Biotech incubator raises $22.5M

Accelerator, Seattle's souped-up biotech incubator, has raised $22.5 million in its third and largest investment round. The funds will help start up to six emerging companies over the next two or three years, said Chief Executive Carl Weissman.

Accelerator operates as a kind of biotech nursery — it channels money from venture-capital firms into early stage start-ups, and closely manages them until they raise enough money to stand on their own or are deemed a failure. The incubator also provides office space for the fledglings in its Eastlake headquarters.

The budding companies are under strict supervision, meeting with the Accelerator team to discuss milestones once a week, said Weissman.

Since its 2003 founding, Accelerator has invested in six companies, two of which — VLST and Spaltudaq — gained independence after raising some $84 million in venture capital. One company was cut off after failing to develop a feasible strategy, Weissman said.

When a company succeeds in leaving the nest, "it's a pleasure to hand off the keys," Weissman said. He expects further graduations next year.

Accelerator's role in the Seattle biotech community is heightened by the relative lack of local venture-capital firms devoted to investing in the life sciences, compared with thriving hubs such as Boston or San Francisco. Companies here "have to work harder" to raise money, said Jack Faris, president of the Washington Biotechnology and Biomedical Association.

"Some of the most exciting startups launched here within the past couple of years have been with the Accelerator," Faris said. "It's a terrific asset."

Entrepreneurs aching for admission, however, would have more chance of getting into an Ivy League school. Since its inception, Accelerator has received more than 400 proposals and chosen only six, said Weissman.

Most participants in the latest funding round are repeat customers: Amgen Ventures, Arch Venture Partners, OVP Venture Partners and Alexandria Real Estate Equities. But there's also a new investor: WRF Capital, an arm of the Washington Research Foundation.

The high-profile Institute for Systems Biology continues to be the "key scientific institutional anchor" for Accelerator, a statement from the incubator said. The institute's faculty has provided or helped select the technology used in more than half of Accelerator's start-ups, said ISB Director Leroy Hood in the statement.

Ángel González: 206-515-5644

or agonzalez@seattletimes.com