Foxconn Technology Group continues to make its presence felt in the Wisconsin business community. The latest move: The Taiwanese contract manufacturer is forming a $100 million early-stage venture capital fund with three of the Badger State’s leading companies and organizations. Advocate Aurora Health, Northwestern Mutual, Johnson Controls, and Foxconn will each contribute $25 million to … Continue reading “Foxconn Creates $100M Venture Fund With Three Top WI Businesses”
Bristol Promotes Christopher Boerner to Chief Commercial Officer
[Corrected 8/29/18, 4:41 pm. See below.] Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE: [[ticker:BMY]]) has promoted Christopher Boerner to chief commercial officer. Boerner, who joined the Princeton, NJ-based pharmaceutical giant in 2015, was previously head of Bristol’s U.S. commercial organization and then its head of international markets. His experience also includes positions at Seattle Genetics (NASDAQ: [[ticker:SGEN]]), Dendreon, and … Continue reading “Bristol Promotes Christopher Boerner to Chief Commercial Officer”
With $500M Toyota Deal, Uber Sheds Go-It-Alone Driverless Car Goal
When an autonomous Uber car being tested in Arizona collided with a pedestrian last March, it resulted in the first known fatality caused by a driverless vehicle. The accident had a jarring effect on the entire mobility industry, but Toyota was one of the few players that took direct action in the wake of the … Continue reading “With $500M Toyota Deal, Uber Sheds Go-It-Alone Driverless Car Goal”
CPRIT Grants, TMC & Baird, Shipt & Drive.ai Expand, & More TX Tech
Let’s get caught up with the latest innovation news in Texas. —Forbius, an Austin biotech company (also known as Formation Biologics) has been awarded an $18.75 million grant from the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas. The funds will be used to support operations and Phase 2a development of AVID100, the company’s anti-EGFR antibody-drug conjugate … Continue reading “CPRIT Grants, TMC & Baird, Shipt & Drive.ai Expand, & More TX Tech”
Editas Chief Medical Officer Gerald Cox to Depart at End of Year
Gerald Cox, chief medical officer of Editas Medicine (NASDAQ: [[ticker:EDIT]]), will step down at the end of 2018, the gene editing company announced Monday, after the markets closed. Cambridge, MA-based Editas gave no reason for Cox’s departure, but said that a search for his successor is underway. Cox joined Editas in 2016, a few months … Continue reading “Editas Chief Medical Officer Gerald Cox to Depart at End of Year”
Former Armo Bio Exec Leveque Joins Synthorx as Chief Medical Officer
Synthorx has appointed Joseph Leveque to serve as chief medical officer of the San Diego biotech. Leveque most recently worked at Redwood City, CA-based cancer drug developer Armo Biosciences, which was acquired by Eli Lilly (NYSE: [[ticker:LLY]]) for $1.6 billion earlier this year. Leveque’s experience also includes senior roles at EMD Serono, Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE: … Continue reading “Former Armo Bio Exec Leveque Joins Synthorx as Chief Medical Officer”
SoftBank Taps Affectiva to Boost Pepper Robot’s Emotional IQ
Teaching robots to recognize human emotions and react appropriately is one of the grandest ambitions in robotics. Companies have made progress on this front in recent years, thanks in part to advances in machine learning, computer vision, speech recognition, and related technologies. But there is a long way to go. Now, one of the big … Continue reading “SoftBank Taps Affectiva to Boost Pepper Robot’s Emotional IQ”
Puls Snags $50M to Grow On-Call Repair Service for Smartphones, IoT
Puls Technologies, whose on-demand technicians repair broken smartphones and install connected home devices, announced today it has raised $50 million to expand its reach as a unified source of device maintenance and consumer support. San Francisco-based Puls, founded in 2015, offers to dispatch technicians quickly to a customer’s home or office to replace malfunctioning parts, … Continue reading “Puls Snags $50M to Grow On-Call Repair Service for Smartphones, IoT”
SupplyKick Helps Brands Use Amazon’s Platform for Sales, Marketing
Amazon, the retail giant with tentacles into a number of other verticals, has changed life—or shopping, at least—as we know it. The Seattle-based company has also spawned new industries and consultancies that revolve around successfully maximizing the functionality of Amazon’s various platforms. Indianapolis-based SupplyKick is one such company helping retail brands to better understand and … Continue reading “SupplyKick Helps Brands Use Amazon’s Platform for Sales, Marketing”
Tetraphase Pharma’s Antibiotic Wins FDA Approval for Gut Infections
A Tetraphase Pharmaceuticals antibiotic has earned FDA approval, adding a new treatment to the effort to address drug-resistant infections. The FDA decision for the Tetraphase (NASDAQ: [[ticker:TTPH]]) drug, eravacycline (Xerava), covers complicated intra-abdominal infections (cIAI) in adults. It’s the first drug approval for the Watertown, MA-based drug developer, and shares of the company rose 5.5 … Continue reading “Tetraphase Pharma’s Antibiotic Wins FDA Approval for Gut Infections”
FDA Gives Thumbs-Down to Rare Disease Drug from Ionis, Akcea
The FDA has rejected the rare-disease drug volanesorsen (Waylivra), which is being developed by Ionis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: [[ticker:IONS]]) and its subsidiary Akcea Therapeutics (NASDAQ: [[ticker:AKCA]]). Ionis, based in San Diego, and Akcea, in Cambridge, MA, had high hopes for approval after a committee of outside experts in May recommended the drug by a 12-8 vote. … Continue reading “FDA Gives Thumbs-Down to Rare Disease Drug from Ionis, Akcea”
Y-mAbs Plans IPO to Advance Two Pediatric Cancer Drugs to the FDA
Neuroblastoma, a rare pediatric cancer, has no FDA-approved treatments for patients who relapse after the first line of therapies. Y-mAbs Therapeutics has developed two experimental antibody drugs for the disease and it is lining now lining up an IPO to as it readies both therapies for submission to the FDA for approval. Y-mAbs set a … Continue reading “Y-mAbs Plans IPO to Advance Two Pediatric Cancer Drugs to the FDA”
UW-Madison to Upgrade Engineering Campus With $100M Foxconn Gift
Foxconn, a leading Taiwanese contract manufacturer constructing a huge electronic display assembly plant in Southeastern Wisconsin, announced a $100 million gift to the state’s flagship public university Monday. The company’s gift to the University of Wisconsin-Madison will support research and development of new technologies statewide, Foxconn said. The nine-figure gift from Foxconn is one of … Continue reading “UW-Madison to Upgrade Engineering Campus With $100M Foxconn Gift”
Eyeing Approval, Pfizer Touts Tafamidis Study, but Details Lacking
[Updated, 8/28/18, 1:30pm ET. See end of story.] Drug giant Pfizer (NYSE: [[ticker:PFE]]) could soon join a budding U.S. competition to treat the rare disease transthyretin amyloidosis, in which a common protein goes haywire and builds up into dangerous deposits in the heart and nerves. Pfizer today presented results from a late-stage study of its … Continue reading “Eyeing Approval, Pfizer Touts Tafamidis Study, but Details Lacking”
VMware Acquiring Cloud Analytics and Management Startup CloudHealth
[Updated and corrected, 5:13 p.m. See below.] VMware has agreed to acquire CloudHealth Technologies, a Boston-based company that VMware wants for its service that lets businesses analyze and manage the cost, usage, security, and performance of private and public cloud computing options. Palo Alto, CA-based VMware (NYSE: [[ticker:VMW]]) didn’t disclose the terms of the deal. A … Continue reading “VMware Acquiring Cloud Analytics and Management Startup CloudHealth”
San Antonio’s Spinal Stabilization Technologies Snags $11M Funding
San Antonio—Spinal Stabilization Technologies, a company developing a medical device for degenerating spinal cord discs, has added almost $11.2 million in new financing, according to a securities filing. Founded in 2010, San Antonio-based SST is developing a lumbar implant that can replace the nucleus of a deteriorating spinal disc. People’s discs deteriorate as they age, … Continue reading “San Antonio’s Spinal Stabilization Technologies Snags $11M Funding”
New Houston Biotech Magnolia Tejas Plans Trials with $20M CPRIT Grant
Houston—Magnolia Tejas, a new biotech company formed to develop drugs to treat neurological side effects from chemotherapy, has received a grant of nearly $20 million from the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas. Magnolia Tejas is a wholly owned subsidiary of Magnolia Neurosciences, which launched earlier this month with $31 million from investors to … Continue reading “New Houston Biotech Magnolia Tejas Plans Trials with $20M CPRIT Grant”
After iRobot Split, Endeavor Rides Growth in Military Robot Spending
[Corrected 8/27/18, 10:45 am. See below.] United we stand, divided we fall. But sometimes, the opposite is true. That’s the way things seem to be playing out for iRobot (NASDAQ: [[ticker:IRBT]]) and Endeavor Robotics, iRobot’s former defense and security business, which was carved out and sold to private equity firm Arlington Capital Partners two years … Continue reading “After iRobot Split, Endeavor Rides Growth in Military Robot Spending”
Beam, Celsius & Arrakis at Boston’s Life Science Disruptors Oct. 17
For the sixth year in a row, Xconomy will hold our fall Boston life sciences event, “Boston’s Life Science Disruptors”, on Wednesday October 17 at MIT’s Koch Institute in Kendall Square. Join us for this unique event featuring candid stories from some of New England’s most radical biotech company leaders, founders, and VC backers who … Continue reading “Beam, Celsius & Arrakis at Boston’s Life Science Disruptors Oct. 17”
Grand Angels Kicks Off Third Fund Targeting $25M to Seed Startups
Grand Angels, the West Michigan angel investing collective, is raising a third venture fund, called Grand Angels Venture Fund III. Paul D’Amato, a member of the group and the manager of GA Fund III, says the goal is to raise $25 million. As in previous Grand Angels funds, it will focus on advancing startups working … Continue reading “Grand Angels Kicks Off Third Fund Targeting $25M to Seed Startups”
Foxconn, Doyenne, Socialeads & More: This Week’s WI Watchlist
Madison, WI, and suburbs west of the city have received record rainfall this week, and more storms appear to be headed for the capital city this weekend. Those forecasts have created fears of further flooding and road closures downtown, which sits on an isthmus between two lakes. Your correspondent retreated to his home office after … Continue reading “Foxconn, Doyenne, Socialeads & More: This Week’s WI Watchlist”
Get Physical: Houston’s Kanthaka Offers Personal Trainers in an Hour
Houston—The excuses can come easy when it comes to exercising regularly. Kanthaka founder and CEO Sylvie Kampshoff wants to eliminate one of the most common: people can’t commit to a schedule. Kanthaka is an Uber-style service for finding personal trainers: users can book a session (nearly) on-demand, giving just one hour of notice. The app … Continue reading “Get Physical: Houston’s Kanthaka Offers Personal Trainers in an Hour”
AbbVie’s Susie Jun Joins Allogene as Chief Development Officer
Allogene Therapeutics has appointed Susie Jun to serve as chief development officer. Jun comes to the cancer immunotherapy developer from AbbVie (NYSE: [[ticker:ABBV]]), where she was vice president and head of development for the company’s Stemcentrx subsidiary. Her experience also includes posts at Gilead Sciences (NASDAQ: [[ticker:GILD]]) and Amgen (NASDAQ: [[ticker:AMGN]]). South San Francisco, CA-based … Continue reading “AbbVie’s Susie Jun Joins Allogene as Chief Development Officer”
Duke Spinout Evecxia Appoints John Kaiser CEO
John Kaiser has been appointed CEO of Research Triangle Park, NC-based Evecxia Therapeutics. Kaiser, who has been working with the company since March, was most recently interim CEO of Baltimore-based Cerecor (NASDAQ: [[ticker:CERC]]). His experience also includes positions at Denysias Bioscience, Acadia Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: [[ticker:ACAD]]), and Eli Lilly (NYSE: [[ticker:LLY]]). Evecxia, a Duke University spinout, … Continue reading “Duke Spinout Evecxia Appoints John Kaiser CEO”
Bio Roundup: EpiPen Shortage, Bluebird’s Bet, Biotech IPOs & More
It’s back-to-school season and that means it’s time to load up on school supplies. For many students and schools, one crucial item is in high demand but hard to come by: the EpiPen. Some schools stock the epinephrine autoinjectors so they can respond quickly to a student’s allergic reaction to food. Though the autoinjectors are … Continue reading “Bio Roundup: EpiPen Shortage, Bluebird’s Bet, Biotech IPOs & More”
Meet the Startups Participating in Techstars Mobility’s Class of 2018
Detroit’s Techstars Mobility accelerator has announced its new cohort of startups working to advance technologies related to the movement of people and goods. Eleven companies are participating in the program this year, and, in a Medium post, program director Ted Serbinski said all of them have “diverse founding teams in regards to gender, ethnicity, or … Continue reading “Meet the Startups Participating in Techstars Mobility’s Class of 2018”
Eventbrite Targets $200M IPO as Tech, Biotech Markets Remain Hot
Event tech service Eventbrite is hoping to raise $200 million in an initial public offering during what has already been a busy year for IPOs. San Francisco-based Eventbrite lets users list and sell tickets to any type of event, from fundraisers to music festivals—for a fee on each ticket. The company had $201.6 million in … Continue reading “Eventbrite Targets $200M IPO as Tech, Biotech Markets Remain Hot”
FDA Approves Kala Pharmaceuticals Drug for Post-Surgery Eye Pain
Kala Pharmaceuticals has won FDA approval for a drug developed to treat pain and inflammation following eye surgery. While the approval is new, the drug, loteprednol etabonate (Inveltys), is not. Kala’s drug is a new formulation of a Bausch Health (NYSE: [[ticker:BHC]]) topical steroid that is approved to treat pain and inflammation after eye surgeries. … Continue reading “FDA Approves Kala Pharmaceuticals Drug for Post-Surgery Eye Pain”
Bluebird Bio Turns to Gritstone’s A.I. to Find TCR Cancer Targets
Bluebird Bio is betting that artificial intelligence technology from Gritstone Oncology can find new targets for cancer drugs, and the companies have struck a partnership to develop multiple cell therapies. Cambridge, MA-based Bluebird (NASDAQ: [[ticker:BLUE]]) develops gene and cell therapies. In cancer, the company focuses on a type of cell therapy called T-cell receptor therapy … Continue reading “Bluebird Bio Turns to Gritstone’s A.I. to Find TCR Cancer Targets”
Google, Dell EMC, Esther Dyson Join XCON 2018 Lineup
While the weather’s on the cool side, get ready for November. We at Xconomy are cooking up a special treat in Boston this fall: a three-day conference on technology and transformation called XCON 2018. It’s happening November 4, 5, and 6 at three different venues: Café ArtScience, the Institute of Contemporary Art, and Google’s Kendall … Continue reading “Google, Dell EMC, Esther Dyson Join XCON 2018 Lineup”
San Antonio’s Brokerage Engine Plans Funding Round After First Sales
San Antonio—Brokerage Engine, a tech company building software that helps real estate brokerages manage operations, says it should soon close on its first round of funding since its launch a year ago. The founders of the software-as-a-service businesses aren’t revealing yet who the investors are or how much in funding they will raise, but say … Continue reading “San Antonio’s Brokerage Engine Plans Funding Round After First Sales”
Vestigo Raises $58.9M Debut Fintech Fund as Early-Stage Deals Drop
Vestigo Ventures, a Boston-area venture firm that backs early-stage financial technology companies, said Thursday it has raised $58.9 million for its debut investment fund. That’s a small amount, but it’s still likely welcome news for young fintech startups. Global venture capital investments in the sector reached a record $16.6 billion last year, but the number … Continue reading “Vestigo Raises $58.9M Debut Fintech Fund as Early-Stage Deals Drop”
MIT’s Susan Hockfield Talks Impact of Merging Biology and Engineering
When Susan Hockfield (pictured) became president of MIT in 2004, she soon made her mark as the first life scientist to lead the university. She championed the convergence of biology, engineering, and physical sciences research to bring about the next breakthroughs not just in medicine, but also in energy and other areas. During her tenure … Continue reading “MIT’s Susan Hockfield Talks Impact of Merging Biology and Engineering”
Gener8tor Creates Los Angeles Accelerator for Music Tech Startups
Gener8tor has its sights set on Hollywood. The organization, which since 2012 has held training and mentorship programs for entrepreneurs in its home state of Wisconsin and other parts of the Midwest, said Wednesday that it has teamed up with Capitol Music Group to launch a new music technology accelerator program in Los Angeles. The … Continue reading “Gener8tor Creates Los Angeles Accelerator for Music Tech Startups”
After Launching Women’s Mentor Network, Lisa Suennen Sets Sail from GE
Lisa Suennen, a high-profile life-sciences investor, is leaving a top post at GE Ventures after two years. Based in the San Francisco Bay Area, Suennen is widely known for her investment work as well as her writing—her blog is called “Venture Valkyrie“—and podcasting about people, companies, and industry trends, notably the gender equity gap among … Continue reading “After Launching Women’s Mentor Network, Lisa Suennen Sets Sail from GE”
Exact Sciences Shares Rise After Company Unveils Pfizer Partnership
[Updated 8/22/18 3:22 p.m. See below.] Exact Sciences has recently been ramping up its efforts to market Cologuard, the company’s flagship diagnostic test that screens patients for colorectal cancer. Since the start of 2017, Madison, WI-based Exact has brought on recording artist Harry Connick Jr. and pro golfer Jerry Kelly as spokesmen, and announced a … Continue reading “Exact Sciences Shares Rise After Company Unveils Pfizer Partnership”
Kaleido Bio Promotes Alison Lawton to CEO, Joshua Brumm to COO
Alison Lawton, president and chief operating officer of Kaleido Biosciences, has been appointed CEO of the microbiome therapies developer. Lawton succeeds Michael Bonney, who will now serve as executive chairman of Kaleido’s board of directors. Bedford, MA-based Kaleido also promoted CFO Joshua Brumm to COO. The company says Brumm will continue to oversee finance in … Continue reading “Kaleido Bio Promotes Alison Lawton to CEO, Joshua Brumm to COO”
Novartis Exec Scherer Joins Cellectis as Deputy Chief Medical Officer
Stefan Scherer has been appointed senior vice president of clinical development and deputy chief medical officer of Cellectis (NASDAQ: [[ticker:CLLS]]). He comes to the French cell therapy developer from Novartis (NYSE: [[ticker:NVS]]), where he was head of early development, strategy, and innovation for U.S. oncology. Scherer will be based in New York. Cellectis is developing … Continue reading “Novartis Exec Scherer Joins Cellectis as Deputy Chief Medical Officer”
Sierra Oncology Acquires Gilead’s Stalled Myelofibrosis Drug
An experimental myelofibrosis drug that fell short of expectations for Gilead Sciences is getting another shot under Sierra Oncology. Vancouver, BC-based Sierra (NASDAQ: [[ticker:SRRA]]) has acquired the drug, momelotinib, from Gilead (NASDAQ: [[ticker:GILD]]), for $3 million up front. The deal adds a late-stage drug candidate to Sierra’s pipeline of early-stage cancer drugs. Meanwhile, Foster City, … Continue reading “Sierra Oncology Acquires Gilead’s Stalled Myelofibrosis Drug”
San Antonio’s Earth Class Mail Buys Digital Receipt Maker Shoeboxed
San Antonio—Earth Class Mail is acquiring Durham, NC-based Shoeboxed, which digitizes physical receipts, for an undisclosed price, the companies planned to announce this morning. Earth Class Mail, which is focused on turning traditional paper mail into digital records, is adding to its product offering by buying Shoeboxed. The 14-year-old San Antonio-based business recently made upgrades to … Continue reading “San Antonio’s Earth Class Mail Buys Digital Receipt Maker Shoeboxed”
Anchors and Diversity: Lessons From Philly at Madison’s Forward Fest
Archna Sahay was hired as the city of Philadelphia’s director of entrepreneurial investment in early 2015, after she had spent more than a decade working in investment banking. During her term, Philadelphia mayor Michael Nutter and other city employees worked to make the city a place where more entrepreneurs would want to start and grow … Continue reading “Anchors and Diversity: Lessons From Philly at Madison’s Forward Fest”
Wayne State Celebrates the Opening of $40M Ilitch School of Business
A gaggle of local officials were on hand Tuesday for a ribbon-cutting ceremony at Wayne State University’s Mike Ilitch School of Business building, located next to Little Caesars Arena on Woodward Avenue in Detroit’s Midtown neighborhood. The new facility was made possible by a $40 million donation in 2015 from Mike and Marian Ilitch, the co-founders … Continue reading “Wayne State Celebrates the Opening of $40M Ilitch School of Business”
Boston Tech Watch: Actifio, DraftKings, WaveSense, BabelBark & More
[Updated 8/23/18, 9:05 am. See below.] Time to catch up on recent news from the Boston-area tech sector: —We’ve got more details on Actifio’s recently announced $100 million funding round: nearly $59 million of that total was equity funding, according to an SEC filing. A company spokesman told Xconomy the remainder of the investment was … Continue reading “Boston Tech Watch: Actifio, DraftKings, WaveSense, BabelBark & More”
New Funds for Multicoin, Infinite.io, Prism FM, Caringo & More
There has been a flurry of funding announcements from Austin startups. Here are some notable ones: —Caringo, a startup that makes software that can provide customers the ability to manage, organize, and search extremely large amounts of data, has raised nearly $3.4 million in new funding, according to a filing with the U.S. Securities and … Continue reading “New Funds for Multicoin, Infinite.io, Prism FM, Caringo & More”
TraceLink Bags $93M, Plans A.I. & Blockchain Tools for Drug Tracking
Step one for TraceLink, a maker of software that helps track the supply chain of pharmaceuticals, was recruiting hundreds of thousands of companies and organizations to its digital platform. Now, much like the playbooks of social media companies and other tech firms, step two will be to develop “new applications on top of that infrastructure”—thereby … Continue reading “TraceLink Bags $93M, Plans A.I. & Blockchain Tools for Drug Tracking”
Aptose Bio Appoints New York Genome Center’s Carol Ashe to Board
Carol Ashe has been appointed to the Aptose Biosciences (NASDAQ: [[ticker:APTO]]) board of directors. Ashe is the chief business officer of the New York Genome Center, a nonprofit academic research institution. Ashe’s appointment was part of LifeSci Advisor’s “Board Placement Initiative,” a program developed to improve the diversity of corporate boards. The program was created … Continue reading “Aptose Bio Appoints New York Genome Center’s Carol Ashe to Board”
Former Agensys Exec David Stover Joins i2 Pharmaceuticals as CEO
David Stover has been appointed CEO of Boulder, CO-based cancer drug developer i2 Pharmaceuticals. Stover was most recently an executive at Agensys, a Santa Monica, CA, oncology subsidiary of Japanese company Astellas Pharma. Last year, Astellas announced it would shutter Agensys as part of its strategy to refine its research focus in cancer. Stover’s cancer … Continue reading “Former Agensys Exec David Stover Joins i2 Pharmaceuticals as CEO”
Facebook, NYU Pin Hope of Faster MRIs on Artificial Intelligence
The long, sometimes painful wait to complete an MRI may soon be cut down dramatically—and we might have Facebook and its artificial intelligence unit to thank for it. The social media giant announced Monday that it is working with the radiology department at New York University’s School of Medicine to potentially use artificial intelligence software … Continue reading “Facebook, NYU Pin Hope of Faster MRIs on Artificial Intelligence”
Renovia Raises $42M to Back Digital Treatment for Incontinence
Renovia, a company aiming to turn the smartphone into a tool for treating incontinence, has closed $42.3 million in financing as it proceeds with clinical trials. Boston-based Renovia said Tuesday that the new capital consists of $32.2 million in equity funding and $10 million in venture debt. The equity financing, a Series B round of … Continue reading “Renovia Raises $42M to Back Digital Treatment for Incontinence”
VelocityTX Lands $50K Grant for Work with Brazilian Entrepreneurs
San Antonio—VelocityTX, an organization established last year as a resource center for entrepreneurs and startups, and a Brazilian organization are being given a grant worth about $50,000 to support young companies in the South American country. VelocityTX and the Brazilian Institute for Quality and Productivity (IBQP) announced Monday they received the grant from the Small … Continue reading “VelocityTX Lands $50K Grant for Work with Brazilian Entrepreneurs”