Here are my picks for our top local stories of the past quarter (April-June), and why.
Not a ranked list, just in reverse chronological order:
1. MA Warns Ride-Sharing, Car-Sharing Drivers of Insurance Risks
Could something as boring as insurance derail Uber?
2. Katrine Bosley, Former Avila CEO, Takes Helm at Editas
Cutting-edge genomics company, meet veteran exec.
3. The Series A Story in Boston Tech: $270M Invested in Past Year
Series A crunch? Not so much, if you read this list of deals.
4a. Zafgen Hauls In $96M in Upsized IPO
4b. Gelesis Resurfaces With $12M, Preps First Weight Loss Data
Obesity and weight loss continues to be a huge market for drugmakers.
6. Moderna, Changing Its Identity, Plots Army of mRNA Spinouts
One of the biggest biotech startups, now doing its own startups.
7. Lou Tartaglia Leaves Third Rock to Run High-Drama RNAi Startup
Attempted murder, shootings, bankruptcy… not your average VC/startup story.
8. Blackboard CEO Jay Bhatt on the Global Future of Edtech
Education tech hasn’t exploded yet, but it’s about to.
9. Five Lessons for Consumer Tech Startups in Springpad Shutdown
This one resonated with entrepreneurs, Springpad users, and anyone interested in why startups fail.
10. This Boston Lawyer Could Be Uber’s Nemesis As It Eyes Expansion
Everyone loves Uber. Everyone except her.
11. Facebook Boston Looks to Build Tech for the “Next Few Billion Users”
What’s the social network working on locally? Hard tech problems, not surprisingly.
12. Amazon Expands Boston-Area Office, Room for About 800
A scoop on the Internet retail giant’s plans in Kendall Square.
13. Greentown Startups Work Around VCs, Find Niches in Cleantech
Cleantech is on the rise—and here’s one of the hotspots around town.
14. How a Kidney Drug Almost Torpedoed Concert Pharma’s IPO
Near-death company stories are riveting, especially when the company is trying to go public.
15. Alkermes CEO Richard Pops on Building Big, Playing Well With Pharma
In-depth Q&A with one of biotech’s leading figures.
16. Non-Compete Debate Exposes Political Rift in Boston Tech Industry
Pretty much boils down to VCs and startups vs. EMC.
17. Doctors Going Mobile, But Still Skeptical of Connected Health
Why? Cost and technology problems. Also physician culture and patient privacy.
18. Agios’s Blood Cancer Drug Shines in First Clinical Test
Very early but promising results for an experimental cancer treatment.
19. The Big Patent Lawsuit Settlement Memo You’re Not Supposed to See
Boston University went and sued Apple, Amazon, and a bunch of tech companies. Here’s how they settled.
20. Backed by Billionaire, Berg Pharma Aims to Speed Drugmaking
Brash biotech looking to revolutionize healthcare. We’ll see.
