News
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Portal Innovations launches fund and incubator for spinouts in Utah
Woodbine Labs will support spinouts from local institutions like the University of Utah and Brigham Young University.
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University of Algiers 3 launches Algeria’s first university venture fund
The University of Algiers 3 Financial Investment Company will have DZD188.8 million at its disposal.
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Waseda University lays groundwork for impact venture capital fund
Waseda University Impact Capital will focus on the humanities and social sciences, and will operate alongside existing Waseda University Ventures.
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Czech Academy of Sciences forms subsidiary to double down on spinouts
The subsidiary is co-owned by an initial eight institutes within the Czech Academy of Sciences, with aims to sign up more of the total 54 institutes.
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Rich Ferrie leaves Royal Veterinary College for Babraham Research Campus
Rich Ferrie is moving on from the RVC’s London Bioscience Innovation Centre after four years to become CEO of the Babraham Research Campus.
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Algeria unveils national spinout register, maps 388 startups at launch
Following the UK’s example, Algeria has launched a national register of spinouts with 388 already mapped across the country.
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East Carolina University promotes Sharon Paynter to senior vice provost for research and innovation
Sharon Paynter has worked for East Carolina University for more than 16 years, including in senior leadership roles for research and innovation.
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Inven2 brings in Hans Vassgård Eid to double down on investments
Hans Vassgård Eid’s appointment comes half a year after the tech transfer office Inven2 helped launch a life sciences investment fund.
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Helsinki Innovation Services CEO Marko Hakovirta set to leave in six months
Helsinki Innovation Services’ chief executive officer, Marko Hakovirta, will become president of the Metropolia University of Applied Sciences.
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King Saud University launches $20 million early-stage venture fund
The King Saud University Venture Fund has been co-created by the university’s investment arm, Riyadh Valley Company, and will be managed by SparkLabs.
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Amanda Selvaratnam joins York St John University to lead knowledge exchange
Amanda Selvaratnam has spent the past 27 years at the University of York, most recently as associate director of research and enterprise and head of enterprise services.
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Utah appoints Jamie Dwyer chief innovation officer, Bruce Hunter moves to Tecnológico de Monterrey
Jamie Dwyer succeeds Bruce Hunter at the University of Utah, as the former becomes chief innovation officer at the Tecnológico de Monterrey.
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UNSW Sydney launches two spinout investment funds
The university is committing A$35 million to two funds, with High Street Ventures targeting a A$100 million close.
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Rosie Bennett returns to SETsquared as interim executive director
Rosie Bennett had worked for SETsquared from 2017 to 2022, and later followed former colleague Simon Bond to Bristol Innovations.
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UM Ventures elevates Felicia Metz to director
Felicia Metz has worked for the University of Maryland for more than 24 years and is also joining the AUTM board of directors this month.
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Tulsa promotes Chris Wright to assistant VP for innovation and entrepreneurship
Chris Wright was previously the director of the University of Tulsa’s Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship for three years.
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KAUST names Izaro Lopez Garcia interim director of technology transfer
Izaro Lopez Garcia joined the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology as head of technology development three years ago.
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IIT Madras launches ₹6 billion deep tech fund
IIT Madras has joined forces with Unicorn India Ventures to launch a deep tech fund that aims to invest in more than 25 companies.
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University of Klagenfurt establishes TTO led by Harald Jenull
The Austrian university has launched a technology transfer office and recruited commercialisation expert Harald Jenull as founding director.
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Vanderbilt recruits Susan Margulies as VP for research and innovation
Susan Margulies succeeds Padma Raghavan, who became Vanderbilt’s executive director for science and technology strategy last summer.
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Monique Simair to lead Saskatchewan’s Slogotski Hunt Centre for Entrepreneurship
The Slogotski Hunt Centre for Entrepreneurship supports faculty and students across the University of Saskatchewan.
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UKRI releases report into deepening university-investor links
The review, released today, was written by Tony Hickson and makes four sets of recommendations, including a significant boost to preseed funding.
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City St George’s promotes Ian Gibbs to head of IP and commercialisation
Ian Gibbs has worked for City St George’s, University of London since 2017, having served as the head of academic enterprise since 2018.
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Melissa Mail joins Macquarie as director of research ventures and investment
Melissa Mail was previously the head of commercialisation at the Children’s Medical Institute, and has also worked for Uniseed.
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UC Berkeley Chancellor’s Fund quietly kicks off fundraising
The fund, launched in June last year, has secured its initial capitalisation.
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NJIT promotes Ike Nwabufo to director of technology transfer
Ike Nwabufo has been with the New Jersey Institute of Technology since April 2024, and will now oversee the full lifecycle of intellectual property.
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Justin Burns promoted to chief innovation officer at Georgia Research Alliance
Justin Burns has taken on the new role in addition to his duties as vice president for innovation and entrepreneurship.
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Melbourne’s director of commercialisation Ruth Park-Jones joins Monash
Ruth Park-Jones has been director of commercialisation at the University of Melbourne since 2023, having joined the institution in 2007.
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ZOHO.VC achieves first close for Nuremberg-based fund
ZOHO.VC is the investment fund of Zollhof, the incubator-turned-startup-factory affiliated with the Friedrich-Alexander University of Erlangen–Nuremberg.
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Fraunhofer’s TT49 achieves €72 million first close
TT49 is the successor to the Fraunhofer Technology Transfer Fund and has a target size of €90 million.
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Swedish government puts SEK40 million into university holding companies
Sweden’s university holding companies act as the commercialisation and investment arm of their respective institutions.
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Montana Children’s Health secures €30 million to commercialise paediatric healthcare research
The vehicle is the first to receive a capital commitment through the EIF and Madrid government’s Innvierte Technology Transfer & Deep-Tech fund of funds.
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Neil Veloso joins Nationwide Children’s Hospital as VP for innovation and technology commercialisation
Neil Veloso is the new vice president for innovation and technology commercialisation at Nationwide Children’s Hospital, joining from Brown Technology Innovations.
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Tulane-focused 1834 Ventures raises $10 million
Launched in August last year, Tulane University-focused 1834 Ventures is now halfway towards its $20 million target.
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Mila partners with Inovia Capital for Venture Scientist Fund
The fund, in development since October last year, will invest in early-stage AI technologies and physical infrastructure developers.
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Brad Burke retires after 25 years with Rice University
Brad Burke will step down at the end of June, bringing to a close more than two decades of leading entrepreneurship activities at Rice University.
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Wisconsin Entrepreneurship Hub hires Lewis Sheats as inaugural executive director
Lewis Sheats has worked in academic entrepreneurship for more than two decades, and comes to UW-Madison from Saint Louis University.
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Epidarex secures £50 million from British Business Bank for new fund
Epidarex Capital focuses on early-stage life sciences spinouts from medical research institutions in the US and the UK.
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Austria inches closer to spinout fund of funds
The Austrian government has released its industrial strategy with 114 action points, including a commitment to a fund of funds to bolster spinouts.
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University of Bristol hires SETsquared’s Marty Reid as director of innovation
Marty Reid is currently the executive director of enterprise partnership SETsquared, of which the University of Bristol is a member.
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Aberdeen appoints Lucy Leiper as interim head of innovation, seeks permanent director
The University of Aberdeen has named Lucy Leiper as interim director of research and innovation.
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Walter Copan, VP for research and technology transfer at the Colorado School of Mines, steps down
Walter Copan has been with the Colorado School of Mines since 2021 and will step down at the end of February 2026 to focus on his family.
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Penn joins BioNTech and OUP to launch $50 million PxB Fund
The Penn-BioNTech Innovative Therapeutics Seed Fund follows the announcement of Penn’s $10 million StartUP Fund last month.
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Osage University Partners promotes Stockman, Miri and Grafstrom
Manny Stockman has been promoted to managing partner, while Mitra Miri is now a partner, and Beth Grafstrom is the senior VP of finance.
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Shashank Priya joins Michigan State University as vice president for research and innovation
Michigan State University is bringing in Shashank Priya to succeed Douglas Gage as vice president for research and innovation.
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Ohio University’s director of tech transfer Bob Silva retires
Bob Silva, the director of technology transfer at Ohio University for the past fifteen years, is taking a six-month leave ahead of his retirement in June.
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Kangwon National University receives state capital for new fund
Kangwon National University Technology Holding, the Korean institution’s commercialisation arm, will work with Trigger Investment Partners.
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Adelaide University opens its doors with Michelle Perugini heading tech transfer
Michelle Perugini has joined the newly established Adelaide University, the result of a merger between two institutions, to lead commercialisation.
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Cheryl Horst made permanent executive director of NUtech Ventures
Cheryl Horst has been serving in an interim capacity since July last year, and has worked for NUtech Ventures for more than sixteen years.
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PSV Hafnium closes €60 million fund
The fund was launched in 2024 with an initial €55 million and a hard cap of €80 million, closing at the lower end of the scale.
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Harvard promotes Sam Liss to succeed Isaac Kohlberg
Sam Liss has been appointed chief technology development officer and associate provost at Harvard University, where he will succeed Isaac Kohlberg.
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Trent University names Tana Allen vice president for research and innovation
Tana Allen has been appointed vice president for research and innovation at Trent University, and will take on her new role next autumn.
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University of Manchester is quietly raising a pre-seed fund
The University of Manchester already has a stake in Northern Gritstone but is in the process of raising a separate pre-seed fund.
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QUBIS appoints Marina Donohoe as its next CEO
Marina Donohoe will succeed Brian McCaul, who announced his decision to step down earlier this year.
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Penn launches $10 million StartUP Fund
The University of Pennsylvania has long resisted launching its own venture fund, but has now announced a $10 million investment fund for spinouts.
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Cindy Klein Marmer made permanent director of the Blank Center
She has served as interim executive director of Babson College’s entrepreneurship hub since last year, and her role is now permanent.
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Kevin Gardner, Stony Brook’s VP for research and innovation, steps down
Kevin Gardner, the vice president for research and innovation at Stony Brook University, will step down by the end of the year to return to teaching.
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CWRU promotes Michael Oakes to executive VP for research and economic development
Michael Oakes joined Case Western Reserve University as the senior vice president for research and technology management over three years ago.
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Mikkel Sørensen steps down from DTU Skylab to focus on SkyFactory
After twelve years with TU Denmark’s innovation hub Skylab, Mikkel Sørensen is putting his focus on the new DTU SkyFactory.
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IIT Bombay creates ₹2.5 billion Y Point Venture Capital Fund
The Y Point Venture Capital Fund will primarily invest in early-stage, deeptech IIT Bombay spinouts, but also back startups from other institutions.
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Cambridge tasks Roland Sinker with inclusive innovation review
Roland Sinker will lead a review into the delivery of inclusive innovation and growth for the University of Cambridge over the next year.
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U2V launches €60 million fund targeting European spinouts
University2Ventures has been set up by the partners of Earlybird X, which launched in 2021 to similarly invest in university spinoffs.
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Fitz Gate closes Fund III anchored by Rice’s Office of Innovation
Rice University’s Office of Innovation is one of the anchor investors in Fitz Gate’s Fund III, which has brought the firm’s AuM to around $70 million.
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NZ Innovation Booster adds the University of Auckland to LPs
NZ Innovation Booster started at Wellington UniVentures, before partnering with Otago Innovation, and now Auckland UniServices.
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Alexander Khalessi promoted to chief innovation officer at UC San Diego Health
Alexander Khalessi is the current chair of neurological surgery and a professor of surgery, radiology and neurosciences at UC San Diego Health.
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Tanarra Capital explores fund of funds for spinouts
Tanarra Capital currently manages the University of Melbourne’s Tin Alley Ventures and is keen to expand its focus on university startups.
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Fudan University launches two funds, worth a combined $242 million
The Chinese university has set up a CN¥1 billion fund and a $100 million vehicle in order to significantly bolster its innovation ecosystem.
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Michelle Chrétien joins Toronto Metropolitan University to oversee commercialisation
Michelle Chrétien has been appointed assistant vice-president, research partnerships and commercialisation, at the Toronto Metropolitan University.
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TNO Ventures backs Keen’s Defense & Safety Fund
The commercialisation arm of Dutch applied research organisation TNO is making its fourteenth LP commitment.
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University of Eastern Finland bets on local funds to supercharge commercialisation
The University of Eastern Finland is increasing its support for spinouts by backing only funds with a focus on the regional innovation ecosystem.
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UTokyo IPC closes the ASA Fund, backs Red 1 Healthcare
UTokyo Innovation Platform has achieved a final close of its Academic Startup Acceleration Fund, and concurrently made an LP investment in the Red 1 Healthcare fund.
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Ball State University hires Bette Smith to run the Center for Innovation and Collaboration
Bette Smith will serve as director of Ball State University’s new Center for Innovation and Collaboration from January.
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Dedric Carter moves to UNC Health Care System
Dedric Carter will move into his new system-wide role next month, having served as chief innovation officer of UNC-Chapel Hill since 2023.
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University of Waikato recruits Callaghan Innovation’s Florian Spoerl
Florian Spoerl, currently the chief product officer Callaghan Innovation, will become Waikato’s director of commercial and business partnerships.
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Polytechnique Montréal brings in Luc Paquet to head its new Lassonde Deeptech Institute
Luc Paquet is returning to work for a university, having led tech transfer offices TransfertTech Sherbrooke and Univalor earlier in his career.
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Dutch universities launch standard IP agreement
The National IP Deal Term Principles were developed and will be used by all technology transfer offices in the country going forward.
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Qbic promotes Sara Vandenwijngaert to chief scientific director
Qbic, a venture fund backed by multiple Belgian universities, is introducing the position of chief scientific director and appoints Sara Vandenwijngaert.
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Entertech VCIF launches to back Turkish startups
The fund has been created by Entertech Istanbul Technopark, which is owned by Istanbul University and Istanbul University-Cerrahpaşa.
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New Zealand introduces professor’s privilege
Significant changes in national IP policy, which also include pre-defined equity stakes, are expected to lead to more spinouts.
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Zuzana Paulovics leaves CUIP after police intervention
Zuzana Paulovics has left her role as chairwoman of Charles University Innovations Prague after just a little over five months.
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Dan Geller is put in charge of Innovation Gateway’s Startup Program
The University of Georgia’s Dan Geller assumed his new role as director last month, having previously served as assistant director of the Startup Program.
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Hanoi targets first university spinout by year’s end
Hanoi aims to produce its first university spinout by year-end after the central government issued clear enabling regulations.
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ASTP report paints complex picture of knowledge transfer metrics
A report published by an ASTP working group outlines the often vastly different data points collected through national surveys.
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UNSW Canberra backs the ACTivate Capital Fund
The ACTivate Capital Fund was set up by the government of the Australian Capital Territory to invest in startups and spinouts in Canberra.
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University of the Philippines Los Baños restructures innovation infrastructure
Haerold Dean Z. Layaoen will lead the new Office of the Vice Chancellor for Innovation and Enterprise Management at the University of the Philippines Los Baños.
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MSU Technologies promotes Brian Wright to executive director
Brian Wright has been chosen to succeed his former boss Anne DiSante, who retired earlier this year.
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Uniseed brings in Alastair Hick as its new CEO
Alastair Hick, currently the chief commercialisation officer of Monash University, will take over from Peter Devine.
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Michelle Cote will lead UConn’s Werth Institute
Michelle Cote has been named interim director of the Peter J Werth Institute for Entrepreneurship and Innovation at the University of Connecticut.
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Breakthrough Victoria backs the SYNthesis BioVentures Fund I
Created by Monash University’s Prof Andrew Wilks, the SYNthesis BioVentures Fund I works with Australian research institutes to scale their spinouts.
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William Kirkland picked to helm South Carolina Research Authority
The former executive of the University of South Carolina’s Office of Economic Engagement will run the South Carolina Research Authority.
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Polytechnique Ventures secures €21 million for second fund
The École Polytechnique-aligned fund has a final target of €30 million to €40 million, which would roughly double its assets under management.
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Cicada Innovations picks Liza Noonan as CEO
Liza Noonan is currently the executive director of Investment NSW, and she will succeed Sally-Ann Williams.
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Cleveland Clinic and Khosla Ventures cooperate on venture creation
Cleveland Clinic and Khosla Ventures have inked a partnership that will see the two collaborate on spinout creation.
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Karen Deak made permanent executive director of IDEA Center
Karen Deak has been executive director of the University of Notre Dame’s IDEA Center in an interim capacity since September 2024.
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Allison Markova to head tech transfer at the URI Research Foundation
Allison Markova is the new director of technology transfer and innovation partnerships at the University of Rhode Island Research Foundation.
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University of Arkansas promotes tech transfer leader David Hinton
David Hinton, the executive director of Technology Ventures since 2023, is now associate vice chancellor for research and innovation.
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Mireya McKee to run Innovate Carolina’s New Ventures and Partnerships group
Mireya McKee has been appointed interim director of the New Ventures and Partnerships group within UNC at Chapel Hill’s innovation unit.
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University of Dubai launches deep tech fund
The AED100 million Dubai Tech X Fund will invest in deep tech and AI spinouts in an effort to bolster the regional innovation ecosystem.
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University of British Columbia’s Gail Murphy will step down in spring
The University of British Columbia’s vice president for research and innovation, Gail Murphy, will step down after nine years in the role.
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IIMA Ventures launches the Aerospace & Defence Acceleration Fund
IIMA Ventures, the innovation arm of IIM Ahmedabad, has partnered with Jaivel Aerospace to create a fund that will back up to ten startups.
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Hong Kong University of Science and Technology launches new fund
The Gobi-Redbird Innovation Fund has secured the backing of the government-owned Hong Kong Investment Corporation.
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Malaysia puts spinout focus into state budget
Among the initiatives is a fund and a policy to allow faculty members to take a year-long sabbatical to commercialise their research.
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Karim Bahou joins Manchester innovation district Sister
Karim Bahou has been appointed head of innovation at Sister, a joint initiative of the University of Manchester and Bruntwood SciTech.
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Mila explores the launch of a venture fund
The AI-focused research institute in Quebec has brought in corporate VC expertise to help develop the fund.
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University of the Virgin Islands promotes Nelson Pizarro
The University of the Virgin Islands has promoted Nelson Pizarro to assistant vice president for entrepreneurship and economic development.
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Alan Rowan joins Wollongong to lead innovation
Alan Rowan will join the University of Wollongong in January, moving on from the University of Queensland after a decade.
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Concordia names Emad Shihab AVP of research, policy, entrepreneurship, and impact
Emad Shihab will step into his new duties as associate vice president of research, policy, entrepreneurship and impact on 1 November.
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Wayne State University promotes two for innovation roles
Matthew Allen is the new assistant vice president for research and innovation, while Jessica Back also joins the Division of Research and Innovation.
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Cambodia finalises national university IP policy
The Southeast Asian kingdom has unveiled a national IP policy for universities developed in collaboration with the UN and the EU.
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Sugar Free Capital secures $32 million to back MIT founders
The firm was launched by Sheena Jindal, an alumna of MIT who was previously a partner at Comcast Ventures for three years.
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Rice Alliance hires John Reale as managing director
John Reale will report to associate vice president Brad Burke, and will oversee startup and investor engagement.
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Universities in Jena launch joint tech transfer centre
JenaInnovation is a joint project of the Friedrich Schiller University Jena, the University of Applied Sciences Jena, and University Hospital Jena.
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Oliver Schmitz takes on entrepreneurship role at UW-Madison
Oliver Schmitz has been appointed the inaugural associate dean for corporate engagement and entrepreneurship at the College of Engineering.
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Marcus Burgess joins Florida A&M University to head innovation
Florida A&M University has brought in Marcus Burgess as senior vice president of enterprise partnerships and innovation.
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Creator Fund raises $41 million for pan-European fund
The venture fund targets startups built by PhD students, and Creator Fund is targeting a $55 million final close by early 2026.
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UH Ventures promotes Kipum Lee to president
UH Ventures has selected Kipum Lee as its new president, succeeding David Sylvan, who will focus on his role with University Hospitals itself.
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Brian McNicoll leaves the University of Dundee
The university’s head of entrepreneurship is stepping down after thirteen years with the Scottish institution.
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Stockholm universities launch Trio Impact Invest
Karolinska Institute, KTH Royal Institute of Technology and Stockholm University have joined forces to launch an early-stage venture fund.
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Missouri Innovation Center brings in Charlie Bolten as CEO
Charlie Bolten is the new president and chief executive officer of the Missouri Innovation Center, a startup hub affiliated with the University of Missouri.
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Ohio State University selects John Horack to lead innovation
John Horack, the university’s Neil Armstrong Chair in Aerospace Policy, will become vice president for research next week.
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Lindsay DiStefano assumes innovation role at UConn
The University of Connecticut has named Lindsay DiStefano interim vice president for research, innovation, and entrepreneurship.
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Kenya draws up plans for $100 million commercialisation fund
The Kenya National Innovation Agency is looking to raise $100 million fund to accelerate research commercialisation into spinouts.
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Robert Langer, prolific MIT spinout founder, launches $77.5 million fund
T.Rx Capital has closed its inaugural fund at $77.5 million to build and invest in healthcare startups, with Langer’s son also among the firm’s co-founders.
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James Hotaling named inaugural chief innovation officer for University of Utah Health
James Hotaling’s promotion comes after he played an instrumental role in launching University of Utah Ventures.
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NUS Enterprise further expands VC ecosystem
The National University of Singapore’s innovation arm has partnered with SG Growth Capital and Lotus One to put more money into spinouts and funds.
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Next Ventures inks strategic partnership with OHSU
The venture capital firm has closed its second fund at $60 million and signed a strategic deal with Oregon Health & Science University.
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Venture Investors Health Fund raises $80 million to back spinouts
Venture Investors Health Fund has secured $80 million to invest in spinouts from institutions such as the University of Michigan.
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University of Utah launches $200 million fund
Named University of Utah Ventures, powered by Epic, the fund is managed by Epic Ventures and will invest in founders from the university’s ecosystem.
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Binghamton reveals Jitendra Jain as the director of its TTO
Jitendra Jain joined the university in July, but Binghamton has only now released an announcement naming him director of its tech transfer office.
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Caroline Aruoja takes over leadership of TalTech’s TTO
Caroline Aruoja started in the new job this week, having previously led the Estonian university’s Startup Centre.
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Tech transfer office Inven2 helps launch Aleap Ventures
The University of Oslo’s tech transfer office Inven2 is among the investors in Aleap Ventures, which will invest in life sciences spinouts.
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Origgin Ventures targets Japanese spinouts with $30 million fund
The Singapore-based venture firm has set its sights on Fukuoka and is partnering with local investor Interuniversity Ventures to run the fund.
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Langis Roy named vice president of research and innovation at Lakehead University
Langis Roy joins Canada’s Lakehead University to craft a new research strategy, boost industry ties, and explore AI-driven entrepreneurship.
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Paul Cherukuri leaves Rice University for the University of Virginia
Paul Cherukuri, the vice president for innovation and chief innovation officer at Rice University, will join the University of Virginia in October.
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NCInnovation CEO Bennet Waters reveals intention to step down
Bennet Waters has led NCInnovation, which provides commercialisation support to North Carolina’s public universities, since April 2022.
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Virginia universities create standard fast-track startup licence
All six research-intensive institutions in the US state have signed up to the Lab-to-Launch initiative, aiming to double the number of spinouts annually.
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Aarhus launches Delphinus Venture Capital
Aarhus University Research Foundation has partnered with Heartland, Norlys, and Salling Group to launch the evergreen fund.
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1834 Ventures launches to support Tulane startups with $20 million
1834 Ventures is not affiliated with Tulane University but is working closely with the Tulane Innovation Institute and the Tulane Venture Fund.
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Portal Innovations kicks off $100 million Velocity Fund
Portal Innovations, established by John Flavin who previously set up the Polsky Center, partners with institutions like UChicago to support spinouts.
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UChicago’s Polsky Center sets up new venture development team
Dev Gavaskar and Alyssa Master have been recruited by the Polsky Center to work with another recent hire, Heather Walsh, on setting up more startups.
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Nick McNaughton hands over the reins to Ken Mahon at Campus Plus
The organisation, co-founded by Nick McNaughton six years ago, will now be led by interim CEO Ken Mahon.
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Michael Poisel takes on leadership role at the Melbourne Entrepreneurial Centre
Michael Poisel, who stepped down as executive director of PCI Ventures after more than 16 years in April, will now lead the MEC.
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Michael Burtov joins Nova Southeastern University as chief innovation officer
Michael Burtov has been appointed chief innovation officer at the private university, and will also serve as executive director of the Levan Center of Innovation.
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Medical University of South Carolina launches two funds totalling $30 million
The $20 million 1824 Health Ventures Fund I and the $10 million South Carolina Health Innovation Fund will both be managed by Bob Crutchfield.
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Mandy Parkinson takes on knowledge exchange role at the University of Salford
Prof Mandy Parkinson has been appointed associate pro vice chancellor for knowledge exchange at the University of Salford.
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University of Melbourne promotes Hun Gan to executive director for commercialisation
Hun Guan has been with the University of Melbourne since 2018 and has led both Genesis Ventures and the Genesis Pre-Seed Fund.
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James Zanewicz leaves Tulane after a decade to become Connect CEO
The move marks the conclusion of more than two decades in university innovation for James Zanewicz, who was most recently Tulane School of Medicine’s chief strategy officer.
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University of Southern Mississippi promotes Natalie Guess to assistant director
Natalie Guess, innovation and entrepreneurship programme manager at USM’s Office of Innovation Management, is promoted to assistant director.
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CIC launches £250 million Fund III, commits £100 million to Cambridge spinouts
Cambridge Innovation Capital will put at least £100 million into University of Cambridge spinouts as part of its third fund.
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Monash University launches A$15 million Pre-Seed Fund
Monash University has established Monash Ventures, which will manage the new A$15 million Pre-Seed Fund backed by Breakthrough Victoria.
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Vojtěch Malina steps down as head of tech transfer at Charles University
Vojtěch Malina is leaving Charles University’s tech transfer office after just over a year of being in charge.
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UCL Business managing director Steven Schooling steps down
Steven Schooling, who has been with University College London’s commercialisation subsidiary since 2006, is leaving today.
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Sally-Ann Williams bids farewell to Cicada Innovations
Sally-Ann Williams stepped down as chief executive officer of Cicada Innovations today after six years at the helm of the Australian incubator.
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University of Adelaide promotes Michael Goodsite
Michael Goodsite, managing director of the university’s commercialisation arm Innovation & Commercial Partners, has been promoted to pro vice chancellor for research services and infrastructure.
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Jill Kravetz will lead Harvard Innovation Labs
Jill Kravetz has been named the Bruce and Bridgitt Evans executive director of Harvard University’s entrepreneurship unit.
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Brandon Capital collects A$439 million for sixth fund
Australasian life sciences VC Brandon Capital has a partnership with more than 50 research institutions that provide access to deals.
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Michigan State University unveils $10 million fund
The university is doubling down on its partnership with Henry Ford Health to create a $10 million fund and innovation hub.
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Colleen Fitzgerald moves to Hofstra University
Colleen Fitzgerald will become Hofstra’s inaugural senior vice provost for research and creative activities, joining from North Dakota State University.
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Catherine Lafarge appointed interim president of Linksium
Linksium is one of France’s regional tech transfer organisations, Réseau SATT, and Lafarge had previously served as deputy CEO.
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National University of Singapore commits S$150 million to venture capital initiative
NUS is putting a third of the money into existing VC firms, while the bulk will go into a new university venture fund.
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Korea Institute of Science and Technology launches new innovation subsidiary
KIST Innovation will focus on the full spectrum of commercialisation, ranging from IP management to startup and corporate support to investments.
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Vanessa Wood leaves knowledge transfer role at ETH Zurich
Vanessa Wood, vice president for knowledge transfer and corporate relations at ETH Zurich, will step down at the end of the year to focus on her research full time.
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UTEC unveils Fund 6, reaches AuM of more than $1 billion
University of Tokyo Edge Capital Partners has raised ¥47 billion ($326 million) for its sixth fund, its largest to date.
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Brian McCaul steps down as chief executive of QUBIS
Brian McCaul will leave his role at QUBIS, the commercialisation arm of Queen’s University Belfast, at the end of this year after more a decade in charge.
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Greg Cook returns to Otago for innovation role
The University of Otago has appointed Greg Cook as deputy vice chancellor for research and innovation, bringing him back to the institution after a year.
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Moran Zilbershtein joins TAU Ventures as general partner
TAU Ventures, the university venture fund of Tel Aviv University, has brought in Moran Zilbershtein as a general partner.
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Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology gains ₩12 billion fund
The fund was created by the Ministry of SMEs and Startups and Korea Venture Investment, with the South Korean government providing half of the capital.
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Catalio closes Nexus Fund IV with $400 million
Catalio Capital Management specialises in launching and investing in life sciences spinouts through a network of researchers that act as venture partners.
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Stevens Institute of Technology hires Shintaro Kaido
Shintaro Kaido will oversee technology transfer at the Stevens Institute of Technology.
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Quin Chang joins Care Economy CRC leadership
Quin Chang was the director for enterprise development at La Trobe University for the past three years and is the immediate past chair of Knowledge Commercialisation Australasia.
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Simon Bond moves to the University of Bath
Simon Bond, currently the director of Bristol Innovations, will oversee the development of the Bath Riverside Innovation Quarter.
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Chalmers Ventures appoints Jenny Dahlberg as CFO
Jenny Dahlberg succeeds Emma Siljeäng, who stepped down earlier this week after a decade working for the Swedish university venture fund..
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Padma Raghavan takes on newly established role at Vanderbilt University
Padma Raghavan will move into the newly created position of executive director for science and technology strategy at Vanderbilt University next week.
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David O’Neill departs from FACIT
David O’Neill had been president of oncology-focused commercialisation firm Fight Against Cancer Innovation Trust since 2018. Peter Goodhand replaces him.
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Emma Siljeäng leaves Chalmers Ventures after a decade
Chalmers Ventures CFO Emma Siljeäng stepped down today, having been with the university venture fund since its inception in 2015.
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Northern Gritstone and Parkwalk Advisors team up for the Northern Universities Venture Fund
Parkwalk Advisors, which already has more than £500 million under management, will manage a new fund in partnership with Northern Gritstone.
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Harvard’s Isaac Kohlberg will retire at the end of 2025
Isaac Kohlberg, who’s been the senior associate provost and chief technology development officer at Harvard University since 2005, will retire later this year.
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Garden State Venture Partners formed to manage the Rowan Innovation Venture Fund
The shake-up will see the fund’s management team grow to three people, with Michael Connallon Jr and Shawn Hill joining existing manager Ernie Holtzheimer.
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Biotope Ventures reaches €5 million first close for Fund II
Biotope Ventures, the accelerator and investment arm for Belgian research institute VIB, has raised €5 million towards a €9 million goal for its second fund.
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Liam Cronin hired as the new innovation director at University College Dublin
Cronin was most recently the chief executive officer of digital innovation centre RDI Hub and he succeeds Tom Flanagan, who left in October last year.
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Peter Devine will leave Uniseed by the end of 2025
Peter Devine, the chief executive of Australian university venture fund Uniseed is stepping down at the end of this year.
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SETsquared Bristol promotes Caroline Thompson
Caroline Thompson had been a programme manager at the SETsquared Partnership since last year and brings more than a decade of experience to her new role.
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The Berkeley Chancellor’s Fund is a unique UC Berkeley approach to venture capital
The Berkeley Chancellor’s Fund will be wholly owned by the UC regents, operating as a philanthropic model that will donate all returns to the university.
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Kanazawa University achieves close for Vision Incubate
Vision Incubate, a venture firm wholly owned by Kanazawa University in Japan, has closed its VI-1 fund with ¥2 billion thanks to LPs including UTokyo IPC.
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Longview Innovation joins Anzu, forming the North America University Innovations Fund
Longview Innovation is joining forces with Anzu Partners and launching the North America University Innovations Fund.
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Charles University Innovations Prague finds new chairwoman in Zuzana Paulovics
Zuzana Paulovics is the new chairwoman of Charles University’s technology transfer arm, replacing Otomar Sláma.
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Cancer Focus Fund targets $250m for second vehicle
The Cancer Focus Fund is affiliated with the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center and is targeting about five times as much cash for Fund II.
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Christine Karslake to run innovation at Missouri S&T
Missouri University of Science and Technology is bringing Christine Karslake on board to oversee innovation, entrepreneurship and commercialisation efforts.
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Harper Court Ventures brings $25 million to startups from the University of Chicago
Spinouts from the University of Chicago will have access to a new $25 million venture fund launched today by MFV Partners.
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Virginia Tech promotes Brandy Salmon to vice president for innovation and partnerships
Virginia Tech today announced Brandy Salmon is to be the university’s inaugural vice president for innovation and partnerships.
