Every day, Global University Venturing rounds up the smaller investments from across the university innovation ecosystem in its deal net.
Aspen Neuroscience, a US-based cell therapy developer targeting Parkinson’s disease on the back of Scripps Research Institute work, has formally debuted with $6.5m in seed cash co-led by Domain Associates and Axon Ventures. Alexandria Venture Investments – the strategic investment division of life sciences real estate investment trust Alexandria Real Estate Equities – took part in the round, as did Arch Venture Partners, OrbiMed and Section 32. The company’s approach focuses on pluripotent stem cells which are extracted from the patient’s skin and then differentiated into dopamine-releasing neurons before being transplanted back into the body, restoring Parkinson’s-depleted nerve activity without triggering its defensive immune response. Aspen Neuroscience progresses research undertaken by Jeanne Loring, founding director of the Center for Regenerative Medicine, and her former post-doctoral researcher Andres Bratt-Leal.
VividQ, a UK-based 3D holographic display software developer, has increased its seed round to £3.4m ($4.4m) with additional contributions from investors including University of Tokyo’s Edge Capital (Utec) unit, according to UKTechNews. The $3.1m extension also included Fluxunit Osram Ventures, an investment arm of lighting product maker Osram, and undisclosed existing angel investors, following the initial $1.3m close led by Sure Valley Ventures earlier in 2019. VividQ’s software is designed to facilitate 3D holographic displays for consumer electronic devices and other applications. The capital will help build VividQ’s manufacturing industry partnerships to aid adoption of its software in the run up to the first iteration of VividQ-powered devices launching in 2020.
Novosound, a UK-based ultrasound film technology developer spun out of University of the West of Scotland (UWS), has attracted £3.3m ($4.3m) in a round involving the university. The round was led by the corporate-backed Foresight Williams Technology EIS Fund, which also leveraged the state-backed Scottish Growth Fund under its management. Scottish Investment Bank helped fill out the round alongside Par Equity, Kelvin Capital and Gabriel Investments. Founded in 2018 by then-UWS research fellow David Hughes, Novosound is working on ultrasound-powered sensors that rely on a bespoke thin film material for enhanced resolution and stability. The sensors will initially be used for non-destructive industrial testing but could be remoulded, in time, to meet healthcare and wearable applications. The capital will go to match funding a Scottish Enterprise R&D grant and targeting expansion into new geographies and industries.
C2Amps, a Sweden-based nano-transistor technology spinout of Lund University, has obtained more than €315,000 ($337,000) from the university’s LU Holding unit and Almi Invest, the VC arm of Swedish government-owned business development arm Almi Företagspartner, according to Øresund Startups. The spinout hopes to launch energy-efficient transistors within two-to-three years, employing nano-wiring advances to offer cost and performance gains geared towards components for radars and communications networks. C2Amps will invest the capital in delivering the first prototype of its technology, which builds on inventions from Lund University’s Department of Nanoelectronics.
