Every day, Global University Venturing rounds up the smaller investments from across the university innovation ecosystem in its deal net.
Claravine, a US-based provider of data standardisation tools for marketing systems, has secured $5m of series A funding from investors including University of Montana-backed venture firm Next Frontier Capital. Grayhawk Capital led the round, which was filled out by Peninsula Ventures. The funding will go to developing Claravine’s product and carving out a route to market. Claravine has now raised $12.4m in all, including $3.2m of equity funding secured from unnamed backers in 2019, according to a regulatory filing. Silverton Partners led a $4m round the previous year that featured Kickstart Seed Fund.
Phononic Vibes, an Italy-based noise and vibration reduction spinout of Politecnico di Milano, has closed a €2.3m ($2.7m) round led by Eureka Fund I – Technology Transfer, a spinout-oriented fund focused on deep tech, EU-Startups reported yesterday. The deal also included Politecnico di Milano’s venture fund, Poli360, and isolation sealant producer Pantecnica. Founded in 2018, Phononic Vibes supplies chalk-coloured blocks made from solid plastic, concrete or steel to shut out noise from loud environments such as music production or industrial processing. The funding will go to product development and expanding Phononic Vibes’ team.
Warwick Acoustics, a UK-based speaker and headphone product developer spun out of University of Warwick, has raised £2.1m ($2.7m) in a round backed by commercialisation firm Mercia Asset Management and undisclosed participants. Warwick Acoustics engineers audio products for car dashboards and personal sound production studios. The company expects to have a 15-month runway for expansion following the investment.
Michigan State University Foundation’s Conquer Accelerator has confirmed its inaugural slate of five investments, each supplied with $20,000 in seed funding. The companies were identified as airway management product supplier Airway Innovations, construction planning software company Building Catalyst, IP development tools producer FirstIgnite, enterprise marketing and sales software business Lawnbot and lateral patient transfer device producer The Patient Co.
Emesent, an Australia-based drone navigation technology and analytics spinout of research institute Csiro, has secured an undisclosed sum from In-Q-Tel, the strategic investment affiliate of the US and Australian intelligence communities. Emesent’s technology enables drones to fly independently without access to GPS, and is currently employed in underground mines. The funding will help Emesent target new markets with its product, including defence, security and emergency response. Emesent had raised $2.5m in November 2018 from investors including Csiro’s Innovation Fund, managed by Main Sequence Ventures.
Revorn, a Japan-based artificial intelligence-powered fragrance analysis technology provider spun out of Nagasaki University, has raised an undisclosed amount of funding from financial services firm Fukuoka Financial Group’s FFG Venture Business Partners unit and Kyushu Open Innovation fund, which is co-run by GxPartners.
Vertidiag, a France-based inner ear infection treatment developer exploiting Aix-Marseille University and CNRS research, formally spun out of regional tech transfer office Satt Sud-Est yesterday. The company’s lead asset is an anti-vertigo medication shown to reduce dizziness in pre-clinical models.
