Considering the runaway success of the app market, it’s easy to understand why many founders think their paths to unicorn status runs through App City. While some pundits were digging an early grave for apps, Apple was busy breaking records. The company’s App Store experienced its busiest day in history on Jan.

CBD (cannabidiol) is getting a lot of attention these days as the medicinal cannabinoid in marijuana. CBD-only products are all the rage in the ever-expanding medical marijuana market, and CBD-only medical marijuana laws are becoming a favorite resort of red state politicians who want to throw a sop to those clamoring for medical marijuana, but are hesitant to actually embrace the demon weed.

But is CBD the miracle molecule on its own? Or would users benefit from using preparations made from the whole pot plant? Not to knock CBD, which even by itself clearly provides succor for many people, but advocates of "whole plant medicine" make a strong case.

In 1992, a discussion about buying marijuana was pretty straightforward. Back then, it was illegal and socially stigmatized. Walking into a storefront to buy it was pretty much out of the question — unless you happened to be connecting thru Amsterdam. Most transactions occurred on street corners or back alleys, and payment was in cash.

Four years later, in 1996, the situation regarding marijuana legislatively changed dramatically, when California passed Proposition 215 and legalized marijuana for medical patients. Over the next two decades, 28 states have also legalized marijuana for medical use (apart from a handful of early adopters, the bulk of the medical states have legalized in the last ten years).

Vaping: You've seen it everywhere. You've seen vapers blow dense clouds with great satisfaction. You've seen vape shops, which advertise "e-juice" and strange-looking accessories. 

Insomnia sufferers often swear by a puff of marijuana before bed. Now an Israeli company is helping to medicalize the practice with an inhaler that delivers a stable and controlled dose of a cannabis formula that lasts through the night.

i.can.sleep is a joint venture of iCAN:Israel-Cannabis, a group building out the medical marijuana industry in Israel and CannRx, a U.S. corporation that develops medical applications for cannabis.

The joint venture was announced at CannaTech, a conference on medical marijuana happening in Tel Aviv from March 20-22.

“You take a puff or two depending on the dosage and in ten minutes you will be drowsy enough to sleep,” said William Levine of CannRx.

California law enforcement officers now possess the tools and wherewithal they need to crack down on drivers that consume cannabis. On St. Patrick’s Day weekend, San Diego Police Department began using two Dräger DrugTest 5000 machines which detect for a total of seven drugs. The San Diego Police Department is the first law enforcement agency to use the tests in San Diego County.

The legal cannabis industry has witnessed unprecedented growth over the last three years and this multi-billion-dollar global market is barely in the first inning of a multi-decade growth cycle. The growth of the cannabis industry has also led to the creation of sub-sectors that present attractive investment opportunities.

Earlier this year, we highlighted a company levered to the rapidly growing cannabis industry that provides a product not requiring them to touch the plant. That business was VPR Brands, LP (VPRB) and today, the company further expanded its product line after announcing the launch of The Honey Stick ProBox Kit.

Oxford University will be at the forefront of a multimillion-pound research program, which hopes to help develop new therapies for acute and chronic conditions by examining the effects of medical cannabis.

The oldest university in England will be teaming up with private equity company, Kingsley Capital Partners who will provide up to £10 million ($12.36 million) in initial investment, which will be funded through its new biopharmaceutical firm Oxford Cannabinoid Technologies (OCT).

The partnership is expected to bring together Kingsley's financial backing and Oxford's clinical expertise and research in immunology, neuroscience and cancer, to find ways of developing new treatments for those suffering with pain, cancer and inflammatory disease.

Delivra Corp. (TSX VENTURE: DVA) ("Delivra" or the "Company"), Dosecann Inc. ("Dosecann") and ARA-Avanti Rx Analytics Inc. ("Avanti") announced today a strategic partnership to develop a unique suite of standardized products for the medical cannabis research, development, and commercialization markets.

Company is developing medical grade vaporizers and extracts meant to treat central nervous system disorders.

Kanabo Research, a Tel Aviv-based medical cannabis company, is aiming its vaporization formulations and devices at medical patients instead of the recreational users more commonly associated with vaporization. The company is closing its seed round funding and launching its initial product offerings at the CannaTech summit this week.