NURSING MEDICAL TECHNOLOGY.

Three partners have formed a company that they say intends to take an unusual route to supporting the development of medical technologies.

The partners--Josh Tolkoff, Andy Levine, and John Cvinar (pronounced "Siv-in-ar")--have raised $3 million from private investors to form Seedling Enterprises LLC, based in Newton, Mass.

Seedling says it intends to offer early stage funding and development support, including financial and marketing guidance, as well as engineering. It is interested in acquiring innovative ideas and nursing them along "until an appropriate exit is reached."

According to Tolkoff, a project may result in a product or a technology platform, and perhaps the most profitable route to take might be a licensing deal with an established company.

Many incubators work almost exclusively with company startups. That is, an inventor of a technology must form the basis of a company to get funding or other forms of development aid.

Tolkoff said that Seedling will work with companies or individuals, for instance, a doctor with a good idea. A startup remains an option if an invention is deemed capable of supporting a company.

Seedling effectively got up and running this spring and has already acquired one project. Tolkoff declined to identify it, but said the property came from a company that had picked it up during an acquisition.

Seedling is sharing space with an engineering and manufacturing company, ACT Medical, which Tolkoff founded about 10 years ago. ACT Medical will provide Seedling with engineering and support services, and has already begun prototyping work on the incubator's first project, Tolkoff said.