PARIS – Corwave SA has obtained $600,000 as part of the Ile-de-France region's stimulus plan, to boost development of its Neptune cardiac support pump. This subsidy is part of the manufacturing recovery plan for the Ile-de-France region, aimed at very small enterprises (VSEs), small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and mid-cap companies. In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Ile-de-France Region is supporting re-industrialization in a region that brings together 12.1 million inhabitants, or nearly 19% of the French population.

Shenzhen Xbiome Biotech Co. Ltd., an artificial intelligence (AI)-based microbiome drugmaker, raised more than $20 million in a series B+ round, Xbiome CEO Yan Tan told BioWorld, financing that will help the company launch its phase I trial next year. It has been a year since the drugmaker closed a $14 million series B round. During this period, Tan said Xbiome submitted an IND to the FDA in October for its fecal microbiota transplant (FMT) capsule candidate, a potential treatment for graft-vs.-host disease.

HONG KONG – Singapore-based X-Zell Biotech Pte. Ltd. has emerged as the winner of the Medtech Innovator Asia Pacific 2020 Accelerator program, as determined by a live virtual audience vote. Winning the competition, organized by Medtech Innovator and the Asia Pacific Medical Technology Association (APACMed), earned X-Zell a $150,000 non-dilutive grand prize to advance its business goals and mission.