U2V launches €60M fund to focus on university deep tech
Europe produces world-class scientific research from its top universities, yet struggles to convert breakthroughs into global companies, leaving many innovations trapped in labs. U2V, short for University2Ventures, addresses this through its newly closed €60 million Fund I, which targets pre-seed and seed-stage deeptech spin-offs in AI, novel computing, industrial tech, and cleantech. The Berlin-based firm […]
MassVentures Launches New Center to Support Academic Inventors and Entrepreneurs
Boston — Today, MassVentures announced the launch of the rebranded Massachusetts Academic Spinouts Center (MASC), formerly known as the Mass Tech Transfer Center, to accelerate academic spinout company formation and success. MASC will engage with the entrepreneurial ecosystem and Massachusetts’ world-class academic institutions and research labs to help inventors, researchers, and entrepreneurs to bring their innovations to market. […]
GAP Insights: University of Pennsylvania, BioNTech, and OUP Launch $50 Million Life Sciences Venture Fund
According to reporting sourced from Business Wire, the University of Pennsylvania has joined with BioNTech and Osage University Partners to launch a $50 million life sciences venture fund aimed at accelerating early-stage companies emerging from university research. The fund will focus on startups developing therapeutics, diagnostics, research tools, and AI-driven drug discovery platforms. The fund […]
GAP Impact: European Universities / 76 Spinouts Reach Unicorn or Centaur Status
According to a recent analysis reported by TechCrunch, 76 European deep tech university spinouts have reached unicorn or centaur valuation status, underscoring the growing commercial strength of research-derived companies across Europe. These companies span sectors such as AI, life sciences, advanced materials, energy, and quantum technologies, areas typically associated with longer development timelines and higher […]
WPI gets $3M gift for innovation and commercialization
WORCESTER—Worcester Polytechnic Institute has received a $3 million gift from alumnus Paul Covec ’64 to support innovation, entrepreneurship and commercialization efforts led by faculty and students, the university announced. The gift establishes the Paul A. Covec ’64 Innovation and Commercialization Fund, an endowed resource designed to help promising ideas move from concept to marketplace. The […]
NCInnovation announces funding for more university research to industry projects
RALEIGH — NCInnovation, the university research accelerator nonprofit, has announced the approval of $10 million in funding for 13 projects spanning 11 schools in the UNC System. “NCInnovation’s December 2025 slate represents some of the strongest university-to-industry opportunities emerging anywhere in the country,” said Michelle Bolas, the group’s acting president and CEO, in a press […]
GAP Insights: From Hospital Lab to Startup Incubator: UNMC Launches The Furnace
The University of Nebraska Medical Center, through UNeMed, has launched The Furnace, a new startup incubator aimed at accelerating early-stage companies rooted in university and hospital-based research. The incubator provides startups with space, mentorship, and structured commercialization support, strengthening the pathway from discovery to market. The Furnace reflects a broader shift in how academic medical […]
Cambridge NeuroWorks drives UK neurotech forward with launch of nationwide Blue Sky Proof-of-Concept Fund
The Blue Sky Proof-of-Concept (PoC) Fund will accelerate bold, neurotech breakthroughs nationwide, paving the way for a new generation of neurotechnologies to treat conditions such as depression, dementia, chronic pain, epilepsy, and nervous system injuries. The fund will support six-month hypothesis-testing projects with the potential to reshape a future where neurological conditions no longer limit […]
GAP Pipeline Brief: University of Colorado Boulder / Illumen Therapeutics
Award & Investment Overview The University of Colorado Boulder has awarded a pre-seed investment to Illumen Therapeutics, a biotech spinout focused on advancing novel cancer treatments, through its internal pre-seed funding mechanism operated by Venture Partners at CU Boulder. The pre-seed investment is designed to help bridge the funding gap between early research and downstream […]
GAP Impact: Washington University in St. Louis — $1.7B in Private Capital Attraction
Washington University in St. Louis affiliated startups attracted $1.7 billion in private sector investment in a single year, representing the largest annual total in the institution’s history. This milestone reflects strong investor confidence in university-developed technologies that have advanced from research into commercially viable ventures. Over the past decade, WashU startups have raised more than […]