Every day, Global University Venturing rounds up the smaller investments from across the university innovation ecosystem in its deal net.

Araris Biotech, a Switzerland-based biotech spinout of Paul Scherrer Institute, part of the Domain of the Swiss Federal Institutes of Technology (ETH Domain) system, closed an oversubscribed CHF2.5m ($2.5m) seed round today with participation from Redalpine, Schroder Adveq and VI Partners. The cash will allow Araris to develop a pipeline of site-specific antibody-drug conjugates to treat diseases including cancer. The spinout was formed in March 2019. Riptron, a UK-based graphene sensor technology spinout of University of Manchester, secured a two-tranche £1m ($1.2m) commitment yesterday from Tunghsu Optoelectronic, the optoelectronic-focused arm of diversified company Tunghsu Group. Founded in May 2019, Riptron hopes to introduce graphene-powered sensors for measuring air quality. Riptron was founded with support from University of Manchester’s Intellectual Property unit and its Graphene Enabled program. Graphene was first isolated in its single atomic form at University of Manchester in 2014, and the institution had already partnered Tunghsu to explore applications for the 2D material under a memorandum of understanding inked in November 2018. Optimus Vitrum, a UK-based reinforced glass manufacturer spun out of University of Leeds, has raised £600,000 ($726,000) in a round backed by the university, NPIF – Mercia Equity Finance and an unnamed private investor, Bdaily News reported yesterday. NPIF – Mercia Equity Finance is managed by Mercia Asset Management as part of the EU and UK government-backed Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund. Optimus Vitrum is devising a manufacturing process for toughened glass that would be applied to make mobile phone screens and wearable devices. The company extends research pioneered by Gin Jose, a professor and chair in functional materials at University of Leeds’s School of Chemical and Process Engineering. The funding will drive independently-verified studies of Optimus’s process in a bid to prove up the concept so that the spinout can begin approaching customers. Australia’s national science agency Csiro has spun out Voconiq to advance analytical techniques that help enterprises measure their social impact. Voconiq’s service extends an existing Csiro methodology that measures the client’s community relations by consulting with local stakeholders, taking surveys and other data analysis within a clear framework. The methodology emerged from more than 10 years of Csiro research that indicated a breakdown in community relations can potentially cost firms substantial sums owing to project delays or postponements. Voconiq’s current operations include work conducted in Australian mining regions, and the spinout hopes to expand with commissions in the infrastructure, oil and gas industries, in addition to directly providing its service to communities.

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