For the second time in two months, remarkable recoveries from desperate cases of cancer have led to early approval of a cutting-edge therapy called CAR-T, which is made from a patient’s own genetically engineered cells. More than a month before the decision was due, the FDA has given the nod to axicabtagene ciloleucel, now branded … Continue reading “Kite Nabs First Adult CAR-T Approval With Notable Uptick Of Cures”
Category: Wisconsin
Green Bay Startup Lanehub Wins $100K Steve Case Investment
When a company ships a truckload of goods across the country, it’s often the case that the truck will return to its city of origin carrying less than a full load. Trucking, which is estimated to be a $720 billion-plus industry, could be made more efficient by putting businesses that ship products by truck in … Continue reading “Green Bay Startup Lanehub Wins $100K Steve Case Investment”
After Trump Sounds Off, Senate Has Adult Conversation on Drug Prices
In advance of an anticipated Senate hearing on drug prices, President Donald Trump once again denounced drug companies as “getting away with murder.” The first time he did so, using the same phrase just before his inauguration, the markets shuddered. He also said at the time that “we’re going to start bidding,” a reference to … Continue reading “After Trump Sounds Off, Senate Has Adult Conversation on Drug Prices”
UW-Madison Vice Chancellor Mailick to Take Leave
Marsha Mailick, vice chancellor for research and graduate education at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, will take a temporary leave beginning Jan. 1, 2018, a spokesperson for the university said Monday. Mailick plans to step aside from her day-to-day duties at UW-Madison for much of the spring 2018 semester “due to family health considerations,” according to … Continue reading “UW-Madison Vice Chancellor Mailick to Take Leave”
Access HealthNet Raising $3M for Tools Aimed at Cutting Care Costs
When a patient with health insurance is in need of an expensive medical procedure, the actual cost of the procedure may not seem material to her once it’s clear that it will exceed the deductible—the amount the patient must pay out of pocket—set in her insurance plan. For instance, a patient whose health plan covers … Continue reading “Access HealthNet Raising $3M for Tools Aimed at Cutting Care Costs”
Vinod Khosla on A.I., Health, and the Future of Working (or Not)
Entrepreneur-turned-venture capitalist Vinod Khosla made big headlines almost six years ago when he wrote a blog post called “Do We Need Doctors or Algorithms?” In it, he said medicine needed to be reinvented and he predicted a new era in which artificial intelligence might replace most of the functions that doctors do now—and do it … Continue reading “Vinod Khosla on A.I., Health, and the Future of Working (or Not)”
Montage, EatStreet, Solomo, & More: This Week’s Wisconsin Watchlist
Catch up on the latest news from Wisconsin’s innovation community with these recent headlines: —Delafield-based Montage Talent announced a partnership with Randstad Holding NV, a large human resources company based in the Netherlands that employs thousands of recruiters. Many Randstad employees already use Montage’s software for conducting video and phone interviews with job candidates, the … Continue reading “Montage, EatStreet, Solomo, & More: This Week’s Wisconsin Watchlist”
Bio Roundup: Light For Spark, California Drug Law, IPO Queue & More
In a year of tragedies across the U.S., natural or otherwise, it seemed this week was California’s turn. Fueled by high winds, low humidity, and ample dry vegetation, fires swept through several towns across the state and, as of this writing, have barely been contained. With our minds on friends and loved ones affected by … Continue reading “Bio Roundup: Light For Spark, California Drug Law, IPO Queue & More”
Jamf To Be Sold to Austin, TX-based Private Equity Firm
Jamf, a Minneapolis-based company that helps businesses set up and manage Apple computers and mobile devices that employees use for work, says it has agreed to sell a majority stake in the company to Austin, TX-based Vista Equity Partners. While Jamf is headquartered in the Twin Cities, it was originally based in Eau Claire, WI, … Continue reading “Jamf To Be Sold to Austin, TX-based Private Equity Firm”
Promega, CEO Linton Return Fire in Legal Battle with Shareholders
[Corrected 10/12/17 4:21 p.m. See below.] A little over a year after a group of shareholders of the life sciences supplies business Promega sued the company, alleging malfeasance by founder and CEO Bill Linton, Promega has begun sharing its side of the story. In multiple counterclaims filed recently in Dane County Circuit Court, lawyers representing … Continue reading “Promega, CEO Linton Return Fire in Legal Battle with Shareholders”
Android Founder on VR, Voice & the Future of Human-Machine Collaboration
Within 20 years, computer keyboards will be relegated to the technology dustbin, says Android co-founder Rich Miner. Miner helped shape the smartphone era with Android, a mobile operating system startup that Google acquired in 2005. Android software now powers over 2 billion devices. On Tuesday, Miner spoke at a mobile software developer conference in Boston … Continue reading “Android Founder on VR, Voice & the Future of Human-Machine Collaboration”
FDA To Advisors: What If One-Time Gene Therapy Needs Extra Doses?
In the run-up to a key vote on an experimental gene therapy, the FDA raised no major flags about the drug’s track record but said its long-term effect remains an open question. That question should receive a thorough airing Thursday, when a meeting of FDA outside advisors will weigh a recommendation of the one-shot gene … Continue reading “FDA To Advisors: What If One-Time Gene Therapy Needs Extra Doses?”
Black Fellowship Students Headed From HBCUs to VC Boardrooms
In mid-October, eleven college students will be flying to California for an opportunity that would be the envy of any Ivy League MBA candidate—they’ll meet the venture capital firm partners who will personally mentor them throughout the school year. The students—all but one are undergraduates—come from campuses in Prairie View, Texas; Tallahassee, Florida; and Nashville, … Continue reading “Black Fellowship Students Headed From HBCUs to VC Boardrooms”
VC Funding Surges in Fewer Deals in Third Quarter, and Top 10 Deals
[Updated 10/11/17, 12:25 am. See below.] “More dollars, fewer deals” has been a prevailing trend in venture funding over the past couple of years, and it was evident again in the three months that ended September 30, according to the latest Venture Monitor report. Venture firms invested $21.5 billion in 1,699 startups nationwide during the … Continue reading “VC Funding Surges in Fewer Deals in Third Quarter, and Top 10 Deals”
Blockchain, Banks & the New Web: Q&A With Ethereum Co-founder Lubin
Ethereum co-founder Joe Lubin is calm and soft-spoken when he shares his vision of how blockchain technology and digital currencies could transform the Internet, the global economy, and many aspects of our daily lives. But what he’s talking about could become a raging tempest, and it’s worth paying attention to—especially given the vast sums of … Continue reading “Blockchain, Banks & the New Web: Q&A With Ethereum Co-founder Lubin”
Steve Case’s Rise of the Rest Shines Spotlight on Emerging Tech Hubs
Steve Case, venture capitalist, author, and co-founder of AOL, is preparing to hit the road this week on his sixth Rise of the Rest tour, where he travels to emerging innovation hubs in search of investment-worthy tech startups and to highlight the growth happening outside of places like Silicon Valley and Boston. In the years … Continue reading “Steve Case’s Rise of the Rest Shines Spotlight on Emerging Tech Hubs”
Awards, Water Council, TechSpark, & More: This Week’s WI Watchlist
Keep up with the latest news from Wisconsin’s innovation community with these recent headlines: —The fourth annual Wisconsin Innovation Awards, a program that seeks to recognize bright ideas from companies based in the Badger State, were held earlier this week. According to a press release, the ten category winners were chosen from more than 230 … Continue reading “Awards, Water Council, TechSpark, & More: This Week’s WI Watchlist”
Bio Roundup: Nobel Pursuit, Fundraising Fruit, A Rhythmic IPO & More
The 2017 Nobel Prizes with a biomedical bent were announced this week. Three researchers shared the physiology and medicine prize for their work shining light on the circadian rhythms that govern the wake-and-sleep cycles of all organisms. That basic research is working its way into applications such as drugs that help regulate our body clocks. … Continue reading “Bio Roundup: Nobel Pursuit, Fundraising Fruit, A Rhythmic IPO & More”
Invenra, Developer of Therapeutic Antibodies, Raises $2.9M
Invenra, a Madison, WI-based startup that develops therapeutic antibodies for pharmaceuticals companies and other clients, has raised more than $2.9 million from investors, according to a regulatory filing. Twenty-five investors participated in the equity funding round, according to the filing, which was made public on Thursday. Invenra, founded in 2011, has now raised more than … Continue reading “Invenra, Developer of Therapeutic Antibodies, Raises $2.9M”
AltspaceVR Finds New Home in Microsoft’s Mixed Reality Ecosystem
AltspaceVR, one of the forerunners of shared social experiences in virtual reality spaces, has been saved from extinction by Microsoft, which announced Tuesday that it is acquiring the four-year-old company. The Redwood City, CA-based startup had sounded its own death knell on July 28, announcing that it planned to shut down Aug. 3 due to the … Continue reading “AltspaceVR Finds New Home in Microsoft’s Mixed Reality Ecosystem”
BomBoard Charts New Course After the Startup Founder’s Death
BomBoard, a startup that has developed a smaller, cheaper, and modular version of the traditional jet ski, is seeking help to commercialize its flagship product following the death of founder John West. West died in early August “due to an aggressive cancer,” says Anders Stubkjaer, chief financial officer of Whitewater, WI-based BomBoard, and now also … Continue reading “BomBoard Charts New Course After the Startup Founder’s Death”
Celebrating Boston Life Sciences: Xconomy Awards Gala Slideshow
We at Xconomy were thrilled to see such a great turnout at our first-ever Awards Gala—350 people from the Boston life sciences community filled a Hynes Convention Center ballroom. As Bob Buderi, our founder and editor-in-chief, said in his opening remarks on September 26 before a sold-out crowd: We clearly struck a chord. Top scientists, … Continue reading “Celebrating Boston Life Sciences: Xconomy Awards Gala Slideshow”
Gener8tor, Shine, Cellectar, & More: This Week’s Wisconsin Watchlist
Stay current on news from Wisconsin’s innovation community with these recent headlines: —Gener8tor announced the six startups chosen to receive investments and mentorship during its latest 12-week accelerator program, which kicked off last month and runs through November. The program is being run out of Gener8tor’s Milwaukee offices, and three of the companies in the … Continue reading “Gener8tor, Shine, Cellectar, & More: This Week’s Wisconsin Watchlist”
gBETA, Gener8tor’s Free Accelerator Program, Is Expanding to Detroit
Gener8tor, a Wisconsin-based organization that holds training programs for startups and invests in them, will soon hold its first program in Michigan, if its website is any indication. gBETA is a series of free, seven-week accelerator programs run by Gener8tor that help entrepreneurs with things like pitching their products, adding users and customers, and raising … Continue reading “gBETA, Gener8tor’s Free Accelerator Program, Is Expanding to Detroit”
Twitter Joins Facebook in Political Hot Seat Over Election Hacking
Ordinarily, Twitter’s announcement that some of its users can now send tweets twice as long as its signature 140-character limit, and that this freedom could be broadened to others, would have been the company’s top news of the week. But instead, Twitter, like Facebook before it, is under the national microscope as government investigations of … Continue reading “Twitter Joins Facebook in Political Hot Seat Over Election Hacking”
Bio Roundup: Graham-Cassidy, Axovant Fail, SpringWorks Launches & More
After drug pricing, count drug shortages among the hot button issues sparking patient ire. Last year, the FDA says, 23 drug shortages were reported, down from 26 the previous year (and 251 in 2011). But Hurricane Maria’s direct strike on Puerto Rico might put the progress made on reducing shortages to the test. The Pharmaceutical … Continue reading “Bio Roundup: Graham-Cassidy, Axovant Fail, SpringWorks Launches & More”
Epic Opens App Orchard Marketplace, Helping Hospitals Share Software
Epic Systems has opened its App Orchard, a program allowing hospitals and clinics that use Epic’s patient records software to share apps they’ve built and browse third-party digital health products that have been configured to work with Epic. Sumit Rana, senior vice president of research and development at Verona, WI-based Epic, said App Orchard makes … Continue reading “Epic Opens App Orchard Marketplace, Helping Hospitals Share Software”
Epic Seeks to Join Alexa, Siri as Software You Can Chat With
Epic Systems may soon add its name to the list of companies with virtual assistant software that people can give instructions to and get information from. But those who say, ‘Hey Epic’ to initiate a man-to-machine conversation won’t be your average consumers. Instead, they’ll be doctors, nurses, and others who use the Verona, WI-based company’s … Continue reading “Epic Seeks to Join Alexa, Siri as Software You Can Chat With”
Google, Apple Offer Salvation from the Horrors of Autoplay
Tech giants are under a lot of pressure these days to make the world a better place—to ferret out Russian hackers trying to fix elections; to combat gender bias in hiring; to stamp out sexual harassment; and to lend their voices to the protests over President Trump’s immigration policies. Despite efforts they’ve made on these … Continue reading “Google, Apple Offer Salvation from the Horrors of Autoplay”
The Winners of the 2017 Xconomy Awards Are…
We are excited to announce the recipients of the first-ever Xconomy Awards. Big Idea Bridge Project The Bridge Project was hatched by MIT’s Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research in Cambridge and the Dana-Farber/Harvard Cancer Center in Boston to fund collaborative research between cancer researchers from MIT and Harvard-affiliated hospitals and schools. Its aim is … Continue reading “The Winners of the 2017 Xconomy Awards Are…”
Epic CEO Judy Faulkner: No ‘Magic Wand’ For Improving Healthcare
Epic Systems may have taken inspiration for new buildings on its corporate campus from Harry Potter, but that hasn’t imbued the company with magic powers. Dressed in a wizard’s robes and hat, Judy Faulkner, founder and CEO of one of the largest makers of electronic health records (EHR) software, told a gathering of thousands of … Continue reading “Epic CEO Judy Faulkner: No ‘Magic Wand’ For Improving Healthcare”
Trump Orders Up $200M a Year for STEM, Coding Education
President Donald Trump, who has had a rocky relationship with tech companies during his short administration so far, announced an education initiative Monday that apparently met with their approval. In a White House ceremony, Trump directed his education secretary to allocate at least $200 million a year to fund student access to coursework in science, … Continue reading “Trump Orders Up $200M a Year for STEM, Coding Education”
Funding Campaign Launched After Explosion Injures Sector67 Founder
Sector67, a nonprofit “maker space” used by entrepreneurs and other residents of Madison, WI, and surrounding communities, says its founder, Chris Meyer, was seriously injured in a propane explosion last week. As a result of the incident, Meyer will be hospitalized for at least a month, according to a page on the crowdfunding site GoFundMe … Continue reading “Funding Campaign Launched After Explosion Injures Sector67 Founder”
Xconomy Q&A: Todd Schulte of Tech Immigration Advocacy Org FWD.us
[Updated 9/25/17, 1:55 p.m. Clarified 9/27/17, 10:01 a.m. See below.] Immigration policy has always been important to the tech industry, but this year is different. Under a steady barrage of nationalist, anti-immigrant policies promulgated by the Trump administration, the tech industry has been forced to respond like never before, in the halls of Congress, the … Continue reading “Xconomy Q&A: Todd Schulte of Tech Immigration Advocacy Org FWD.us”
Low-Hanging Fruit Gone, Ag & Food Tech Investors Pay More for Deals
[Updated 9/25/17, 5:18 pm. See below.] Food delivery startups are catching on with more consumers, and that demand is whetting investor appetites. The $400 million that grocery delivery startup Instacart raised in March marked the largest deal for a U.S. food technology company in the first half of the year, according to new data from … Continue reading “Low-Hanging Fruit Gone, Ag & Food Tech Investors Pay More for Deals”
Epic’s App Orchard Gains Traction with Hospitals, Third Parties
In February, Epic Systems formally introduced App Orchard, a program aimed at helping other healthcare software companies integrate their digital products with Epic’s tools for managing patient records. Hundreds of health systems around the world already use Verona, WI-based Epic’s software to document patient information. Doctors, nurses, and other healthcare workers can use the software … Continue reading “Epic’s App Orchard Gains Traction with Hospitals, Third Parties”
Bio Roundup: RNAi’s Big Day, CAR-T For Kids, Drugs From Fungi & More
It’s been a year of biomedical milestones in the U.S., including the first approval of a CAR-T cellular immunotherapy, the first smartphone app to treat substance abuse, and the first approval of a cancer drug based on genetic signature instead of the tumor’s organ of origin. Add to the list the first successful Phase 3 … Continue reading “Bio Roundup: RNAi’s Big Day, CAR-T For Kids, Drugs From Fungi & More”
Nathan Myhrvold: The Full Xconomy Voices Interview
Episode 3 of our new podcast, Xconomy Voices, features a conversation about nuclear power with Nathan Myhrvold, the founder and CEO of Intellectual Ventures. The former Microsoft chief technology officer is now vice chairman of TerraPower, a Bellevue, WA-based spinout of Intellectual Ventures that aims to revive commercial nuclear energy. The company is researching next-generation … Continue reading “Nathan Myhrvold: The Full Xconomy Voices Interview”
Q&A: UW Prof on Whether Patient Portals Are Working as Designed
The percentage of U.S. hospitals that rely entirely on paper records to document information on their patients now stands at 1 percent, down from 69 percent in 2003, according to a study published recently in the American Journal of Health-System Pharmacy. For more than two decades, hospitals and clinics have been working to digitize their … Continue reading “Q&A: UW Prof on Whether Patient Portals Are Working as Designed”
Xconomy Voices, Episode 3: Nathan Myhrvold and TerraPower
We’re pleased to bring you the third episode of Xconomy Voices, our new podcast featuring conversations with entrepreneurs, innovators, and investors from Xconomy’s home cities and regions. This week our guest is Nathan Myhrvold, the former Microsoft chief technology officer who, since 2000, has headed Intellectual Ventures, a Bellevue, WA-based firm that buys, develops, and … Continue reading “Xconomy Voices, Episode 3: Nathan Myhrvold and TerraPower”
NVCA Sues Trump Administration for Delaying “Startup Visa” Program
Add another item to the list of tech industry beefs with the new crew in the White House. An organization representing venture capital firms filed a federal suit in Washington, DC, on Tuesday accusing Trump Administration officials of unlawfully delaying a program that would have allowed international entrepreneurs to work at companies they founded within … Continue reading “NVCA Sues Trump Administration for Delaying “Startup Visa” Program”
Eyeing a Comeback, Arrowhead Bets on New RNAi Delivery Tool
[Updated 9/20/17 4:57 p.m. See below.] Following a series of setbacks late last year, Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals, one of the companies trying to develop drugs using RNA interference, has come up with a plan to try to bounce back. But to do so, it’ll have to prove it can safely and effectively deliver an RNAi therapeutic … Continue reading “Eyeing a Comeback, Arrowhead Bets on New RNAi Delivery Tool”
On CAR-T’s Edge, Seattle Researchers Plot to Bypass Novartis Therapy
[Corrected, 10/10/17, 2 p.m. ET. See below.] It’s not a stretch to say that Greta Oberhofer is alive thanks to the genetically modified cell therapy called CAR-T. At three and a half months old, she was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia, or ALL, an aggressive blood cancer. At 10 months old, she had a bone … Continue reading “On CAR-T’s Edge, Seattle Researchers Plot to Bypass Novartis Therapy”
Amazon, EWPanel, Shine, RPRD & More: This Week’s Wisconsin Watchlist
Catch up on the latest news from Wisconsin’s innovation community with these recent headlines: —Municipal leaders in Milwaukee will attempt to persuade executives at the online retailing giant Amazon (NASDAQ: [[ticker:AMZN]]) that the city would make an ideal home for its second headquarters, or HQ2, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported. Earlier this month, the Seattle-based … Continue reading “Amazon, EWPanel, Shine, RPRD & More: This Week’s Wisconsin Watchlist”
Race to Mine Fungi for Drugs Revs up as Verdine’s LifeMine Gets $55M
Can the life sciences industry finally begin to efficiently and systematically exploit the potential treasure trove of drugs hidden in fungi? It seems promising, thanks to cheaper DNA sequencing technologies, artificial intelligence, new academic research, and now the largest funding yet for a startup trying to take on the task. This morning, LifeMine Therapeutics, a … Continue reading “Race to Mine Fungi for Drugs Revs up as Verdine’s LifeMine Gets $55M”
Bio Roundup: Phase 3 Fails, Shkreli Jailed, Moderna Flip-Flops & More
It was a week of realignments. President Trump, who used to be known as “The Donald” but now goes by “Amnesty Don,” kept up the parlay-voo with his new friends Chuck and Nancy. Martin Shkreli, who was once known—and still is!—as the “pharma bro,” will have a new perspective for a while, through the bars … Continue reading “Bio Roundup: Phase 3 Fails, Shkreli Jailed, Moderna Flip-Flops & More”
With New Software, Epic Aims to Help Patients Share Health Records
Epic Systems has long used a slogan to describe its software, which hundreds of hospitals and clinics across the globe use to manage their patients’ health records: “with the patient at the heart.” Verona, WI-based Epic is backing up that credo with a new program that would allow the 190 million people who have a … Continue reading “With New Software, Epic Aims to Help Patients Share Health Records”
Online Portals Challenge WebMD as Patients’ Source for Health Info
Suppose you wake up with a mysterious rash. Or you’ve got back pain, or have come down with a cough unlike any you’ve experienced previously. What’s your first move? Maybe you run a Google search. Maybe you text a doctor or nurse you know. Or maybe you attempt to get through your normal morning routine, … Continue reading “Online Portals Challenge WebMD as Patients’ Source for Health Info”
Going Big or Against the Tide: Meet the Big Idea & Contrarian Award Finalists
[Corrected, 1:25pm ET, see below] All innovation and companies start off as an idea. Some will gain more traction than others over time, but we at Xconomy think that big ideas—and the people and companies in Boston’s life sciences community bold enough to try to implement them—are worth celebrating. Some of those ideas even go … Continue reading “Going Big or Against the Tide: Meet the Big Idea & Contrarian Award Finalists”
GM, Ford, BAE Systems Up the Self-Driving Ante with New Advances
Things are moving quickly in the mobility sector as the race to develop autonomous vehicle technologies revs up. This week brought a spate of mobility news from GM and Cruise, Ford, BAE, and even the federal government. Read on for details. —The Detroit News published a detailed report this week regarding Ford’s Silicon Valley lab, … Continue reading “GM, Ford, BAE Systems Up the Self-Driving Ante with New Advances”