Cambridge University sells stake in pharma spin-out for $5.3M
Cambridge University has pocketed millions of pounds on a seed investment it made seven years ago in a company that makes “test tube patients” for drug research. The university made £3.17m, more than 30 times its original investment, after selling its stake in Horizon Discovery, which grows batches of cells containing tailored DNA.
Monash University and University of Warwick Announce Funding For Collaborative Projects
The first 2014 funding round for collaborative ventures between Monash and the University of Warwick is now open, with four schemes offering a range of targeted funding opportunities to academic staff and students at both universities.
Seed Fund Partners With University London Business School To Support Business Plan Competition
EcoMachines Incubator is partnering with the CleanTech Challenge to provide more opportunities for the 2014 competition finalists to grow their startups.
University of the West of England to put up to £150,000 in start-ups
The Innovation 4 Growth programme offers grants of between £25,000 and £150,000 for smaller businesses looking to develop new or improved products, processes, services or technologies that safeguard or create jobs.
Isis Innovation, University of Oxford seed funded company, NaturalMotion, sold for $527m
Isis Innovation worked with Zoology researcher Torsten Reil to protect his intellectual property, develop a business plan, and introduce first-round investors. The company was spun out in 2001. US social games company Zynga has now finalised the acquisition of Natural Motion for more than $527m, one of the largest transactions ever involving an Oxford spin-out. […]
London Start-up Direct to Support 400 Start-ups with £2.5m Fund
Over £2.5 million in seed finance has been released by a delivery partner of the government’s Start Up Loans scheme to fund approximately 400 new start-up businesses in London over the next twelve months. Start Up Direct, which has recently established a base in Shoreditch at the heart of London’s Tech City, is offering talented individuals who […]
Imperial College of London Solar Spin-out, BBOXX, Converts On $1.5M In Venture Funding
An Imperial spinout company that brings solar energy products to developing countries lands a major investment from a Silicon Valley financier. The company BBOXX, a provider of solar power technology systems for homes in developing countries, has received a $US 1.5 million investment from Vinod Khosla, one of the founders of the computer company Sun Microsystems […]
Yorkshire Innovation Fund helps spin-out companies through Bradford University
Funds are being made available to help smaller firms across Yorkshire collaborate with universities to develop new products, services and processes following a project led by Bradford University. The Yorkshire Innovation Fund has been launched, partly financed by European Union money, and will enable businesses to bid for funding of £10,000 to £30,000 depending on […]
Glaxo calls on government to support 1B commercialization fund
The government should create a £1bn fund to help university researchers work with small businesses to turn promising ideas into money-spinning inventions, according to GlaxoSmithKline‘s chief executive, Sir Andrew Witty.
Cambridge University launches £50m spinout fund
Cambridge University has created a £50m technology investment company, backed by Arm Holdings and some of the city’s leading institutional investors, to help some of its most promising spinout companies. The fund is a recognition by the university of the critical need for equity finance to help spinout companies overcome the so-called “valley of death” that projects […]