News & Events
Media coverage and recent press releases posted below. For media inquiries, please contact: Derek Sarley.
ASU Flexible Electronics and Display Center - Feb 25, 2013
The Flexible Electronics and Display Center (FEDC) at Arizona State University (formerly the Flexible Display Center) and PARC, a Xerox company, today announced that they successfully manufactured the world-s largest flexible X-ray detector prototype using advanced thin film transistors (TFTs). Measuring 7.9 diagonal inches, the device was jointly developed at the FEDC and PARC in conjunction with the Army Research Lab (ARL) and the Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA). This device will be used to advance the development of flexible X-ray detectors for use in thin, lightweight, conformable and highly rugged devices. More >
FLUIDIC: Metal Air Recharged - Feb 25, 2013
Arizona Republic: Non-profit group posts increases in patents, licensing agreements - Feb 6, 2013
Arizona Technology Enterprises, the independently operated non-profit organization established in 2003 to bring ASU-developed inventions to market, had a banner year in 2012, according to the university’s most recent annual report. More >
ASU spin-off launches world's first portable metabolism tracker
Breezing, a new startup based on technology developed by researchers at Arizona State University, is offering the world’s first portable device that can track an individual’s metabolism and use that information to provide diet and exercise recommendations for maintaining or reaching a healthy weight. More >
ASU research makes Science's top 10 breakthroughs
ASU scientists have been lauded by the journal Science, which cited their groundbreaking research on protein structures as one of the top 10 breakthroughs of 2012. Working as part of an international team, the ASU researchers have been central to the technological developments leading to a stream of exciting discoveries since 2009 – the most recent of which were reported in a November 2012 edition of Science. More>
ASU Venture Catalyst startups raise more than $1M
ASU Venture Catalyst, the startup unit of Arizona State University, has announced that the startups within their accelerator programs have raised more than $1 million in the last 12 months. “It has been a great year for the early-stage ventures based in ASU SkySong,” said Gordon McConnell, assistant vice president for entrepreneurship and innovation for the Office of Knowledge Enterprise Development at ASU. More >
ASU spin-out HealthTell named Start-up of the Year
HealthTell Inc., a spin-out company from Arizona State University’s Biodesign Institute, was selected as the Start-up of the Year at the 2012 Governor’s Celebration of Innovation this week. The prestigious annual awards gala, sponsored by the Arizona Technology Council and the Arizona Commerce Authority, spotlights innovations in science and technology and how they are applied to build a sustainable economy for Arizona's future. Read more>
Professor earns $6.25M research award from Department of Defense - Jul 3, 2012
ASU professor Hao Yan, an innovator in the field of nanotechnology, has been selected to receive a five-year, $6.25 million basic research award under the Department of Defense’s (DoD) Multidisciplinary University Research Initiative (MURI) program. More>
Entrepreneurship at ASU launches 55 companies, attracts $200M in financing - Jun 26, 2012
In the last decade, business startups launched by Arizona State University faculty have led to the formation of 55 companies, including 34 currently operating in Arizona, according to Arizona Technology Enterprises (AzTE), the intellectual property management arm of ASU. Additionally, companies and sub-licensees created, based on ASU technologies, have attracted more than $200 million in financing during that time. More>
The future is light: making electronics flexible - Jun 7, 2012
ASU launches start-up accelerator open to non-affiliates
Arizona State University’s Venture Catalyst, in partnership with the university’s tech transfer office, is launching a new accelerator program, named Furnace, to showcase the school’s research discoveries in the hopes that they will form the basis for new and promising start-ups. Read more
ASU licenses several biotech technologies to Roche - Oct 11, 2011
Phoenix Business Journal -- Arizona State University will license several technologies to Basel, Switzerland-based Roche, the world’s largest biotech company. The technologies to develop a new DNA sequencing system were developed by Dr. Stuart Lindsay at the Biodesign Institute at ASU and Dr. Colin Nuckolls, of the Columbia University Nanoscience Center... “ASU is absolutely a remarkable school for tech transfer,” [Lindsay] said. Read more
Roche Licenses Nanopore Sequencing Technologies from Arizona State University and Columbia University for Rapid, Affordable DNA Sequencing - Oct 11, 2011
Roche and Arizona Technology Enterprises (AzTE) announced today an agreement to license several technologies developed by Dr. Stuart Lindsay at the Biodesign Institute at Arizona State University and Dr. Colin Nuckolls of the Columbia University Nanoscience Center for the development of a revolutionary DNA sequencing system. The licensed technologies include specialized approaches for DNA base sensing and reading and build on an ongoing collaboration between Roche's sequencing center of excellence, 454 Life Sciences, and IBM to develop and commercialize a single-molecule, nanopore DNA sequencer with the capacity to rapidly decode an individual's complete genome for well below $1000. Read more
Greener Capital Completes First Close - Oct 5, 2011
Greener Capital, a venture capital firm focused on breakthrough solutions in clean technology, has successfully completed its first closing for Greener Capital Partners II. Thomas Cain, a managing partner of Greener Capital, also opened the first in-resident venture capital office at SkySong, the ASU Scottsdale innovation center. Arizona Technology Enterprises (AzTE), the IP management and technology transfer company for Arizona State University, is a limited partner in Greener Capital Partners II. Read more
Service-oriented approach brings more deals and better relations with faculty - Sep 1, 2011
In a recent post written jointly by R.F. (Rick) Shangraw Jr., senior vice president in the Office of Knowledge Enterprise Development at Arizona State University, and Augustine Cheng, the managing director and chief legal officer for Arizona Technology Enterprises at ASU, the co-authors laid out what they termed “a new prescription” for TTOs. Among their recommendations was the following: “Become a service to your faculty, and not a revenue machine.” Such an approach, they assert, will not only lead to more effective internal marketing with this all-important audience (and not coincidentally, better relations with industry) but it also has the potential, ironically, to improve financial performance. Read the full article in September's IP Marketing Advisor
A New Prescription for Technology Transfer - Jul 28, 2011
We have created 10 prescriptions for technology transfer that may not cure the patient, but would certainly revive it and put it on the solid path to recovery. These steps were determined after consultation with technology transfer and entrepreneurial experts at all levels of Arizona State University. As we move through implementation, we can see some positive results. For example, ASU’s metrics on licensing and startup activities place it in the top ten of institutions with more than $200 million in research expenditures on a cost-adjusted basis. Prescription 1: Hire skilled people who understand both the university and industrial environments. More>
ASU startup ships first memory product - Jun 28, 2011
Adesto Technologies Corp., a startup company developing conductive bridging RAM nonvolatile memory technology, has announced that it will ship products this year manufactured by foundry partner Altis Semiconductor SA. In September 2010 the company said it planned to sample a 1-Mbit serial EEPROM replacement as soon as the first quarter of 2011. More >
Inventing the future - Apr 4, 2011
Fluoride toothpaste. Rocket fuel. The cancer drug Taxol. LCD displays. Seat belts. Gatorade. Penicillin. The one thing that connects them all is that they were developed through research at universities. Academic researchers are continually developing technologies, products and processes that improve our lives and stimulate the economy. More >
AzTE recognizes inventive ASU faculty - Feb 14, 2011
Arizona State University recently honored some of its most inventive and entrepreneurial faculty at a ceremony hosted by Arizona Technology Enterprises (AzTE), the university’s exclusive intellectual property management and technology transfer organization. More >
ASU inks deal with Italian company - Feb 1, 2011
Sometimes, however, all the elements come together, as demonstrated by the recently announced licensing agreement between Zcube and Arizona Technology Enterprises (AzTE), ASU's technology venturing arm. The agreement will allow Zcube to use ASU technology to develop and commercialize next-generation medical devices aimed at better monitoring and treatment of chronic respiratory diseases like asthma. Read the full article in IP Marketing Advisor
Cultivating Innovation - Jan 11, 2011
Universities seeking ways to commercialize their research work are creating new businesses, jobs and revenue streams
"In most universities there will always be pockets of resistance from folks who have been in academia a long time," [ASU's Augie Cheng] says. "But at ASU I would say that a majority of the faculty do believe that commercial impact is important. They want to see real results from the research." More >
Italian company partners with ASU to perfect asthma treatment - Dec 23, 2010
A partnership between Arizona State University and an Italian pharmaceutical firm may help asthma sufferers across the U.S. and Europe breathe easier. Zcube, the research venture of Italian pharmaceutical Zambon Co., and Arizona Technology Enterprises, ASU's technology-venturing arm, have entered into a licensing agreement that will allow Zcube to use ASU technology to develop and commercialize next-generation medical devices to better monitor and treat chronic respiratory diseases like asthma. More >
AzTE highly ranked in recent annual tech transfer survey - Dec 6, 2010
According to the report, AzTE scores highly in terms of both inputs (inventions disclosed to AzTE by ASU researchers) and outputs (licensing deals and option agreements). Among U.S. institutions with at least $200 million in research expenditures, AzTE ranked seventh in invention disclosures per $10 million in research. In addition, AzTE ranked sixth for expenditure-adjusted licenses and options. Among the 15 peer institutions designated by the Arizona Board of Regents, ASU through AzTE's activities ranked first and second in those categories, respectively. More >
Medical Device Startup EndoStim Licenses ASU technology - Nov 29, 2010
AzTE licenses microstimulator technology developed by ASU Professor Bruce Towe - Nov 24, 2010
A local doctor and an Arizona State University engineer are working to give acid-reflux sufferers a jolt of relief. The entrepreneurs are helping to develop a tiny device that would stimulate a muscle that blocks stomach acid from bubbling up the digestive tract ... Arizona State University engineering professor Bruce Towe helped create the technology, which includes a microchip that is so tiny that it can fit through a syringe ... "The primary thrust has been to make these devices smaller and smaller," Towe said. "They become less and less invasive and can be introduced into people without surgery." More >
ASU professors honored with Excellence in Research Award - Nov 16, 2010
ASU launches Venture Catalyst to help faculty and students launch startups - Oct 6, 2010
ASU received a $1 million grant to establish Venture Catalyst at ASU, a new entrepreneurial assistance initiative to help faculty, students and companies launch new startups or accelerate existing ventures. More >
National Academies' report says modern tech transfer system works, could be improved - Oct 4, 2010
A National Research Council report evaluating university tech transfer efforts since the 1980 Bayh-Dole Act finds the current system is "unquestionably more effective than its predecessor system … in making research advances available to the public." However, the commission recommended universities focus on disseminating technologies for the public good, rather than raising large sums from licensing. More >
