Before heading home to feast on turkey and spend time with family and loved ones, check out these recent headlines from Wisconsin’s innovation community: —Madison-based Arrowhead Research (NASDAQ: [[ticker:ARWR]]) released data last week that “strongly support” the advancement of its lead hepatitis B virus (HBV) drug candidate, the company said in a press release. The … Continue reading “Arrowhead, Baird, & UW-Madison: This Week’s Wisconsin Watch List”
Category: Wisconsin
At Cellular Dynamics, The Beat Goes On Under Fujifilm Ownership
Arne Thompson, an application support manager at Cellular Dynamics International, places a culture of manufactured human cells under a microscope. He points to a large screen above his head showing a close-up view of the lab dish contents. The cells are alive, pulsating in near perfect unison at a rate of about one beat per second. … Continue reading “At Cellular Dynamics, The Beat Goes On Under Fujifilm Ownership”
From Boston to Milwaukee, Lessons in Building Water Tech Clusters
Making a region synonymous with a particular industry requires patience, good timing, money, and taking the right approach to putting those pieces together. The same goes for building the organizations tasked with nurturing said industry. Take the New England Water Innovation Network (NEWIN), for example. The nonprofit aims to connect the region’s water technology startups … Continue reading “From Boston to Milwaukee, Lessons in Building Water Tech Clusters”
Gener8tor Announces Latest Mini-Accelerator Class, Pitch Event
gBETA, a free, six-week program for “pre-seed” startups affiliated with colleges and universities in Wisconsin, unveiled its newest class Tuesday. The group draws from several industries, including biotech, wearables, and software. The class, the second in gBETA’s brief history, kicked off Oct. 17 and will culminate with a pitch event in Madison, WI, on Dec. 8. … Continue reading “Gener8tor Announces Latest Mini-Accelerator Class, Pitch Event”
Small Molecules: The Silent Majority of Pharmaceutical Pipelines
The pharmaceutical industry is constantly evolving. There always seem to be new, innovative therapeutic approaches emerging that capture our imagination and advance our ability to make a difference in the lives of patients. Take, for example, T-cell therapy for cancer, microbiome therapies, and CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing, each of which could potentially have a significant impact … Continue reading “Small Molecules: The Silent Majority of Pharmaceutical Pipelines”
Paris Rampage Rekindles Conflict Over Government-Proof Encryption
The recent terrorist attacks in Paris were executed with guns and bombs in the physical terrain of city streets and cafe terraces. But the horrific incident is reviving government calls for greater control of the cyber environment. A host of top U.S. officials including the directors of the CIA and FBI, Senator Dianne Feinstein, New … Continue reading “Paris Rampage Rekindles Conflict Over Government-Proof Encryption”
What’s On Tap? Propeller Health
Earlier this year, my colleague Jeff Engel created a series exploring Wisconsin tech companies at which employees enjoy drinking a couple beers together to wrap up the week. A few months back, Engel moved to Boston to work from Xconomy headquarters, and I joined the company as the new Wisconsin editor. I want to keep the series going, and … Continue reading “What’s On Tap? Propeller Health”
Slowing the Global Spread of Climate-Sensitive Infectious Diseases
Climate change is already suspected of causing legions of deaths every year as a result of extreme weather events: heat waves and floods; degradation of water supplies and sanitation with negative impacts on agriculture; and air pollution, which, in 2012, was responsible for 7 million deaths—one in eight deaths worldwide. But climate change is also … Continue reading “Slowing the Global Spread of Climate-Sensitive Infectious Diseases”
Epic’s Data Deal With HealthMyne, UW Health Could Help Quell Critics
Epic Systems, based in the Madison, WI, area, has been described as an “unwitting contributor” to the local healthtech startup ecosystem it helped spawn and now towers over. But that reputation could begin to shift, if a partnership unveiled Tuesday is a harbinger of things to come. HealthMyne, a Madison startup that makes analytics software … Continue reading “Epic’s Data Deal With HealthMyne, UW Health Could Help Quell Critics”
Keeping Score, Clinical Watchdogs Push Drugmakers For More Open Data
Should drug companies publicly release all data from the tests they conduct on human volunteers? A growing number of parties say yes, and last week, a group of academics unveiled a scorecard to spotlight companies that have recently kept their clinical data hidden from public view—and those that have made the data available. As with … Continue reading “Keeping Score, Clinical Watchdogs Push Drugmakers For More Open Data”
With $550K, Beekeeper Gets Buzz for Building “MailChimp for Data”
Matthew Rathbone left his job at Foursquare, the location-based social network headquartered in New York City, in 2013 after nearly three years of employment. While he didn’t miss his old job enough to return to the company, he says he did long to use some of the tools he had co-developed there. During his time at Foursquare, one … Continue reading “With $550K, Beekeeper Gets Buzz for Building “MailChimp for Data””
This Week’s Wisconsin Watch: Rockwell, Connecture, Shine, & More
Here are some of the major Wisconsin innovation news items from the past week: —Milwaukee-based Rockwell Automation (NYSE: [[ticker:ROK]]) announced it’s working with software giant Microsoft (NASDAQ: [[ticker:MSFT]]) and Cambridge, MA-based Nubisa to expand its mobile toolkit for workers in industrial settings, where there may not be reliable wireless Internet. Technology from Project Thali, a … Continue reading “This Week’s Wisconsin Watch: Rockwell, Connecture, Shine, & More”
Stealth Co Unveiling, New Speakers Added to Nov. 17 Healthcare Event
Two great new speakers—one of whom will bring a major new company out of stealth mode—have just joined the lineup for Tuesday’s Healthcare Summit 2015. If you were on the fence before, you should get off it fast. If you are interested in the future of healthcare, you will not want to miss these new elements. The summit … Continue reading “Stealth Co Unveiling, New Speakers Added to Nov. 17 Healthcare Event”
The Future of Apple & Enterprise IT: Q&A With JAMF Software Founder
Zach Halmstad was an Apple loyalist before it was cool. He founded JAMF Software in 2002 after developing enterprise tools for Mac computers as part of an IT job at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire, where he was studying music. Today, JAMF—which is headquartered in Minneapolis but has significant operations in Eau Claire—has more than … Continue reading “The Future of Apple & Enterprise IT: Q&A With JAMF Software Founder”
How Foreign-Born Workers Spark Employment and Innovation
The way critics tell it—including presidential hopefuls as varied as Bernie Sanders and Donald Trump—high-skilled foreign workers are job stealers. If these candidates have their way, living and working in the U.S. will become harder, not easier, for foreign talent. This protectionism, the theory goes, will positively impact the quantity and quality of American jobs: … Continue reading “How Foreign-Born Workers Spark Employment and Innovation”
With Roche Deal, Cellular Dynamics Wades Deeper Into Drug Discovery
Cellular Dynamics International has long touted the potential for its manufactured human stem cells to help researchers identify and formulate new drugs. It got a strong endorsement from Swiss pharma giant Roche on Tuesday with a deal worth up to $83 million that Cellular Dynamics says is its largest partnership to date. The Madison, WI-based … Continue reading “With Roche Deal, Cellular Dynamics Wades Deeper Into Drug Discovery”
VC Panel, New Fund, Pitch Contests Highlight WI Early Stage Symposium
Wisconsin has a ways to go if it wishes to be seen as a hotbed for entrepreneurship nationally. The Badger State finished dead last in the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation’s state rankings for startup activity. While there are some positive data points, such as Gener8tor being ranked the 14th-best U.S. seed accelerator last year, funds … Continue reading “VC Panel, New Fund, Pitch Contests Highlight WI Early Stage Symposium”
Beekeeper Data Obtains $550,000 New Funding Round
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=55aff80c-54e0-499a-a671-aa6efe4f55af Date 11/10/2015 Company Name Beekeeper Data Mailing Address Undisclosed Madison, WI 53705 USA Company Description Beekeeper is a Madison-based company that has developed a software platform to help companies use their data to make smarter decisions. Website http://www.beekeeperdata.com Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount $550,000 Transaction Round Undisclosed Proceeds Purposes Proceeds … Continue reading “Beekeeper Data Obtains $550,000 New Funding Round”
AI, Accelerators, & Awards: This Week’s Wisconsin Watch List
Here are some of the past week’s major headlines from Wisconsin’s tech and innovation community: —Madison-based Exact Sciences (NASDAQ: [[ticker:EXAS]]) announced it won’t move into a new headquarters in the city’s downtown, dropping its previous plans. Instead, the company will expand its presence at University Research Park on Madison’s west side. Last month, shares in … Continue reading “AI, Accelerators, & Awards: This Week’s Wisconsin Watch List”
Milestones of Innovation 11: Blackouts and the Safety of the Grid
While we party upstairs in our micro-age of whirling electrons and dancing apps, there’s some rumbling down in the basement. In a new book called Lights Out, the television journalist Ted Koppel has been reminding us to be very worried about the reliability of one of the central innovations of modernity. He’s talking about our … Continue reading “Milestones of Innovation 11: Blackouts and the Safety of the Grid”
Seven Major Cancer Centers To Pool Patients’ Gene, Health Data
Here and there, the genetic information of a cancer patient has helped a doctor find that person the right drug or steer her away from the wrong one. But the use of genetic knowledge to improve people’s health is in its infancy. That’s why seven major cancer treatment centers in North America and Europe are … Continue reading “Seven Major Cancer Centers To Pool Patients’ Gene, Health Data”
Four Strategies for Startups to Finish the Year Strong
It’s that time of the year again. While many are looking forward to the holiday season and counting down to the end of the year, businesses are engaged in the planning process for next year. No matter the size of your business, now is a great time to reflect on the past year, evaluate what … Continue reading “Four Strategies for Startups to Finish the Year Strong”
To Be or Not To Be An Equity Crowdfunding Portal?
After the pioneering crowdfunding sites Indiegogo and Kickstarter set up shop roughly seven years ago, other entrepreneurs were saying, “Why didn’t I think of that?” Those fundraising platforms quickly scaled up, offering inventors, artists, and others an online meeting place where they could appeal for contributions to get their projects off the ground. The fundraising … Continue reading “To Be or Not To Be An Equity Crowdfunding Portal?”
At Startup Showcase, Gener8tor Examines Past, Present, and Future
When it comes to placing targeted online advertisements, it’s sometimes necessary to connect the dots to identify what a user wants or needs. Justin Hartzman is co-founder and CEO of Needls, a Toronto-based startup that serves personalized ads based on the content of social media posts. He said for his company’s purposes, there are two types … Continue reading “At Startup Showcase, Gener8tor Examines Past, Present, and Future”
Quietyme Seeks to Identify Patients’ Needs Faster With CareCube
The newest product from Quietyme, a startup based in Neshkoro, WI, is a white cube with a different pattern on each of its six sides. That description may conjure up an image of dice, which of course give games an element of randomness. But Quietyme’s CareCube is designed to reduce uncertainty: patients in hospitals can use … Continue reading “Quietyme Seeks to Identify Patients’ Needs Faster With CareCube”
IDAvatars, Working With Watson, Seeks to Answer Patients’ Questions
Watson, meet Sophie. In September, IBM (NYSE: [[ticker:IBM]]) announced 100 of its development partners on its Watson supercomputer had brought a product or service to market. Among them was iDAvatars, a Mequon, WI-based startup that creates avatars like Sophie, a virtual medical assistant who becomes more familiar with a user with each interaction. Norrie Daroga, … Continue reading “IDAvatars, Working With Watson, Seeks to Answer Patients’ Questions”
Even With New Crowdfunding Rules, No Easy Path Forward For Biotechs
[Corrected 11/3/15, 1:18pm. See below.] As Xconomy reported Friday, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has finally filled in the missing pieces in the equity crowdfunding puzzle, giving private startups clearer rules about selling equity to the investor masses through Internet portals. In her opening remarks before the SEC commissioners voted 3-1 to approve nationwide … Continue reading “Even With New Crowdfunding Rules, No Easy Path Forward For Biotechs”
Looking to Spur Startups, UW’s Patent Office Partners with Gener8tor
gBETA, a free, six-week accelerator for early-stage companies affiliated with colleges and universities in Wisconsin, now has a second powerful backer. On Monday Gener8tor, the Wisconsin startup accelerator that launched gBETA earlier this year, announced a partnership with the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation (WARF), which manages intellectual property for the University of Wisconsin-Madison. American Family … Continue reading “Looking to Spur Startups, UW’s Patent Office Partners with Gener8tor”
Wisconsin Roundup: Exact Sciences, Promega, WARF, & More
Here are some of the past week’s major headlines from Wisconsin’s tech and innovation community: —The new board of directors at Fitchburg-based life sciences supplier Promega has rejected a hostile takeover attempt, the Wisconsin State Journal reported. Two shareholders—Ted Kellner, executive chairman of Milwaukee-based Fiduciary Management, and Nathan Brand, a Miami real estate developer with … Continue reading “Wisconsin Roundup: Exact Sciences, Promega, WARF, & More”
What’s Next for Storage?
The evolution of business technology is constant, but not uniform. Sometimes the changes are revolutionary, such as the word processor replacing the typewriter or the 1991 debut of the World Wide Web. Other changes are iterative, such as new versions of word processing software or Web browsers. After decades of only experiencing iterative changes, the … Continue reading “What’s Next for Storage?”
At Long Last, SEC Provides Final Equity Crowdfunding Rules
[Corrected 11/2/15, 12:30 pm. See below.] Mom and Pop, you can now buy shares in the bakery down the street, or in your son’s girlfriend’s sister’s tech startup. That, in effect, was the message the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission sent today, voting to give retail investors the right to buy shares in tiny private … Continue reading “At Long Last, SEC Provides Final Equity Crowdfunding Rules”
Greentown Labs Grows, Wants to Make Somerville a Global Cleantech Hub
In recent years, Boston’s neighbor to the northwest, Somerville, MA, has become increasingly known for its influx of young professionals, artists, and hipsters. If Greentown Labs has its way, the city will become synonymous with cleantech, too. Greentown, the Somerville incubator for cleantech startups and research and development teams from large companies, yesterday announced an … Continue reading “Greentown Labs Grows, Wants to Make Somerville a Global Cleantech Hub”
TAI Diagnostics Hires CEO, Nabs $8.3M to Push Post-Transplant Test
Five months removed from raising $6 million from investors, TAI Diagnostics has upped the ante. Last week the Milwaukee-area startup, which is seeking to commercialize a non-invasive test to monitor the health of heart transplant recipients, said the value of its Series A round has climbed to $8.3 million. The company also said it hired a CEO: Frank … Continue reading “TAI Diagnostics Hires CEO, Nabs $8.3M to Push Post-Transplant Test”
TAI Diagnostics Receives $8,200,000 Series A Financing
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=f9b96b0f-bf3c-4972-b11f-527bfe4fbb72 Date 10/27/2015 Company Name TAI Diagnostics Mailing Address 1225 Discovery Pkwy Wauwatosa, WI 53226 USA Company Description TAI Diagnostics, Inc. operates in the biotechnology sector. The company was founded in 2013 and is based in Wauwatosa, Wisconsin. Website Undisclosed Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount $8,200,000 Transaction Round Series A Proceeds … Continue reading “TAI Diagnostics Receives $8,200,000 Series A Financing”
Wisconsin Roundup: TAI Diagnostics, WhyHigh, DevCodeCamp & More
As the leaves change colors and kids prepare to trick-or-treat, the Badger State’s tech and innovation community has been staying busy. Here are some of the past week’s notable happenings: —TAI Diagnostics, a company started by Medical College of Wisconsin researchers that’s aiming to develop a blood-based test to determine if heart transplant recipients are properly … Continue reading “Wisconsin Roundup: TAI Diagnostics, WhyHigh, DevCodeCamp & More”
McGuire, Bosley, Watson, & More at Our Health Summit—Register Today
We have just over three weeks to go before our third annual Healthcare Summit here in Boston. And if you act quickly, you can take advantage of our Procrastinator’s Special and save $100 off regular registration…if you don’t put it off, that is. The agenda is live—and you can see for yourself the fantastic afternoon … Continue reading “McGuire, Bosley, Watson, & More at Our Health Summit—Register Today”
Phoenix Nuclear Labs Looks to Diversify in Defense, Energy
In the race to start domestic production of molybdenum-99, a crucial medical radioisotope used in diagnostic imaging, Shine Medical Technologies is betting big on neutron-generating accelerator technology developed by Phoenix Nuclear Labs. Yet Phoenix, a 10-year-old company, is about more than isotopes. It’s also working on applications in military imaging and solar-cell production. Greg Piefer, … Continue reading “Phoenix Nuclear Labs Looks to Diversify in Defense, Energy”
Wisconsin Beertech: Savvo Adding Features to BeerMapper App
Not all cool ideas make good businesses. And sometimes an intriguing technology might have business potential, but the creators aren’t interested in commercializing it. The latter situation is the case with BeerMapper, the subject of the fourth installment in our ongoing Wisconsin beertech series. The app was created as a side project by former University … Continue reading “Wisconsin Beertech: Savvo Adding Features to BeerMapper App”
NorthStar Gets $11.8M to Support Radioisotope Production Development
NorthStar Medical Radioisotopes has received an $11.8 million grant from the National Nuclear Security Administration, part of the U.S. Department of Energy, the company announced Thursday. The startup, based in Madison, WI, said it will use the funding to continue its march toward commercial production of molybdenum-99, the material that decays into technetium-99m, the most … Continue reading “NorthStar Gets $11.8M to Support Radioisotope Production Development”
Redox Obtains $3,500,000 Series A Funding
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=a57c9477-e2bd-4ddc-8a60-cd206ad08589 Date 10/21/2015 Company Name Redox Mailing Address 111 N Fairchild St. Madison, WI 53703 USA Company Description The Redox Gallery is the largest ecosystem of enterprise health tech applications. Health systems plugged into Redox can light up these apps with little integration effort. Website http://www.redoxengine.com Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount … Continue reading “Redox Obtains $3,500,000 Series A Funding”
Redox Nabs East Coast Money to Develop Plug-and-play Healthcare API
Redox, a Madison, WI-based healthtech startup whose software helps other developers integrate with patient record-keeping systems used at hospitals and clinics, has raised $3.5 million in a Series A funding round from East Coast and local investors, the company announced Tuesday. The new financing brings the total amount Redox has raised to about $4 million. … Continue reading “Redox Nabs East Coast Money to Develop Plug-and-play Healthcare API”
What’s Your DNA Worth? The Scramble To Cash In On the Genome
The consumer genome. You’ll hear that phrase enough the next couple years that it will gain both the weight and lightness of inevitability. It will feel inevitable because, as we’ve been hearing for years now, DNA is just another long string of crunchable, malleable, transportable code, so it’s just the next destination for the digital … Continue reading “What’s Your DNA Worth? The Scramble To Cash In On the Genome”
Wisconsin Roundup: Promega, Protein Foundry, Orbitec, & More
Here are some of the past week’s major headlines from Wisconsin’s tech and innovation community: —Representatives of an investment bank told Promega shareholders that the offer from activist shareholders to purchase the Madison-area biotech, first reported in August, is lower than similar industry transactions, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported. The $625-a-share bid is about 12 … Continue reading “Wisconsin Roundup: Promega, Protein Foundry, Orbitec, & More”
As SEC Mulls Equity Crowdfunding, CA Entrepreneurs Test Other Options
California is one of the dominant U.S. producers of fruits, nuts, vegetables—and tech startups. In the Silicon Valley, the startups sprouting up each season are nurtured by a host of accelerators and incubators as well as VCs and angel investors providing seed funding. That still leaves some startups hungry for cash, but California is not … Continue reading “As SEC Mulls Equity Crowdfunding, CA Entrepreneurs Test Other Options”
Discovery Over Dogma at Today’s Innovative University
There’s a rich and often controversial conversation going on right now about the role that colleges and universities should play in preparing students—and our society—for the future. One of the most provocative voices in this discussion belongs to David Brooks, the always-thoughtful and always sensitive columnist for The New York Times. Recently, Brooks advanced the … Continue reading “Discovery Over Dogma at Today’s Innovative University”
Apple Ordered to Pay $234M in UW-Madison Patent Infringement Case
Apple has been ordered to pay $234.2 million in damages for infringing on a patent held by the foundation that manages intellectual property for the University of Wisconsin-Madison, Reuters reported Friday. The amount the jury settled on is less than the $400 million the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation (WARF) was seeking. The verdict was returned … Continue reading “Apple Ordered to Pay $234M in UW-Madison Patent Infringement Case”
Marquette’s New Seed Fund Underscores Entrepreneurship Push
Only time will tell if Mike Lovell can help turn Marquette University into an engine for entrepreneurship, but he certainly hasn’t been resting on his laurels. When Lovell was introduced as Marquette’s new president in September 2014, he unveiled a $5 million “Strategic Innovation Fund” to invest in entrepreneurial initiatives on campus. The announcement signaled … Continue reading “Marquette’s New Seed Fund Underscores Entrepreneurship Push”
Retaking Control of the Hotel Digital Experience
The digital entertainment landscape is constantly changing and the rapid adoption of mobile devices coupled with cloud-based platforms has revolutionized how people consume TV. This has led to significant challenges, particularly in the hospitality industry where companies are struggling to adapt to the changing demands of their consumers. But with change comes opportunity. The ability … Continue reading “Retaking Control of the Hotel Digital Experience”
Wisconsin Beertech: SpotHopper Adds Marketing Biz to Suck in Bar Data
Here’s an interesting case study of how a consumer-app startup is going about attracting users while also picking up customers in the food and beverage industry. Next up in our series on Wisconsin beertech companies: SpotHopper. The Milwaukee-based startup pitches its mobile app as a sort of Pandora for bar hoppers. Answer a few questions … Continue reading “Wisconsin Beertech: SpotHopper Adds Marketing Biz to Suck in Bar Data”
Q3 Venture Funding Surges Near Record Levels, and Top 10 Deals
Buoyed by some giant deals, venture capital continues to flow at near-record levels in 2015, according to just-released data from two nationwide surveys that track quarterly VC activity. While the $16.3 billion that venture firms put into 1,070 deals in the third quarter was down a notch from the previous quarter, according to the MoneyTree … Continue reading “Q3 Venture Funding Surges Near Record Levels, and Top 10 Deals”