Managers

Florida to lift in-state tech-investment fund to $1 bln

Disruption teams up with The Big Push to fund women-led startups

Canadian women-focused venture capital firm Disruption Ventures has agreed to partner with The Big Push to provide women-led technology startups with access to expert resources and early-stage financing. The initiative will see Disruption invest $500,000 to $2 million in seed-stage or Series A financings of startups working with The Big Push, a Canadian accelerator focused on female entrepreneurs. Based in Toronto, The Big Push is led by senior executives who help prepare women founders for investment through a service-for-equity model. As reported by PE Hub Canada, Disruption recently closed its debut deal, investing in vacation-rentals software provider Hostfully.

The next Theranos is when, not if

Astarte Medical scores $5 mln Series A

Yardley, Pennsylvania-based Astarte Medical, a precision medicine company using software and predictive analytics to improve premature infant outcomes, has secured $5 million in Series A financing. The investors included Viking Global Investors LP, Lunsford Capital, OCA Ventures, Keiretsu Forum MidAtlantic, Keiretsu Capital Fund, Ben Franklin Technology Partners, Wing VC and Next Act Fund.

MIT Solve targets $30 mln for fund

MIT Solve, an initiative of Massachusetts Institute of Technology, is seeking to raise $30 million for its new philanthropic venture fund that focuses on early-stage entrepreneurs solving global challenges. Noubar Afeyan, founder and CEO of Flagship Pioneering and MIT Corporation member, is committing up to $3 million to the fund.

Radical Ventures unveils $350 mln AI-focused fund

Radical Ventures has launched a $350 million fund focused mostly on artificial intelligence. The fund's limited partners include Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, the Public Sector Pension Investment Board, TD Bank Group and Wittington Investments Limited.

Precise dosage vaporizer Indose locks in $3.5 mln Series A

Indose, a precise dosage vaporizer, has raised $3.5 million in Series A funding. Casa Verde Capital led the round.

Repair Biotechnologies procures $2.15 mln seed

Syracuse, New York-based Repair Biotechnologies Inc has secured $2.15 million in seed funding. Jim Mellon, the billionaire investor and chairman of Juvenescence Ltd, led the round with participation from Emerging Longevity Ventures, Thynk Capital and SENS Research Foundation.

GV leads Series A round for Verve Therapeutics

Cambridge, Massachusetts-based Verve Therapeutics, a next-generation cardiovascular company, has raised $58.5 million in Series A funding. GV led the round with participation from ARCH Venture Partners, F-Prime Capital and Biomatics Capital.

CPPIB, PSP anchor launch of Radical Ventures' $470 mln AI fund

Radical Ventures, a Canadian venture capital firm focused on artificial intelligence (AI), has launched a new fund with a target of about $470 million (US$350 million). The fund's cornerstone limited partners include Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB), Public Sector Pension Investment Board (PSP Investments), TD Bank Group and Wittington Investments Ltd. Radical was founded in 2017 by Jordan Jacobs, Tomi Poutanen, Benji Sucher and Maks Volkovs, previously executives with Toronto-based AI startup Layer 6, acquired in 2018 by TD. Radical's new fund will make early-stage and growth investments in mostly Canadian companies developing AI products or applying AI to create a competitive advantage in large markets.