class of TechStars Boston startups, the MIT Media Lab spinoff (from professor Sandy Pentland’s research group) has been … Continue reading “Ginger.io Raises $1.7M for Mobile Health IT, Rides Wave of MIT Media Lab Startups Trying to Understand People”
EquaShip Starts Challenging FedEx, UPS with Big Discounts for the Little Guy
When two million online merchants fire up their shipping software today, they’ll see a fourth option for package carriers: EquaShip, a Seattle startup aiming to take on FedEx and UPS by offering steep discounts for small and medium-sized businesses. We first profiled EquaShip back in March, when it was known under a different name. Since … Continue reading “EquaShip Starts Challenging FedEx, UPS with Big Discounts for the Little Guy”
Sequenom Inaugurates New Diagnostic Test for Down Syndrome
San Diego-based Sequenom (NASDAQ: [[ticker:SQNM]]) says today it’s making a prenatal test for fetal Down syndrome available in 20 U.S. cities, 2 1/2 years after the company shelved the debut of an earlier Down syndrome test due to “mishandled” research data. The proprietary test announced today is a laboratory-developed test (LDT) that detects an abnormal … Continue reading “Sequenom Inaugurates New Diagnostic Test for Down Syndrome”
Mobile Madness NW: Xconomy and WTIA Join Forces for an All-Star Forum Dec. 6
The region that pioneered national wireless networks is at a turning point. Carriers are heading toward more consolidation, piling up tons of user data, and scrambling to build their next-generation networks. Microsoft is battling to be the vital third competitor in mobile operating systems, while Amazon stakes out its own device and cloud services ecosystem … Continue reading “Mobile Madness NW: Xconomy and WTIA Join Forces for an All-Star Forum Dec. 6”
Khosla, Sunpreme, Grockit: Bay Area BizTech News by the Numbers
Time for our periodic data-driven roundup of company news from the San Francisco and Silicon Valley tech world. $1.05 billion—The size of Khosla Ventures IV, the new investment fund closed last week by Khosla Ventures, the Menlo Park, CA-based investing firm founded by Sun Microsystems co-founder Vinod Khosla. As with its first three funds, the firm … Continue reading “Khosla, Sunpreme, Grockit: Bay Area BizTech News by the Numbers”
The Latest Xconomy Report for WGBH: OvaScience, MassChallenge, and Care.com
Xconomy continues to team up with WGBH radio every Friday morning to bring you the Xconomy report, a weekly roundup of business, technology, and life science innovation news and how it’s impacting the local economy. Last week’s report highlighted new technology developed by OvaScience, as well as an update on the MassChallenge competition and a … Continue reading “The Latest Xconomy Report for WGBH: OvaScience, MassChallenge, and Care.com”
Video: Microsoft Research, CMU Take Covers off “OmniTouch” Touchscreen Projector
We got a look at one of Microsoft Research’s latest advanced-interface projects a few weeks back, during festivities for MSR’s 20th anniversary. The company actually prohibited anyone from taking images of one demo in particular, for a projected-touchscreen system called OmniTouch, just because the team was going to present it at an upcoming conference. Well, … Continue reading “Video: Microsoft Research, CMU Take Covers off “OmniTouch” Touchscreen Projector”
Chris Henney, the Immunex and Dendreon Mover/Shaker, Makes Biotech Hall of Fame
Christopher Henney, the immunologist who co-founded three of Seattle’s most successful biotech companies from the past 30 years, has made it into the industry’s Hall of Fame. Henney, 70, was given the Hall of Fame award for outstanding individual contributions to biotech at the annual Biotech CEO Meeting in Laguna Beach, CA. He’s currently the chairman … Continue reading “Chris Henney, the Immunex and Dendreon Mover/Shaker, Makes Biotech Hall of Fame”
Crashlytics, Led by Chang and Seibert, Looks to Win the Wild West of Mobile Bug Reporting
Wayne Chang is a man of mystery. Everyone knows him, yet no one knows him. Even his LinkedIn picture is mysterious. He’s a big-time hacker but not a big talker. He has a handful of secret tech projects and investments going at any time. He’s also been involved in a major lawsuit with the Winklevoss … Continue reading “Crashlytics, Led by Chang and Seibert, Looks to Win the Wild West of Mobile Bug Reporting”
Consumers Still Reluctant to Plug In to Electric Vehicles, Expert Says
Last week, the Center for Automotive Research (CAR) hosted its third annual conference on electric plug-in vehicles, titled “The Business of Plugging In.” The event drew global leaders from the realms of automotives, technology, finance, government, and policy. This year’s conference was different, says Brett Smith, Co-Director of Manufacturing, Engineering and Technology for CAR, in … Continue reading “Consumers Still Reluctant to Plug In to Electric Vehicles, Expert Says”
Wireless Devices to Double by 2020, Overland Set for Turnaround, Ford Demos Wireless Health, & More San Diego BizTech News
Mobile technologies were the topic of the week as the wireless industry’s big enterprise & applications conference came to town. But we also had some interesting economic new, and our Xconomy week in review begins now. —The number of wireless-connected devices around the world will double by 2010, from roughly 12 billion to about 24 … Continue reading “Wireless Devices to Double by 2020, Overland Set for Turnaround, Ford Demos Wireless Health, & More San Diego BizTech News”
Marina Biotech Finds $15M From Investor to Keep Pursuing RNAi Drugs
Marina Biotech has found a way to extend its runway a little longer, by finding a single investor willing to pump in another $15 million. The Bothell, WA-based company (NASDAQ: [[ticker:MRNA]]), the developer of RNA interference drugs, said today in a regulatory filing that Lincoln Park Capital Fund has agreed to invest as much as … Continue reading “Marina Biotech Finds $15M From Investor to Keep Pursuing RNAi Drugs”
Anadys Pharmaceuticals Surprises the Street, Gets Acquired by Roche for $230M
San Diego-based Anadys Pharmaceuticals was only valued at about $60 million yesterday by Wall Street, but it’s worth $230 million today. The developer of hepatitis C drugs (NASDAQ: [[ticker:ANDS]]) said today it has agreed to be acquired by pharmaceutical giant Roche for $3.70 a share, a 256 percent premium over its closing price of $1.04 … Continue reading “Anadys Pharmaceuticals Surprises the Street, Gets Acquired by Roche for $230M”
Putting Consumer Reviews to Work: PowerReviews Takes on Amazon, Looks to “Social Navigation” for E-Retailers
If you’re like me, you do a lot of research online before you make a big buying decision, and sometimes even before a small one. And you lean heavily on the reviews left by other shoppers. My favorite trick, when I’m zeroing in on a specific product, is to read all of the “1 star” … Continue reading “Putting Consumer Reviews to Work: PowerReviews Takes on Amazon, Looks to “Social Navigation” for E-Retailers”
World Energy Buys Northeast Energy, Moves Deeper Into Efficiency
Worcester, MA-based World Energy Solutions (NASDAQ: [[ticker:XWES]]) said today it has acquired Northeast Energy Solutions, an energy efficiency firm based in Cromwell, CT. The purchase price is about $4.75 million in cash, stock, a promissory note, and potential earn-outs. This is the second acquisition in as many months for World Energy, which has been moving … Continue reading “World Energy Buys Northeast Energy, Moves Deeper Into Efficiency”
Entrepreneurs Roundtable Joins Clan of NYC Tech Incubators, Graduates First Class of Startups
When Entrepreneurs Roundtable started up in New York four years ago, its mission was to offer networking opportunities and monthly pitch events, where startup execs could describe their ideas to potential financiers. A couple of years later, the tech scene exploded in New York, and entrepreneurs were hungering for more, says Jonathan Axelrod, a serial … Continue reading “Entrepreneurs Roundtable Joins Clan of NYC Tech Incubators, Graduates First Class of Startups”
Mobisante Sees Early Demand for Ultrasound on a Smartphone, Before It’s Really Ready to Roll
The folks at Redmond, WA-based Mobisante have what entrepreneurs sometimes call a “high-class problem.” The startup is getting more attention for its ultrasound-on-a-smartphone product than it really wants in its infancy. Mobisante, a startup founded in 2007, started turning heads back in February, after Xconomy reported that it was the first company to win FDA … Continue reading “Mobisante Sees Early Demand for Ultrasound on a Smartphone, Before It’s Really Ready to Roll”
Genomics 2.0: Ten Years After the Bubble, it’s Getting Really Interesting Again
What do 10,000 people with autism, 50,000 people in some remote islands in the North Atlantic, and 1,000 healthy old folks in southern California have in common? They are on the front edge of one of the most exciting stories in science today, and their contributions will have a huge impact on our long-term understanding … Continue reading “Genomics 2.0: Ten Years After the Bubble, it’s Getting Really Interesting Again”
Sofinnova Ventures Defies the Grim Mood, Raises $440M For Biotech-Only VC Fund
Talk to biotech VCs, and you’ll hear a lot of moaning about how tough the FDA has become, how grim the IPO markets are, and how hard it is get insurers to pay for new products. Nobody in this club can brag about backing investment supernovas like Facebook or Zynga. But none of that has … Continue reading “Sofinnova Ventures Defies the Grim Mood, Raises $440M For Biotech-Only VC Fund”
Bozuko Is Betting on Its Platform for Mobile Consumer Games to Drive Loyalty at Local Businesses
New Boston-area startup Bozuko is working at the intersection of a lot of big trends. Mobile. Gaming. Location-awareness. Software-as-a-service. Marketing promotions. Sound crowded? Company co-founder Jake Epstein says that people would rather play for a smaller chance to win something big than a guaranteed slim discount, and that’s what makes his business different from what’s … Continue reading “Bozuko Is Betting on Its Platform for Mobile Consumer Games to Drive Loyalty at Local Businesses”
Where Big DNA Meets Big IT: Computing in the Age of the $1,000 Genome
It takes a lot of revenue to move the needle for multi-billion organizations. That’s partly why you haven’t seen them pay much attention to a field devoted to open-source technologies, like computing for genomics. But that’s changing in a hurry, as one market research firm said it expects bioinformatics to grow at a 25 percent … Continue reading “Where Big DNA Meets Big IT: Computing in the Age of the $1,000 Genome”
iCal or iHAL? Apple and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day
Dear Mom: You asked me to write to let you know if I arrived safely in iCloud-land. Well, I’m here and I’m in one piece, although unfortunately some of my things didn’t make it here with me, such as my calendar. It was a pretty hellish journey, I’ll tell you. There were a couple of … Continue reading “iCal or iHAL? Apple and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day”
Computers vs. Humans: A Recap of Xconomy’s New York Life Sciences 2031
In front of a full house at Xconomy’s first public Big Apple event—New York Life Sciences 2031—biotech entrepreneurs Sam Waksal and Eric Schadt wagered on the likelihood that computers would overtake human scientists in the quest to develop drugs. Schadt pointed to IBM’s Watson as an example of a computer performing better than humans at … Continue reading “Computers vs. Humans: A Recap of Xconomy’s New York Life Sciences 2031”
Xconomist of the Week: Appature’s Kabir Shahani Eyes Culture as Company Expands
When it’s time for a scrappy tech startup with a bootstrapped culture to expand its footprint, the conventional thinking might go something like this: Hire young, hungry people who won’t blow through too much of your coin, and hold onto that staff until you absolutely have to take the plunge into grown-up salaries and benefits. … Continue reading “Xconomist of the Week: Appature’s Kabir Shahani Eyes Culture as Company Expands”
Ford Developing Wireless Health Apps for Motorists on the Go
K. Venkatesh Prasad has been working in Detroit for the past five years on an innovation that could be described as the next big crazy idea that might just work. As the senior technical leader in vehicle design and infotronics at Ford Research & Innovation, Prasad oversees development of voice-activated apps and wireless services that … Continue reading “Ford Developing Wireless Health Apps for Motorists on the Go”
Tolerx Shutters, Courtagen Gets $8M, OvaScience Emerges, & More Boston-Area Life Sciences News
We saw stories about New England life sciences companies in a range of stages this week: kicking off, shutting down, and growing. —Cambridge, MA-based biotech Tolerx will be shutting down its operations, after raising a total of more than $150 million from backers like HealthCare Ventures, Skyline Ventures, and Sprout Group. The company’s diabetes drug … Continue reading “Tolerx Shutters, Courtagen Gets $8M, OvaScience Emerges, & More Boston-Area Life Sciences News”
Greenpeace and Michele Bachmann’s Joint Campaign to Stop Science
I took the family to Boston on vacation in September. During the time away, I read Patrick Moore’s book “Confessions of a Greenpeace Dropout: The Making of a Sensible Environmentalist.“ Dr. Moore was one of the original founders of Greenpeace in the 1970s. I heard him speak recently. While he remains a passionate advocate for … Continue reading “Greenpeace and Michele Bachmann’s Joint Campaign to Stop Science”
Pathway Medical’s Future in Seattle Uncertain as Bayer’s Medrad Lets Lease Option Expire
Pathway Medical Technologies, the Kirkland, WA-based medical device company acquired in August for $125 million by Bayer’s Medrad unit, is sending signs that it may soon be leaving the Northwest. Pathway currently has a lease on a 50,000 square foot facility, with room for its 170 employees, in Kirkland. Pathway’s lease on the building extends … Continue reading “Pathway Medical’s Future in Seattle Uncertain as Bayer’s Medrad Lets Lease Option Expire”
University of Michigan Awards $34K in Grants, Business Accelerator Space
The Samuel Zell & Robert H. Lurie Institute for Entrepreneurial Studies at the University of Michigan Ross School of Business today announced the recipients of the Fall 2011 Dare to Dream grant program and TechArb tenancy. Based on business plans submitted to a panel of judges, Dare to Dream awarded funding totaling $34,500 to the … Continue reading “University of Michigan Awards $34K in Grants, Business Accelerator Space”
Tech Tidbits: Black Duck, Care.com, and TwinStrata Raise Funds
Some sizable tech company financings announced in the past day or so. These are mid-stage or growth-stage companies, not early-stage startups: —TwinStrata, a Natick, MA-based data storage and backup company, closed its Series B round at $8 million, led by Avalon Ventures. Xconomy reported on this round in progress back in August. TwinStrata is led … Continue reading “Tech Tidbits: Black Duck, Care.com, and TwinStrata Raise Funds”