Every day, Global University Venturing rounds up the smaller investments from across the university innovation ecosystem in its deal net.
BitBiome, a Japan-based Waseda University spinout that is developing a microbiological single-cell genome analysis technology, has raised ¥700m ($6.6m), bringing its overall funding to $9.9m. University of Tokyo-affiliated Edge Capital Partners (Utec) and public-private partnership Innovation Network Corporation of Japan-sponsored Universal Materials Incubator invested, as did Idaten Ventures and Vital Ventures. Utec had already backed the company’s $3.2m round in January 2019.
Raptor Maps, a US-based solar electricity data analytics spinout of Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), has closed a $5m series A round involving Congruent Ventures, the sustainability-focused venture firm aligned to University of California. The round was co-led by Blue Bear Capital and Data Point Capital with further commitments from government-owned Massachusetts Clean Energy Center, Buoyant Ventures, Powerhouse Ventures and Y Combinator. Spun out in 2015, Raptor Maps couples footage from automated drones with artificial intelligence-driven software to produce data insights for the solar electricity industry. The software can be applied to images of property rooftops in order to evaluate their solar generation potential without the need for a visit from a technician. Blue Bear Capital led a round of undisclosed size for Raptor in July 2019, investing with Congruent, Powerhouse Ventures and Y Combinator, which had also supplied funding previously. Airware, a drone operating system developer, had already provided cash from its Commercial Drone Fund in 2016.
Jij, a Japan-based quantum annealing technology developer spun out of Tokyo Institute of Technology’s Nishimori Lab, has raised ¥200m ($1.9m) in a round co-led by internet and telecoms group SoftBank’s Deepcore fund and venture capital firm Anri, which included Tokyo Institute of Technology’s Innovations and Future Creation.
Tetra Aviation, a Japan-based flying passenger vehicle developer exploiting University of Tokyo research, has received ¥50m ($470,000) from aircraft component producer Yoshimasu Seisakusho, Nikkei Asian Review reported today. Founded in 2018, Tetra Aviation hopes to leverage propellers powered by an engine and electric motor to facilitate single-passenger vehicles that can take off and land vertically. The company previously received prize funding at aerospace technology firm Boeing’s GoFly contest in February 2020. It claims to have received a test flight permit from US airspace regulator Federal Aviation Administration.
Fanfare, a Japan-based artificial intelligence-infused waste collection and transportation management tool developer graduated from the second batch of University of Tokyo’s Innovation Platform’s 1st Round accelerator in March 2020, has completed a ¥30m ($280,000) seed round backed by Coral Capital.
Skygate Technologies, a Japan-based developer of a cloud-based technology that enables high-speed communication between satellites and stations on Earth, has raised an undisclosed amount of funding from Keio University’s venture fund Keio Innovation Initiative’s KII II Investment.
Aiwell, a Japan-based artificial intelligence-powered proteomics software developer spun out of Tokyo Institute of Technology, has raised a series A round of undisclosed amount from pharmaceutical firm Taisho Pharmaceutical. It had raised another undisclosed amount of series A funding in July 2020 from angel investor Takafumi Kaya.
Asalyxa Bio, a US-based drug delivery technology spinout of University of Michigan, raised an undisclosed seed amount from unnamed backers on Tuesday. The company’s lead program, ASX-100, seeks to administer an anti-inflammatory agent to overreactive immune cells known as neutrophils in order to minimise the impact of cytokine storm, the immune overreaction implicated in severe cases of Covid-19. Asalyxa Bio’s founding research was led by its chief scientific officer Lola Eniola-Adefeso, a professor of chemical engineering at University of Michigan.
Horizon31, a US-based drone communication system producer, has officially spun out of Oak Ridge National Laboratory. Horizon31 claims to have built a cloud server to enable consistent communications with unmanned vehicles in commercial, government and consumer settings. Drones are typically controlled by radio by a pilot stationed on the ground however frequencies are less reliable once the aircraft moves beyond line of sight. The spinout is aiming to complete a software prototype for its technology in autumn 2020, with hardware to follow next spring.
