Daily deal net: July 30, 2021

Rey, a mental health subsidiary of UK-based digital mental health therapy developer Oxford VR, has raised $10m in series A funding co-led by Oxford Sciences Innovation, the venture fund of University of Oxford, and Optum Ventures, according to Forbes. The company has now secured $26m in its series A round, Forbes said, without offering further details. Rey launched three months ago and its parent company is a spinout of University of Oxford.

Micropep Technologies, a France-based agricultural biotech spinout of Paul Sabatier University and CNRS, has raised €8.5m ($10m) in an oversubscribed series A round led by Supernova Invest, with participation from FMC Ventures, and existing investors Sofinnova Partners and IRDI Capital Investissement. The spinout raised $5m in its series A round in 2018.

Amaroq Therapeutics, a New Zealand-based RNA therapy developer spun out of University of Otago, has raised NZ$14m ($9.7m) in a round featuring tech transfer subsidiary Otago Innovation and NZ Innovation Booster, a joint funding scheme for Otago and Victoria universities and financial data aggregator Booster Financial Services. The round was led by venture capital firm Brandon Capital, and also included investment fund Cure Kids Ventures. Amaroq is developing therapies for breast, colorectal and liver cancers based on long non-coding RNAs, the cellular molecules that are more commonly known as dark matter of the genome which function as key cell regulators.

Azalea Vision, a Belgium-based healthtech developer focused on vision disorders and spun out of Ghent University and Imec, has closed an €8m ($9.7m) series A round led by Imec.xpand, with participation from Elaia, Sensinnovat and Shigeru.

Opaque, a US-based developer of a platform to access sensitive data in the cloud, has raised $9.5m in a seed round led by Intel Capital, the corporate VC arm of chipmaker Intel, with participation from University of California, Berkeley-focused House Fund, Race Capital and FactoryHQ. Opaque emerged out of UC Berkeley’s RiseLab.

Sea6 Energy, an India-based ocean farming company co-founded by Indian Institute of Technology Madras faculty, has collected $9m in a series B round led by Aqua Spark, with a contribution from Silverstrand Capital. Sea6 Energy had previously raised an undisclosed amount of series A funding from Tata Capital Innovation Fund, a vehicle for industrial group Tata Sons, in 2015, according to VCCircle.

Suono Bio, a US-based developer of treatments for gastrointestinal diseases, has secured $8.5m in a series A round co-led by Axil Capital and Mizuho Securities Principal Investment, with participation from Taiwania Capital and unnamed others. Suono Bio was co-founded by Massachusetts Institute of Technology faculty together with a researcher from Brigham and Women’s Hospital.

Butlr Technologies, a US-based developer of a platform to determine occupancy levels while respecting people’s anonymity, has secured $7.9m in seed capital from investors including Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s E14 Fund. The round was led by Hyperplane and also included Founder Collective, Union Labs, 500 Startups, SOSV, Tectonic Ventures, Scott Belsky, Chad Laurans and Sunny Vu.

Orbit Discovery, a UK-based peptide therapeutics developer, has raised $7.6m in funding led by Oxford Sciences Innovation (OSI), the venture fund of University of Oxford. The round also attracted Borealis Ventures, Perivoli Innovations as well as unnamed institutional investors and assorted angel investors. OSI was also among the backers in Orbit’s $9.1m series A round in 2018.

OriCiro Genomics, a Japan-based cell-free synthesis technology developer, has received ¥800m ($7.3m) in a series B equity round led by University of Tokyo Edge Capital Partners (UTEC) and backed by trading group Itochu’s corporate VC unit, Itochu Technology Ventures. The round was boosted by a $1.8m long-term loan from Japan Finance Corporation and came after UTEC provided $3.6m in series A funding for the startup at its April 2019 launch.

Feelit, an Israel-based printable sensor spinout of Technion – Israel Institute of Technology, has raised a $7m series A round co-led by automotive component manufacturer Continental and chemicals and consumer products group Henkel, which invested through Henkel Tech Ventures. Vasuki Global Tech Fund also invested, and the cash will be allocated to technology development and international growth. Feelit raised $5m in what it also dubbed a series A round in January 2021 from Technion – Israel Institute of Technology, Henkel, Takwin Labs and GiTV.

PEP-Therapy, a France- based cancer treatment developer based on research at Sorbonne University and Institut Curie, has raised €5.4m ($6.5m) in a funding round backed by syndicates Business Angels des Grandes Ecoles and Italian Business Angels For Growth, Seventure Partners-managed Quadrivium 1, Anaxago, Doorway, Magna Capital Partners, I&I Prague and Bernard Majoie. Bpifrance contributed a €1.05m loan. The round appears to be an extension of the $3.4m secured by PEP-Therapy three months ago.

Glyphic Biotechnologies, a US-based sequencing technology spinout of Massachusetts Institute of Technology, has raised $6m in a seed round led by OMX Ventures, with participation from Osage University Partners, Wing VC, Artis Ventures, Cantos Ventures, Civilization Ventures, Axial VC and angel investor Trevor Martin, according to TechCrunch.

Axio Biosolutions, an India-based medtech company, has raised $6m in a series B2 round backed by University of California–Ratan Tata (UC-RNT) Fund, according to VCCicle. The round was led by TrueScale Capital and also included Omidyar Network India and Accel. Axio raised $5.2m in a series B1 round led by Omidyar, with contributions from UC-RNT Fund, Chiratae Ventures and Accel, in January 2020. RNT Capital led a $7.4m series B round in January 2018.

Macomics, a UK-based immuno-oncology company based on research at University of Edinburgh, has raised a £4.24m ($5.9m) seed extension from investment firm Caribou Property, Epidarex Capital and Scottish Enterprise. Macomics launched last year with an initial $4m of seed funding led by Epidarex Capital with support from Scottish Enterprise’s Scottish Investment Bank.

Visionary Machines, an Australia-based developer of spatial sensing technology, has raised A$7.5m ($5.8m) in a seed round featuring multi-university venture fund Significant Capital Ventures, according to the Australian Financial Review. The round was led by Folklore Ventures and also included Our Innovation Fund, Thorney Investment Group and IQT International Australia, the local outfit of In-Q-Tel.

Obviously AI, a US-based no-code platform for machine learning models, has raised $4.7m in additional seed capital led by University of Tokyo Edge Capital Partners, with participation from Trail Mix Ventures and B-Capital, according to TechCrunch. Obviously AI raised the original $3.6m seed tranche in May this year from lead investor TMV, with the backing of B Capital Group, Golden Gate Ventures, Arka Venture Labs and several angels.

Umecrine Cognition, a Sweden-based spinout of Umeå University, working on a treatment for liver encephalopathy, has raised SEK35.1m ($4.2m). The fresh funding was obtained alongside the conversion of $7.9m of convertible loans held by Karolinska Development, the investment firm set up by Karolinska Institute.

Revelio Labs, a US-based workforce insights platform, has raised $4m in a seed round backed by NYU Innovation Venture Fund, a vehicle for New York University. The round was co-led by financial services firm Barclays and K20 Fund, with additional participation from Bertelsmann Digital Media Investments, on behalf of media conglomerate Bertelsmann, BoxOne Ventures, DataFrame Ventures, 840 Venture Partners and private investors.

Kaspard, a Belgium-based developer of a non-intrusive system to detect falls by elderly people in nursing homes, has raised €3.1m ($3.8m) in a funding round backed by Theodorus IV, a fund set up by Université libre de Bruxelles, according to Silver Économie. The round also included Finance & Invest.Brussels, ScaleFund and private investors Marcel Hermann and Emmanuel Caeymax. The former three investors were identified as existing backers.

4D Biomaterials, a UK-based 3D-printed biomedical scaffolds spinout of University of Birmingham and University of Warwick, has closed a £1.6m ($2.2m) funding round led by DSW Ventures, with participation from Mercia both directly and through the MEIF Proof of Concept & Early Stage Fund. SFC Capital also returned for the round, having supplied $350,000 in pre-seed financing in July 2020.

Psilera Bioscience, a US-based company looking into the properties of magic mushrooms to treat disease based on research at University of South Florida, has raised $2.5m in funding from Iter Investments, Baird, JLS Fund, Receptor, What If Ventures, and Psilera founders and board members.

NuVision Biotherapies, a UK-based spinout of University of Nottingham focused on wound treatments and a product to heal eye injuries, has secured £1.8m ($2.5m) in funding from Mercia-managed MEIF Proof of Concept & Early Stage Fund, Newable Ventures and private investors. The spinout has now raised close to £5m altogether and hopes to secure a series A round next year. NuVision previously raised $1.7m in 2019.

Incisive Genetics, a Canada-based developer of a non-viral delivery platform for Crispr-based gene therapies, has completed a $2.5m seed round co-led by family office Machall Investments and private investor Haig Farris. Incisive Genetics is based on research at University of British Columbia.

Tiicker, a US-based retail investor engagement, marketing and stock perks platform, has closed a $2m pre-seed round backed by Red Cedar Ventures, the early-stage venture capital arm of Michigan State University’s endowment, MSU Foundation. The round included several unnamed angel investors.

HelloFlow, a Denmark-based fintech company, has raised $1.6m in a seed round co-led by PreSeed Ventures, the venture capital arm of Technical University of Denmark, and Seedcamp.

Bamboo Auctions, the UK-based operator of an online property auction marketplace, has raised £1.1m ($1.5m) in a funding round co-led by Cass Entrepreneurship Fund, an affiliate of City, University of London’s Cass Business School, and real estate developer RO Group’s RO Capital Partners subsidiary. The round also featured unnamed existing backers and angel investors.

Vetanic, a Japan-based veterinary regenerative medicine developer, has raised ¥150m ($1.4m) from Keio Innovation Initiative, a vehicle for Keio University, VC firm QB Capital and NCB Venture Capital, a venture capital arm of financial services firm NCB Bank.

ClexBio, a Norway-based hydrogel technology developer, has raised $1.2m from assorted angel investors. The technology was co-invented by chief executive Armend Håti and David Bassett at Norwegian University of Science and Technology.

Liatris, a US-based developer of thermal insulation materials, has raised a $1m seed round co-led by Maryland Momentum Fund, the venture fund of University System of Maryland, and Old Line Capital. The round also included assorted private investors, including a syndicate led by Propel(x).

Optiflux, a Belgium-based fruit harvesting technology spinout of KU Leuven, is raising €600,000 ($725,000) in funding from the university and from its Gemma Frisius Fund, Limburg Investment Company, food cooperatives BelOrta and Belgian Fruit Auction, and the company co-founders.

Time-travelling Milkman, a Netherlands-based sustainable, unsaturated fat ingredients developer spun out of Wageningen University & Research, has raised €550,000 ($665,000) in funding from Oost NL and Shift Invest.

Elevation Space, a Japan-based small satellite developer spun out of Tohoku University, has secured ¥30m ($272,000) in pre-seed funding from Makoto Capital, a vehicle for consultancy Makoto, cold heading and forming machinery producer Nakashimada Engineering, real estate developer Hinoki, recruitment and IT services group Enrise as well as four private investors. The company has received ¥40m ($362,000) in total, including grants.

Animal Alternative Technologies, a UK-based developer of a scalable platform for cell-based meat services, has raised $200,000 in pre-seed funding from Big Idea Ventures. The company was spun out of Unviersity of Cambridge.

Theolytics, a UK-based adenovirus drug developer spun out of University of Oxford, has raised an undisclosed amount of series A funding from M Ventures, a corporate venturing subsidiary of pharmaceutical firm Merck Group. Theolytics’s series A round stood at $6.8m as of January this year, the first tranche having been backed by Oxford Sciences Innovation and Epidarex Capital, while pharmaceutical company Taiho’s investment arm, Taiho Ventures led that close.

Pickle Robot, a US-based developer of robotics technology for the logistics sector spun out of Massachusetts Institute of Technology, has raised an undisclosed amount from packaging services provider Ranpak Holdings. The spinout emerged from stealth in May 2019 with $3.7m in seed funding from Hyperplane Ventures, Version One Ventures, Data Collective, RRE Ventures, Third Kind Ventures and Box Group.

Aiwell, a Japan-based artificial intelligence proteomics technology developer spun out of Tokyo Institute of Technology, has secured an undisclosed amount of funding from food mail order service Oisix Ra Daichi’s Future Food Fund.

Cutanos, an Austria-based immunotherapy developer spun out of Max Planck Society’s Institute of Colloids and Interfaces, has closed a funding round of undisclosed size backed by IST Cube, the venture capital fund of IST Austria, High-Tech Gründerfonds and Khan Technology Transfer Fund I as well as one unnamed private investor. KHAN Technology Transfer Fund I is backed by the European Investment Fund, Max Planck Foundation, Austria Wirtschaftsservice GmbH and wealth management firm Khan-I Vermögensverwaltung.

VitriVax, a US-based vaccine and therapeutics stabilisation and delivery platform developer based on research at University of Colorado, Boulder, has raised an undisclosed amount in a series A round led by Adjuvant Capital.

Natural Capital Research (NCR), a UK-based developer of an online platform to track natural resource assets globally, has secured an undisclosed amount from Oxford Sciences Innovation, the venture fund of University of Oxford, and Schroders. NCR’s platform is able to map assets across areas such as carbon storage and carbon sequestration, soil erosion and flood risk management, biodiversity and water quality. Representatives from Schroders and OSI will join NCR’s board. Blenheim Special Investments Holding has increased its proforma shareholding in NCR as part of the round, but further details were not disclosed.

MetShape, a Germany-based 3D printing technology spinout of Pforzheim University, has raised an undisclosed amount from venture capital firm AM Ventures.

SON, a France-based manufacturer of reproducible, pure and highly characterised nanoparticles that is based on research at University of Burgundy, has gained regional tech transfer office Satt Sayens as a shareholder. Financial terms were not disclosed.

Stimul.ai, an Ireland-based healthcare software developer, has been spun out of University College Cork, according to the Irish Times. The company has developed a software-as-a-service platform designed to help hospitals manage capacity, reduce waiting lists and automate processes through machine learning.

Deepsea Numerical, a Spain-based marine data analytics technology developer, has been spun out of Universitat Rovira i Virgili, according to Diari Més. The spinout’s technology is capable of collecting data from the coastal seabed and, through its own software, generate bathymetric maps with plants, currents and biodiversity. Applications include tracking the progression or loss of marine resources.

Aiaqua, an Italy-based company focused on efficient water resource management, has been spun out of Free University of Bozen-Bolzano. It is the university’s second spinout so far, the first being data integration technology developer Ontopic, which was created in July 2019.

Immunosense, a Japan-based immunosensor technology spinout of Osaka University, has raised an undisclosed amount of additional series B funding from MMC Innovation, a joint venture for advanced materials producers Mitsubishi Materials and Japan Material Technologies. The spinout previously raised $1.2m from Osaka University Venture Capital (OUVC), the institution’s investment arm, and advanced medical equipment provider Mehergen in March this year. OUVC had supplied $1.4m in 2019.

– Additional reporting by Liwen-Edison Fu and Robert Lavine