Fulton cyber startup studio DataTribe is ready to dole out another $2 million this year through its fourth annual pitch competition.
The DataTribe Challenge promises a substantial funding prize — perhaps the biggest grand prize total of any pitch competition in the area — to at least one of the cyber and data science firms willing to compete before a panel of industry experts. DataTribe has been working over the past five years to build more commercial cyber companies in Maryland through a combination of incubation services and investment. The goal of this funding competition is to identify and boost more promising startups that could fit that mold and are poised for significant growth.
Former winners of the competition have included Prevailion, which specializes in "third party" threat detection and has gone on to raise a $10 million Series A round and other undisclosed investments, and CodeDx, which specializes in diagnosing potential threats in software tools and apps, and was acquired this year by California's Synopsys Inc.
Three other Data Tribe Challenge finalists will also be selected to split $20,000 in prize money. The application deadline is Oct. 1.
Below, check out details on some of the upcoming growth opportunities in the Greater Baltimore tech ecosystem, as well as some funds, hire and clearances that local firms raked in during September.
If there is any relevant news we may have missed or anything going on in the tech sphere you'd like to tell us about, reach out any time to Digital Editor Carley Milligan at cmilligan@bizjournals.com.
FUNDED
Isoprene Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a cancer therapeutics company, was awarded a two-year, $2 million grant through the National Institutes of Health to support pre-clinical studies intended to lead to the filing of an investigational new drug (IND) application with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The company is developing drugs to treat cancer — starting with a focus on triple negative breast cancer — using certain molecules.
Bowie State University received a $1 million donation from tech giant Adobe, as part of the Adobe Anchor School Program. The program aims to build partnerships with Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) and Hispanic Serving Institutions (HSIs) to develop unique solutions that expose more students of color to careers in tech, and prepare them with digital skills. The program will provide 100 scholarships of up to $15,000 for students.
Stevenson University received an anonymous gift of $1 million to support the construction of the new 42,000-square-foot Philip A. Zaffere Library, two student scholarships, and the development and equipping of a new biomedical engineering lab on campus.
HEX Performance, a Baltimore laundry detergent maker, has raised $250,000 in new investment funding, according to documents recently filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commissions. The company is continuing to raise toward its $2 million funding round goal.
AquaLith Advanced Materials, a Baltimore maker of lithium-ion battery materials, raised $750,000 from the Maryland Momentum Fund (MMF) and a consortium of private investors to expand its development laboratory and start production of sample products. The technology is based on the work of Professor Chunsheng Wang from the A. James Clark School of Engineering at the University of Maryland, College Park (UMCP), in collaboration with Kang Xu, a fellow at the DEVCOM Army Research Laboratory.
Maryland Technology Development Corp. (TEDCO), received $125,000 from the U.S. Small Business Administration under the Federal and State Technology (FAST) Partnership Program, which funds efforts to increase participation of women-owned, rural and small disadvantaged businesses in Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR). These programs will have more than $4 billion in early-stage capital to distribute in 2022.
REXTAR LLC, a Baltimore real estate technology firm, earned a TEDCO investment of $500,000 through the Maryland Venture Fund (MVF). The company is led by a team of real estate and technology professionals and is developing tech to improve efficiency and interactions between buyers and sellers in residential real estate deals.
Infinite Focus Schools, a Gwynn Oaks software firm, earned a $100,000 investment from TEDCO through its Builder Fund, which supports tech startups run by diverse founders who demonstrate economic disadvantage. Infinite Focus Schools is developing an app to provide tools for children to develop emotional intelligence through mindfulness and socio-emotional learning.
Three researchers earned funding from TEDCO through the Maryland Stem Cell Research Fund, totaling $1.3 million. The grants support research around new stem cell-based technologies and therapeutics. About $535,000 was awarded to Brian Miller at Sentien Biotechnologies Inc., about $530,000 was awarded to Dr. Heather Symons from Johns Hopkins University and $230,000 was awarded to Warren Grayson from Hopkins.
Johns Hopkins researchers across two teams received tech development grants totaling more than $150,000 through the Louis B. Thalheimer Fund for Translational Research. One team will use the funds to develop a tool to more quickly and accurately diagnose epilepsy. The other is developing a more accurate and continuous fetal monitoring device.
CLEARED
ClearMask LLC, a Baltimore medical supply company, earned a CE Mark for its fully transparent surgical mask. The clearance indicates that a product meets health, safety and other standards to be sold in Europe. The mask also earned clearance from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration last April.
HIRED
Netography, an Annapolis cyber firm, has tapped veteran industry entrepreneur executive Martin Roesch as its CEO. Roesch previously founded and led Columbia's Sourcefire, which was acquired by Cisco for a whopping $2.7 billion in 2013. He stayed at Cisco until 2019 and has since been advising and investing in other companies.
PARTNERED
Personal Genome Diagnostics Inc. (PGDx), a Baltimore cancer diagnostics company, is collaborating with the Center for Immunotherapy and Precision Immuno-Oncology (CITI) and the Cleveland Clinic Lerner Research Institute to elevate the standard of care for cancer patients through the use of precision diagnostics tools like those made by PGDx.
Aidar Health, a Baltimore health tech firm, is partnering with BARDA to develop and validate a new early warning system for Covid-19 infection using Aidar's MouthLab tech. The device, which is a non-invasive tool that can be used for self-performed, rapid health assessments, earned FDA approval earlier this year.
Baltimore Gas and Electric Co. (BGE) is partnering with Morgan State University, Coppin State University and Bowie State University to award 15, $10,000 scholarships to full-time students majoring in science, technology, match and engineering subjects at each institution.
OPPORTUNITIES
Open Works, a Baltimore makerspace, is seeking applications for its EnterpRISE 2021 venture competition, which aims to fund local product-based business ideas that can use Open Works' resources to grow. Prizes range from $10,000 for first place winners to $750 for runners up, and all cohort companies also receive a free six-month membership starting January 2022. The application deadline is Oct. 8.
Stanley Black & Decker and UpSurge Baltimore are partnering to bring the STANLEY+Techstars Accelerator program to the city next year. The program will focus on electrification-focused ventures and will be the fourth edition of this particular accelerator. UpSurge Baltimore, a tech ecosystem building-focused organization, helped bring Techstars and this new accelerator to Baltimore. The application deadline is Nov. 3.
Innovation Works is hosting a Global Social Benefit Institute (GSBI) Boost program, a joint four-day entrepreneurial development workshop with the Miller Center for Social Entrepreneurship. The program is designed to help leaders of established local organizations learn business fundamentals and develop articulate and sustainable business plans. The application deadline is Oct. 4.
Anne Arundel Economic Development Corporation (AAEDC) launched a new Digital Services Grant program to help small brick-and-mortar businesses and nonprofits in the county do better business in the digital age. The program will begin taking applications for up to $10,000, and qualifying applicants include businesses or nonprofits with between two and 20 employees. The application deadline is Oct. 1.
