Mark Zuckerberg and his wife Priscilla Chan have donated $25 million through their foundation to a philanthropic effort organized by Bill Gates to explore new coronavirus treatments.
The Gates Foundation donated $50 million last week to what it’s calling the “COVID-19 Therapeutics Accelerator.” The initiative brings together life sciences companies to collaborate on the development of new vaccines, diagnostics, and treatments for COVID-19.
“The Therapeutics Accelerator will enable researchers to quickly determine whether or not existing drugs have a potential benefit against COVID-19,” Chan and Zuckerberg said in a press release. “We hope these coordinated efforts will help stop the spread of COVID-19 as well as provide shared, reusable strategies to respond to future pandemics.”
The two donations are the largest from tech billionaires since the coronavirus outbreak. Wellcome and Mastercard are supporting the effort as well.
The goal of the initiative is to either develop a new drug or adapt an existing treatment that it could help distribute alongside partnering pharmaceutical companies.
The 15 companies participating in the project kicked off the effort by sharing their proprietary libraries of molecular compounds that have some history of being tested with COVID-19.
The lineup includes big names in biotech such as Johnson & Johnson, Merck, Pfizer, Sanofi, and Bristol-Myers Squibb.
Peloton reported a substantial jump in revenue, raking in more than $600 million in the fourth quarter
Alabama State University has managed to keep COVID-19 infections at zero despite rising cases on college campuses. University president, Quinton Ross, Jr, joined Cheddar to discuss new technology that scans for coronavirus symptoms.
In the 1980's and 90's, the solar car was deemed the future of transportation. Yet, just as quickly as it arrived, the solar car disappeared. But today, as the problems caused by our reliance on fossil fuels have grown, so has a demand for alternative sources of energy for our vehicles. While electric cars are rapidly gaining a larger share of the automotive market, this technology still relies on electricity from a grid often fueled by petroleum or coal. And this is why some companies today are again trying to harness the most powerful energy source we know: the sun.
Electric vehicle maker, Nikola, announced a partnership with General Motors to construct its electric pick up truck, the Badger. Founder and executive chairman, Trevor Milton, joined Cheddar to production timeline and benefits of joining GM.
From Wall Street to Silicon Valley, these are the top stories that moved markets and had investors, business leaders, and entrepreneurs talking this week on Cheddar.
Stocks fell sharply on Wall Street Thursday as high-flying technology companies took a tumble after months of spectacular gains.
With just two months left until the U.S. presidential election, Facebook says it is taking additional steps to encourage voting, minimize misinformation and reduce the likelihood of post-election “civil unrest.”
Patreon has been valued at over $1.2 billion as the coronavirus pandemic forces creators find new outlets. CEO Jack Conte joined Cheddar to discuss the company's vision.
Altice USA, Cheddar's parent company, has made an offer to purchase the rest of Cogeco, which owns Atlantic Broadband. Altice USA will sell the Canadian assets to Rogers Communications.
Samsung’s second attempt at a foldable smartphone will come with a $2,000 price tag and a few elite perks aimed at affluent consumers still able to afford the finer things in life during tough times.
