As a tech startup that uses an algorithm to help people find out what song is playing on the radio, Shazam is a business its co-founders say was ahead of its time in 2000—so much so that they developed the technology after they already started raising money and finding office space. It was even ahead … Continue reading “Apple Confirms Acquisition of Early Music-Tech Startup Shazam”
Category: New York
What Are the Nation’s Top Cities and Regions for Driverless Tech?
Whether you think self-driving cars are the stuff of science fiction or a potentially paradigm-shifting new form of transportation, autonomous vehicles are coming—and the companies developing them are spending big money to make it happen. A few years ago, industry analysts seemed to think Silicon Valley would win the race to get self-driving cars on … Continue reading “What Are the Nation’s Top Cities and Regions for Driverless Tech?”
In Biggest Biotech IPO of 2017, Denali Raises $248M for Neuro Drugs
Denali Therapeutics has raised more than $248 million in its stock market debut, marking the largest biotech IPO of the year. The company will use the cash to support work on its experimental drugs for Parkinson’s disease and other neurodegenerative disorders. South San Francisco, CA-based Denali priced its offering of 13.8 million shares at $18 … Continue reading “In Biggest Biotech IPO of 2017, Denali Raises $248M for Neuro Drugs”
OrbiMed Founder Isaly Steps Down After Sexual Harassment Report
Sam Isaly, managing partner of OrbiMed Advisors, is stepping down from the company. OrbiMed, a leading healthcare investment firm founded by Isaly, made the announcement Thursday, two days after Stat published a report of sexual harassment allegations from former OrbiMed employees against Isaly. According to OrbiMed’s statement, Isaly will be replaced by a committee of … Continue reading “OrbiMed Founder Isaly Steps Down After Sexual Harassment Report”
Bio Roundup: Trials to Watch, Mega Deals, Video Game Therapy & More
With 2018 around the corner, this was a week to look ahead. At Xconomy, we zeroed in on several clinical trials that could become major stories in the life sciences. Other healthcare milestones are on the way, too. The FDA will consider for the first time whether a video game should be approved as medicine. … Continue reading “Bio Roundup: Trials to Watch, Mega Deals, Video Game Therapy & More”
Clora Reaps $3.3M to Speed Consultant Hunts by Life Sciences Companies
Rahul Chaturvedi worked for 16 years as a life sciences company executive, but he was also an avid consumer tech fan who chafed at the clunky enterprise apps used in his industry. Spoiled by speedy, user-friendly consumer apps, he also wondered why finding a biotech consultant to hire was so much harder than, say, lining … Continue reading “Clora Reaps $3.3M to Speed Consultant Hunts by Life Sciences Companies”
Last Chance to Have Your Voice Heard on NY Biotech’s Course in 2018
Want to take part in an interactive, constructive talk about what can be done, right now, to alter the course of the life sciences scene in New York? You’ve still got a shot. Next Monday evening, Dec. 11, at the Alexandria Center for Life Science, Xconomy is gathering a small group of New York biotech … Continue reading “Last Chance to Have Your Voice Heard on NY Biotech’s Course in 2018”
The ‘Amazon Effect’ and the Gender Wage Gap
The battle to land Amazon’s second home is shaping up to be one of the fiercest competitions to lure a corporate headquarters in modern history. From serious incentives like massive tax breaks to headline grabbing stunts like offers of bear wrestling and giant cacti, it’s safe to say cities are pulling out every stop imaginable … Continue reading “The ‘Amazon Effect’ and the Gender Wage Gap”
Report: Sexual Harassment Claims Hit OrbiMed Founder Sam Isaly
Healthcare investment giant OrbiMed Advisors has been described as a workplace enveloped in a toxic culture of sexual harassment, according to an investigation by Stat released late Tuesday. OrbiMed managing partner and co-founder Samuel Isaly is the main perpetrator of frequent and targeted harassment, according to allegations leveled in Stat’s interviews with five former employees, … Continue reading “Report: Sexual Harassment Claims Hit OrbiMed Founder Sam Isaly”
Propose With a Lab-Made Diamond? Diamond Tech Retailers Say, “Yes”
How do you disrupt an industry that markets itself as the embodiment of “forever?” You bring it back to basics, says Lindsay Reinsmith, co-founder of Ada Diamonds, an online retailer of jewelry with lab-made gemstones in San Francisco. “Science is on our side,” she says. “We confront them with facts.” Machine-made gemstones are created in exactly … Continue reading “Propose With a Lab-Made Diamond? Diamond Tech Retailers Say, “Yes””
15 For ’18: Key Clinical Data to Watch For Next Year (Part 2)
[Corrected, 12/11/17, 1 p.m. ET. See below.] On Monday we posted the first part of our look at what should be some of 2018’s most important clinical data, including trials for lung cancer, heart disease, melanoma, Alzheimer’s disease, rare blood disorders, and more. With part two, we’re previewing studies for migraine, brain cancer, lymphoma, peanut … Continue reading “15 For ’18: Key Clinical Data to Watch For Next Year (Part 2)”
Gilman’s Next CEO Trick: Taming CAR-T Cells With Obsidian
Genetically modified medicine is here. Two CAR-T therapies, made from a patient’s living T cells, are on the market in the U.S., and many more are in various stages of clinical testing. As remarkable as they might seem, however, these medicines are still fairly crude, with no way to control them once inside a patient’s … Continue reading “Gilman’s Next CEO Trick: Taming CAR-T Cells With Obsidian”
Case’s $150M Rise of the Rest Fund Aims to Boost Flyover Startups
Author, investor, and AOL co-founder Steve Case today announced a new $150 million venture fund aimed at pumping investment capital into tech companies in so-called flyover states. Contributing to the fund is an impressive group of some of the most successful entrepreneurs in the country. Called the Rise of the Rest Seed Fund, it will … Continue reading “Case’s $150M Rise of the Rest Fund Aims to Boost Flyover Startups”
Black Venture Capitalists Are Transforming Tech
Would it surprise you to know that there are more than 100 black venture capitalists or that this nationwide ecosystem is growing? Most of the VCs in this expanding ecosystem made pivots from highly successful careers in other fields. They have very impressive academic credentials, business backgrounds comparable to their Silicon Valley peers, and a … Continue reading “Black Venture Capitalists Are Transforming Tech”
15 For ’18: Key Clinical Data to Watch For Next Year (Part 1)
Many of biotech’s biggest stories in 2017 followed the highly anticipated data from clinical studies. There were monumental successes, like the first-ever approval of a genetically modified living cell therapy, the first FDA application for a gene therapy or a medicine using RNA interference. There were also stinging failures, such as the latest in a long … Continue reading “15 For ’18: Key Clinical Data to Watch For Next Year (Part 1)”
Milestones of Innovation 15: Entering the New Atomic World
A momentous step into the atomic age happened around 3:20 p.m. Central War Time on Dec. 2, 1942, seventy-five years ago, in a vast, unheated space (a former squash doubles court) under the abandoned University of Chicago football stands at Stagg Field. A cadmium control rod was pulled out from a huge, painstakingly assembled cube … Continue reading “Milestones of Innovation 15: Entering the New Atomic World”
Bio Roundup: Migraine Data, Cancer Drug Combos, Azar Hearing & More
A pair of migraine drugs made a splash in biotech news this week with published data suggesting that they can reduce the frequency of headaches. These drugs still await an FDA decision, and their impact on patients over the long term are being watched closely. As many as 38 million Americans suffer from migraines, according … Continue reading “Bio Roundup: Migraine Data, Cancer Drug Combos, Azar Hearing & More”
Will Foundation’s FDA, CMS Nod Help Cancer DNA Tests Break Through?
In what could be an important step forward for the mainstream acceptance of broad cancer genetic tests, a product from Foundation Medicine has simultaneously won FDA approval and gotten a coverage determination from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. Now the question is whether the ruling—the first decision of its kind—will help lead to … Continue reading “Will Foundation’s FDA, CMS Nod Help Cancer DNA Tests Break Through?”
Security Firm ReversingLabs Nabs $25M from JPMorgan Chase, Trident
Online threats are mounting, and so are the investments in Boston-area cybersecurity companies. ReversingLabs is one of the latest to raise money—a $25 million Series A round announced Wednesday, led by Trident Capital Cybersecurity and JPMorgan Chase. Cambridge, MA-based ReversingLabs’ software aims to help businesses and government entities detect advanced security threats and respond to … Continue reading “Security Firm ReversingLabs Nabs $25M from JPMorgan Chase, Trident”
“Responsive” Machine Learning Could Lessen Cybersecurity Tradeoffs
In the wake of the Equifax breach and the global WannaCry ransomware outbreak earlier this year, tensions around cybersecurity are running high. According to a recent study conducted by the Ponemon Institute and sponsored by Barkly, seven out of 10 organizations are reporting their security risk has significantly increased during the past 12 months. Only … Continue reading ““Responsive” Machine Learning Could Lessen Cybersecurity Tradeoffs”
Drug Prices, Industry Ties Take Spotlight at HHS Nominee Azar Hearing
If Wednesday’s hearing for Health and Human Services Secretary Nominee Alex Azar is any indication, reining in drug prices and insurance premiums are the policy priorities that will guide Congress’s interaction with the department under a new leader. For the better part of the three-hour hearing by the Senate’s Health, Education, Labor and Pensions committee, … Continue reading “Drug Prices, Industry Ties Take Spotlight at HHS Nominee Azar Hearing”
With Good Data From Rival Migraine Drugs, Doctors Foresee Price Headaches
Amgen (NASDAQ: [[ticker:AMGN]]) and Teva Pharmaceutical (NYSE: [[ticker:TEVA]]) this afternoon are providing the most detailed look yet at two drugs in an emerging class of medicines meant to prevent migraine headaches, rather than just quell their symptoms. While the data for the two drugs, called erenumab (Aimovig, from Amgen and partner Novartis) and fremanezumab (from … Continue reading “With Good Data From Rival Migraine Drugs, Doctors Foresee Price Headaches”
Medicines Co. Sells Infectious Disease Drugs, Focusing on PCSK9
The Medicines Co. has sold a group of three infectious disease drugs to Melinta Therapeutics for $215 million in cash and $55 million in stock, as well as future royalty payments on the three drugs, which are already on the market. The deal is an effort by Parsippany, NJ-based Medicines Co. (NASDAQ: [[ticker:MDCO]]) to get … Continue reading “Medicines Co. Sells Infectious Disease Drugs, Focusing on PCSK9”
Joining Trend, WI Creates New Business Entity: Benefit Corporations
On Monday, Wisconsin enacted legislation allowing companies to incorporate as benefit corporations. Although this may sound like routine, small-time legislative business, it is just as significant as major policy initiatives being debated in the halls of Congress. On issues from net neutrality to workers’ rights, corporations are perceived to—and often do—engage in practices that maximize … Continue reading “Joining Trend, WI Creates New Business Entity: Benefit Corporations”
Prognos Adds $20.5M for A.I. That Aims to Diagnose Diseases Earlier
This year, money has been funneling into companies that apply artificial intelligence to healthcare, from diagnostics to speech recognition software. The latest recipient is New York-based Prognos, which says it just closed a $20.5 million Series C round from a group of prominent insurers, drug makers, and venture capital investors. Prognos’s A.I.-related software aims to … Continue reading “Prognos Adds $20.5M for A.I. That Aims to Diagnose Diseases Earlier”
Chemo Tops Pfizer, Merck KGaA Drug in Big Stomach Cancer Test
Pfizer and Merck KGaA’s bid to have a stomach cancer treatment that could leapfrog rival immunotherapies has fallen short. The companies announced Tuesday that a Phase 3 study testing avelumab (Bavencio) didn’t do better than chemotherapy at extending the lives of patients with gastric cancer. The drug was given to patients whose cancer could not … Continue reading “Chemo Tops Pfizer, Merck KGaA Drug in Big Stomach Cancer Test”
As AMD Race Tightens, Regeneron’s Second Eye Drug Combo Falls Short
Another attempt to use a combination of drugs to improve upon the current treatments for age-related macular degeneration, a leading cause of vision loss in the elderly, has failed. The news is a setback for Tarrytown, NY-based Regeneron Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: [[ticker:REGN]]), which is trying to fend off the competition for its most successful drug, a … Continue reading “As AMD Race Tightens, Regeneron’s Second Eye Drug Combo Falls Short”
ClimaCell Bags $15M to Predict Weather from Wireless Network Signals
Local meteorologists might avoid being the butt of so many jokes, if the latest crop of weather technology startups have their way. A number of young companies are trying to improve the methods for tracking and predicting the weather. Some are tackling the problem from space, like Spire Global, whose network of small satellites gather … Continue reading “ClimaCell Bags $15M to Predict Weather from Wireless Network Signals”
Cytokinetics Pivots to Another ALS Drug After Phase 3 Failure
Cytokinetics’ bid to offer a new drug for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) was dealt a setback after the company’s lead experimental treatment for the disease failed in a late-stage clinical trial. The results mean the end for tirasemtiv, one of the drugs furthest along in clinical development for the muscle-weakening condition also known as Lou … Continue reading “Cytokinetics Pivots to Another ALS Drug After Phase 3 Failure”
What Steps Should NY Biotech Take in 2018? Share Your View on Dec. 11
Change takes time. Particularly in the life sciences, where a single drug’s journey from idea to market can consist of more than a decade of small, yet critical steps. For New York, then, aspirations to become a region known for its biotech industry are—and always have been—a long game in which every year and bit … Continue reading “What Steps Should NY Biotech Take in 2018? Share Your View on Dec. 11”
Acorda Scraps One Parkinson’s Drug, Puts Its Cash Behind Another
Acorda Therapeutics said Monday that it will stop work on an experimental treatment for Parkinson’s disease, spelling the end for a drug the Ardsley, NY, company added to its pipeline last year in a $363 million deal. The announcement follows the recent emergence of safety problems for the Acorda (NASDAQ: [[ticker:ACOR]]) drug, tozadenant. Acorda said … Continue reading “Acorda Scraps One Parkinson’s Drug, Puts Its Cash Behind Another”
Lacking Details, Roche Touts Drug Combo’s Success in Lung Cancer
[Corrected 10:15 a.m., 11/20/17. See below.] Roche’s Genentech division reported this morning that its cancer immunotherapy drug, atezolizumab (Tecentriq), has succeeded in a clinical study that could help change the standard of care for people with a certain type of lung cancer. The South San Francisco, CA-based Genentech said late Sunday night that in a … Continue reading “Lacking Details, Roche Touts Drug Combo’s Success in Lung Cancer”
Ed Kaye on Sarepta’s Duchenne Quest, Rising to CEO & His New Startup
[Updated, 2:45 pm ET, see below] Ed Kaye never thought he’d run a biotech —until waking up one day in 2015 realizing not only that he could, but that Sarepta Therapeutics, where he was chief medical officer at the time, may fall apart if he didn’t. In March 2015, Kaye (pictured) was one of many … Continue reading “Ed Kaye on Sarepta’s Duchenne Quest, Rising to CEO & His New Startup”
Celgene Oncology Exec Pehl Named Immunomedics President and CEO
Michael Pehl has been appointed president and CEO of cancer drug developer Immunomedics (NASDAQ: [[ticker:IMMU]]). Pehl comes to the Morris Plains, NJ, company from Celgene (NASDAQ: [[ticker:CELG]]), where he was president, hematology & oncology. He will start his new position at Immunomedics on Dec. 7. Immunomedics is moving forward with sacituzumab govitecan, a breast cancer … Continue reading “Celgene Oncology Exec Pehl Named Immunomedics President and CEO”
Stratim CEO Sees Future with Costly Driverless Cars, but Low Ride Fares
Like many tech entrepreneurs, Sean Behr had a young business that was popular with consumers, but was also losing money. So in February of 2016, he decided to refocus his San Francisco startup on the small, but unexpectedly profitable aspect of his service that could operate in the black. That pivot put Behr in a … Continue reading “Stratim CEO Sees Future with Costly Driverless Cars, but Low Ride Fares”
Bio Roundup: ICER Eyes Cost, Azar at HHS, Gates’s ALZ Cash & More
In our roundup this week, Alzheimer’s disease is in the news, thanks to billionaire Bill Gates and his personal pledge of $100 million toward R&D. That could equal the amount one startup hopes to raise in an IPO to develop drugs for Alzheimer’s and other brain diseases. If a treatment became available, could our health … Continue reading “Bio Roundup: ICER Eyes Cost, Azar at HHS, Gates’s ALZ Cash & More”
After Quadrupling in Size, Lessonly Raises $8M Series B
Lessonly, the Indianapolis-based startup focused on team training software, this week announced it has raised an $8 million Series B funding round. Led by Boston’s OpenView Partners, the round also drew contributions from Rethink Education, High Alpha Capital, and Allos Ventures. Max Yoder, Lessonly CEO and co-founder, says the company has quadrupled in size over … Continue reading “After Quadrupling in Size, Lessonly Raises $8M Series B”
Acorda Takes Another Hit, Reports Patient Deaths in Parkinson’s Study
Acorda Therapeutics’ rebuilding plan just suffered another setback, leaving the fate of one of the experimental Parkinson’s disease drugs that is closest to market unclear. Ardsley, NY-based Acorda (NASDAQ: [[ticker:ACOR]]) said Wednesday morning that it has seen troubling safety problems in a Phase 3 trial of its experimental Parkinson’s disease drug tozadenant. Acorda reported cases … Continue reading “Acorda Takes Another Hit, Reports Patient Deaths in Parkinson’s Study”
Inozyme Gets $49M From Sanofi, Novo to Tackle Rare Infant Disease
Sanofi and Novo Nordisk this morning have put their venture arms to work. The two joined up with two venture firms to back a $49 million round for a fledgling startup, Inozyme Pharmaceuticals. The company aims to develop a therapy for an ultra-rare infant disorder—and possibly some more prevalent diseases too. The startup, based in … Continue reading “Inozyme Gets $49M From Sanofi, Novo to Tackle Rare Infant Disease”
Poshmark Picks Up $87.5M to Power the Social, Digital Wardrobe
Poshmark, a social media e-retail company, has raised $87.5 million in a Series D investment round led by Singapore sovereign wealth fund Temasek. That brings the total funding raised by the Redwood City, CA-based company to $160 million. Other investors in the firm include Mayfield, Menlo Ventures, GGV Capital, Inventus Capital, SoftTech VC, Union Grove … Continue reading “Poshmark Picks Up $87.5M to Power the Social, Digital Wardrobe”
In a Precision Step, Bayer Writes Loxo $400M Check for Two Cancer Drugs
The latest evidence of the progress of targeted cancer drugs came this morning in the form of a $400 million check. That’s what Bayer will pay, up front, to Loxo Oncology, a company that has the chance to be the second, following Merck, to win approval of a drug for tumors with a specific genetic … Continue reading “In a Precision Step, Bayer Writes Loxo $400M Check for Two Cancer Drugs”
DFJ Co-Founder Jurvetson Exits Firm Amid Harassment Charges
[Updated 11/15/17, 11:10 am. See below.] One of Silicon Valley’s most prominent venture capital firm founders has joined the list of VCs who departed from their positions this year in the wake of sexual harassment allegations. Steve Jurvetson, co-founder of Draper Fisher Jurvetson (DFJ), confirmed via a Twitter post Monday that he has left the … Continue reading “DFJ Co-Founder Jurvetson Exits Firm Amid Harassment Charges”
Milestones of Innovation 14: The Biggest Damn Firecracker I Ever Saw
At exactly 7 a.m. on Nov. 9, 1967, the roof of the press viewing stand at Cape Canaveral began shaking from what was happening more than three miles from us. The sky seemed to be cracking as a gleaming 363-foot tall rocket began pushing up from Launch Pad 39 and eastward over the Atlantic. As … Continue reading “Milestones of Innovation 14: The Biggest Damn Firecracker I Ever Saw”
Bio Roundup: Barron Joins GSK, Sage Bounces Back, Valeant Dumps Addyi
Call it a week of second chances. Multiple biotechs breathed new life into drugs sorely in need of it. Sage Therapeutics proved a drug that had failed a trial a rare form of epilepsy could be the first ever approved therapy for postpartum depression. Otonomy, reviving a hearing loss drug thought to be on the … Continue reading “Bio Roundup: Barron Joins GSK, Sage Bounces Back, Valeant Dumps Addyi”
What Sean Parker Shares with Einstein and the Labradoodle’s Inventor
Sean Parker, Facebook’s first president, just joined a group that’s a favorite topic of history listicles: He’s an innovator who has become abashed by the breakthrough he helped to create. Parker, in an interview with Axios on Wednesday, said Facebook’s founders consciously exploited “a vulnerability in human psychology,” by luring users into an addictive engagement … Continue reading “What Sean Parker Shares with Einstein and the Labradoodle’s Inventor”
Aquam Raises $26M to Expand Tech, Services for Aging Infrastructure
Aquam, a San Diego company with technology for cleaning out and re-lining aging utility pipelines, has raised $26 million in a growth capital round led by NewWorld Capital Group, a New York private equity firm that makes investments in sustainable energy and natural-resources related deals. As municipalities and utilities confront intractable infrastructure problems that range … Continue reading “Aquam Raises $26M to Expand Tech, Services for Aging Infrastructure”
Microsoft’s Strategy for Finding What’s Next in Healthcare A.I.
[Updated 11/10/17, 10:25 a.m. See below.] Microsoft is applying the same model it used to launch its quantum computing and chatbot efforts to innovation in healthcare, signaling the company’s ambition and optimism about the transformative potential of artificial intelligence technologies in this enormous endeavor. Peter Lee is the Microsoft Research executive in charge of the … Continue reading “Microsoft’s Strategy for Finding What’s Next in Healthcare A.I.”
With $40M for Exonics, Duchenne’s Gene Therapy, CRISPR Race Heats Up
Exonics Therapeutics, one of the players in an emerging race to use gene therapy or gene editing techniques to treat Duchenne muscular dystrophy, has just landed a big round of funding to take its first treatment into clinical testing. The Cambridge, MA, company, seeded last year by a subsidiary of the nonprofit group CureDuchenne, will … Continue reading “With $40M for Exonics, Duchenne’s Gene Therapy, CRISPR Race Heats Up”
Rightpoint Buys Mobile Firm Raizlabs to Form “Agency of the Future”
Raizlabs, one of the Boston area’s best-known mobile app development shops, has been acquired by Rightpoint, a Chicago-based consulting firm. The purchase price wasn’t disclosed. With the addition of Raizlabs, the combined companies employ 400 people across nine U.S. offices. The two firms’ Boston offices will consolidate, while Raizlabs’ Oakland, CA, office adds a new … Continue reading “Rightpoint Buys Mobile Firm Raizlabs to Form “Agency of the Future””
FDA Lifts Hold on Cellectis’s “Off the Shelf” CAR-T, With Caveats
The FDA has cleared Cellectis to resume testing an experimental “off the shelf” type of cell therapy, so long as it follows a new set of measures meant to quell the safety concerns that caused the company to halt a pair of clinical trials. Cellectis (NASDAQ: [[ticker:CLLS]]) said late Monday night that the agency will … Continue reading “FDA Lifts Hold on Cellectis’s “Off the Shelf” CAR-T, With Caveats”