Every day, Global University Venturing rounds up the smaller investments from across the university innovation ecosystem in its deal net.
Harmonize Health, a US-based remote monitoring and care platform aimed at high-risk patients, has received $10m in series A funding led by Launchpad Digital Health, with participation from Stanford University, Gaingels, Trinity Ventures and Liquid 2 Ventures. The latter two were identified as returning backers, though details about Harmonize’s earlier financing could not be confirmed.
ZwitterCo, a US-based producer of fouling-resistant membrane technology spun out of Tufts University, has completed a $5.9m seed round co-led by filtration equipment manufacturer Mann+Hummel through its Mann+Hummel Corporate Ventures unit. R-Cubed Capital Partners co-led the round, which also featured Burnt Island Ventures and undisclosed angel investors. ZwitterCo was founded in 2018 and subsequently joined the Greentown Labs incubator and Imagine H2O accelerator.
Neopredix, a Switzerland-based developer of software to detect early-stages of disease in newborns, has secured CHF4.1m ($4.5m) in funding from Bavaria state-owned Bayern Kapital, LifeCare Partners and Eckenstein-Geigy-Stiftung as well as a group of angel investors. Spun out of University of Basel in 2020, Neopredix will use the money to further develop its technology.
Intrinsic Semiconductor Technologies, a UK-based developer of non-volatile computer memory spun out of University College London, has completed a £1.35m ($1.9m) round co-led by UCL Technology Fund and IP Group. Intrinsic will use the capital to partner Imec and develop a prototype of its technology, which it expects will be easier to integrate and more power-efficient than flash storage.
Lucida Medical, a UK-based cancer diagnostics technology spinout of University of Cambridge, has attracted a multi-million British pound sterling (£1m = $1.4m) seed investment from a group of investors led by Prostate Cancer Research and XTX Ventures, the corporate venturing arm of algorithmic trading firm XTX Markets. Lucida’s approach relies on analysing MRI images using machine learning to assess the progression of cancer, with an initial focus on prostate cancer. The money will go towards recruitment, seeking regulatory approval and completing a clinical trial.
Tavros, a US-based oncology treatment spinout of Duke University, has received $1.8m in funding from Piedmont Capital Investments, according to the Triangle Business Journal. The firm previously invested in the spinout and a regulatory filing shows Tavros obtained $1m in funding in March 2020, though it is unclear if that is the earlier investment in question.
Fieldwork Robotics, a UK-based soft robot manufacturing spinout of University of Plymouth, has obtained £675,000 ($940,000) in equity financing from unnamed new and existing backers. Tech transfer office University of Plymouth Enterprises converted £44,000 of patent costs into equity as part of the round. Commercialisation firm Frontier IP now holds a 22.2% stake in the business, which had fetched $387,000 in funding at a $1.8m valuation in January last year. Find out more about Frontier IP’s approach in our podcast interview with chief executive Neil Crabb.
Acuity Spatial Genomics, a US-based developer of spatial 3D genomics and multiomic analyses technology to help researchers understand the three-dimensional relationships between chromosomes and gene positioning on chromosomes, has launched out of Harvard University’s Medical School and secured a majority investment of undisclosed size from scientific instruments manufacturer Bruker.
Andelyn Biosciences, a US-based contract development and manufacturing spinout of Nationwide Children’s Hospital, has secured an undisclosed amount from filtration, separations and purification products supplier Pall. Andelyn has additionally entered into a collaboration agreement with Pall and with Cytiva, which develops technologies to accelerate the development and manufacturing of therapeutics.
Neuron-D, a Germany-based developer of preclinical tests of molecules targeting neurodegenerative disease, has been spun out of Deutsches Zentrum für Neurodegenerative Erkrankungen, a member of Helmholtz Association, and Leibniz Association’s Institute of Polymer Research Dresden. Neuron-D’s technology allows the creation of three-dimensional cell cultures to understand how potential treatments would interact with the brain.
ArcitekBio, a UK-based developer of a diabetic and tooth-friendly natural sweetener, has been spun out of Aberystwyth University. The company’s product, xylitol, is created from cereal straw, an agricultural waste product. It commercialises research by Abhishek Somani, Joe Gallagher, David Bryant, Narcis Fernandez-Fuentes and Sreenivas Rao Ravella at the university’s Institute of Biological, Environmental and Rural Sciences.
– Additional reporting by Robert Lavine
