Five years ago, in November 2011, a company from Princeton, NJ, called Pharmasset shared news that would have an impact on millions of people around the world with hepatitis C. Its experimental drug PSI-7977 had quickly cleared the virus from 40 patients, with minimal side effects, and they had stayed infection-free. If the data held … Continue reading “After “Hubris” and Its HCV Collapse, Can Vertex Avoid Same Mistakes?”
Category: Wisconsin
GREE Is Good: How PerBlue Sold Its DragonSoul to Japanese Firm
Earlier this month, PerBlue, a Madison, WI-based developer of games that can be downloaded and played on mobile devices, said that it had sold the rights to one of its games, DragonSoul, for an undisclosed sum. The buyer, San Francisco-based GREE International Entertainment (GIE), is part of GREE, a Japan-based company listed on the Tokyo … Continue reading “GREE Is Good: How PerBlue Sold Its DragonSoul to Japanese Firm”
Bio Roundup: Bristol & Illumina Blues, Sickle Cell News & More
On Aug. 4, shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb closed at $75.32. Today, shares are worth just over $50. That means in three months, Bristol has lost a third of its value, equivalent to about $40 billion in market capitalization. The reason? One failed clinical trial has left rival Merck in the lead position to have what … Continue reading “Bio Roundup: Bristol & Illumina Blues, Sickle Cell News & More”
EatStreet Obtains $10,999,996 New Financing
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=8d589d06-a5a3-4a72-9b0e-a39354e817d4 Date 10/14/2016 Company Name EatStreet Mailing Address 131 West Wilson Street Madison, WI 53703 USA Company Description EatStreet rewards diners on every order by offering exclusive specials and coupons for local restaurants. Simply order more food to earn more coupons. Website http://www.eatstreet.com Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount $10,999,996 Transaction Round … Continue reading “EatStreet Obtains $10,999,996 New Financing”
EatStreet Downloads Another $11M for Restaurant Ordering Software
EatStreet has raised nearly $11 million in equity financing, according to a regulatory filing that was made public on Thursday. The Madison, WI-based developer of online food-ordering software has now raised more than $40 million since launching in 2010, says Matt Howard, co-founder and CEO of EatStreet. Howard declined to provide specifics related to what … Continue reading “EatStreet Downloads Another $11M for Restaurant Ordering Software”
Promentis, Kiio, EmOpti, & More: This Week’s Wisconsin Watchlist
Take a break from raking leaves and putting up your Halloween decorations and catch up on the latest news from Wisconsin’s innovation community: —Milwaukee-based Promentis Pharmaceuticals raised nearly $8.8 million in equity financing from eight investors, according to a document filed with federal securities regulators. Reached by phone, Promentis president and CEO Chad Beyer declined … Continue reading “Promentis, Kiio, EmOpti, & More: This Week’s Wisconsin Watchlist”
Life Science Leaders Who Feel the Right Kind of Fear
In the world of betting on the future, life sciences find themselves in a storm, with huge opportunities, like CRISPR gene editing, and immense obstacles, such as soaring drug prices, that call for leaders of extra intensity who are imbued with a sense of crisis. Most people agree that the life sciences today, more than … Continue reading “Life Science Leaders Who Feel the Right Kind of Fear”
How Doctors Think About Drug Prices
There are a lot of factors involved in drug pricing that don’t enter my head when I’m seeing a patient. The three letters “PBM,” for example (pharmacy benefit manager), have never crossed my mind when I’m writing a prescription. Nor has the word “rebate.” Or the phrase “pay for delay.” Or “marketing exclusivity.” Basically, I … Continue reading “How Doctors Think About Drug Prices”
Checkpoints In Lung Cancer, and Other Oncology News From Europe
The European Society for Medical Oncology’s annual conference wraps up in Copenhagen today. We’ve seen updates on heavyweight immunotherapy programs, potential options for patients with advanced breast cancer, and more. Here’s a quick roundup of the major news. LUNG CHECKS ESMO provided more evidence that the treatment of lung cancer is changing fast. Going into … Continue reading “Checkpoints In Lung Cancer, and Other Oncology News From Europe”
Allergy Amulet Raises $1.1M for Device That Detects Food Allergens
Abigail Barnes is allergic to peanuts, tree nuts, and shellfish. Her food allergies have landed her in the hospital on six different occasions. She’s not alone: in the U.S., every three minutes a food allergy reaction sends someone to the emergency department. A few years ago, when Barnes was living in Vermont and attending law … Continue reading “Allergy Amulet Raises $1.1M for Device That Detects Food Allergens”
How Augmented Reality Is Transforming the Manufacturing Industry
For many Americans, the manufacturing industry brings to mind images of Industrial Revolution-era factories, World War II assembly lines, or perhaps even outsourced workshops overseas. But that picture is outdated. The truth is that the advanced technologies that are changing modern life are also revolutionizing the manufacturing industry in ways that are not yet widely … Continue reading “How Augmented Reality Is Transforming the Manufacturing Industry”
Bio Roundup: Theranos Cuts, Alnylam Stops, Nobel Eats Its Own & More
[Updated, 11:50 a.m. ET, see below] With the Caribbean and now the southeast U.S. coast bearing the brunt of Hurricane Matthew, we send our thoughts and more to those who have more pressing matters to worry about this week. But the show must go on. The biotech industry saw its own storms pass through, with … Continue reading “Bio Roundup: Theranos Cuts, Alnylam Stops, Nobel Eats Its Own & More”
Third-Quarter Report Shows Slowdown in VC Activity, & Top 10 Deals
Venture capital activity is gradually easing from last year’s peak, according to a new quarterly report put together by Seattle-based PitchBook and the National Venture Capital Association. VC firms invested $14.99 billion in 1,810 U.S. deals (1,796 companies) during the third quarter that ended September 30, according to the inaugural “Venture Monitor” report released today. … Continue reading “Third-Quarter Report Shows Slowdown in VC Activity, & Top 10 Deals”
Promentis Pharmaceuticals Lands $8,787,399 New Round
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=be4c8573-5610-4bc2-8266-07963a4488b5 Date 10/6/2016 Company Name Promentis Pharmaceuticals Mailing Address 826 N. Plankinton Ave. Milwaukee, WI 53203 USA Company Description Promentis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. is a pharmaceutical company developing novel compounds for the treatment of schizophrenia and other central nervous system disorders. Website http://www.promentispharma.com Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount $8,787,399 Transaction Round Undisclosed … Continue reading “Promentis Pharmaceuticals Lands $8,787,399 New Round”
Moxe Health Snags $5.5M to Connect Healthcare Insurers and Providers
Moxe Health, a Madison, WI-based startup whose digital tools help facilitate the flow of data between healthcare providers, insurers, and software applications, says it has raised $5.5 million from investors. Safeguard Scientifics (NYSE: [[ticker:SFE]]), based in the Philadelphia area, led the round. Dan Wilson, Moxe’s founder and CEO, declined to name other funds or individual … Continue reading “Moxe Health Snags $5.5M to Connect Healthcare Insurers and Providers”
With New Program, DARPA To Encourage Safety “Brakes” For Gene Editing
[Updated 10/6/16, 12:17 p.m. See below.] Drugs that use molecular scissors to snip out or replace defective genes. Altered mosquitoes meant to sabotage entire disease-carrying populations. Both are potential uses of genome editing, which thanks to the CRISPR-Cas9 system has spread throughout the world’s biology labs and is now on the doorstep of the outside … Continue reading “With New Program, DARPA To Encourage Safety “Brakes” For Gene Editing”
Is Your Organization Ready to Become an Ecosystem Driver?
[This article is co-authored by Stephanie Woerner.] Dominating business-to-consumer sales, Amazon seems ready to take over the world of business-to-business too. In its first year, Amazon Business generated $1 billion in sales. However, there is still room for competition. It’s not yet an ecosystem driver in B2B, although the longer it takes for other business … Continue reading “Is Your Organization Ready to Become an Ecosystem Driver?”
Moxe Health Obtains $4,818,992 New Financing
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=d999150f-4465-4020-b502-8d9085dd8311 Date 10/5/2016 Company Name Moxe Health Mailing Address Undisclosed Madison, WI 53701 USA Company Description Moxe was founded by Dan Wilson and Mark Olschesky, two former Epic Systems employees. While at Epic, Dan and Mark discovered the power of the phrase: Do good, have fun and make money. The two carry … Continue reading “Moxe Health Obtains $4,818,992 New Financing”
Exact Sciences, Rockwell, & Gender Gaps: This Week’s WI Watchlist
Stay on top of the latest news from Wisconsin’s innovation community, starting with these recent headlines: —Madison-based Exact Sciences (NASDAQ: [[ticker:EXAS]]) said that Cologuard, the company’s stool-based DNA test for colorectal cancer, is now included in a set of quality measures for colorectal cancer screening. The group of quality measures, known as the Healthcare Effectiveness Data … Continue reading “Exact Sciences, Rockwell, & Gender Gaps: This Week’s WI Watchlist”
With Epic Ties, HealthX Raises $20M First Fund, Reveals Investments
[Corrected 3/16/18 1:34 p.m. See below.] HealthX Ventures, a Madison, WI-based group that invests in early-stage healthcare technology companies, says that it has closed a $20 million fund. About 75 investors participated, says Dan Blake, a partner at the fund. HealthX, which says it seeks to put money into startups that are getting their “first rounds … Continue reading “With Epic Ties, HealthX Raises $20M First Fund, Reveals Investments”
Cellular Dynamics Spinoff Aims to Develop Vision-Restoring Therapies
Cellular Dynamics International is following a split with a spinoff. The Madison, WI-based biotech, which earlier this month announced it divided the company into two business units, is now saying it has launched a new venture that will focus on developing medicines to treat diseases of the retina. The new company, known as Opsis Therapeutics, … Continue reading “Cellular Dynamics Spinoff Aims to Develop Vision-Restoring Therapies”
Bio Roundup: CAR-T & Migraine Races, Intra-Cellular, Rockefeller & More
The presidential race captivated millions of TV viewers this week as the first debate took place in Hofstra. But biotech watchers had other races on their mind. Who will be first to market with a new type of cancer treatment known as CAR-T? Who will break free of the pack of companies developing drugs meant … Continue reading “Bio Roundup: CAR-T & Migraine Races, Intra-Cellular, Rockefeller & More”
BDS Mobile Obtains $685,000 New Financing Round
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=6c069fed-52bb-4cd0-982a-d4adedcfca48 Date 9/30/2016 Company Name BDS Mobile Mailing Address 411 W. Main Street Madison, WI 53703 USA Company Description BDS Mobile’s vision is to enrich everyday digital dialogue, worldwide. Our mission is to be the innovative tech leader that develops and drives cutting edge mobile platforms, interfaces, and applications by way of … Continue reading “BDS Mobile Obtains $685,000 New Financing Round”
Arrowhead Teams Up with Amgen to Develop Cardiovascular Drugs
Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals and Amgen will together work to develop and commercialize two drugs designed to treat cardiovascular disease, the companies said Thursday. Under the terms of the agreements, Amgen will pay Arrowhead a combined $56.5 million—$35 million in cash, and the remainder as an equity investment for stock in Arrowhead. Arrowhead could reap an additional … Continue reading “Arrowhead Teams Up with Amgen to Develop Cardiovascular Drugs”
Tech Giants’ Partnership To Explore Ethics, Societal Impacts of AI
With public interest in artificial intelligence technologies on the rise, five of the world’s largest corporations—vying against each other in so many spheres—are banding together to support research on the ethical and societal issues raised by machines with increasingly human-like capabilities. The Partnership on AI, formally unveiled Wednesday, includes Amazon, Microsoft, Facebook, IBM, Google and … Continue reading “Tech Giants’ Partnership To Explore Ethics, Societal Impacts of AI”
Gener8tor, University of Minnesota Tech Transfer Office to Team Up
Gener8tor, a startup accelerator whose programs have taken place exclusively in Wisconsin up to this point, took a key step forward in its expansion into Minnesota this week. The University of Minnesota’s technology transfer arm, known as the Office for Technology Commercialization (OTC), says it has formed a partnership with Gener8tor in an effort aimed … Continue reading “Gener8tor, University of Minnesota Tech Transfer Office to Team Up”
Bio Execs Talk Patient Advocacy, Duchenne Approval at BioForward Panel
Janet Woodcock, the top drug evaluator at the FDA, was the driving force behind the FDA’s recent decision to approve eteplirsen (Exondys 51), a drug for patients with Duchenne muscular dystrophy from Cambridge, MA-based Sarepta Therapeutics (NASDAQ: [[ticker:SRPT]]). The decision was controversial: Many FDA scientists didn’t want to approve eteplirsen. They didn’t want to lower the … Continue reading “Bio Execs Talk Patient Advocacy, Duchenne Approval at BioForward Panel”
HealthMyne Lands $2,365,750 New Financing Round
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=cb4f51a2-116f-412c-b1ba-cc0871307a86 Date 9/27/2016 Company Name HealthMyne Mailing Address 918 Deming Way Madison, WI 53717 USA Company Description HealthMyne, an oncology imaging informatics company, provides radiology workflow tools that capture quantitative data for radiomics. Website http://www.healthmyne.com Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount $2,365,750 Transaction Round Undisclosed Proceeds Purposes Proceeds purposes were not disclosed. … Continue reading “HealthMyne Lands $2,365,750 New Financing Round”
Startup Bill, Water Council, CDI, & More: This Week’s WI Watchlist
Cooler autumn temperatures appear to be here to stay. Stay warm, and stay current with these recent headlines from Wisconsin’s innovation community: —The office of U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin said she reintroduced a bill aimed at helping entrepreneurs and early-stage companies in the Badger State and around the country. Known as the Small Business Innovation Act, … Continue reading “Startup Bill, Water Council, CDI, & More: This Week’s WI Watchlist”
Debates, Tours, & Beer: New Milwaukee Startup Week Unveils Schedule
What do yoga, a happy hour office crawl, an all-day hackathon, and a 70-mile bus ride have in common? All are part of the recently released schedule for Milwaukee Startup Week. More than 20 events will take place Nov. 1-6 at various sites in southeastern Wisconsin, says Matt Cordio, a co-organizer of Milwaukee Startup Week. Cordio … Continue reading “Debates, Tours, & Beer: New Milwaukee Startup Week Unveils Schedule”
Bio Roundup: Mylan Grilled, Duchenne Kids Thrilled, Zuck-Chan & More
Another biopharma executive went before Congress to explain drug price hikes. Unlike Martin Shkreli, Mylan CEO Heather Bresch actually answered questions. Taking heat over the EpiPen scandal, she tried to stick to her script, getting testy when legislators brought up a USA Today story about her mother helping market the life-saving anti-allergy injection to schools. … Continue reading “Bio Roundup: Mylan Grilled, Duchenne Kids Thrilled, Zuck-Chan & More”
Shine Medical Technologies to Move to Janesville Later This Year
Shine Medical Technologies has for years planned to build a manufacturing facility in Janesville, WI, where it would produce a crucial medical isotope. Now the company says it will move its headquarters to that city later this year, as it prepares to make the plant a reality. Shine is currently based in Monona, WI, about … Continue reading “Shine Medical Technologies to Move to Janesville Later This Year”
Catalyze.IO Receives $6,500,000 Series B Financing
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=815979b0-73de-4c53-8228-6b564ba9230a Date 9/22/2016 Company Name Catalyze.IO Mailing Address 111 South Hamilton Street Madison, WI 53703 USA Company Description Healthcare’s trusted platform as a service. Plus industry-specific extras like a Mobile Backend as a Service and HL7 Integration. Website http://www.catalyze.io Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount $6,500,000 Transaction Round Series B Proceeds Purposes … Continue reading “Catalyze.IO Receives $6,500,000 Series B Financing”
Catalyze Raises $6.5M for Health Data Hosting and Integration Tools
Catalyze, a Madison, WI-based startup that provides cloud hosting and data integration services for healthcare organizations, says it has raised $6.5 million from investors. Lewis and Clark Ventures of St. Louis led the Series B funding round, Catalyze says in a news release. Other participants included Arthur Ventures, Baird Venture Partners, and Chicago Ventures, all of … Continue reading “Catalyze Raises $6.5M for Health Data Hosting and Integration Tools”
Announcing Xconomy’s Agtech and Food Channel
A core tenet of Xconomy—and the reason behind our broad coverage across information technology, life sciences, energy, and more—is that the most interesting and important innovations often arise from the intersection of different disciplines. One of the most important intersections today is between agriculture, the life sciences, and information technology—as evidenced by the growing field … Continue reading “Announcing Xconomy’s Agtech and Food Channel”
Pharmaceutical Price Controls Might Be Closer Than You Think
Amid the hue and cry over the Mylan EpiPen pricing debacle, Hillary Clinton unveiled her “Plan to Respond to Unjustified Price Hikes for Long-Available Drugs.” Clinton’s plan calls for “dedicated oversight to protect consumers.” To that end she would “convene representatives of federal agencies…to create a dedicated group charged with protecting consumers from outlier price … Continue reading “Pharmaceutical Price Controls Might Be Closer Than You Think”
Epic, Astronautics, Virent, & More: This Week’s Wisconsin Watchlist
Keep up with the latest news from Wisconsin’s innovation community with these recent headlines: —Judy Faulkner, founder and CEO of Verona-based Epic Systems, revealed to Healthcare IT News that half of her company’s operating expenses go toward research and development. That’s ahead of competing electronic health records software vendors such as Allscripts (NASDAQ: [[ticker:MDRX]]), Athenahealth … Continue reading “Epic, Astronautics, Virent, & More: This Week’s Wisconsin Watchlist”
Workforce Trends, Economy, & More: Q&A With Alexandria’s Joel Marcus
Think “innovation” and you might picture some scrappy entrepreneurs toiling away in a kitchen or garage, hoping the landlord doesn’t notice what they’re up to. But the reality is that turning science into big business often requires far more sophisticated infrastructure—and the landlord who provides that infrastructure sometimes has one of the best windows into … Continue reading “Workforce Trends, Economy, & More: Q&A With Alexandria’s Joel Marcus”
Rent College Pads Obtains $1,000,000 Seed Financing Round
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=1233dd03-fe99-4a02-bef0-bf679e8ec958 Date 9/19/2016 Company Name Rent College Pads Mailing Address 1101 N. Market Street Milwaukee, WI 53202 USA Company Description We personally add each property to the site & guarantee accurate information. Landlords of all sizes use Rent College Pads, so you can compare housing options you didn’t even know you had! … Continue reading “Rent College Pads Obtains $1,000,000 Seed Financing Round”
Lawyer Talks Industry Trends, Improving WI’s Startup Scene, & More
Joe Boucher, a Madison, WI-based attorney, has been advising early-stage businesses for more than 30 years. He is a co-founder of Neider & Boucher, and bestlawyers.com recently named him 2017 Madison-area lawyer of the year for closely held companies and family. Earlier this week, Boucher sat down with Xconomy Wisconsin to discuss some of the … Continue reading “Lawyer Talks Industry Trends, Improving WI’s Startup Scene, & More”
Rent College Pads Raises $1M for Tools to Help Students Find Housing
Milwaukee-based Rent College Pads announced it has raised $1 million from investors to fuel the growth of its technology, which according to the startup’s website is active at 46 colleges and universities across 20 states. Rent College Pads, which focuses on helping users find off-campus housing, says that more than 2 million students have found a … Continue reading “Rent College Pads Raises $1M for Tools to Help Students Find Housing”
Biotech Roundup: CRISPR’s 3rd IPO, Gender Diversity, Buyouts & More
Across the nation, and even looking back into the past, health was in the headlines this week. Our presidential candidates were either recovering from pneumonia or talking up their health records. New documents came to light that showed the sugar industry paid for studies downplaying the ties between sugar and heart disease. And the drug-price … Continue reading “Biotech Roundup: CRISPR’s 3rd IPO, Gender Diversity, Buyouts & More”
What Startups Can Do About Cyber Attacks
A cybersecurity report by Ponemon Institute, in association with Keeper Security, found that in the 12 months leading up to June 2016, 55 percent of small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) experienced a cyber attack, while 50 percent encountered data breaches involving customer and employee information. These statistics belie the common notion that cybercriminals attack only … Continue reading “What Startups Can Do About Cyber Attacks”
How to Teach Computational Thinking
Computational thinking is going to be a defining feature of the future—and it’s an incredibly important thing to be teaching to kids today. There’s always lots of discussion (and concern) about how to teach traditional mathematical thinking to kids. But looking to the future, this pales in comparison to the importance of teaching computational thinking. … Continue reading “How to Teach Computational Thinking”
UW-Madison Awarded $12M NCI Grant to Study Cellectar Cancer Drug
The National Cancer Institute has awarded a $12 million grant to the University of Wisconsin-Madison that the school will use to study Cellectar Biosciences’ leading drug candidate, the company said Monday. Cellectar (NASDAQ: [[ticker:CLRB]]), which is also located in Madison, said in a news release that the university will study CLR 131, a therapeutic Cellectar … Continue reading “UW-Madison Awarded $12M NCI Grant to Study Cellectar Cancer Drug”
HealthMyne Brings On New CEO, Eyes 2017 For Commercial Launch
HealthMyne, a healthcare IT startup based in Madison, WI, has named Arvind Subramanian as its new chief executive, the company said Monday. Subramanian’s first day at HealthMyne was Aug. 1, he said in a phone interview. Subramanian replaces Praveen Sinha, who co-founded HealthMyne in 2013. Sinha will now be vice president of business development, the … Continue reading “HealthMyne Brings On New CEO, Eyes 2017 For Commercial Launch”
Arrowhead, Accuray, & SKY Imaging: This Week’s Wisconsin Watchlist
Catch up on the latest happenings in Wisconsin’s innovation community: —Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: [[ticker:ARWR]]) said on Wednesday that it had dosed the first patient in the next stage of a “Phase 1/2 study” of a drug aimed at treating chronic hepatitis B virus infection. The company—which is based in Pasadena, CA, but houses its research … Continue reading “Arrowhead, Accuray, & SKY Imaging: This Week’s Wisconsin Watchlist”
How We Won $50,000 in SBA Growth Accelerator Fund Contest
Recently, the student accelerator program mystartupXX, a joint program of UC San Diego’s Rady School of Management and the Jacobs School of Engineering, won a $50,000 grant from the U.S. Small Business Administration as a Growth Accelerator Fund Competition winner. We were one of 68 winners announced Aug. 31 in the nationwide contest. This was … Continue reading “How We Won $50,000 in SBA Growth Accelerator Fund Contest”
Spurred by New Law, ConsortiEX Snags $2.5M for Supply Chain Software
In 2012, a fungal meningitis outbreak at the New England Compounding Center, a pharmacy in Framingham, MA, ultimately claimed the lives of 64 patients. The cause of their deaths is believed to be contaminated steroid injections they received from the pharmacy, according to reporting by Newsweek and other publications. The following year, President Barack Obama … Continue reading “Spurred by New Law, ConsortiEX Snags $2.5M for Supply Chain Software”
Bio Roundup: Cancer Wishes and Shopping Lists, Allergan Pricing & More
[Corrected, 9/12/16, 4:28 p.m. See below.] What do cancer experts want? The moon, perhaps. As part of the Obama administration’s “cancer moonshot” program, a panel of scientists this week presented a set of broad, ambitious recommendations to speed up the pace of cancer research, treatment, and prevention. The scientific goals, writ large, included nationwide data … Continue reading “Bio Roundup: Cancer Wishes and Shopping Lists, Allergan Pricing & More”