Slater recently joined several private investors to provide seed funding to Public Display, Inc. Public Display, a web applications company based in Providence, R.I., is developing systems that enable consumers to manage digital information more efficiently. The funding will be used to expand the company's research and development efforts.

Slater has provided seed funding to Vitrimark, a new biotechnology company originating from URI’s College of Engineering. Founded by Chemical Engineering Professor Arijit Bose, Vitrimark is developing a proprietary system to identify structure-based biomarkers using cryogenic imaging of body fluids. Biomarkers are emerging as one of medicine’s significant clinical research tools, used for disease detection, therapy monitoring and other applications.

Advanced Image Enhancement (AIE), a software company producing optimized image enhancement tools for digital radiology, recently received FDA approval to market its image enhancement software for digital mammography. AIE’s technology complements digital mammography by improving the conspicuity and detail of subtle abnormalities, providing doctors with an added tool in their arsenal for the screening of breast cancer.

Respected entrepreneur and biotechnology executive Robert Valentini has been named CEO of Myomics, Inc., a Slater-backed start-up company that is discovering and developing drugs for neuromuscular diseases. He was most recently program executive at Shire HGT, where he was responsible for Replagal, a $100-million enzyme replacement therapy approved in 34 countries worldwide. As a co-founder, director and chief operating officer of Cell Based Delivery, a biotechnology company that developed innovative products to treat hemophilia, anemia, and cardiovascular disease, Dr. Valentini raised over $11 million in venture capital financing. Valentini was formerly professor of medical science at Brown University, where he obtained his Sc.B., Ph.D., and M.D. degrees.

Slater portfolio company Andera Inc., a leading provider of web-based solutions for the financial institution market, garnered national attention when its CEO, Charles Kroll, was named New England Young Entrepreneur of the Year by the U.S. Small Business Administration.

Cyberkinetics Neurotechnology Systems, Inc., a leader in the emerging field of neurotechnology, had scientific findings from its ongoing pilot clinical trials of the BrainGate System featured on the cover of the July 13th issue of Nature. The company also announced the appointment of Brown University alumnus and medical device industry veteran Kurt H. Kruger to the position of chief financial officer.

The Slater Technology Fund provides seed capital investment in support of entrepreneurs who have the vision, leadership and commitment to build substantial business enterprises. Slater typically invests at the inception stage in the development of a new venture, often based upon ideas and technologies originating in academic institutions, government research laboratories or commercial enterprises located within the region. Investments are premised upon the principals being committed to basing and building their businesses in Rhode Island.