TORONTO, July 14, 2014 - Xagenic Inc., a molecular diagnostics company developing the first lab-free molecular diagnostic platform with a 20 minute time-to-result, has announced a second closing of its…
The WaveCheck crowdfunding campaign, which raised $53,390 on Indiegogo to support clinical trials for a clinical technique invented by researchers at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre and Ryerson University, was included in a new Canadian-led study on the merits of crowdfunding to support cancer and rare diseases.
“Crowdfunding drug development: The state of play in oncology and rare diseases,” was published in Drug Discovery Today‘s June issue.
MaRS Innovation has confirmed with lead author Professor Nick Dragojlovic of the University of British Columbia that WaveCheck was among the campaigns included in the study.
As part of their ongoing efforts to explore the future of wearable typing, UTEST grad Whirlscape released a demo of the Minuum keyboard working on a Moto 360 smartwatch.
This news builds upon Whirlscape’s activities in the wearables space; the company had previously announced a partnership with Omate Smartwatches that was covered in TechVibes.
This news was covered in the Los Angeles Times, Tech Crunch, Droid Life, Mobile Syrup, Digital Trends, SlashGear, Android Community and GigaOM. See also this article speculating on possibilities for the future of Canadian mobile wearable technology, also by Mobile Syrup.
Why would you need to type on a smartwatch? CEO Will Walmsley addressed the topic on input, the Minuum blog:
New research emerging from the University of Toronto’s Edward S Rogers Sr. Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering is developing and demonstrating a new class of solar-sensitive nanoparticle.
MaRS Innovation is working with Professor Ted Sargent, his research team and U of T’s Innovations and Partnerships Office (IPO) to incubate and commercialize this and other solar technologies. Their work was recently published in Nature Materials.
The paper’s publication was widely covered in the technical trades, including CNET.com, Tech Times, Compound Semiconductor.net and Gizmag, among others, and on the university’s website.
Here’s an excerpt from power-technology.com:
Led by post-doctoral researcher Zhijun Ning and Professor Ted Sargent, the research work resulted in the development of a new form of solid, stable light-sensitive nanoparticles, known as colloidal quantum dots.
Developed in collaboration with Dalhousie University, King Abdullah University of Science and Technology and Huazhong University of Science and Technology, the solar-sensitive nanoparticles are cheaper than the traditional panels, large and rectangular.
In addition to being cheaper, the colloidal quantum dots are more flexible solar cells, and better gas sensors, infrared lasers, infrared light emitting diodes and more.
A better keyboard for mobile devices, intelligent traffic lights to tackle traffic jams, a more ecofriendly way to make nanoparticles for applications such as solar cells and agriculture, and an artificial neural network that improves the way computers learn.
These four inventions took top honours May 21 at the University of Toronto Celebrates Innovation event.
Mobile Syrup covered Whirlscape’s involvement in this event. Read the story.
The annual event, which has previously honoured the university’s top inventors of the year, has widened its scope. This year, in addition to naming the top inventors of the past year, U of T honoured people and companies working on everything from apps to help the disabled to a printer that prints human skin for wound dressing. It also recognized the financial support of the Connaught Fund for several programs that support innovation.
“This year is extra special,” said Professor Paul Young, U of T’s vice-president, research and innovation. “We decided to bring into the fold some of the other competitive innovation programs. U of T is home to some of the world’s most creative and entrepreneurial innovators, so these competitions were fierce.”
The 2014 inventors of the year are:
TORONTO, Canada (May 20, 2014) — Red Herring has selected Flybits as one of its 2014 Top 100 North America award winners. Flybits was recognized for its leading-edge, context-aware computing solutions.
Red Herring Top 100 America recognizes innovation from outstanding entrepreneurs and promising companies. Its “Top 100 North America” award winners were selected from among approximately 3,000 tech start-ups financed each year in the U.S. and Canada. Past winners include companies such as Facebook, Twitter, Google, Yahoo, Skype, Salesforce.com, YouTube, Marin Software, Palo Alto Networks and eBay, and many others that have changed how we live and work.
“In 2014, selecting the top 100 achievers was by no means a small feat,” said Alex Vieux, publisher and CEO of Red Herring. “We believe Flybits embodies the vision, drive and innovation that define a successful entrepreneurial venture. Flybits should be proud of its accomplishment, as the competition was very strong.”
THUNDER BAY, ON (May 28,2014) – XLV Diagnostics Inc., a MaRS Innovation (MI) start-up company based in Thunder Bay and specializing in low-cost, next-generation digital mammography machines, has closed a…
(MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif) May 20, 2014 — Based on its recent analysis of the point-of-care diagnostics market, Frost & Sullivan recognizes Xagenic Inc. with the 2014 North America Frost & Sullivan Award for New Product Innovation Leadership.
Xagenic’s revolutionary product, the Xagenic X1™ system, is a point-of-care platform with intuitive features to provide lab-free molecular diagnostic testing. It is unique as a low-cost, simple, rapid sample-to-answer desktop instrument, requiring no manual sample processing or cold storage. Currently, the platform is in the beta-testing phase and is expected to launch between 2015 and 2016.
Dr. Shana Kelley and Xagenic were featured in the Globe and Mail on May 20, 2014.
Read the detailed Frost & Sullivan Best Practices Research Report report on Xagenic’s website. Xagenic is MaRS Innovation’s lead start-up company, in partnership with the University of Toronto: Xagenic news archive.
For its portfolio of cartridge-based tests, Xagenic focuses on infectious diseases (HSV 1+2, Flu A+B, CT/NG, strep A, group B strep, trichomoniasis, HCV and upper respiratory infections) that will benefit the most from rapid on-site testing. The company also intends to apply the platform to counter a critical public health threat—antimicrobial resistance.
MaRS Innovation and U of T's Innovations & Partnerships Office collaborating with QSperm on intellectual property and business strategy In vitro fertility treatments can be intensely emotional and medically invasive,…
Fanny Sie, MaRS Innovation’s head of imaging technologies and a manager in the Technology & Venture Development group, is speaking about bioprinting trends at two Toronto conferences this weekend.
Sie is MI’s commercialization lead on the Bioprinter, a licensenable technology from the University of Toronto and Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre.
Watch her interview on bioprinting with TVO’s The Agenda, which aired in June 2013.
First up is Digifest, an international festival celebrating digital creativity, which runs from May 8 to 10 at the Corus Quay building on Toronto’s Waterfront. Sie will speak about 3D printing and its biological and commercial implications on the Mass Customization Panel Discussion, which runs from 2 to 3 pm on Friday, May 9.
On Monday, Sie joins the opening panel at the OCE Discovery Conference, which runs from May 12 to 13, 2014 at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre (South Building). She will speak during the “3D Manufacturing: Beyond the Hype” panel at 9 am on May 13.
Schwartz Reisman Innovation Campus, West Tower
108 College Street, Suite 530
Toronto, ON M5G 0C6
info@tiap.ca