H Ventures Partners closes on debut fund

H Venture Partners closed on its debut venture capital fund. The female-founded, owned, and controlled VC firm raised over $10 million. Founder and managing partner Elizabeth Edwards said in a statement that the fund will look to transform the way people live: “We do that by putting money in the hands of exceptional founders who are launching science-based brands that reflect the diverse needs of our communities.”

Vaccine platform licensed

Biopharmaceutical company Blue Water Vaccines, Inc. has licensed a novel virus-like particle vaccine platform developed at Cincinnati Children’s. The platform may have broad applications for rotavirus, influenza, and malaria. Cincinnati Children’s investigators Xi Jason Jiang, Ph.D., and Ming Tan, Ph.D., have been working in infectious disease research for a combined six decades.

GE Aviation embraces additive manufacturing tech

Additive manufacturing tech is improving, and GE Aviation is taking advantage of it. The GE Aviation team works closely with colleagues from the group’s GE Additive unit, which was established in October 2016, to drive down costs and improve the design and manufacturing process.

Miami’s new fund addresses diversity

The John W. Altman Institute for Entrepreneurship student-led Social Impact Fund added two new social ventures to its portfolio that targets the impact of diversity, equity and inclusion (DE&I) with investments in Queen City Certified and Keepsake Tales.

Cincinnati Insurance Company wins award

The Cincinnati Insurance Company will receive an Impact Award from the Novarica Insurance Technology Research Council for a configurator it built that ingests algorithms to the rating engine without code. The tool has already saved 3,500 coding hours and reduced time to code rating algorithms by 75%.

NKU adds animation degree track

Northern Kentucky University is adding a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Animation degree track to teach students how to use state-of-the-art digital tools in the field of animation. Animation careers are used across industries, from creative to tech.

Best places to work in IT

Computerworld has released its list of Top 100 Best Places to Work in IT and a couple of them are located right in Cincy. The Kroger Co. made the list for the fourth consecutive year for having an innovative, industry-leading workplace culture. Total Quality Logistics (TQL) earned a place on the list for the third year in a row for its excellence in IT.