Vertos raises $15.5M to decompress spines

Vertos Medical, maker of a non-invasive device for decompressing lumbar spine discs, has brought in $15.5 million in a fourth round of funding from Onset Ventures, CHL Medical Partners, Foundation Medical Partners, Aweida Venture Partners and DFJ Mercury. Based in Aliso Viejo, Calif., the company… Continue Reading

Google.org gives electric cars a push, with investments in Aptera and ActaCell

Google.org gives electric cars a push, with investments in Aptera and ActaCell

Two companies have been tapped as the first recipients of an investment from a program called RechargeIT, run by Google’s philanthropic arm: Aptera Motors, a Carlsbad, Calif. company that is gearing up to sell a futuristic three-wheeled car; and ActaCell, a battery company that hopes… Continue Reading

Illumitex, a stealth LED maker, raises $5.25M

Austin, Tex. based Illumitex has raised $5.25 million toward a $10 million second round of funding, according to the Austin Business Journal.

The company appears to be in full stealth mode, but has existed since at least the second half of 2006, when another company called… Continue Reading

Unwired Nation, BlueGrind turning online text into audio

Unwired Nation, BlueGrind turning online text into audio

Unwired Nation launched a service today turns online content into an audio podcast so that users listen to the content in their car, at the gym or any other place they carry their phone.

Coincidentally, another new company, BlueGrind.com, offers a similar service. It lets you… Continue Reading

Funding roundup: Announcements that got away

Funding roundup: Announcements that got away

Although I try to stay on top of events in the life sciences, announcements do sometimes manage to slip through the cracks. Some days, in fact, I end up triaging. Because the roots of this site — not to mention many of its readers —… Continue Reading