Every day, Global University Venturing rounds up the smaller investments from across the university innovation ecosystem in its deal net.
Hemotune, a Switzerland-based blood purifying technology spinout of ETH Zurich, has closed a CHF5.1m ($5.6m) series A round featuring medical device firm Green Cross Medical Science. The round was led by private equity firm Occident and also included state-owned financial services firm Zürcher Kantonalbank. Founded in 2017, Hemotune is working on a medical device for treating sepsis, using nanoengineered magnetic beads that remove pathogens from the patient’s bloodstream. Sepsis occurs when organ systems are damaged as a result of the body’s response to infection, potentially leading to death. The funding will go to accelerating preclinical development of Hemotune’s device, coming months after a $530,000 deal co-led by health innovation network EIT Health in July 2020. Hemotune said it has now raised more than CHF10m ($10.1m at current exchange rates) to date, although the total likely includes grant funding.
Sorex Sensors, a UK-based sensor technology spinout of University of Cambridge, has received £900,000 ($1.2m) in funding from investors including Cambridge Enterprise, the university’s tech transfer office. The TTO’s contribution was matched by funding from CamVision Technology, a cross-border innovation agency founded by Cambridge PhD students, as well as Cambridge Angels and SyndicateRoom. Sorex Sensors has built a minaturised sensor measuring less than 0.5 square millimetres that can operate on microwatts of energy. The sensor is intended to detect minute changes in mass indicative of indoor air pollutants such as carbon monoxide in order to help prevent lung disease. Andrew Flewitt, head of electrical engineering at University of Cambridge, is a co-founder of Sorex Sensors, which also has links to Technical University of Munich and University of Warwick.
Molekule, a US-based air purification system spinout of University of South Florida, has secured an undisclosed amount of funding from Maisie Williams, a co-founder of social media app Daisie and actress. The company is working on photo-electrochemical systems that disinfect and purify indoor air environments by removing pollutants such as viruses, bacteria and mould. Molekule is set to invest in its core technology with a view to securing expected demand for air cleaning products during the Covid-19 pandemic, having already introduced three products for consumers in addition to a commercial-grade application. The spinout previously raised a total of $96.4m, including a $58m series C round in February 2020 led by RPS Ventures and backed by networking and communication product maker Inventec Appliances, Foundry Group, Crosslink Capital, Founder’s Circle Capital, Uncork Capital and TransLink Capital.
