Google Ventures and Carphone Warehouse founder Charles Dunstone have invested £110m in Oxford Sciences Innovation (OSI), which aims to boost development of science and technology businesses.
OSI was launched recently as a partnership between the University of Oxford and Isis Innovation, the university’s technology commercialisation subsidiary.
The latest fundraising brings the total amount raised by OSI to £320m, with £210m already secured from six investors.
Other investors in the partnership include Invesco Asset Management, IP Group, Lansdowne Partners (UK), Oxford University Endowment Fund, the Wellcome Trust, and Woodford Investment Management.
Google Ventures general partner Tom Hulme said: "Google Ventures’ investment in OSI represents our faith in Oxford University’s ability to develop the next generation of scientific breakthroughs."
OSI chairman David Norwood said: "We are now in a position to combine Oxford University’s proud history, with cornerstone investors and Board-level advice from some of the best minds in the tech industry to turn world-leading science into market-leading companies."
The OSI partnership will provide capital for spinout companies based on research from the mathematical, physical, life sciences and medical sciences divisions.
A new IP-driven businesses will be established together with Isis Innovation, in addition to providing investment capital and advice.
