Author: pbj_repost

How the VC Pathways Program is Boosting Equality in Philadelphia’s Startup Scene

May 2, 2018

The problem: people of color and women are drastically underrepresented in Greater Philadelphia’s tech and startup ecosystem. One potential solution Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Southeastern Pennsylvania, Village Capital and UBS just tried out: prepping those founders for investment and growth at the ground level. Last week, the three organizations marked the end of the VC […]

Wistar, Ben Franklin Technology Partners teaming up to help develop startups

April 30, 2018

The Wistar Institute and Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Southeastern Pennsylvania signed a Memorandum of Understanding Friday to work together to accelerate the advancement of early-stage life sciences start-ups coming out of Wistar. Under the partnership, Ben Franklin and Wistar will be developing a mentoring program around technology development for both translational scientists and entrepreneurs. […]

Philadelphia Beats Boston, San Francisco in Attracting Skilled Workers, Analysis Finds

April 18, 2018

Philadelphia beat out powerhouses like Boston and San Francisco in a new JLLSnapshot analysis of cities drawing the most highly skilled workers. In the brief report released Wednesday, JLL used census bureau estimates to measure the growth of a specific segment of the city’s population — adults over 25 with a bachelor’s degree in the region […]

How Ben Franklin Technology Partners Invested $2.6M Last Quarter

February 20, 2018

Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Southeastern Pennsylvania invested $2.6 million in 13 regional startups last quarter, according to numbers the organization released Thursday. The state-backed seed fund and economic development nonprofit said it agreed to fund five IT companies, five digital health companies and three companies in the physical sciences last quarter. The bulk of the […]

Ben Franklin’s Venture Capital Network Just Got Bigger

December 21, 2017

Ben Franklin Technology Partners entered into yet another new partnership this week, as the combo economic development organization and early-stage funding firm continues expanding its venture network. Ben Franklin announced Thursday it’s joining California-based Draper Venture Network’s DVN Beta program, which links seed-stage funds with DVN’s larger network of 17 independent venture funds and more […]

Matchmaker, Matchmaker: Ben Franklin’s New Initiative to Pair up Startup, VCs and Corporate Partners

November 30, 2017

Almost every startup on the road to success can point to one meeting that paved the way. Whether it’s with a venture capital firm that plunks down the cash to scale an operation or a corporation that becomes a buyer, being able to make your case in front of a potential investor or partner is […]

Biobots Adopts New Name, Launches New Software

November 8, 2017

BioBots has a new name and a new software out in the market, continuing to propel the company on its strategy to move beyond being solely the maker of desktop three-dimensional printers and bioinks used to create living tissue. The Philadelphia-based BioBots, founded in 2014 and based at the Pennovation Center, is now known as […]

The Complete 2017 Philadelphia Business Journal POWER 100

November 7, 2017

The Philadelphia Business Journal editorial team, who has about 200 years of combined experience covering business, spent many hours debating and crafting this list. It’s the job of our reporters and editors to know who the true leaders are in our community. We narrowed in on those wielding the most influence, either through their position, […]

A Fix for Fido? Locally Developed Canine Melanoma Vaccine Advances

November 7, 2017

A suburban Philadelphia animal health company has entered into an exclusive license agreement with the Wistar Institute to further advance a canine melanoma vaccine and other vaccines for cancer and infectious diseases in animals. Financial terms of the deal between Man’s Best Friend Therapeutics (MBFT) of Ambler, Pa., and Wistar, a Philadelphia nonprofit research institute, were […]

How this Philadelphia Startup Plans to Help Companies Win the Ongoing Talent War

November 6, 2017

As employers continue to battle for top talent in a tight employment market, Philadelphia-based startup PeopleJoy is expanding a product, that it says is a viable weapon — the ability for employers to help its staffers pay off student loans. CEO Emeka Oguh founded PeopleJoy about two years ago when he realized just how much […]