The Evolution of the Connected Car – An Innovative Partnership

Big Data and the Connected Car White Paper by TRA360
Big Data and the Connected Car White Paper by TRA360

As a professional writing service company, TRA360 works with many revolutionary technology companies in the Boston, Massachusetts area and beyond. It is always exciting to see technology change the way we think about everyday things. A few years ago, Intelligent Mechatronic Systems (IMS) used our white paper writing services  to spread the word about best practices for data commercialization with their DriveSync® software package as the focus. This package can make any automobile a fully connected car. Allowing the user to access a host of apps aimed at making life easier. While the idea of a connected car is not new, building one that is connected from the ground up is an exciting new venture.

In October of 2016, Geely, a Chinese car manufacturer, announced a partnership with Volvo to create the most connected car in the world. The new company, Lynk & Co, will create the first car built fully connected from the ground up. Third-party developers will be able to produce new in-car apps to personalize and expand the functions of the vehicle.

Lynk & Co’s revolution begins with Volvo’s Compact Modular Architecture (CMA) platform. This new method produces compact cars with all the benefits of larger vehicles including power-trains, infotainment, climate and data networks, as well as safety systems. New technologies of varying complexity can be fitted on the same architecture to create a more streamlined manufacturing process. Engineers can now spend their time revolutionizing how a car works, with unlimited possibilities.

The first version of the new car, called 01, is being tested in China. Additional versions using the same number scheme, will be released in Europe and North America by 2018. The cars use a cloud platform and online services from partners such as Microsoft, Ericsson, and Alibaba. Customers can create a car that fits their lifestyle by using the fully customizable touch screen.

The process of car ownership will change as well. Prices of the car will be fixed, eliminating haggling routines common with other car dealers. In addition, the cars will be available for online purchase. Users can enter and start their car using an app on their phone and rent their car to other Lynk & Co members by sharing their entry key via the app. As a result, customers will have access to a car anywhere they go.

Lynk & Co has plans to engineer more than just cars. Anyone is welcome to come up with their own improvement ideas. If you have an idea for a revolutionary bike that easily fits into a Lynk & Co car, as one customer did, the company will work with you to bring your idea to life.

Do you have an emerging technology you would like us to profile? Let us know on Twitter @Tra360 or Facebook.

Shift in Cancer Therapy with Antibody-Drug Conjugates

As a professional writing services company for the Life Sciences and Pharmaceutical industry, TRA360 attempts to stay current with recent scientific developments and shares them in our blog.

More than a century ago, Dr. Paul Erlich discovered certain chemicals are selectively absorbed by tissues and they could be a delivery vehicle for drugs to the disease site. [ref]Wang, Jeffrey, Shen, Wei-Chiang and Zaro, (Eds.),- Antibody-Drug Conjugates; The 21st Century Magic Bullets for Cancer, Springer 2015[/ref] In cancer therapy, monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) have shown fewer side effects compared to chemotherapy. And a combination of mAbs and chemicals often brings even more efficacy and fewer side effects. Antibody Drug Conjugates (ADCs) are created by attaching mAbs to biologically active drugs with chemical linkers.

cancer research.org
www.cancerresearch.org

Each ADC has three important parts: a) antibody b) chemical molecule c) linker. Despite this simple concept, discovering each specific part and, most importantly, conjugating them, is a complex but promising field in life sciences. Early ADCs were too toxic or not enough effective or linkers were not stable in the blood.

The industry’s belief in ADCs is high and there are more than 100 ADCs in the development pipelines of pharmaceutical companies. Currently, only two drugs; ADCETRIS® for treatment of Hodgkin’s lymphoma (HL) and systemic anaplastic large cell lymphoma (sALCL) and KADCYLA® for treatment of HER2-positive metastatic breast cancer (MBC) are available on the market. Seattle Genetics and ImmunoGen are on the edge of development of these drugs and many ADCs researchers are using this scientific methodology. In 2014, Roche had 10 molecules in clinical development.[ref]http://www.reportlinker.com/p02280919/Antibody-Drug-Conjugates-Market-Edition.html[/ref]

There are also current co-development agreements in the market. A consortium of Chinese companies including Shanghai Fosun Pharmaceutical Group, HOPU Investment Management, China Everbright Limited’s healthcare fund (“CEL Healthcare Fund”), and WuXi PharmaTech have started negotiations to acquire Ambrx. ADCs are the main reason for this targeted acquisition. Ambryx is anticipating clinical trial evaluation of ARX-788, an ADC that targets HER2 over-expressing tumors including breast, gastric, colon, pancreatic and ovarian cancers in 2015.[ref]http://ambrx.com/chinese-consortium-enters-into-agreement-to-acquire-ambrx[/ref]

Another example is Mersana Therapeutics, a Cambridge MA-based biotech company that specializes in immunoconjugate therapies with 6 ADCs in its pipeline. The company has development agreements with Takeda and EMD Serono for two of them.

The development of commercially viable ADCs is still in its early stages and the FDA is expecting to approve two more by 2020. As new products continue to move through the phases of clinical trials and if the results are successful in treating people with life-threatening and terminal diseases, the future looks promising for patients and investors.

Are you a health professional with an interest in ADCs? Do you have any comments on this article? Let us know here or tweet at us @TRA360!

John Hancock’s LOFT to Drive Innovation in Boston’s Tech Scene

LOFT is located in the heart of Boston's Innovation District.
LOFT is located in the heart of Boston’s Innovation District.

The launch of the innovation platform LOFT (Lab of Forward Thinking) by the Investment Division of Manulife and John Hancock on July 8th signals a change in the way financial services companies are responding to customer needs. The firm, which is located in Boston’s Seaport District, established LOFT as a means to permeate the area’s burgeoning start-up technology scene.

As an engine to prompt new ideas and provide better customer experiences, LOFT will enhance John Hancock’s image from that of solely an insurance and financial services provider to a leading vehicle for innovation.

At the Grand Opening Reception in Boston, LOFT showcased a number of new home-based innovations that utilize artificial intelligence. Two of these prototypes included an umbrella that opens automatically depending on the volume of rain it detects, and a well-camouflaged camera that successfully takes photos without being noticed. These innovations and others, created and presented by the engineers of MIT’s Media Lab, deliver a clear and important message to the contemporary business world: companies that are able to apply innovative thinking to their business models will more readily obtain competitive advantages moving forward.

LOFT comprises a space of 6,500 square feet and is devoted to providing the necessary resources to aid start-ups in Boston’s advancing “Innovation District.”

As a professional writing services company, TRA360 provides financial writing services and technical writing services to innovative start-ups locally, in Massachusetts, and around the world.

Are you an entrepreneurial tech start-up in Boston’s Innovation District? Comment below or let us know on Twitter @TRA360 and Facebook.

Fraunhofer, TechBridge, and Greentown Labs Team Up to PROPEL Cleantech Startups

Fraunhofer-Exterior-Night-Small
© Fraunhofer CSE

In the heart of Boston’s Innovation District lies Fraunhoufer’s Center for Sustainable Energy Systems (CSE), Fraunhoufer’s state-of-the-art research and development facility for the commercialization of clean energy technologies. At CSE, labs are ready to develop prototypes and deploy field demonstrations, in addition to providing fellowship and internship opportunities for researchers, entrepreneurs, and young professionals.

TechBridge is a technology commercialization program that Dr. Johanna Wolfson manages. The program strives to help early-stage clean technology startups hit the ground running by proving their value to investors and the industry. In addition to technical help, CSE allows startups to enjoy fundraising support and its vast network of investors and strategic partners—all at no cost.

The CSE building is a 2013 retrofit of a 100 year old building designed and reconstructed by the latest in energy conservation technologies. A couple features worth mentioning are the temperature control system and the “Synergy Elevator.” Passive air conditioning and laminar cooling systems provide a steady, uniform velocity along parallel flow of air to allow people to stay cool without cooling the entire room. The elevator, on the other hand, uses a gearless motor and a highly efficient brake system called “regenerative breaking” that recaptures a lion portion of the power and sends it back to the grid. It also produces less heat compared to conventional elevators.

The building is a wonderful showcase of the latest developments in energy efficiency technologies. More recently, though, Fraunhoufer’s TechBridge teamed up with fellow industry leader Greentown Labs to create PROPEL, a 6-month prototype development program for cleantech startups that utilizes TechBridge’s technology support and Greentown Labs’ incubation space. Greentown Labs, which is the nation’s largest cleantech incubator, additionally allows startups access to equipment, software, and business resources.

The PROPEL program’s mission is to create a more interconnected world through supporting innovations in self-powered Wireless Sensor-Actuator Networks (WSANs). Such startups will develop technologies and prototypes for distributed sensing and actuation networks and customer validation. PROPEL launched in April, 2015 and will use an application and screening process to select up to five teams that will begin working in Greentown Labs in September, 2015. In addition to prototype development, technical guidance, expert feedback from investors and industry partners, and incubation space, accepted companies will receive $10,000 in non-dilutive funding.

As a professional writing services company, TRA360 has been working with cleantech startups since 2011 and entrepreneurs since 1991.

Are you a cleantech professional or services provider? Comment below or let us know on Facebook and Twitter @TRA360!