Education

University Of Manchester: Unit M Launched To Support Region’s Innovation Economy

By Amit Chowdhry ● Oct 11, 2024

The University of Manchester announced it launched a new capability called Unit M to rethink how it supports the region’s innovation economy. With a mandate to drive the University’s new approach to innovation, Unit M will connect and catalyze the innovation ecosystem in Manchester and the wider region to accelerate inclusive growth.

Endomimetics: University of Alabama At Birmingham Startup Receives $2.8 Million Grant

By Amit Chowdhry ● Oct 8, 2024

The University of Alabama at Birmingham startup company Endomimetics has received a $2.8 million Small Business Innovation Research Phase II grant from the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke.

Neutreeno: University Of Cambridge Spinout Raises $5 Million (Seed)

By Amit Chowdhry ● Oct 4, 2024

Neutreeno, a deep tech startup spinning out of the University of Cambridge, announced it secured a $5 million Seed round with support from a global syndicate of mission-aligned investors.

Valerion: University Of Michigan-Based Battery Technology Company Raises Funding From HEST Investments Partners

By Amit Chowdhry ● Oct 4, 2024

HEST Investments—a Dallas-based venture capital family office known for its commitment to disruptive ventures—announced a recent investment in Valerion, a battery technology company based at the University of Michigan. This funding, which was finalized in June 2024, marks a notable moment in HEST Investments' ongoing mission to drive transformative change in science and technology.

Made By Dyslexia And Richard Branson Launch University Of Dyslexic Thinking

By Amit Chowdhry ● Oct 1, 2024

Sir Richard Branson and global charity Made By Dyslexia announced that they have joined forces to launch a free online university called ‘DyslexicU,’ which teaches the world how dyslexics think.

University Of Minnesota: 25 Startups Launched In 2024, Surpassing Previous Record

By Amit Chowdhry ● Sep 30, 2024

The University of Minnesota has launched 25 startup companies in fiscal 2024, surpassing its previous record for the fourth year in a row. This announcement coincided with the launch of a new initiative to scale up the University’s commercialization work called Discover, Advance, Impact.

Mark Cuban Foundation And Northeastern University Partner To Bring AI Bootcamp To Miami Teens

By Amit Chowdhry ● Sep 30, 2024

The Mark Cuban Foundation, which is in partnership with Northeastern University, is bringing the only AI camp of its kind, free of charge, to high school students in Miami. With a custom and highly relevant curriculum focused on teaching students about the latest developments in AI and Generative AI, the camp will provide the tools to make these technologies work for them and promises to educate, inspire, and fuel the next generation of AI professionals.

University Of Ottawa And Cisco Partnering To Help Students With Cybersecurity Skills

By Amit Chowdhry ● Sep 29, 2024

Cisco, a leader in networking and security, and the University of Ottawa have announced a partnership to better prepare students for careers in the technology industry. Funded through Cisco’s Country Digital Acceleration (CDA) program, Cisco will integrate industry-recognized Cisco Certified Network Associate (CCNA) certification into the university’s Computer and Software Engineering curriculum. The CCNA certification validates a broad range of fundamentals for all IT careers - from networking technologies to security to software development - proving that the holder has the skills businesses want and candidates need to meet market demands.

How These University Of Louisiana Students Used AI To Build A Housekeeping App

By Amit Chowdhry ● Sep 28, 2024

Students at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette spent the whole summer enhancing a mobile AI application for Keepers, a locally founded startup that automates the entire housekeeping process for short-term rental property hosts and managers. Students used AI to help Keepers streamline their all-in-one solution for short-term rental housekeeping operations.

Imperial Startups Reveal Ideas At London Demo Day 2024

By Amit Chowdhry ● Sep 28, 2024

Five startups from Imperial’s innovation ecosystem showcased their ideas along with peers at London’s leading universities. Around 20 entrepreneurs from Imperial College London, the London School of Economics (LSE), King’s College London, and UCL collaborated at LSE’s campus to pitch their startups to investors at this year’s London Demo Day.

Letta: UC Berkeley GenAI Spin Out Raises $10 Million (Seed)

By Amit Chowdhry ● Sep 24, 2024

Letta, a new GenAI startup spun out of UC Berkeley's AI research lab, has emerged from stealth with a $10 million seed round led by Felicis with participation from Sunflower Capital and Essence VC. And notable angels include Jeff Dean (Chief Scientist at Google DeepMind), Clem Delangue (CEO of HuggingFace), Cristobal Valenzuela (CEO of Runway), Jordan Tigani (CEO of MotherDuck), Tristan Handy (CEO of dbt Labs), Robert Nishihara (co-founder of Anyscale), and Barry McCardel (CEO of Hex).

University Of California Advances Life Science Research Procurement With Labviva Partnership

By Amit Chowdhry ● Sep 24, 2024

The University of California (UC) has recently picked Labviva, a leading AI procurement platform for life sciences, to enhance procurement efficiency and research-related purchasing across all UC campuses. And the initial Labviva deployment occurred at UC San Diego in 2022, with UC Merced going live in September 2024.

University Of Utah And EPIC Ventures Partner Collaborating On Investment Arm

By Amit Chowdhry ● Sep 21, 2024

The University of Utah (one of the nation's leading research universities) and EPIC Ventures (a Salt Lake City based early-stage VC firm) have partnered to launch University of Utah Ventures, Powered by EPIC. And by combining the U's innovation engine with EPIC's extensive network, the partnership will catalyze growth for early-stage technology companies across various sectors, including software, health and life sciences and financial technology.

University Of Vermont And BioLabs Launching Startup Incubator

By Amit Chowdhry ● Sep 12, 2024

The University of Vermont (UVM), which is Vermont’s flagship land-grant university, announced a partnership with Cambridge, Massachusetts–based BioInnovation Labs (BioLabs), an internationally known innovation lab platform with a network of shared lab and office workspaces, to launch a dedicated incubator at UVM’s Colchester facility. The timing of this announcement coincides with the Dean’s Celebration of Excellence in Research happening in late September.

Interview With UC Berkeley’s International House CEO Shaun Carver About Promoting Intercultural Understanding

By Amit Chowdhry ● Sep 9, 2024

The International House at University of California, Berkeley is an organization that fosters intercultural respect and understanding, lifelong friendships, and leadership skills for a more peaceful world. Pulse 2.0 interviewed UC Berkeley’s International House CEO Shaun Carver to learn more about the organization.

Purdue University Reveals Record-Breaking Growth For The Year

By Amit Chowdhry ● Sep 3, 2024

Since Purdue University created Purdue Innovates in 2023, the system has worked to streamline access and strengthen support for technology commercialization and startup support resources. The goal of providing top-tier resources for entrepreneurial activities in Indiana is paying off.

UCSC Alumni Receive NSF Grant For Growing VR Physical Rehabilitation Company Immergo Labs

By Amit Chowdhry ● Aug 19, 2024

The National Science Foundation (NSF) has awarded three Baskin Engineering alumni with a $1 million Small Business Innovation Research grant to support the research and development of an extended reality platform for full-body physical rehabilitation. Aviv Elor (B.S., Robotics Engineering, '19; Ph.D., Computational Media, '21), Michael Powell (Ph.D., Computer Engineering, '21), and Ash Robbins (B.S., Robotics Engineering, '18; Ph.D., Electrical and Computer Engineering, ‘24') co-founded Immergo Labs, which is a company that uses AI and VR to integrate telehealth capabilities and enhance remote physical therapy care.

UC Bearcat Ventures Reveals First Investments

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 19, 2024

Bearcat Ventures is the University of Cincinnati's venture capital-focused student organization platform. It introduces students to the details of early-stage startup investments and equips them with the knowledge and skills to make informed financial decisions.

Star Mountain Capital: Curtis Glovier Named As Managing Director And Strategic Portfolio Officer

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 19, 2024

Star Mountain Capital, a specialized investment manager with over $4 billion in assets under management (AUM) focused on generating premium yield and total returns from the less efficient and resources-intensive market of U.S. private small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs), announced that Curtis Glovier has increased his involvement with Star Mountain from a Senior Advisor to a full-time role of Managing Director and Strategic Portfolio Officer.

Tierra Encantada: $38 Million Primary Growth Investment Raised From Susquehanna

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 10, 2024

Tierra Encantada, a leader in Spanish immersion early education, announced a significant minority growth investment from Susquehanna Growth Equity (SGE), an entrepreneur-centric growth equity firm. And this milestone marks Tierra Encantada’s first institutional investment since their founding in 2013 and underscores their accelerated influence in the youth enrichment market.

Purdue University And Heartland BioWorks To Share $51 Million Funding For Supporting Workforce Development

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jul 10, 2024

Purdue University (as a member of Heartland BioWorks) will be sharing $51 million in federal funding to support workforce development and business startup efforts in the state’s burgeoning biotechnology ecosystem. Awarded by the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Economic Development Administration, this funding will catalyze Indiana’s biotechnology innovation and manufacturing efforts, which are a pillar of Purdue’s One Health Innovation District.

Eaton Building New EV Charging Network In Partnership With University Of Notre Dame

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jun 27, 2024

Intelligent power management company Eaton is collaborating with the University of Notre Dame to establish a new electric vehicle (EV) charging infrastructure for use by its students, faculty, staff, and maintenance fleet. The project will enable Notre Dame to meet the growing demand for EV charging across its campus and accelerate progress toward its goal of achieving carbon neutrality by 2050.

George Mason University Approved For $19.5 Million Landolt NASA Space Mission

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jun 20, 2024

George Mason University is becoming the location for the $19.5 million recently approved Landolt NASA Space Mission that will put an artificial star in orbit around the Earth. And this artificial star will enable scientists to calibrate telescopes and more accurately measure the brightness of stars ranging from those nearby to the distant explosions of supernova in far-off galaxies. By launching absolute flux calibration, the mission will begin addressing several open astrophysics challenges including the speed and acceleration of the universe expansion.

MultiversX And Cornell University Partner On Blockchain Essentials Program

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jun 17, 2024

Building on a history of collaborations like those with the University of Vienna and ELTE Budapest, MultiversX is continuing to invest in educational initiatives by offering underprivileged college students the opportunity to take part in a Blockchain Essentials program with eCornell, the online education unit of Cornell University.

UmbrellaAI Partners With MBA Students At University of Virginia’s Darden School Of Business On StructuralAI Business Applications

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jun 16, 2024

"StructuralAI" from UmbrellaAI enables transparent applications where users can see and audit how the AI makes its decisions. MBA students at the University of Virginia's Darden School of Business learned about UmbrellaAI's Structural AI and developed hypotheses about the most attractive go-to-market opportunities.

U Of M’s Institute For Social Research Receives $195 Million In Federal Funding

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jun 14, 2024

With around $195 million in new federal funding (the largest research grant in University of Michigan history), the Institute for Social Research will extend its long-running and influential Health and Retirement Study through 2029. This funding comes in the form of a grant from the National Institute on Aging (part of the National Institutes of Health), including co-funding from the Social Security Administration.

Doowii: $4.1 Million Raised To Build Data Analytics Solutions For Educators

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jun 12, 2024

Doowii, a provider of AI-driven data analytics solutions for educators, announced the successful closure of its latest fundraising round, securing $4.1 million in investments. This funding round included participation from prominent institutional investors, including GSV Ventures, Better Ventures, Avesta Fund, Imagine Learning Ventures, Strada Education Foundation, Reach Capital, and Common Sense Growth Fund.

Texas Woman’s University Launches Virtual Training For Startups

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jun 12, 2024

The Jane Nelson Institute for Women’s Leadership’s Center for Women Entrepreneurs (CWE) at Texas Woman’s University launched a virtual training program to help early-stage entrepreneurs to start this businesses. The CWE is now accepting applications for the CWE Virtual Accelerator.

John Branca And Occidental College Announce $5 Million Gift To Expand Institute For Music

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jun 10, 2024

Attorney John G. Branca ’72, partner and head of the music department at Ziffren Brittenham, one of the most respected entertainment law firms in the world, and Occidental College announced a $5 million gift from Branca that will establish the John Branca Institute for Music, a music teaching and learning facility at Occidental College in LA. David Kasunic, associate professor of music at Occidental, will serve as the Institute’s inaugural director.

Bain Capital Buying PowerSchool For $5.6 Billion

By Amit Chowdhry ● Jun 10, 2024

PowerSchool, a leading provider of cloud-based software for K-12 education, announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to be acquired by Bain Capital in a transaction valuing the company at $5.6 billion.