University of Washington
Facts
- HQ
- University of Washington
- Sectors
- Higher Education, Research, Healthcare, Arts
- Founded
- 1861
- Registered name
- University of Washington Seattle business license
- Stage
- Public
OctoML raises $28M Series B to speed ML deployment across phones, cars and cloud; backed by Apache TVM creators
Seattle startup OctoML, a University of Washington spinout led by CEO Luis Ceze, raised $28 million in Series B funding to help companies deploy and optimize machine-learning models across diverse hardware. The team — creators of Apache TVM — counts partners like Qualcomm, Microsoft and AMD, has ~1,000 early Octomizer sign-ups, 45 employees and plans >50% headcount growth this year.
Founders’ Co-op closes $50M Fund V to back pre-seed and seed Pacific Northwest startups
Founders’ Co-op announced the close of its fifth fund, a $50M largest-to-date vehicle focused on pre-seed and seed investments in Pacific Northwest technical founding teams, highlighting the region's growth since 2008 and the firm's track record with over 200 portfolio companies.
Father-daughters team launches The Chances App to match Gen Z by mutual relationship intentions
Rob Lipschutz and his daughters Vanessa and Noelle launched The Chances App, a social-relationships app designed to help Gen Z connect by matching mutual intentions across nine categories (e.g., Friends, Let’s Study, FWB, Let’s Date) rather than using traditional social or dating app mechanics. Lipschutz, a tech veteran from Bothell, Washington, built the app after seeing his daughters struggle with existing social media while transitioning to college.
Port of Seattle and Washington Maritime Blue Launch Second Cohort of Maritime Accelerator, Moving Into New Maritime Innovation Center
The Port of Seattle and nonprofit Washington Maritime Blue launched a second-year maritime startup accelerator to connect regional maritime heritage with modern innovation, replacing WeWork Labs with Maritime Blue for mentorship and programming. The Port will provide space in a new Maritime Innovation Center at Fishermen’s Terminal, with construction expected to start this year.
Ensoma launches in Boston with $70M Series A to commercialize Engenious gene‑editing adenoviral vectors developed by Fred Hutch and UW researchers
Boston-based biotech spinout Ensoma launched, announcing a $70 million Series A to commercialize Engenious adenoviral vectors developed by Drs. Hans-Peter Kiem (Fred Hutch) and André Lieber (UW) that aim to deliver single‑injection gene therapies without stem cell harvest or chemotherapy.
UW Alum Janie Bube Launches Sensol Systems to Install Illuminated Ground-Level Crosswalks after 2018 Collision
After being struck by a bicyclist in a Seattle crosswalk, University of Washington alum Janie Bube founded Sensol Systems to improve pedestrian visibility with illuminated, ground-level crosswalk panels that light up beneath walkers; the startup launched in spring 2020 after university grants and accelerator support.
Robert Downey Jr.’s Footprint Coalition Ventures backs Seattle’s Cloud Paper as it launches two sustainability-focused funds
Actor Robert Downey Jr. launched two venture funds under Footprint Coalition Ventures focused on sustainable technology and is backing Seattle startup Cloud Paper, a tree-free toilet paper maker. The funds, led by Jonathan Schulhof and Steve Levin, will invest in early- and late-stage companies across sustainability, food and agtech, materials, energy, transportation, education, media and environmental solutions.
Madrona pauses Create33 co-working space, shifts to free virtual membership after COVID-19 forces closure
Madrona’s Create33, a Seattle founder center launched in July 2018, has closed its co-working space and is converting to a free virtual membership program after pandemic-related event cancellations and lost rental revenue; key staff including executive director Rebecca Lovell have departed.
Parse Biosciences raises $7M led by Bioeconomy Capital to scale single-cell RNA-seq tech; total funding $9M
Parse Biosciences (formerly Split Biosciences) raised $7 million to grow its single-cell RNA-seq 'Whole Transcriptome Kit' that profiles up to 100,000 cells across 48 samples; the 16-person startup spun out of UW in 2018 and has 40+ labs using its kit.
Hillrom to Buy Bardy Diagnostics for $375M, Deal to Close in Q2 with Possible Milestone Payments
Hillrom will acquire Seattle-based Bardy Diagnostics for $375 million, adding Bardy’s week-long CAM cardiac monitor and related cardiology products to its portfolio; the deal may include future milestone payments and is expected to close in Q2. Bardy, founded in 2013, has about $30 million in annualized revenue, over $20 million in net operating losses, roughly 230 employees, and has raised more than $71 million to date.
AltPep, UW spinout led by Valerie Daggett, raises $23.1M Series A to develop early-detection and therapeutics for Alzheimer’s
Seattle biotech AltPep, spun out of the University of Washington in 2019 and led by founder/CEO Valerie Daggett, raised $23.1 million in a Series A to develop detection tools and preclinical therapies for Alzheimer’s and other amyloid protein diseases. The company’s technology, based on UW-licensed research into alpha-sheet protein structures, will support early detection efforts and expansion into a new 7,500 sq ft Seattle lab.
Two Screens for Teachers raises support as founders seek $23M to supply 250,000 pandemic-strained educators; teen Avi Schiffmann built a widely used COVID-19 tracker
A roundup of positive tech, science, and education stories from 2020 highlights initiatives that helped during the pandemic, including Two Screens for Teachers providing monitors to school districts and a high school student, Avi Schiffmann, building a widely used COVID-19 tracker.
Madrona Venture Group Raises $345M for 8th Fund and $161M for 2nd Later-Stage Fund in Largest Ever $500M Capital Raise
Madrona Venture Group raised over $500 million for its largest fundraise ever, including $345 million for an eighth early-stage fund targeting 35-40 Pacific Northwest startups and $161 million for a second later-stage Acceleration Fund. The firm continues to focus on supporting the Pacific Northwest tech ecosystem while also backing later-stage companies across North America.
LinkedIn data: Seattle added 2.2 tech workers per one lost from March–October as Bay Area outflows rise
LinkedIn migration data shows Seattle gained 2.2 tech workers for every one who left from March to October, nearly matching last year’s 2.5 ratio, and attracted a 28% increase in movers from the Bay Area. While the Bay Area and New York saw notable declines in their inflow-outflow ratios, observers and local advocates say Seattle’s similar amenities and lower cost of living help explain the trend.
Top Stories of 2020
To say that 2020 unfolded in unexpected ways would be an epic understatement. The changes caused by the pandemic promise to impact tech, business and everything else for years to come. And that's just the start. The influence of Seattle's tech and scientific communities rippled throughout the world. The region's life sciences institutions played a key role in uncovering and battling COVID-19, and Bill Gates emerged as a leading voice for science and equity in the pandemic. Enterprise tech companies provided the bedrock for a massive global acceleration of digital technologies. A national reckoning over race, sparked by the killing…
How this Seattle tech CEO landed in the pro bowling Hall of Fame
Rob Glaser is best known as the founder and CEO of RealNetworks, the Seattle-based company that specializes in digital media, games and computer vision technology. But for about two decades, he was also part of the ownership group for the Professional Bowlers Association, along with his former Microsoft colleagues Chris Peters and Mike Slade. That's how Glaser landed in the PBA Hall of Fame earlier this year, despite never having been a pro bowler himself. It also makes Glaser the answer to what turned out to be a real stumper of a trivia question on the latest episode of the…
Madrona leads $21.5M round for Ovation.io as Boston lab-software startup reports rapid revenue and patient growth
Boston startup Ovation.io, which builds cloud software for medical testing labs, raised $21.5 million in new funding led by Seattle-based Madrona Venture Group; the company says it more than doubled revenue and grew patient volume 75-fold in the past year.
University of Washington launches Husky FAST Start to standardize licensing for spinouts after 35-startup pilot
The University of Washington launched Husky FAST Start, a standardized licensing process with template term sheets and agreements to speed and cut costs for startup license negotiations, after piloting it with 35 startups. The move, timed with the Bayh-Dole Act’s 40th anniversary, aims to help UW founders commercialize innovations from a university that has spun out 73 startups in five years and signed over 5,000 commercial licenses.
iUNU raises $7M to scale LUNA AI greenhouse computer-vision system; total funding $25M
Seattle-based agriculture tech startup iUNU raised $7 million to expand its LUNA AI and computer-vision platform for greenhouse crop monitoring, using autonomous rail-mounted cameras and canopy sensors. The seven-year-old, 30-person company — backed by S2G Ventures, Ceres Partners and Serra Ventures — has $25 million total funding and aims to surpass 100 customers next year.
Christy Johnson
Christy is an intrapreneur, entrepreneur, and strategist. She is currently building her fourth start-up, Artemis Connection, a boutique strategy consulting firm passionate about helping innovative leaders reach their goals. She loves working for forward thinking executives who want results. She has seven years of experience working in corporate strategy, including nearly four years at McKinsey & Co. Before this, Christy was an award winning economics and mathematics teacher. Come join us to learn a little more about how Christy got to where she is today! See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Umoja Biopharma raises $53M Series A to develop in vivo CAR T-cell immunotherapies for adult and pediatric tumors
Seattle-based Umoja Biopharma raised $53 million in a Series A to advance its preclinical in vivo CAR T-cell immunotherapy platform for blood and organ tumors in adult and pediatric patients, aiming to generate cancer-fighting cells inside the body. The company was founded last year by CEO Andy Scharenberg and collaborators from Seattle Children’s Research Institute and Purdue University, with MPM Capital and Qiming Venture Partners USA leading the round.
Tom Alberg invested in Amazon’s 1995 seed round, joined its board and co-founded Madrona to build Seattle’s tech scene
Tom Alberg invested in Amazon’s 1995 seed round, joined its board, and later co-founded Madrona Investment Group to back Pacific Northwest internet startups, helping shape Seattle’s tech ecosystem. His early bets and leadership influenced regional tech growth and left a legacy noted by Jeff Bezos and others.
Foursquare CEO David Shim to Resign; Gary Little Named CEO in 2021; Other Tech Leadership Moves Reported
Foursquare CEO David Shim, founder of Placed, is resigning and will be succeeded by board member Gary Little in 2021 after a transition; Shim plans to return to entrepreneurship. Other moves: investor Karan Mehandru left Trinity Ventures to join Steadfast Financial while remaining on several boards, 343 Industries’ Chris Lee stepped down from Halo Infinite project direction, and WTIA hired Molly Jones as VP of government affairs.
Membrion develops spray coating to boost cotton mask protection by adsorbing coronavirus particles
Seattle startup Membrion is developing a sprayable, food-safe coating derived from its ion-exchange membrane technology to make cotton masks more protective by adsorbing and neutralizing coronavirus particles.
University of Washington taps Justin Dunnicliff as NSIN university program director; Meredith Han named VP of Product at FlyHomes
The University of Washington partnered with the Department of Defense’s National Security Innovation Network (NSIN) and named UW alumnus Justin Dunnicliff as university program director to run NSIN programs at UW, connecting students to DoD-related research and employment opportunities. The article also notes Meredith Han, an early Amazon employee and angel investor, has become VP of product at FlyHomes.
People
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Oren Etzioni Executive, Former CEO, Founder and Emeritus Professor, Former Professor, Former Leader of TrueMedia
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Avi Geiger Lecturer, Affiliate Assistant Professor, Electrical and Computer Engineering
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Babak Parviz Professor
