Bio Austin Funding and Commercialization

Funding: Angel, VC and Others

Venture capitalists poured an impressive $661 million into Austin during 2007, a 7 percent increase over the previous year, according to Dow Jones VentureSource. Healthcare companies utilized $184 million with roughly 68 percent of the money for medical device firms. Also in 2007, the UT System leveraged $1.8 billion in funds for research, 14 startup companies, 117 U.S. Patents and 655 invention disclosures.

Angel and Venture Capitalists

Central Texas Angel Network (CTAN)

Accent Capital

Path4 Ventures

PTV Sciences

S3 Ventures

Santé Ventures

Funding — University Technology

Emergent Technologies Inc.

The Central Texas Angel Network (CTAN) is a not-for-profit corporation dedicated to providing quality early-stage investment opportunities for accredited Central Texas angel investors, and to assisting, educating and connecting early stage growth companies in Central Texas with information and advisors for the purpose of raising money and assisting in their growth. CTAN maintains relationships with business schools from regional universities, trade organizations for area industries and other interested sponsors.

Accent Capital, LLC is a national venture capital firm headquartered in Austin. Accent primarily invests in high-growth companies throughout the state of Texas. Having started, run and funded both public and private companies, Accent Capital's investment team understands the business challenges faced by today's entrepreneur. Accent's mission is to aggressively seek investment opportunity in areas traditionally overlooked by the venture capital community while providing lasting economic value to both its portfolio companies and limited partners.

Founded in 1989 by Thomas A. Harlan, Emergent Technologies Inc. (ETI) is a unique life sciences venture capital firm that forms and manages companies and funds that license and commercialize groundbreaking institutional and university-based technologies. ETI specializes in converting new discoveries into high return ventures, creating new technologies for biotech industry leaders and new opportunities for regional economies.

Path4 is a venture capital firm that invests in new technologies in the musculoskeletal industry. They leverage their experience and passion in the field of orthopaedics by helping to commercialize promising technologies via a close working relationship with their partners. They understand the musculoskeletal industry and enjoy close working relationships with prominent physicians and industry professionals. The principals of Path4 are industry insiders with an impressive track record of assisting companies and developing ideas through to commercialization. Path4 has specific experience in business development, R&D, marketing, sales and distribution.

PTV Sciences was founded in 2003 to invest in growth opportunities in life and materials science. PTV Sciences invests in companies across the United States where Texas resources can be leveraged to create disruptive technology and compelling investment opportunities. Much like the untapped reserves which created the modern day oil and gas industry in 1901, the Texas region and the Southern U.S. has a wealth of untapped resources in its academic institutions and research centers. The Firm has the benefit of the direct experience and infrastructure support of the principals, who over the last century have been investing in and building sustainable, successful companies in healthcare, energy, financial services, agriculture and real estate.

is a group of entrepreneurs who successfully built technology companies into great returns for investors. Each partner has been a CEO or operating executive of at least one successful technology company. At S3 today, we help talented entrepreneurs take their technology and market knowledge and form valuable businesses in a methodical fashion. We invest primarily in early stage ventures. This can be several team members who have a unique technology that can become a category defining opportunity, or a more defined company seeking to launch after significant engagement with customers and a technology that is approaching market readiness. We come alongside the team and help focus on what makes a successful company. Investment sizes can start at $100,000 for a seed round, and move to several million for a more traditional Series A or B financing.

a new venture capital firm with deep healthcare investment experience. Santé partners with exceptional entrepreneurs and executives to build uncommonly valuable healthcare companies. In addition to capital, they provide healthcare domain expertise, an extensive network of contacts and singular industry focus. Santé invests exclusively in early-stage medical technology, healthcare services and healthcare IT companies.

Created in March 1996, UTIMCO is the first external investment corporation formed by a public university system and oversees investments for The University of Texas and Texas A&M Systems. UTIMCO is a 501 (c)(3) corporation.

	Venture Capital averaged about $550M annually during 2004-2006.
	In 2007, the UT System leveraged $1.8 billion in funds on research, 14 startup companies, 117 U.S. Patents and 655 invention disclosures.
	On per capital basis, only Boston, San Francisco, & San Jose garner more VC investment than Austin.
	Venture capital investment in Austin metro companies totaled $418.3M in the first 3 quarters of 2007.
	The Central Texas Angel Network (CTAN) closed 2007 with 50 members and over $1.2 million invested in 9 early stage companies (in a variety of industry sectors). There were approximately 30+ deals submitted each quarter for consideration. In addition to funding deals, CTAN is actively helping to start other groups around the State of Texas to foster syndication of deal flow.
	The University of Texas Office of Technology Commercialization had over 130 disclosures processed in FY 2006-07, $8.4 million revenue in FY 2006 and 29 startups since 2002 (7 in FY 2006).
	Of special note some of the funding highlights for Austin Biotech companies:
	- In June 2007, Medical Carbon Research Institute LLC received $32 million and changed its name to On-X. - In July 2007, ReAble (formerly Encore Medical) purchased CA-based DJOO for $1.6 billion. - In Sept/October 2007, Rules-Based Medicine received $25 million in funding, LDR Spine received $25 million in Series C funding, and Patton Medical Devices received $15 million in private funding. - In November 2007, LabNow received $20 million in a Series B round of funding and Rules-Based Medicine received an $849,000 grant from NIH. - In December 2007, Asuragen received $18.5 million in a Series B round of funding. In January 2008, Sante Ventures raised $130 million in its debut venture capital fund. They invest in seed-funded and early-stage medical technology and healthcare companies. - In January 2008, Ascension Orthopedics raised $21 million in Series D funding to expand its current product line and enhance its marketing and distribution network.