Newsletter
March 2012
- Blow-Out Quarter - $20+M Raised
- Comparz, Amplify and Synaptic Global Learning Join
- 95th Startup Intern Placed by Entrepreneurship Center
$20+M Raised - Second Series A in Nine Months
4s3 Bioscience, which develops genetic disease therapies for orphan neuromuscular disorders, secured a $20 million Series A financing with KLP Enterprises, a trust formed by the Pritzker/Vlock Family Office.
How significant is an investment of this size? Only 15 are made every year worldwide!
NobleGen Biosciences also achieved fundraising success this quarter, increasing their seed funding to over $1,000,000. The company is building a platform to move whole genome sequencing into routine clinical practice.
4s3's is the second Series A in the last nine months at the Venture Development Center. Last May, Sample6 Technologies (formerly Novophage) raised $5.7 Million with Flybridge Capital.
In the last five quarters, companies at the Venture Development Center achieved a 78% fundraising success rate, raising a total of $33,704,000, or a median of $830,000. This compares to an 18% success rate for startups nationally. The total represents a return of over six dollars for every dollar invested in creating the Venture Development Center.
Comparz, Amplify and Synaptic Global Learning Join
We're drawn to visionary companies working on solutions to problems that matter. We accept about five per year. We're thrilled the following joined:
Comparz provides in-depth user reviews and rankings of software services and tools for small and mid-sized businesses.
Amplify is a digital education company that helps students observe, experiment, and share experiences.
Synaptic Global Learning delivers online education which adapts to an individual's learning preference.
To learn more about our partner companies, visit our web site.
95th Startup Intern Placed by Entrepreneurship Center - 70% Hired Full-Time
An important part of what we do with the university’s Entrepreneurship Center, led by Dan Phillips, is to train students for tech startup careers. Our 95th student has been hired by a venture-backed startup in sales and marketing and programming internships. Seventy percent of our interns convert to full-time employment.
We plan to scale up this program and offer it our other state universities and community colleges. They are filled with smart, driven, diverse students who know how to handle adversity, the type of people startups like to hire as entry-level employees.
According to Jeff McCarthy, Partner at North Bridge Venture Partners: “The hope is that a program like this truly can fuel the workforce engine required to launch the next generation of startups.”
Interested in Learning More?
Opened in May 2009, the Venture Development Center gives high tech startups the specialized facilities, guidance and talent they need to get off to a great start.
Visit our web site to learn more.
January 2012
2011 Highlights from the VDC
- $10,984,000 Raised, Average of $1,220,444 per Company
- Company Milestones Reached
- New Company Residents in 2011
- 85th Startup Intern Placed by Entrepreneurship Center, 70% Hired Full-Time
- $2,000,000 for Center for Personalized Cancer Therapy
- Where Entrepreneur's Gather
$10,984,000 Raised, Average of $1,220,444 per Company
Seventy-eight percent of the nine life science and high tech companies at the Venture Development Center seeking investment succeeded by the end of 2011. The average received was $1,220,444 per company. The $10,984,000 total represents a return of two dollars for every dollar invested in creating the Venture Development Center. To date, 131 new jobs have been created by the companies.
The success rate, average amount raised, and median amount raised in 2011 outpaces all other programs in Boston and even eclipses the top accelerator program in the nation. Raising money is not a definition of success, but it’s an indication of the progress of a startup.
The largest life science financing was a $5.7 million Series A venture capital investment in Novophage, which graduated to larger quarters at the Dry Dock Center in the Innovation District. The largest software company financing was a private equity investment in Anthurium Solutions. Other companies which achieved success include: 4s3 Bioscience; Pressure BioSciences; U for Life; NobleGen Biosciences; and Bioarray Therapeutics.
2012 is shaping up to be a record, as late last year, another company signed a Series A term sheet.
Company Milestones Reached
Proof of concept achieved: Bioarray Therapeutics generated proof of concept with a test that can predict the response to multiple-approved chemotherapies.
SBIR grants awarded: Pressure BioSciences, NobleGen Biosciences and Novophage.
Prototypes completed: Differential Proteomics completed RapiTope, an antibody profiling machine.
First paying customers closed: U for Life, Divya Energy, Symmetric Computing and Sustainability Guild International.
Collaborations: Faculty from five UMass Boston colleges are collaborating in various ways with companies at the Venture Development Center. For example, faculty from Computer Science partnered with Symmetric Computing on an SBIR grant proposal.
New Company Residents in 2011
We're drawn to visionary companies working on solutions to problems that matter and which contribute to the entrepreneurial culture at UMass Boston. We accept about five per year. We're thrilled the following joined:
DesigNET is a SaaS company that provides analytics and reporting for videoconferencing service managers.
MIT spinout Factor Bioscience provides researchers with mutation- and integration-free iPS Cells to accelerate regenerative medicine.
SelfSense is a software company founded by Babson graduates which is driving new efficiencies within the neurobehavioral healthcare system.
BU spinout NobleGen Biosciences is developing a simplified version of nanopore genome-sequencing technology—a technique that promises high speed and low costs.
TrySocial employs predictive software and intelligent feedback in the field of cause related marketing.
The Institute of Political Leadership, a collaborator of UMass Boston's Collins Center, develops the political skills of citizens with potential to be future political leaders.
To learn more about our partner companies, visit our web site.
85th Startup Intern Placed by Entrepreneurship Center, 70% Hired Full-Time
An important part of what we do with the university’s Entrepreneurship Center, led by Dan Phillips, and located in the Venture Development Center, is to train students for tech startup careers. Our 85th student has been hired by a venture-backed startup in sales and marketing and programming internships. Seventy percent of our interns convert to full-time employment.
According to Jeff McCarthy, Partner at North Bridge Venture Partners: “Many of our portfolio companies have hired UMass Boston interns, and they really hit the mark. The hope is that a program like this truly can fuel the workforce engine required to launch the next generation of startups.”
$2,000,000 for Center for Personalized Cancer Therapy
The Center for Personalized Cancer Therapy, a UMass joint venture with Dana-Farber/Harvard Cancer Center, received the first $2,000,000 of a $10,000,000 total commitment from the Massachusetts Life Science Center. The Center, which will produce test kits for the detection of specific cancer tumor types, will begin operations in 2012 in the Venture Development Center.
The Collaborative Institute for Oceans, Climate and Security and the Developmental Sciences Research Center, also located in the Venture Development Center, raised $720,000 in 2011.
Where Entrepreneur's Gather
Over 1,000 have visited the Venture Development Center from around region and world. We hosted delegations from India, China, Russia and Europe. You can read about a recent visit by Irish entrepreneurs here.
The Angel Capital Association visited during their annual meeting in Boston, interested in learning about our strategy and operating model.
We hosted a White House Business Council meeting with Obama and Patrick administration officials and 20 high-tech executives to draw attention to the tech workforce shortage facing Massachusetts. Read more about it in a Boston Globe article which generated over 100 comments from readers!
We also hosted Governor Patrick and his cabinet at the Venture Development Center. Governor Patrick took a special interest in UMass Boston alumnus and Symmetric Computing founder Richard Anderson's mid-range supercomputers. Read about the visit here.
Interested in Learning More?
Opened in May 2009, the Venture Development Center:
• Runs a high quality incubator which meets the immediate needs of visionary, early stage technology and life science founders;
• Places skilled sales, marketing and product development interns in tech startups to alleviate the talent crunch; and
• Launches university-industry R&D centers to develop next generation products.
Visit our web site to learn more.
Wishing you the best,
The VDC Team
January 2012
