Cambridge, MA and Berlin, Germany – September 8, 2010 – ResearchGate, a social network for scientists and researchers, today announced the completion of its Series A financing. The substantial group of preeminent international investors from the US, UK, and Germany have converged upon ResearchGate to support the growing platform.
The Series A round was led by Benchmark Capital, with participation from Accel Partners’ Silicon Valley office and prominent investors from the UK, Simon Levene (angel investor and former partner at Accel Partners) and Michael Birch (co-founder of Bebo) and from Germany, Joachim Schoss (angel investor and founder of Scout24), Martin Sinner (co-founder of idealo.com), Ulrich Essmann (co-founder of sedo.com), Christian Vollmann (angel investor and founder of MyVideo.de), and Rolf Christof Dienst (general partner at Wellington Venture Capital). Benchmark Capital general partner Matt Cohler, angel investor Simon Levene and Joachim Schoss will also join the ResearchGate board of directors.
"With the financing, our main priority will be to expand our organization to supplement the core team in our Berlin headquarters and accelerate the platform's growth," said Ijad Madisch, co-founder and CEO of ResearchGate. "It's great to have trusted investors from the US, UK and Germany who can see ResearchGate's vision of changing science by facilitating global communication and collaboration from anywhere. We will continue to support the innovations and add key features demanded by our users to stay connected and share information efficiently. We will continue to push the collaborative boundaries and serve as a catalyst in the evolution of scientific research and discovery."
Founded by Dr. Ijad Madisch, an award winning scientist who earned his M.D. and Ph.D. from the Medical School of Hannover, Germany and currently performing research at Harvard Medical School, Sören Hofmayer, who earned his M.D., from the Medical School of Hannover, and Horst Fickenscher, a computer scientist who earned his Dipl.-Inf. degree at the University of Passau, Germany, ResearchGate enables scientists and researchers in various fields to share information and find solutions to problems, in an efficient and timely manner.
"We believe in getting involved early in companies who have a strong vision for an untapped market," said Matt Cohler, general partner of Benchmark Capital. "For Benchmark, investing in ResearchGate is about investing in a strong team, who understands the unique collaboration needs of the scientific community, and is well positioned to deliver on its early lead."
Currently, ResearchGate has more than a half million registered users on the social networking site and continues to add users daily.
"I saw the potential of ResearchGate back in 2008 and knew they had a very promising social network that truly helps move research and science forward,” said Joachim Schoss, angel investor and founder of Scout24. "I frequently come across Internet startups but few have the long term potential in both the social media stream and the impact that it can have on society as a whole. This is a priceless scientific tool."
"As an entrepreneur and investor I relish at the chance to see something new and invigorating in the social networking space and ResearchGate is simply that," said Michael Birch, co-founder of Bebo. "I am thrilled at the opportunity to join the journey."
ResearchGate is the professional social network for scientists and researchers to collaborate, share and network. The Boston and Berlin based startup has more than 500,000 registered users from 200 countries. ResearchGate enables users to connect with colleagues, discover new research, share scientific methods and collaborate online. To learn more about ResearchGate, visit: www.researchgate.net.
