Houston—More than 600 people in Houston’s biotech community played hooky on Friday to cook chili and commune with each other at BioHouston’s 14th annual Chili Cookoff. The event drew nearly 40 competitors in the culinary contest with prizes awarded to the best chili in traditional, non-traditional, and spicy categories. (I was one of the judges … Continue reading “BioHouston Chili Cookoff: Vampires, Convicts, Hippies, & More”
Category: Texas
San Diego Social Media Startup Soci Adds Austin Office, Raises $8.5M
Soci, a San Diego startup that created a Web platform for managing social media, has closed on $8.5 million in Series A financing that will be used to build on the company’s recent growth, including a second office in Austin, TX, according to co-founder and CEO Afif Khoury. The five-year-old startup, which had 35 employees … Continue reading “San Diego Social Media Startup Soci Adds Austin Office, Raises $8.5M”
Health-Related Startups Dominate at 2017 Rice Business Plan Contest
Houston—Student competitors at this year’s Rice Business Plan Competition got a glimpse of this event’s impact: seeing a previous winner publicly feted on the announcement of being acquired. Adhesys Medical, which won the prestigious Rice contest in 2014, announced Saturday that it had been purchased by The Grünenthal Group, a German pharmaceutical firm. Terms were not … Continue reading “Health-Related Startups Dominate at 2017 Rice Business Plan Contest”
Pipe Leak Detection System Employs Machine Learning to Limit Errors
San Antonio—Even as Donald Trump is executing orders to roll back environmental regulations, numerous technology researchers are developing new systems that may aid oil and gas businesses in better detecting leaks that lead to emissions—including one on the west side of San Antonio. The Southwest Research Institute (SWRI) is developing a machine learning system that … Continue reading “Pipe Leak Detection System Employs Machine Learning to Limit Errors”
Five Questions For … Gaurav Khandelwal, Founder of Houston’s Chai One
Houston—Houston tech entrepreneur Gaurav Khandelwal has been the face of Houston—literally. In a marketing campaign a few years ago, Khandelwal was one of the featured ambassadors in a series of highway billboards. The Greater Houston Partnership effort was aimed at expanding the city’s image beyond the oil-and-gas stereotype. Khandelwal, who grew up in Kolkata, India, … Continue reading “Five Questions For … Gaurav Khandelwal, Founder of Houston’s Chai One”
Bio Roundup: Gottlieb Talks Vax, Acorda’s Axe, Adams, 23andMe & More
In the nation’s capital, healthcare and life sciences were on center stage. Or stages, actually. On Capitol Hill, FDA commissioner nominee Scott Gottlieb, the drug industry’s favorite pick, told senators his extensive industry ties wouldn’t cloud his judgment or create conflicts. At a downtown convention center, Joe Biden slammed the Trump administration’s budget-cutting plans. And … Continue reading “Bio Roundup: Gottlieb Talks Vax, Acorda’s Axe, Adams, 23andMe & More”
AACR Review: Biden Fired Up, Incyte Doubles Up, BMS Up And Down
The American Association for Cancer Research held its annual meeting this week in Washington, DC, a convenient venue for former Vice President Joe Biden to deliver a broadside against the Trump administration’s proposed budget cuts in science funding. For Biden, it’s personal. In the final year of the Obama administration, he championed a push for … Continue reading “AACR Review: Biden Fired Up, Incyte Doubles Up, BMS Up And Down”
Gedeon Richter Gets Ex-U.S. Rights for Evestra Urological Product
San Antonio — Women’s health company Evestra has licensed some of its commercialization rights for an unspecified female urological product to its existing partner Gedeon Richter, a Hungarian specialty pharmaceutical company. Evestra says Richter gained the rights for certain areas outside of the U.S. Richter is giving San Antonio-based Evestra an undisclosed upfront payment that’s helping … Continue reading “Gedeon Richter Gets Ex-U.S. Rights for Evestra Urological Product”
Peloton Names Ex-Medivation Executive Hirmand Chief Medical Officer
Cancer drug developer Peloton Therapeutics has appointed Mohammad Hirmand to the position of chief medical officer. He will start his new role at the Dallas-based company on May 1. Hirmand most recently served as chief medical officer of San Francisco-based Medivation, which Pfizer (NYSE: [[ticker:PFE]]) acquired last year in a $14 billion deal.
Some Cause for Optimism in Hired’s Research on Gender Wage Gap
Amid the ongoing conversation about gender discrimination in the tech industry, and recent sexual harassment claims against some of its biggest names, here’s some sort-of good news about women in tech: When companies make job offers to both men and women, women receive lower salary offers 63 percent of the time for the same job, … Continue reading “Some Cause for Optimism in Hired’s Research on Gender Wage Gap”
FDA Nominee Scott Gottlieb To Anti-Vaccine Crowd: Get Over It
In what passes for a short hearing these days in Washington, DC, the Trump White House’s pick to run the Food and Drug Administration, Scott Gottlieb, spent less than three hours fielding questions from a Senate committee Wednesday morning. Amid predictable splits between Republican praise for his past industry experience and Democrat fire over potential … Continue reading “FDA Nominee Scott Gottlieb To Anti-Vaccine Crowd: Get Over It”
Slowdown Continues in First-Quarter VC Funding—and Top 10 Deals
Is a caution flag flying? While U.S. venture firms refueled last year by raising a near-record $51.6 billion, they also eased off the throttle in terms of their investment activity during the first quarter of 2017, according to data released today by Seattle-based PitchBook and the National Venture Capital Association (NVCA). According to the latest … Continue reading “Slowdown Continues in First-Quarter VC Funding—and Top 10 Deals”
Tour of Texas: Austin Tech in Politics, Watershed, Scaleworks & More
Let’s get caught up with the latest innovation news from Xconomy Texas. Austin: —Ottobock, a German prosthetics company with North American headquarters in Austin, has acquired Boston-based BionX Medical Technologies. BionX makes a prosthetic foot and ankle product that uses robotic technology. Financial terms were not disclosed for the deal that was announced earlier this … Continue reading “Tour of Texas: Austin Tech in Politics, Watershed, Scaleworks & More”
New Blood: Biotech CEOs Bring Fresh Experience to Houston Ecosystem
Houston—A number of Houston biotech companies have new leadership at the helm. These leadership changes include a few executives like Lonnel Coats, CEO of Lexicon Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: [[ticker:LXRX]]), who have relocated to Houston from the East and West coasts—homes of more established and successful biotech ecosystems. “We had the ability to move the company to … Continue reading “New Blood: Biotech CEOs Bring Fresh Experience to Houston Ecosystem”
How Battling New Epidemics Helps Fight Age-Old Killers
Washington state has reported nearly 300 cases of mumps this winter and experts predict this may be the state’s worst flu season in years, a stark reminder of how dangerous even familiar viruses can be. While the Ebola and Zika outbreaks have dominated the headlines in recent years, they are part of a paradigm we … Continue reading “How Battling New Epidemics Helps Fight Age-Old Killers”
Five Questions For … Hesam Panahi, Rice University Entrepreneurship Lecturer
Houston—Entrepreneurship runs in the Panahi family, so it’s little wonder that Hesam Panahi now teaches the subject to undergraduates. “Both of my parents were entrepreneurs,” he says. “That, I think, was a huge influence to me. It made me realize that I didn’t have to necessarily go to a 9-to-5 job, which led me to … Continue reading “Five Questions For … Hesam Panahi, Rice University Entrepreneurship Lecturer”
Bio Roundup: New Drug Bonanza, Vertex’s Triple Play, CAR-T Race & More
As far as singular weeks go for biotech, this was a big one. Three highly anticipated drugs were approved. One is the first injectable medication for eczema. Another might help fend off the recurrence of ovarian cancer. And a third offers hope for people with severe forms of multiple sclerosis. Another drug, a new combination … Continue reading “Bio Roundup: New Drug Bonanza, Vertex’s Triple Play, CAR-T Race & More”
Venture Firm’s Incubator Watershed Buys Biomedical Product Developer
San Antonio—Watershed Idea Foundry, a life science incubator operated by a San Antonio venture capital firm, has acquired a similar product development and commercialization business, Encinitas, CA-based Additive Innovations. Watershed, which offers startups services such as proof-of-concept testing and prototype manufacturing in exchange for equity, is keeping its name but making Additive’s founder Nick Cordaro … Continue reading “Venture Firm’s Incubator Watershed Buys Biomedical Product Developer”
Ottobock Buys Boston-Based “Active” Prosthetic Maker BionX
BionX Medical Technologies, a Boston-area company that makes a prosthetic foot and ankle product that uses robotics technology, has been acquired by Ottobock, a German prosthetics company with North American headquarters in Austin, TX. The deal was announced earlier this month. Financial terms weren’t disclosed, so it’s hard to tell how good an outcome it … Continue reading “Ottobock Buys Boston-Based “Active” Prosthetic Maker BionX”
Inside the Growing Political Awakening of Austin’s Tech Community
Austin—Texas Rep. Lamar Smith has long said he doesn’t believe in man-made climate change. But it was only in this last year of “fake news” and “alternative facts” that that sentiment moved Joseph Kopser to take action. “He doesn’t believe in facts, and he doesn’t want them reported,” Kopser says of the Republican Congressman. That sort … Continue reading “Inside the Growing Political Awakening of Austin’s Tech Community”
With $60M Fund, “Anti-VC” Scaleworks Looks to Buy Software Startups
San Antonio—[Corrected 4/10/17, 1:27 p.m. See Below.] For many entrepreneurs who leave their business, investing is an easy next step. That’s what Lew Moorman did after he left Rackspace in 2013. But he didn’t like it. “I found myself not enjoying my day. I was spending all my time hearing pitches, and then doing very high-level … Continue reading “With $60M Fund, “Anti-VC” Scaleworks Looks to Buy Software Startups”
Five Questions For … Seremedi CEO, Ex-Microsoft Executive Kim Bond Evans
Houston—When Kim Bond Evans was 15, her father was dying. One particular piece of advice that he gave her stood out: Focus on what can be done, he advised, not on the naysayers, who may stand in the way. “When the front door closes, go through the back door,” Evans says he told her. “If … Continue reading “Five Questions For … Seremedi CEO, Ex-Microsoft Executive Kim Bond Evans”
Bio Roundup: Trumpcare Wavers, Amgen Courts Payers, Critics Circle PTC
Who knew healthcare could be so complicated? This week, President Trump and the GOP saw first hand, as a feverish rally to get their healthcare bill through the House of Representatives on Thursday stalled before a vote. Elsewhere in Washington DC, drug pricing continued to be a political football. Two well known congressional drug pricing … Continue reading “Bio Roundup: Trumpcare Wavers, Amgen Courts Payers, Critics Circle PTC”
Amid Gender Gap Talk, Mentor Network Emerges For Women In Health, Bio
It’s been more than a year since an infamous party with hired models in cocktail dresses captured the biotech community’s attention at the 2016 J.P. Morgan conference. There has been plenty of talk since about closing biotech’s notable gender gap. At this year’s J.P Morgan conference, for example, a group of 100 life science executives … Continue reading “Amid Gender Gap Talk, Mentor Network Emerges For Women In Health, Bio”
DataRobot Downloads $54M Led by NEA to Automate Data Science Tasks
Jeremy Achin is embarrassed to admit it, but his decision to quit his job and start a company was inspired in part by seeing the movie “The Social Network,” the Hollywood take on Facebook’s origin story. It was several years ago, and the then-31-year-old was a director of research and modeling at Travelers Insurance in … Continue reading “DataRobot Downloads $54M Led by NEA to Automate Data Science Tasks”
Building a Local Innovation Ecosystem
Co-authored with Rudy Gadre, general partner at Founders’ Co-op. Western Washington is already home to some of the most innovative people, companies, and academic programs in the world. And yet we should be doing much more to connect and support our local innovators, to attract more agents of change to the region, and to help them … Continue reading “Building a Local Innovation Ecosystem”
Texas Roundup: SXSW Odds & Ends, Dosh, Mythic, Peloton, & More
[David Holley contributed to this report.] We’re not through with South By Southwest yet. (And, also, yes, there has been some other innovation news at Xconomy Texas.) Read on: —FBI Director James Comey is part of an intelligence symposium Thursday at the University of Texas at Austin. This engagement comes about a week after Comey … Continue reading “Texas Roundup: SXSW Odds & Ends, Dosh, Mythic, Peloton, & More”
Promising Cash for Consumers, Startup Dosh Plans Break Out of Beta
Austin—A new startup that claims it can get consumers cash back on their purchases—and bring its customers more business in the process—has raised $2 million in new seed funding and is preparing to launch out of beta testing. Called Dosh, the company has raised $6 million in total seed funding but isn’t yet naming its … Continue reading “Promising Cash for Consumers, Startup Dosh Plans Break Out of Beta”
Join David Baltimore, Nicole Glaros, Nathan Myhrvold, & More at Our Napa Summit
Year after year, Xconomy has gathered exemplary business leaders, investors, and far-seeing technologists to our most prestigious event—The Napa Summit. This year is no different. Come join us in the heart of wine country on June 8 and 9 to listen to visionary speakers and connect with fellow innovators. The Napa Summit is by invitation-only, … Continue reading “Join David Baltimore, Nicole Glaros, Nathan Myhrvold, & More at Our Napa Summit”
Mythic Reveals Novel Chip to Empower Devices With AI, Raises $9M
With ever-smaller smartphones now flaunting the computing powers of yesteryear’s hefty business machines, it might look like Moore’s Law has yet to be repealed. In 1965, Intel co-founder Gordon Moore saw computer chips doubling in processing power every year, and predicted the exponential rise of smaller, cheaper, and faster devices. But Michael Henry, co-founder of … Continue reading “Mythic Reveals Novel Chip to Empower Devices With AI, Raises $9M”
Why Austin Tech Entrepreneur Joseph Kopser Might Run For Congress
Austin—Republicans have controlled Texas politics for so long that “we no longer have the good competition of ideas,” says Austin entrepreneur Joseph Kopser. That’s why he says he’s considering becoming a Democratic challenger to incumbent Texas Rep. Lamar Smith, R-Texas, in the 2018 elections. Kopser, who founded and sold his startup, RideScout, to Mercedes-Benz maker … Continue reading “Why Austin Tech Entrepreneur Joseph Kopser Might Run For Congress”
MD Anderson’s Hicks Named Interim President After DePinho Resignation
[Updated 3/17/17 5:32 pm. See below.] Houston—The University of Texas System has named Marshall Hicks the interim president of the MD Anderson Cancer Center, according to a memo to employees obtained by Xconomy. Hicks, whose appointment is official March 21, replaces Ronald DePinho, who resigned earlier this month. [Updated with comment from MD Anderson.] MD Anderson said … Continue reading “MD Anderson’s Hicks Named Interim President After DePinho Resignation”
Talking Driverless Cars, March Madness on Stocks and Jocks Radio
I hit the airwaves Friday morning to talk venture capital, startups, self-driving cars, and March Madness. Stocks and Jocks, a Chicago-based weekday business and sports talk radio program, invited me on the show to share my thoughts on some of the latest trends in the startup world. Hosts Tom Haugh and Kathy Dervin bantered with … Continue reading “Talking Driverless Cars, March Madness on Stocks and Jocks Radio”
Five Questions For … San Antonio Entrepreneur & Investor Morris Miller
San Antonio—Entrepreneurship has been a constant theme in Morris Miller’s life. That arc stretches from his grandparents’ businesses in key cutting and dry goods to Miller’s success as a co-founder of San Antonio cloud computing giant Rackspace, which sold to New York private equity firm Apollo Global Management for $4.3 billion. Along the way, he … Continue reading “Five Questions For … San Antonio Entrepreneur & Investor Morris Miller”
Bio Roundup: Trump Budget, FDA Chief, CAR-T Qs, CRISPR Cash, & More
If it wasn’t clear that the Trump administration disdained most types of scientific inquiry and practice, the White House’s proposed budget drove the point home. The top-line figures: a nearly 20 percent cut in the National Institutes of Health, and a 30 percent cut in the Environmental Protection Agency. These and other cuts to programs … Continue reading “Bio Roundup: Trump Budget, FDA Chief, CAR-T Qs, CRISPR Cash, & More”
Tech in the Trump Era: Regulating Privacy, Immigration, Ethics
Austin—From personal privacy to managing the technology that one day could take our jobs, finding the right approach to regulating technology is a more prominent subject now than seemingly ever, especially given the steady stream of proposals being pushed by the new White House administration. Those speaking at South by Southwest over the last week … Continue reading “Tech in the Trump Era: Regulating Privacy, Immigration, Ethics”
Machine Learning 201: Exploring the Market for New Business
2016 will be remembered for many things, not least as the year that AI and machine learning stepped into the technological and cultural spotlight. Advances in applied machine learning fueled our enthusiasm for smarter, more talkative devices. It impacted how we learned about and processed the news—and fake news—of the national elections. Automation grew in … Continue reading “Machine Learning 201: Exploring the Market for New Business”
Gender at South By Southwest: Harassment, VC Jobs, & Hard Choices
[Angela Shah contributed to this report.] Austin—If there was a common theme among the gender-focused panels at South by Southwest, it might be the disbelief that we still need to discuss the importance of having women in tech. But considering the current occupant of the Oval Office, popular ride-sharing companies that back supervisors accused of … Continue reading “Gender at South By Southwest: Harassment, VC Jobs, & Hard Choices”
“Blue Squad” to Use Tech Tools to Help Progressive Candidates
Austin—For Shion Deysarkar, founder and CEO of Web analytics startup Datafiniti, last fall’s presidential election was a wake-up call. “The election was a very sobering event,” he says. “I think most progressive people had just assumed that we had turned the corner on a lot of issues in America. The election proved we were severely … Continue reading ““Blue Squad” to Use Tech Tools to Help Progressive Candidates”
Tax Reform and Choice of Business Entity
Choice of entity—how an entrepreneur decides to conduct the business—is a key decision with critical tax and non-tax implications. In the coming months, the White House is expected to release a detailed tax reform plan which, among other things, may include a significant reduction in corporate tax rates. If the anticipated changes are adopted, should … Continue reading “Tax Reform and Choice of Business Entity”
Airlines Must Improve IT Infrastructure Now or Pay Later
At the tail end of this past holiday season—on one of the busiest travel days of the year—thousands of arriving international passengers found themselves stuck for hours in the line at customs, waiting to be processed. It wasn’t a terror alert, mechanical failure, or nefarious cyberattack that caused long lines and huge delays for travelers … Continue reading “Airlines Must Improve IT Infrastructure Now or Pay Later “
Biden’s Comments on Challenges in Cancer Care Highlight SXSW Talk
Austin—Technologists need to develop the interstate highway system for healthcare. That was one of the themes at the South By Southwest Interactive conference Sunday, in comments made by doctors, investors, entrepreneurs, and the former vice president of the United States. “I can take my cell phone and find out movie times, or track a check … Continue reading “Biden’s Comments on Challenges in Cancer Care Highlight SXSW Talk”
Possible Cures. Mystery Deaths. Daunting Costs. Can CAR-T Be Tamed?
It’s a struggle that comic-book fans know well. Ordinary people, bestowed with super powers from a spider bite or gamma rays, struggle to harness their own abilities. T cells, key soldiers of the immune system, are wrestling with new-found super powers, too. Certain T cells hunt down invasive viruses, bacteria, and the body’s own bad … Continue reading “Possible Cures. Mystery Deaths. Daunting Costs. Can CAR-T Be Tamed?”
Scott Gottlieb On Tap to Lead FDA, and Biopharma Exhales
[Updated 3/12/17 with more comments, see below] The Trump administration has nominated Scott Gottlieb to be the new commissioner of the FDA, a selection that had the life sciences industry breathing a sigh of relief Friday afternoon. The 44-year-old Gottlieb is a physician, a venture partner at New Enterprise Associates, and was also the deputy … Continue reading “Scott Gottlieb On Tap to Lead FDA, and Biopharma Exhales”
Five Questions For … SXSW Chief Programming Officer Hugh Forrest
Austin—When Hugh Forrest joined SXSW in 1994, fewer than 4,300 attended the little-known music festival. That was the year that two new “events”—Interactive and Film—were introduced to the mix, with the first keynote being given by a tech executive: Richard Garriott, then the founder of Origin Systems, and now known as a video gaming pioneer … Continue reading “Five Questions For … SXSW Chief Programming Officer Hugh Forrest”
Biotech Roundup: Obamacare Lite, DePinho Out, Dunsire In & More
We’ll start the roundup in Washington DC. The repeal of the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare, began on the first day of the Trump administration. This week, the “replace” phase began with a Republican plan championed by House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI). President Trump backed it, too, but a lot of Republicans have … Continue reading “Biotech Roundup: Obamacare Lite, DePinho Out, Dunsire In & More”
BioAffinity Secures $150K Investment from San Antonio-Run Biz Group
San Antonio — An economic development organization run by the city of San Antonio is committing $150,000 to bioAffinity, betting that the young company can advance its technology and add more jobs. The company is developing a diagnostic agent that aims to literally highlight cancer cells in patients sputum—basically phlegm that’s coughed up from the … Continue reading “BioAffinity Secures $150K Investment from San Antonio-Run Biz Group”
Capital Factory Starts Mobility Accelerator with Daimler’s Moovel
Austin—Capital Factory is launching a new accelerator program with moovel North America, which is part of a company founded by Mercedes-Benz maker Daimler AG, for startups that have technology targeting the transportation sector. Called MobilityX and based at Capital Factory’s co-working space in Austin, TX, the accelerator aims to give Daimler input, connections, and potential … Continue reading “Capital Factory Starts Mobility Accelerator with Daimler’s Moovel”
Biotech With Drug Developed by San Antonio Researcher Explores Sale
San Antonio — Galena Biopharma, a San Ramon, CA-based biotech that is developing a cancer vaccine created by a San Antonio researcher, has hired Canaccord Genuity to see if it can sell or merge the company, license its assets to another business, or make some other move to keep the drug research going. The news comes … Continue reading “Biotech With Drug Developed by San Antonio Researcher Explores Sale”
Will Driverless Cars Ever Yield Profits for Uber and Lyft?
Uber has suffered a series of troubles early this year, from sexual harassment claims by a former staff engineer to an intellectual property theft lawsuit by Google unit Waymo. But Uber’s most longstanding, recurrent, and core problem stems from its relationship with its contract drivers. It’s not surprising that Uber is seeking an escape from … Continue reading “Will Driverless Cars Ever Yield Profits for Uber and Lyft?”