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10 Nanotechnology Companies
July
15, 2002
Larta
picks ten nanotechnology companies that are poised to make a difference.
 NanoSys
Founded
by CEO Larry Bock, one of the biggest heavyweights in the small tech world,
and who has funded and launched other successful biotech startups, Nanosys
is Boston-based company that develops nanotechnology-enabled systems,
with applications in molecular sensing, optoelectronics, and nanoelectronics.
Bock's track record of launching over a dozen life science companies,
and its IP, has helped Nanosys attract VC capital during one of the toughest
eras for financing--last February the company announced $15 million in
Series B financing from five top-tier firms. The company is relucant to
disclose what it considers to be its smoking gun to enter the market,
but has made considerable progress in nanometer transistors, which will
thus enable a new generation of computer chips.
 Hybrid
Plastics
A U.S. Air
Force Research Laboratory spin-off, Hybrid Plastics made its mark in the
industry for the development of a revolutionary plastics technology derived
from sand which is extremely strong, efficient, and does not cause air
pollution during production. 205 companies buy trademarked nanostructured
chemicals from the now privately held company, which is a recipient of
the 2000 CalTIP award. Hybrid Plastics, which was able to grow in its
early stages through the assistance of government R&D funding, now
sell materials for research and development. The company's products are
utilized for a variety of clients--optical, computing and electronics,
and beauty corporations.
 Chemat
Technology
Considered survivors of government-funded research and development,
Chemat became a profitable business in 2000 (half of that attributed to
customer sales), a decade since the sol-gel solution company was founded.
Prior to that, Chemat's R&D Division was successful in completing
nearly one hundred contracts for government agencies and industry clients.
Its mission is the creation and commercialization of sol-gel based advanced
materials and technologies, for its own use and to provide its clients
with technologies they can use to create leading-edge products using advanced
materials.
 Luxtera
A Caltech-UCLA spinoff, Luxtera was founded by two
leaders in the field of nano photonics--Eli Yablonovitch,
the inventor of the photonic crystal, and Dr. Axel Scherer,
who has led pioneering work in nanoscale fabrication. Receiving
$7 million in an A round last February, Luxtera's product
is based on Caltech developments in the field of nanophotonics.
This technology
is based upon optical structures which are an order of magnitude smaller
than those traditionally used in integrated optical devices.
This technology could thus reduce the cost of optical-electronic transitions
and optoelectronic systems.
 Broadley-James
Broadley-James has the kind of business dilemma that most companies
would gladly take on--supplying a heavy demand for its product. Thanks
to a distribution decision made by Beckman Instruments back in the late
1960's, the company was able to penetrate the pH sensor market and become
a leading manufacturer over the next three decades. It has positioned
itself favorably by entering the biotech-pharmaceutical market, an industry
that has increased production drastically (and thus created strong market
demand). In order to reach its next stepping stone, Broadley-James was
awarded a Larta-facilitated CalTIP grant last year, and will use those
funds, as well as SBIR and UC grant support, to work towards improving
and creating a new generation of pH sensors. The funds, still being budgeted
for the project, will go towards marketing and promotion, as well as production
engineering.
 Nano
Devices
In
2001, Nanodevices was one of the Santa Barbara companies Larta awarded
CalTIP funding. This helped the company to complete a 2002 launch date,
and NanoDevices is now shipping its Active Probe™ technology on the
Digital Instruments, Veeco Metrology NanoScope® IV. In a move calculated
to increase the growth of nanotube research, NanoDevices unveiled their
EasyTube™ NanoFurnace in November 2001 at the Foresight Conference
for Nanotechnology in Santa Clara. Designed to give researchers the ability
to quickly and easily produce both single-wall carbon nanotubes (SWNT)
and multi-wall carbon nanotubes (MWNT), the instrument is fully programmable
and can be operational on the day of installation.
 Insert
Therapeutics
Another Caltech spinoff, Insert Therapeutics produces a non-viral,
non-toxic, intracellular delivery system for small molecule drugs and
genes. The company's work is based on research done in the laboratory
of Mark Davis, a chemical engineering professor at Caltech. Unlike competing
methodologies which simply "patch" new components onto established
materials, the company's proprietary technology--CycloSert-- facilitates
the efficient uptake and release of a range of drugs and genes directly
into cells. This delivery technology can carry therapeutics of any size,
ranging from drugs to DNA, and their combinations. This specifically addresses
this delivery issue with DNA-based therapeutics, since site-directed,
intracellular delivery is a critical obstacle to their successful clinical
application.
 Rockwell
Scientific
Rockwell Scientific is one of the most prominent research and
development labs focused on a wide array of innovative technologies, and
has managed to developed a portfolio of technology and intellectual property
that can be applied to several fields. However, several of its dollars
have been flowing towards has nanotech-related research and development,
most recently in the area of nano materials, fabrication, and nano magnetic
particles, which it believes to have near term market potential.
 Cyrano
Sciences
The
technological engine behind Cyrano is a proprietary sensing technology,
also developed at Caltech. Cyrano is exploiting the value that is unleashed
by the capability to digitize, archive, and analyze smell and provide
low cost chemical information. Cyrano's product is a sensor array technology
that provides a breakthrough capability to transform scents into digital
"smellprints" via a small, low cost NoseChip (TM).
Cyrano has established software protocols for converting data from these
"smellprints" into actionable information for customers. Some
of the applications for this technology include chemical weapon detection,
food quality control, and disease detection.
Genefluidics
Founded
two years ago from leading scientists and researchers at UCLA, Genefludics
is a bio-focused nanotech company that is developing cutting-edge devices
to revolutionize molecular analysis. The products are a bench-top analytical
reader for multifunctional applications, and a hand-held reader for field
use or point-of-care, able to detect and analyze DNA/RNA, as well as proteins
and small molecules from raw samples. These devices produce highly accurate
quantitative and qualitative results in minutes rather than hours or days,
and drastically reduce the cost of assays to a fraction of the price needed
by competing systems. The increased functionality and capabilities of
the disposable unit will be targeted for applications in pharmaceutical
and life sciences research.
The Nano
Republic Conference 2002 - July 17
The Nano Republic Conference is a one-day Larta event featuring world-class
speakers and highlighting California-wide Nanotechnology efforts. The
Nano Republic Conference will serve as a serious examination of the current
state of nanotechnology and focus on its near-term developments and constraints.
The Nano Republic Conference will bring together all current industry
segments and leaders from industry, academia, labs and the capital markets.
Registration for the Nano Republic Conference will give you free admission
to the ZONE Club dinner reception and program.
more
information >
The ZONE
Club - July 17
Immediately following the Nano Republic Conference the ZONE Club will
host a dinner/networking event featuring one of the leaders of the venture
capital community. Steve Jurvetson, Managing Director, Draper Fisher Jurvetson,
will speak on "Nanotechnology: What's Hot, What's Hype, What's Not"
6-7 Networking, cocktails and great food
7-8 Program
8-9 More networking, food and drink
more
information >
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