Oxford Companies announced the launch of the Oxford Instant Office Simple Agreement for Future Equity program for local tech startups.

ANN ARBOR Amazon has made the first corporate gift to the University of Michigans Accelerate Blue Fund, a philanthropic venture fund aimed at investing in and commercializing technologies developed at the U-M. Accelerate Blue will make investments in U-M tech startups working on various technologies in areas like artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, mobility and sustainability. Returns on investments go back into the fund which creates a source for evergreen funding -- funding that is done incrementally. Through the $200,000 donation from Amazon, Accelerate Blue has collected around $1 million, half of its 2020 goal. The Accelerate Blue Fund was approved by the Universitys Board of Regents in October 2019 and created by University of Michigan Tech Transfer, a U-M unit responsible for commercializing U-M research discoveries.