SIC, Catalyst Fund ready to move on funds for New Mexico startups
New Mexico’s new state-backed Catalyst Fund is ready to make its first capital commitments to local micro funds that invest in startup companies around the state. Santa Fe-based Sun Mountain Capital, which is managing the new “fund of funds” for the State Investment Council, closed this week on $15 million in commitments from the SIC […]
Indiana University Researchers Score $160K in Translational Research Grants
Seven researchers at Indiana University have received more than $160,000 in grants from the Johnson Center for Innovation and Translational Research. The center’s Translational Research Pilot Grant program aims to fund the completion of proof-of-concept projects. The grant program was launched last year. The university says the projects that receive funding will “support the development […]
Philadelphia College of Medicine starts $5M venture fund
The money for the Primary Care Innovation Fund came from the school’s foundation, PCOM said. The fund will consider investing in companies nationwide, but will concentrate on the Philadelphia region and on the Atlanta region, where PCOM has a branch campus. Dean Miller, CEO of the Philadelphia Alliance for Capital & Technologies and a partner […]
Tech Launch Arizona awards $1.1 million to boost promising tech
A patch for a beating heart, an underwater adhesive and a new kind of needle for laparoscopic surgery are among the technologies the University of Arizona is nurturing toward the marketplace. Tech Launch Arizona has awarded about $1.1 million in grants this fiscal year to support 28 faculty inventions as part of its Asset Development […]
Jumpstart Foundry reveals investments in 17 healthcare startups from seed fund including NC State
Five months after shifting its model from an accelerator to a seed stage innovation fund, Jumpstart Foundry has revealed 17 startups it’s selected for its portfolio. Nicotrax, for example, is a startup from North Carolina State University. Led by Kyle Linton, it developed a device and mobile app to track user’s cigarette consumption as they […]
U Texas Decisio Health introduces clinical platform, draws $4.5M in Series B round
Decisio Health, a startup that aims to help acute-care provider organizations continually improve their clinical processes, launched the Decisio Health Clinical Intelligence Platform Tuesday and also announced $4.5M in Series B funding, topping the $2.5M it garnered in its over-subscribed Series A. This most recent round was led by DECLATEX, LLC with participation by the […]
Michigan Accelerator Fund seeks $5 million raise for tack-on fund
The managers of Michigan Accelerator Fund I are seeking to raise up to $5 million from investors to provide further financial backing to portfolio companies. Four of the Grand Rapids-based venture capital fund’s eight existing portfolio companies may need additional capital in the near future, said co-Managing Director Dale Grogan. Capital raised for the new […]
Serra Ventures at U Illinois hopes to raise $50M in new fund, invest in 50 startups
Serra Ventures, a venture capital firm focused on Midwestern companies is on its way to raising $50 million, and it’s eyeing a handful of potential investments. Serra Ventures, at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign’s Research Park, aims to nearly triple the size of its second fund and invest in 40 to 50 startups through its third fund, launched in […]
Connecticut Senate Approves CTNext In Effort To Boost Startup Companies, support UCONN
It could be years before results are visible, but Connecticut made the first significant move Thursday to extend state government’s role in promoting startup firms and early-stage business ventures. The Senate approved a $19.7 billion state budget that includes a provision broadening the work of CTNext, a subsidiary of Connecticticut Innovations, the state’s venture capital […]
Venture Capitalist David Schwab on industry focused micro-investing and mining tech from the University of California system
David Schwab, who launched Vertical Venture Partners a couple of years ago after 20 years at Sierra Ventures, says he did that so he could pare down his investment focus. Micro-funds are the place to be, he believes, and it’s better to go deep into relieving specific industry “pain points” than to try to sell […]