Documents filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission in 2017 show that Charlottesville’s technology companies this year have attracted millions in venture capital investment.
Six companies have attracted more than $39 million in investment capital, records show.
ArcheMedX, a software company marketing an interactive online platform for medical education programs, raised over $2.5 million from 14 investors last month.
“As a small company, we have been able to overachieve and put ourselves in a position where we can start to scale, and make an impact on healthcare,” said CEO Joel Selzer.
Selzer said the investment would allow ArcheMedX to double the size of its staff in Charlottesville this year. The company secured new business deals exceeding $1 million in the second quarter of 2017, Selzer said.
Jaffray Woodriff and Greyson Williams, co-founders of Quantitative Investment Management, were the lead investors in the recent financing round for ArcheMedX.
“Jaffray and Greyson really believe in helping entrepreneurs and businesses be successful in the long term,” Selzer said. “The more you can align the interests of founders and equity investors to truly build something great, the more likely you are to succeed together.”
Woodriff has invested in numerous startups in Charlottesville and is backing the development of a new hub for technology businesses at the current site of the Main Street Arena.
Columbia Power Technologies, founded in 2006, has raised nearly $2 million from private investors this year. The company is working to commercialize a device that can efficiently generate electricity from ocean waves.
Columbia Power Technologies has consistently won large grants from the U.S. Navy and the Department of Energy, including a $3.5 million phase-two grant from the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy this year.
The company is currently testing a full-scale version of its generator at The National Wind Technology Center in Colorado before installing it off the coast of Hawaii.
“We have had a very methodically scaled development process over the last 11 years,” said Bradford Lamb, president and COO of Columbia Power Technologies.
“So much of the world’s population lives within 50 or 100 miles of the ocean,” Lamb said. “This is a huge opportunity to deliver energy right to their doors.”
TearSolutions, co-founded by UVa professor Gordon Laurie, closed a $3.4 million placement of convertible debt to private investors this spring. The company is sponsoring clinical trials of a long-term preventative treatment for dry eye, called Lacripep.
HemoShear, a biotechnology company pursuing treatments for rare children’s metabolic diseases, raised over $2.6 million in equity investment in March.
Metis Machine, a new analytics startup, raised $2.5 million in seed funding in January. Led by WillowTree co-founder Michael Prichard, the company aims to help healthcare and manufacturing companies improve their daily operations with intelligence from big data.
Cavion closed a $26.1 million investment round at the beginning of the year to support clinical trials of a new treatment for brain cancers and other neurological diseases.
Lilly Ventures and Novartis Venture Fund were the lead investors in Cavion’s Series A funding round, which was the largest ever for a Virginia life sciences startup.
