Western Europe
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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 €72m first close
TT49 is the successor to the Fraunhofer Technology Transfer Fund and has a target size of €90 million.
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Montana Children’s Health secures €30m 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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Epidarex secures £50m 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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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 director of innovation
The University of Aberdeen has named Lucy Leiper as interim director of research and innovation.
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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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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 €60m 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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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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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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Polytechnique Ventures secures €21m 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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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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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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Creator Fund raises $41m 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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Empowering academic founders: policies, programmes, and pitfalls
How can universities instil the entrepreneurial mindset in faculty, staff and students? Is this even something you can teach? And if you can, what are some of the challenges and pitfalls? Figuring out the answers to these questions, and more, is a panel of experts from around the world: Kirsty Collinge, the head of research strategy at the University of Edinburgh; Linda Koschier, the head of entrepreneurship at the University of New South Wales’ Faculty of Engineering; Koenraad Debackere, the executive director of KU Leuven Research & Development; and Paul Cheek, a senior lecturer at the MIT Sloan School of…
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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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Friday Five: VR glaucoma scans, heat-powered sensors, and 3D‑printing space trash into tools
Spinouts turn waste, thermal energy and VR tech into sustainable solutions for industry, space, and healthcare.
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Friday Five: Stop metastasis, sync fleets, sterilise surfaces
Block Biosciences, FleetMQ, Molecular Sustainable Solutions, OnTracx, and TransHumanity make up this week’s selection of spinouts to watch.
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Friday Five: Agate Sensors, Detechgene, Data Revival, SenseAI Vision, xCystence Bio
The Friday Five series is back after the summer break, and we’re kicking things off with an array of spinouts that just so happen to all be operating within the life sciences.
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Portal Innovations kicks off $100m 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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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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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.
