In the week since Google’s acquisition of Picnik, the Northwest deals scene came back to earth a little bit. But there was a decent amount of activity in software, Internet, mobile, and cleantech, much of it from Oregon-based companies.
—Seattle’s Institute for Systems Biology received a five-year, $6 million gift from a venture capitalist in California who wishes to remain anonymous, as Luke reported. The cash will be used to help the Institute move to a new facility that’s twice as large as its current location, recruit new faculty, and support research on personalized medicine, biofuels, and global health.
—DocVerse, the collaborative-document software startup that was founded in Seattle but moved to San Francisco in 2008, was bought by Google for an undisclosed price. The startup’s technology might help Google Docs work (or compete) better with Microsoft Office. DocVerse was started in 2007 by former Microsofties and MIT alums Shan Sinha and Alex DeNeui.
—Portland, OR-based DeltaPoint won $170,000 in angel investment capital at an annual Oregon Entrepreneurs Network startup competition. The company is developing diagnostic software that performs “virtual biopsies” on suspected cancers.
—Medford, OR-based UpWind Solutions raised $10 million in Series B funding, according to an SEC filing. The investors weren’t disclosed, but the form lists Michael Linse of Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers and Mark Lewis of MissionPoint Capital as directors of the company. UpWind provides operations and maintenance services for utility-scale wind projects
—Bellevue, WA-based Ignition Partners participated in a $23 million growth equity round for San Francisco-based Cloudmark, a mobile-messaging security firm. The round was led by Summit Partners and joined by Nokia Growth Partners, both new investors.
—Scott Kveton, the co-founder and CEO of Portland-based mobile startup Urban Airship talked about his company’s recent funding round from True Ventures and Founder’s Co-op. But even more interesting was his account of his team’s guerrilla marketing tactics (involving donuts and danishes) outside the Apple Worldwide Developers Conference last summer, which helped Urban Airship connect with customers early on.
—Portland-based ShopIgniter scored $3 million in Series A funding led by Madrona Venture Group in Seattle. Former Madrona venture partner Matt Compton has become ShopIgniter’s CEO, and Madrona co-founder and managing director Tom Alberg has joined the company’s board. ShopIgniter started in 2008 and is looking to meld the worlds of commerce and social media in a new way.
—Seattle-based Vulcan Capital, Paul Allen’s venture outfit, participated in a $15 million Series E round for Audience, a Mountain View, CA-based voice processing semiconductor firm. New Enterprise Associates, Tallwood Venture Capital, and VentureTech Alliance also participated in the funding. The round follows another infusion of $15 million about a year ago.
