Latest news with #UCInvestments
San Francisco Chronicle
6 days ago
- Business
- San Francisco Chronicle
Bay Area university agrees to sell campus to UC after Stanford deal falls through
In a quick pivot, Notre Dame de Namur University on the San Francisco Peninsula has agreed to sell its 46-acre campus and surrounding property to the investment arm of the University of California, officials said. The private Catholic university will lease back its Belmont campus for up to five years under the deal, which was announced Tuesday — just months after a similar deal with Stanford University fell through. That sale would have relocated some Stanford programs from Palo Alto 13 miles north to a campus to be renamed Stanford Belmont, and thus required the eventual relocation of 400 students, faculty and staff at Notre Dame de Namur, which has operated for 102 years in the hills along Ralston Avenue. That deal, an exclusive option to purchase, was canceled in February by Stanford, which cited a longer-than-expected timeline as well as an era of new 'uncertainties' for research universities involving 'a different set of institutional and financial challenges.' The replacement deal, brought about by a cold call from UC Investments to NDNU President Beth Martin just days after Stanford canceled, will allow Notre Dame to remain where it is while it figures out its future, Martin said. No financial terms of sale were announced. The purchase and sale agreement has been signed by both parties and approved by both the Board of Trustees and the Sisters of Notre Dame East-West Province Leadership team. It must still be approved by the Congregational Leadership Team, an international body, the Archbishop of San Francisco, and finally the Vatican in Rome. As part of the sale, UC Investments, which manages the UC's investment portfolio and is separate from the campus system, has agreed to renovate both the Ralston Mansion and the Carriage House, two campus buildings that are on the National Register of Historic Places. UC will also take over ownership of Water Dog Lake, a 50-acre preserve of hiking trails and a stocked fishing lake that is operated as a park by the city of Belmont under a 50-year lease that has 40 years remaining. That arrangement will continue. The preserve, which was not included in the Stanford deal, brings the total property to 96.5 acres. 'We are delighted that we have this deal, partly because UC Investments is very supportive of our mission and our legacy,' said Martin, who has spent four years trying to figure out the future of Notre Dame. The university had 1,600 students as recently as 10 years ago, but enrollment declined precipitously when the undergraduate program ended in 2021. It is now primarily a graduate program of around 300 students with additional courses for adults returning to complete their undergraduate degree. Martin told the Chronicle on Wednesday that the NDNU campus, in a hilly location, is too spread out with too many buildings — 25 — for the size of its operations. The Board of Trustees has been actively pursuing relocation to a new site in San Mateo County. Martin said the school needs only about 25,000 square feet, or about the size of one floor of an office building. 'UC Investments moved quickly to explore this unique investment opportunity close to the heart of Silicon Valley,' said Jagdeep Singh Bachher, the University of California's chief investment officer. 'Centennial investing is one of our 10 investment pillars, and we're convinced this long-term asset will greatly benefit UC, Notre Dame de Namur University, and the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur for at least the next 100 years.' Martin expects the UC deal to close this summer, with no noticeable change on campus for students who arrive for the fall semester. The campus is usually quiet when students arrive around 4 p.m. for evening courses, Martin said. In August, the last remaining vestige of on-campus student housing will close for good. There are no sports or theater productions, but evening speaker events will continue. 'With five years, we have the right amount of time to find just the right atmosphere for our students, staff and faculty,' said Martin. 'We want to continue the legacy of NDNU for another 100 years.'
Yahoo
27-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Notre Dame de Namur University Announces Sale Agreement of Nearly 100 Acres of Property to UC Investments (University of California)
Belmont, CA, May 27, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Notre Dame de Namur University (NDNU), a private Catholic institution with a 174-year legacy of education and service, and UC Investments, the investment arm of the University of California system, today announced the pending sale of 96.5 acres of NDNU property, which includes the historic Belmont campus and Water Dog Lake. The transaction will ensure that the beloved Belmont campus and its legacy will continue to serve the region through a long-term investment strategy aligned with both institutions' missions. Once the transaction closes, UC Investments will lease the existing campus facilities back to NDNU for up to five years, allowing the university to continue in-person instruction while planning its next phase of its campus location. Additionally, UC Investments has committed to renovating two architectural and historical treasures on the property—Ralston Mansion and Carriage House, both listed as National and California registered Historic Landmarks. As part of the sales agreement, Water Dog Lake, the largest parkland in Belmont, will remain leased to the city of Belmont. The 50.5-acre preserve includes popular hiking trails and a stocked fishing lake which will continue to be a place for the community to enjoy. 'We are delighted to have found in UC Investments a responsible and mission-aligned steward for our beautiful and historically significant campus property,' said Beth Martin, Ph.D., president of Notre Dame de Namur University. 'This agreement ensures continuity for our students and honors the vision of the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur, who have been the foundation of our presence and purpose in Belmont since 1923.' 'UC Investments moved quickly to explore this unique investment opportunity close to the heart of Silicon Valley,' said Jagdeep Singh Bachher, the University of California's chief investment officer. 'Centennial investing is one of our 10 investment pillars, and we're convinced this long-term asset will greatly benefit UC, Notre Dame de Namur University, and the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur for at least the next 100 years.'Said UC President Michael V. Drake, M.D, 'Values and legacy are paramount to both UC and NDNU and this agreement between our two institutions represents a critical investment in the future of higher education in California. It's a rare opportunity that will benefit generations of students to come.' About Notre Dame de Namur University Notre Dame de Namur University (NDNU) is a Catholic, not-for-profit, coeducational institution serving adult learners from diverse backgrounds. Established in 1851 by the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur, NDNU is the third-oldest college in California and the first authorized to grant women a baccalaureate degree. The university is WSCUC accredited and offers master's degrees in business, education, and psychology, undergraduate degree completion programs in business administration and psychology, along with teacher credential programs. NDNU maintains a strong commitment to academic excellence, social justice, and community engagement. For more information, visit CONTACT: Kurt Allen, Vice President, Marketing & Communications Notre Dame de Namur University 650-801-9011 pr@ in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
22-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Chatbot Arena secures $100m to enhance AI platform
Chatbot Arena, a platform designed to compare the performance of various AI models, has raised $100m in seed funding. The round was led by Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) and UC Investments (University of California), with participation from Lightspeed, Laude Ventures, Felicis, Kleiner Perkins, and The House Fund. The round values the company at $600m, according to a Bloomberg report. The funding coincides with the upcoming relaunch of LMArena, featuring a fully rebuilt platform designed to enhance AI evaluation with greater rigor, transparency, and user focus. The platform, which originated as an academic project at UC Berkeley, enables researchers, developers, and users to assess how AI models perform in real-world scenarios. More than 400 model evaluations have been conducted on LMArena, with more than three million votes cast, influencing both proprietary and open-source models from companies such as Google, OpenAI, Meta, and xAI, the company said. LMArena co-founder and CEO Anastasios Angelopoulos said: "In a world racing to build ever-bigger models, the hard question is no longer what can AI do. Rather, it's how well can it do it for specific use cases, and for whom. We're building the infrastructure to answer these critical questions." The relaunched LMArena, set to debut in late May 2025, incorporates community feedback and introduces a rebuilt user interface, mobile-first design, lower latency, and new features like saved chat history and endless chat. Ion Stoica, co-founder and UC Berkeley professor, said: 'AI evaluation has often lagged behind model development. LMArena closes that gap by putting rigorous, community-driven science at the centre. It's refreshing to be part of a team that leads with long-term integrity in a space moving this fast.' The company collaborates with model providers to identify performance trends, gather human preference data, and test updates in real-world conditions, aiming to develop advanced analytics and enterprise services while keeping core participation free. 'We invested in LMArena because the future of AI depends on reliability,' said Anjney Midha, general partner at a16z. 'And reliability requires transparent, scientific, community-led evaluation. LMArena is building that backbone.' Jagdeep Singh Bachher, chief investment officer at UC Investments, said: 'We're excited to see open AI research translated into real-world impact through platforms like LMArena. Supporting innovation from university labs such as those at UC Berkeley is essential for building technologies that responsibly serve the public and advance the field.' "Chatbot Arena secures $100m to enhance AI platform" was originally created and published by Verdict, a GlobalData owned brand. The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site.
Yahoo
21-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
LMArena Secures $100M in Seed Funding to Bring Scientific Rigor to AI Reliability
SAN FRANCISCO, May 21, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- LMArena, the open community platform for evaluating the best AI models, has secured $100 million in seed funding led by a16z and UC Investments (University of California) with participation from Lightspeed, Laude Ventures, Felicis, Kleiner Perkins and The House Fund. The funding coincides with the relaunch of LMArena happening next week—a faster, sharper, fully rebuilt platform designed to make AI evaluation more rigorous, transparent, and human-centered. In a space moving at breakneck speed, LMArena is building something foundational: a neutral, reproducible, community-driven layer of infrastructure that allows researchers, developers, and users to understand how models actually perform in the real world. Over four hundred model evaluations have already been made on the platform, with over 3 millions votes cast, helping shape both proprietary and open-source models across the industry, including those from Google, OpenAI, Meta, and xAI. "In a world racing to build ever-bigger models, the hard question is no longer what can AI do. Rather, it's how well can it do it for specific use cases, and for whom," said Anastasios N. Angelopoulos, co-founder and CEO at LMArena. "We're building the infrastructure to answer these critical questions." The new LMArena next week reflects months of feedback from the community and includes: a rebuilt UI, mobile-first design, lower latency, and new features like saved chat history and endless chat. The legacy site will remain live for a while, but all future innovation is happening on "AI evaluation has often lagged behind model development," said Ion Stoica, co-founder at LMArena and UC Berkeley professor. "LMArena closes that gap by putting rigorous, community-driven science at the center. It's refreshing to be part of a team that leads with long-term integrity in a space moving this fast." Backers say what makes LMArena different is not just the product, but the principles behind it. Evaluation is open, the leaderboard mechanics are published, and all models are tested with diverse, real-world prompts. This approach makes it possible to explore in-depth how AI performs across a range of use cases. "Our mission has always been to make AI evaluation open, scientific, and grounded in how people actually use these models. As we expand into new modalities and deepen our evaluation tools, we're building infrastructure that doesn't just evaluate AI, it helps shape it" said Wei-Lin Chiang, co-founder and CTO of LMArena. "We're here to ensure AI is reliably measured through real-world use." LMArena is already working with model providers to help them uncover performance trends, gather human preference data, and test updates in real-world conditions. The company's long-term business model centers on trust: as they look to develop advanced analytics and enterprise services while keeping core participation free and open to all. "We invested in LMArena because the future of AI depends on reliability," said Anjney Midha, General Partner at a16z. "And reliability requires transparent, scientific, community-led evaluation. LMArena is building that backbone." Jagdeep Singh Bachher, chief investment officer at UC Investments, added, "We're excited to see open AI research translated into real-world impact through platforms like LMArena. Supporting innovation from university labs such as those at UC Berkeley is essential for building technologies that responsibly serve the public and advance the field." The relaunch of LMArena next week is a significant step forward, but it's far from the finish line. The team is actively shipping new features, refining the platform, and working closely with the community to shape what comes next. About LMArena: LMArena is an open platform where everyone has access to leading AI models and can contribute to their progress through real-world voting and feedback. Built with scientific rigor and transparency at its core, LMArena enables developers, researchers, and users to compare model outputs, uncover performance differences, and advance the reliability of AI systems. With a commitment to open access, reproducible methods, and diverse human judgment, LMArena is shaping the infrastructure layer AI needs to earn long-term trust. Learn more at Press Contact:Cherry Parkcherry@ View original content: SOURCE LMArena
