Global University Venturing

David Russell, an executive-in-residence at Oxford’s Saïd Business School, has been appointed chief executive of PraxisAuril, following in the footsteps of Maxine Ficarra.

Cambridge Enterprise, Cambridge Innovation Capital and University of Cambridge are joined by 100 signatories like AstraZeneca and Microsoft for the Innovate Cambridge initiative.

BioBetter’s technology utilises tobacco plants to provide a climate-friendly response to the meat production industry.

Cures for HIV and blurred vision and using cosmic rays to monitor nuclear waste drums are on our list of recent promising university spinouts.

Marty Reid, director of SETsquared Bristol and Engine Shed, will step up as interim executive director of SETsquared next month.

Grace Wang is leaving Ohio State University after two years to become president of Worcester Polytechnic Institute.

Michael Connallon Jr is the new chairman of the Rowan Innovation Venture Fund, the freshly topped up venture capital arm of Rowan University.

Mart Maasik is the head of University of Tartu’s Entrepreneurship and Innovation Centre, but will also remain head of UniTartu Ventures.

CasInvent Pharma’s approach is aimed at three forms of cancer rather than just one, with leukaemia, lymphoma and solid tumours all in its sights.

Spinouts have defied the slump in the rest of the market, with deal numbers up 10% from last year. The average size of seed and series B rounds has actually increased.