Every day, Global University Venturing rounds up investments from across the university innovation ecosystem in its deal net.
Federated Wireless, a US-based phone spectrum-sharing technology developer based on Virginia Tech research, has picked up $58m in a series D round backed by commercialisation firm Allied Minds. The round was led by an affiliate of Cerberus Capital Management and also included Singaporean sovereign wealth fund GIC. Federated Wireless completed a $64.7m series C round in 2020 and its investors also include telecoms infrastructure providers SBA Communications and American Tower, telecoms equipment maker Arris International, as well as Pennant Investors.
Rios Intelligent Machines, a US-based developer of end-to-end artificial intelligence robotics workcells for factory automation, has raised $28m in combined series A funding and debt financing led by Main Sequence Ventures, the venture firm set up by research institute CSIRO. The round also included Yamaha Motor Ventures, the investment arm of motorcycle manufacturer Yamaha Motor, as well as Orbit Venture Partners, Hypertherm Ventures, Valley Capital Partners, Morpheus Ventures, Grit Ventures and unnamed others. Mike Zimmerman, partner at Main Sequence, will join Rios’ board of directors, while Anish Patel, chief operating officer and managing director of Yamaha Motor Ventures, will join as an observer. Rios Intelligent Machines has now raised $33m altogether.
Change Foods, a US-based animal-free dairy producer co-founded by Queensland University of Technology faculty, has raised $12m in a seed extension led by Route 66, with participation from consumer packaged goods company Upfield and JIA Ventures, representing hospitality group JIA, according to Green Queen. The round also featured Orkla, Better Bite Ventures and Blue Horizon Ventures. Change Foods has now raised $15.3m in the round, according to the report, although only details of the $2.1m second tranche raised in June 2021 appear to have been disclosed. Plug and Play Ventures, Clear Current Capital, Better Bite Ventures, Canaccord Genuity, Gerber-Rauth and private investor Jeff Dean provided that money. Assorted angel investors had injected $875,000 in pre-seed funding in November 2020, following an earlier $125,000 round in May 2020 also provided by individual investors.
Cumulus, a UK-based drug discovery accelerator, has raised £4.1m ($5.6m) in funding led by Eos Advisory, with participation from Scottish Enterprise, according to the Scotsman. Cumulus hopes to raise an additional £1.5m in the coming months. Cumulus was founded in 2017 to generate spinouts focused on cancers that do not respond well to current therapies. Its portfolio includes Modulus Oncology, which is based on research at University of Sheffield and was formed in September 2020.
Strike Pharma, a Sweden-based developer of personalised immunotherapy treatments, has closed a SEK45m ($4.8m) funding round led by Eir Ventures, with participation from Flerie Invest and undisclosed existing backers. Spun out of Uppsala University, Strike Pharma previously raised $1m in funding under a year ago, it said, and its shareholders also include the institution’s commercialisation arm Uppsala University Invest, SLU Invest and Monesi Förvaltnings.
Semarion, a UK-based cell assaying platform developer focused on tackling unmet drug screening needs, has completed a £2.14m ($2.9m) in a seed round led by Parkwalk Advisors, the fund management arm of commercialisation firm IP Group, with participation from Cambridge Enterprise Seed Funds, Martlet Capital, the investment arm of aerospace and defence company Marshall Group, and angel investors. Semarion was spun out of University of Cambridge’s Cavendish Laboratory – the institution’s department of physics – in 2018 with pre-seed funding and business support from accelerator Start Codon.
Quantagonia, a Germany-based quantum computing technology developer, has secured an undisclosed amount of pre-seed funding co-led by Fraunhofer Technology Transfer Fund, the investment vehicle for Fraunhofer Society, and Voila Ventures. A third, undisclosed investors also contributed to the round. Quantagonia was co-founded by Sebastian Pokutta, professor of machine learning and optimisation at TU Berlin and vice-president of Zuse Institute Berlin.
