Local startup Avisa Pharma has announced that its proof-of-concept trials using its AV BreathTest™ technology to test for pneumonia in emergency departments will be completed by year end, paving the way for an FDA clinical trial. The company was formed to commercialize Dr. Graham Timmins’ breath-test technology for early detection and treatment of lung infections and has matured to become a clinical stage company. The company is developing a rapid, …Read More
UNM startup BennuBio receives $1.5 million investment from the State’s Catalyst Fund
A UNM technology that has been incubating a superfast, multi sample cytometer that can screen cells up to 100 times faster than what’s currently on the market is getting a big boost from the state of New Mexico’s Catalyst Fund. The technology was developed by Professor Steven Graves and colleagues from the Department of Chemical & Biological Engineering. Dr. Graves is the President and CEO of the new startup, BennuBio, …Read More
New Drug Combination to Treat Cancer Could Far Surpass Current Therapies
A drug discovered more than a decade ago at the University of New Mexico and New Mexico State University has new life, thanks to a recent discovery by scientists across the country at the University of Pennsylvania. These discoveries are being brought to market by a new start-up company, Linnaeus Therapeutics, that is off and running to get a possible new breakthrough treatment to cancer patients around the world. In …Read More
Startup CEO Comes Back to His Hometown to Innovate
Mark Chavez, CEO of one of New Mexico’s newest startups, wants to change the way we think about and use social media, and he’s come back to Albuquerque to develop what could be a disruptive innovation on a global scale. Read about Ellen Marks’ fascinating August 27, 2018 interview, “One-on-One with Mark Chavez,” from the Albuquerque Journal Business Outlook, reprinted below. Also see Kevin Robinson’s June 25 article, “Lens startup …Read More
Local Startup Developing UNM Technology Lead Awardee for $1M DOE Contract
Pajarito Powder LLC, an Albuquerque start-up and Verge Fund portfolio company commercializing technology developed at the University of New Mexico and LANL, is the lead awardee of a $1 million contract to advance development of its platinum-free catalysts for fuel cells. The company manufactures platinum-free and reduced-platinum catalysts for hydrogen fuel cells, and is the industry-leading PGM-free catalyst on the market today. The UNM catalyst technology was developed by Distinguished …Read More
UNM Technology Transfer Raised to New Level
With the one-year anniversary of the opening of the Lobo Rainforest Building just around the corner, the University of New Mexico’s technology transfer organization, STC.UNM, is reporting a higher level of commercialization activity among faculty, students, entrepreneurs and investors. Year-end metrics reveal a positive trend. The 11 startups spun out this year using UNM technology are all based in New Mexico. See Kevin Robinson-Avila’s July 10, 2018 article, “More UNM-related …Read More
Local Biotech Company Agilvax’s Cancer Immunotherapy Technology Shows Promising Results
Local start-up company Agilvax, Inc., headquartered in Albuquerque, is commercializing a virus-like particle (VLP) technology platform developed by UNM researchers Dr. David Peabody and Dr. Bryce Chackerian and cancer immunotherapies for one of the hardest to treat breast cancers. The company’s AX09 immunotherapeutic was recently reviewed in the journal Cancer Immunology, Immunotherapy for its preclinical efficacy in targeting triple negative breast cancer. See the company’s announcement, reprinted below. Agilvax Announces …Read More
New Startup at the Lobo Rainforest Building Creating Next Gen Solution to Cloud Vulnerability
A new company started by native New Mexican Mark Chavez could lead us away from the cloud and into the light. Chavez, along with co-investors and a fresh influx of capital from STC’s Co-Investment Fund, is working right now at the Lobo Rainforest Building in downtown Albuquerque to create a new way to give online users control over their own data is an innovative peer-to-peer online communications program that circumvents …Read More
UNM Student Entrepreneur Happy to Be at the Lobo Rainforest Building
One of the busiest student entrepreneurs at UNM lives, learns, and works at the Lobo Rainforest Building. Already the founder and CEO of two startup companies—Pencil-In and Shutter Bombs—you can often find Kyle Guin working in his office or chatting with other entrepreneurs at STC’s business incubator, the Cecchi VentureLab. Or, he may be on his way down the hallway to a class at the Innovation Academy, then over to …Read More
Albuquerque-Based Startup Agilvax Announces New Affiliation and Funding
Local start-up company Agilvax, Inc., headquartered in Albuquerque and commercializing a virus-like particle (VLP) technology platform developed by UNM researchers Dr. David Peabody and Dr. Bryce Chackerian, announced that it has become a resident company at the Johnson & Johnson Innovation labs at Texas Medical Center (JLABS @ TMC) and has completed a Series A1 financing round. To read more, see the Agilvax press releases, reprinted below. Agilvax Establishes Operations …Read More