Every day, Global University Venturing rounds up the smaller investments from across the university innovation ecosystem in its deal net.
PolyProx Therapeutics, a UK-based cancer therapy spinout of University of Cambridge, has raised £1m ($1.2m) of seed capital from medical research charity LifeArc. The funding will go toward in vivo proof-of-concept trials to support PolyProx’s planned series A financing in 2021. University of Cambridge’s tech transfer office Cambridge Enterprise and affiliated patient capital fund Cambridge Innovation Capital co-led a $4.4m seed round for PolyProx in May 2019 that also featured RT Capital. The spinout is working on a class of therapeutic molecules dubbed polyproxin that halts the growth of tumour cells while sparing damage to healthy tissues.
Innovations and Future Creation, a venture fund for Tokyo Institute of Technology, has led a round of undisclosed size for Japan-based inspection and maintenance robotics business HiBot, investing alongside equipment leasing firm Fuyo General Lease. The funding is intended to prepare for the launch of HiBot’s robot-as-a-service product, expected to provide automated maintenance in industrial environments including electricity plants and aircraft or chemical manufacturing.
