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UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS URBANA-CHAMPAIGN

Research Park

    Nora Lozar

    Media Mentions News Research Park

    Forbes cites Research Park as factor behind increased startup funding in IL

    CHAMPAIGN, IL., July 28 – 2015 is shaping up to be a strong year for the startup and early stage investor ecosystem. Activity in Illinois, centered on both Chicago and the U. of I. tech ecosystem, may be a leading indicator of significant growth in funding applications in that region. Writes Forbes: “Texas continued in its number 3 spot with a slight increase in total funding applications over Q1; 4.3% compared to 4.7%. However several new states have entered the top ten, including Illinois at the number 5 spot with 3.4% of total funding applications, Georgia at number 7 with 2.9%, and Missouri at number 10 with 2.2%. Activity in Illinois, centered on both Chicago and the University of Illinois tech ecosystem, may be a leading indicator of significant growth in that region.” Startups in Research Park made headlines this month for successfully raising capital for their companies. In July, Aptimune Biologics raised $2.75 million in Series A Funding, and Agrible raised $4.1 million in Series A Funding.

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    EnterpriseWorks News Recognition & Awards

    Agrible, Inc. Announces $4.1 Million in Series A Funding Led by Sierra Ventures

      AGRICULTURE TECH STARTUP BRINGS ACTIONABLE PREDICTIVE ANALYTICS TO GROWERS CHAMPAIGN, IL., July 21, 2015—Agrible, Inc., an agriculture technology start-up focused on predictive analytics, today announced a $4.1 million Series A round of funding. Sierra Ventures is leading this round of investment and is joined by Archer Daniels Midland Company (ADM). Founded and grown in the Midwest, Agrible, Inc. produces actionable predictive analytics tools that help growers and agricultural companies increase yields and profitability through field-specific data and forecasts. In February 2015, the company launched Morning Farm Report, the delivery infrastructure for its four products: Rainfall, Field Intel, Tractor Time, and Yield Engine. Agrible is a recent graduate of the EnterpriseWorks incubator in Champaign, having recently moved into larger space in the University of Illinois Research Park. Sierra Ventures is also located in the Research Park; ADM also has a Research Park operation. Morning Farm Report provides highly accurate forecasts and data on fieldwork logistics, yield estimates, rainfall, growing degree days, and more, through annual subscriptions to each product. Morning Farm Report not only reports what has already happened on a field, but also provides growers with forecasts and actionable recommendations to help with decision making. “What Agrible is delivering with Morning Farm Report is cutting-edge predictive analytics technology that hasn’t been seen before,” said Agrible CEO Chris Harbourt. “The majority of our team has a background in agriculture, and it shows. You can feel the energy and expertise of our team in the software we produce and the actionable analytics we provide.” As a part of the investment round, ADM will help to facilitate the distribution of the Morning Farm Report product. This commercial relationship will give Agrible immediate access to thousands of growers representing million acres of farmland throughout the Midwest. In addition, this funding will allow Agrible to expand its team and continue improving Morning Farm Report. Development will also begin on new tools to influence the future of agriculture. “We’re excited to work with Agrible as they grow and continue to build on existing revenue channels,” said Dennis Beard, Partner with Sierra Ventures. “The relationship Agrible has developed with ADM represents a stamp of approval on the uniqueness of their products and vision. We have been excited about ag data opportunities for some time and feel that the Agrible team has the experience, ability, and technical know-how to be very successful.”

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    News Partnerships & Acquisitions

    UIUC and John Deere partner to build robot lawn mower

    The University of Illinois and John Deere have teamed up to take “mow the lawn” off of your to-do list. A University student and two faculty members recently built a prototype for a robotic lawn mower, and John Deere is helping them improve their product to bring it to a store near you. The lawn mower operates similarly to Roomba, the autonomous robot floor vacuum. Writes Chicago Inno: “By equipping the Tango lawn mower with the university’s omnidirectional-vision-based system, the team at UIUC is helping the device better navigate a plot of land by making cleaner, straighter lines and noticing things like rocks and other obstructions. The project, which was presented last month at the IEEE International Conference for Robotics and Automation, is nearing completion and is currently being tested at the John Deere Technology Innovation Center and in John Deere employees’ yards, according to the university.” While there are other robot lawn mowers currently in development, the lawn mower from John Deere and the University of Illinois is the only model that does not require the user to install boundary wires that tell the robot where to move.

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    Uncategorized

    Aptimmune Biologics Raises $2.75 Million of Series A Funding Led by Arsenal Capital Management

    Company will create new swine vaccines based on advanced mucosal technology    New CEO joins the company to drive development and commercialization CHAMPAIGN, Illinois – July 9, 2015 – Aptimmune Biologics, a mucosal vaccine company developing novel swine vaccines for PRRSV and influenza virus, has received $2.75 million of funding from Arsenal Capital Management, Fox Ventures LLC, and a group of Midwest angel investors. “PRRSV and influenza virus are a growing threat to swine health worldwide. Their combined annual economic impact on the U.S. swine industry alone is over $1.4 billion. Our new vaccine portfolio will change the management of these diseases, significantly improve swine health and producer productivity,” said Dr. Federico Zuckermann, Aptimmune’s founder and Chief Scientific Officer. Dr. Zuckermann is a leading swine immunologist, professor at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and inventor of patented vaccine technologies commercialized by Aptimmune. He has dedicated the last 30 years to better understanding PRRSV and other swine diseases that plague producers. Aaron Gilbertie, who joined the company as CEO weeks before the funding, will lead the company through pipeline development, product registration, and commercialization of Aptimmune’s revolutionary vaccines. “This funding positions Aptimmune to accelerate its mucosal vaccine candidates through development and product registration. Our vaccines will fundamentally change the way we think about and practice vaccination of swine,” said Gilbertie. He notes that Aptimmune’s new product offerings are based on a strong and extensive intellectual property portfolio. Arsenal Capital Management (ACM) is a St. Louis-based venture capital group with investments in biotech, medical technology, IT, and consumer goods. Aptimmune joins other notable ACM biotech investments including Kypha, KEW Group, and Appistry. “We’ve monitored Aptimmune’s progress through our relationship with Common Place Holdings. I’m pleased this investment validates our approach to invest early in promising companies and provide additional support as growth demands,” said Arsenal managing director Pete Reinecke. ACM is the sole outside source of funding for seed fund Common Place Holdings (CPH). CPH was an Aptimmune Series AA investor and business advisor. Fox Ventures is a Champaign-based investment firm that assists companies with consulting, networking, recruitment, and financial resources.

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    Uncategorized

    Crain’s Focuses on Caterpillar’s Data Strategy, Mentions Research Park Lab

    Caterpillar’s new focus on data-driven solutions for its products is making headlines. Writes Crain’s Chicago Business: “The big-data era requires a different focus. Rob Charter, a group president at Caterpillar, says the company wants to surround customers with a tech-savvy suite of products and services. It’s about moving beyond simply making machines, he adds.” “‘Originally, when we built product, it was about the product,’ Charter says. ‘What we think about all the time these days—and you’ll see it more and more in people’s thinking—is, how do we make a customer successful? And if they’re successful and they rely on us, then we’re successful.’” Caterpillar’s move to incorporate more big-data analytics into its business model could result in major gains for the company. Charter told Crain’s Chicago Business that Caterpillar could potentially see a 30 to 40 percent increase in productivity from utilizing analytics.

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    EnterpriseWorks News Recognition & Awards

    Rithmio Raises $3.0 Million in Seed Funding

    June 29, 2015 – Rithmio, the gesture recognition platform for wearables, today announced that it has closed a $3 million seed round of financing co-led by KGC Capital and Intel Capital. Participants included MAS Capital Pvt Ltd., OCA Ventures, Hyde Park Ventures Partners, Hyde Park Angels, Foley Ventures, MKRC Ventures, Serra Ventures, and New Coast Ventures. With this investment, Rithmio will expand its product, R&D, and sales teams to fulfill its vision as the world’s leading gesture recognition platform. “We have the team, technology, and now strategic partnerships to take the motion-sensing market to the next level,” said Adam Tilton, CEO and co-founder of Rithmio. “Over the next year, we’ll work closely with the developer community on the next generation of wearables and other products built on Rithmio’s gesture recognition software.” “Real-time analytics for user-specific physical activities represents a potential game changing technology for fitness, physical therapy, and rehabilitation applications,” said Steven Holmes, vice president of the New Devices Group and general manager of the Smart Device Innovation team at Intel. “Intel is exploring a wide range of potential applications for wearable tech and gesture recognition, and we look forward to working with Rithmio as they push the boundaries of their solution.” In September of 2014, Rithmio raised $650,000 that was used to grow the team. Key hires included Kamil Chmielewski, Director of Software, Jen Quinlan, VP of Marketing, and Christian Nam, Designer. The seven-person team focuses on developing Rithmio’s core algorithms and SDK. Rithmio also opened a Chicago office in November 2014 at Catapult Chicago. This is in addition to its office in Champaign, IL at EnterpriseWorks Incubator, Research Park.    Rithmio was founded in 2013 through the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. “Great tech innovations and startups have come out of the University of Illinois. Rithmio is no exception,” said Chris Capps, CEO of KGC Capital. “We believe in Adam and Prashant’s vision.” To learn more about Rithmio, visit http://rithmio.com or follow @rithmio.  

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    News Research Park

    UIUC Launches Startup Accelerator for Student Ventures

    The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign has launched a startup accelerator for student ventures on its campus. 13 startup companies, all founded by UIUC students, will participate in the new 9-week program. Writes ChicagoInno: “The program gives startups workspace at Illinois’ research park, mentorship from advisors, trips to interact with Chicago’s entrepreneurship scene, and $2,500 in funding with the opportunity to apply to get up to $10,000 more. Though the accelerator just runs for the summer, support for the ventures will continue throughout the year.” Startups participating in the University’s startup accelerator include FlipWord, Psyonic, MakerGirl, Swimable, Spotlight, Share A Chair, Resdin Technologies, The Mouve, Muscle Metrics, Kofman Technologies, I-Cubed, Corvae and Blink.

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    EnterpriseWorks News Recognition & Awards

    OceanComm Named Promising Oil and Gas Industry Startup

    EnterpriseWorks startup OceanComm was named one of the oil and gas industry’s most promising technology startups at the Rice Alliance Startup Roundup in Houston earlier this month. The event took place at the Offshore Technology Conference (OTC) and showcased 50 emerging technology companies each with an innovative technology based business idea that they presented to potential partners and investors in attendance. The participating companies are solving challenges varying from more efficient gas compression to the aging demographics in the industry, and are at a range of stages of development. OceanComm is a University of Illinois startup commercializing the first video-capable wireless underwater modem. It was founded by Andy Singer, a Fox Family Professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering and Director of the Technology Entrepreneur Center.

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    EnterpriseWorks News Recognition & Awards

    Electroninks Wins Material Science Edison Award

    EnterpriseWorks graduate Electroninks has been recognized as a 2015 Edison Award Winner. Electroninks received the silver award in the Material Science category for their Circuit Scribe technology.  This tool is a rollerball pen that allows users to write with non-toxic conductive ink in order to create circuits. The Electroninks team includes University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign PhD graduates, Brett Walker and Analisa Russo. The Research Park’s Designer-in-Residence, Dr. Deana McDonagh played a key role in designing Circuit Scribe. The Edison award is given to companies who demonstrate innovation and business success.  This award recognizes excellence in new product and service development, marketing, human-centered design and innovation.

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    News Recognition & Awards Research Park

    State Farm Research and Development Center Celebrates 10 Years in Research Park

            State Farm® Celebrates 10 Years at U of I Research Park Student innovation contributes to State Farm product development CHAMPAIGN, IL – State Farm® continues to lead the insurance industry with its innovative approach to insurance and meeting the needs of our customers. Today we celebrate the contributions of U of I student interns, faculty and staff, and State Farm researchers who, through their research and development strategies, have helped State Farm better serve our customers. This year marks the 10-year anniversary of the Research and Development Center (RDC), and our continued partnership with the University of Illinois and the City of Champaign. The State Farm RDC is an extremely valued member of the Research Park.  Dr. Peter Schiffer, Vice Chancellor for Research at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign describes it as “one of our strongest, most strategic and most treasured” partnerships. Vice president of State Farm strategic resources, Laurette Stiles echoed the importance of the partnership when she said her hope is that it will “sustain far into the future.” The center has succeeded “beyond our wildest dreams,” State Farm assistant vice president and actuary, Greg Hayward said.  The growth of staff and interns in the past 10 years has been remarkable, as well as the range of backgrounds that have come together under the RDC; this range includes freshman to doctoral students studying mathematics, technology, engineering and psychology. “State Farm’s innovative interdisciplinary student research model has transformative effects – the results of which we celebrate today,” said Schiffer “These experiential learning experiences are a win-win for the company, the students, involved faculty, and the Research Park. The University is proud of this 10-year partnership.” Opening in 2005, the RDC was created to leverage the talents of UIUC students and staff with the needs of the State Farm P&C Actuarial Strategic Resources departments.  Starting out with only 3 full-time staff and 7 interns, the RDC now has 13 employees and 80 interns, the largest in the U of I Research Park. The program was soon expanded to include work with the State Farm Systems Department and has since grown to support efforts with other areas across State Farm.  Since its opening, State Farm has employed nearly 750 interns who have worked on approximately 1,500 research and development projects. “The RDC offers real-world educational opportunities for the students and faculty who work with us,” Vice President of State Farm Strategic Resources Laurette Stiles said. “Our partnership with the university through the RDC gives State Farm access to efficient, immediate and diverse research resources with the opportunity to foster innovative research in a campus atmosphere.” State Farm actively recruits on all campuses of the University of Illinois.  As a result of on-campus recruiting efforts, nearly 30 University of Illinois graduates last year and over 200 graduates in the last five years opted for full-time employment at State Farm.  State Farm’s presence at the RDC provides ample opportunities for State Farm to get in front of U of I students in classroom, seminars and social settings.  Students’ work at the Research Center provides them with real world work experience and the opportunity to learn more about State Farm. RDC has been instrumental in research around State Farm products; including Steer Clear® Mobile app, web-based vehicle telematics; and research around safety aspects of mobile devices and intelligent homes. The Center for Consumer Feedback (CCF) began operation at the Research Park in 2007.  The CCF’s mission is to collect and process information on consumers’ knowledge, behaviors, perceptions and insights to facilitate strategic decisions at State Farm. The Research and Development Center (RDC) continues to grow and is excited to announce the addition of a “Maker Space.”  Lead by our Systems partners, and in collaboration with P&C Actuary and Strategic Resources, this space will serve to allow research into areas previously not tapped.  The RDC Maker Space will include 3D printers as well as microcomputers; Arduino Uno and Raspberry Pi.  The 3D printers may be used for creating mock-up devices for display in presentations, while the microcomputers are able to develop systems like car-crash detection. This space will provide the RDC with capabilities allowing for broader project selection, strengthening the research possibilities within State Farm. About State Farm®: State Farm and its affiliates are the largest provider of car insurance in the U.S. In addition to providing auto insurance quotes, their 18,000 agents and more than 65,000 employees serve over 82 million policies and accounts – nearly 80 million auto, home, life, health and commercial policies, and nearly 2 million bank accounts. Commercial auto insurance, along with coverage for renters, business owners, boats and motorcycles, is available. State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company is the parent of the State Farm family of companies. State Farm is ranked No. 41 on the 2014 Fortune 500 list of largest companies. For more information, please visit http://www.statefarm.com. Read more about the State Farm Research and Development Center.  

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