[Updated 6/27/16, 2:13 p.m., to include Hack/secure news.] It’s time to catch up on a few recent developments in the Boston tech world. We’ve got funding news, the latest on the DraftKings saga in New York, shuttered co-working spaces, and people on the move. Read on for details.
—Accomplice’s Chris Lynch and Cort Johnson have formed an investment syndicate, Hack/secure, on AngelList that will back cybersecurity startups based in the U.S. The group’s first investment is in a $1.6 million deal for Cambridge, MA-based Kolide, started by alums of FireEye and Facebook’s security team. The goal is for Hack/secure to back 100 cybersecurity firms in the next three years.
—OpenMobile World Wide raised nearly $8.1 million from investors, according to an SEC filing. The Framingham, MA-based firm makes software that enables apps developed for Google’s Android operating system to run on non-Android devices.
—Cambridge-based iZotope said it raised $7.5 million in a combination of equity and debt financing. That included $2.5 million in a Series B equity round led by previous backer ABS Capital Partners, plus $5 million in debt funding from Comerica Bank. IZotope makes audio production software. It was founded in 2001 and has raised $19.5 million in total outside capital to date.
—Common Sensing, a Cambridge-based developer of a smart device that attaches to insulin pens, raised $1.65 million in debt funding, according to an SEC filing.
—Boston-based Alignable, a social network and marketing engine for small businesses, said it raised $1.5 million from Recruit Strategic Partners, a Bay Area venture capital firm. That follows an $8 million round for Alignable in September. Investors have pumped $13.5 million into Alignable to date.
—The New York state legislature passed a bill to authorize and regulate daily online fantasy sports companies, which should pave the way for Boston-based DraftKings and New York-based FanDuel to resume operations in one of their largest markets. But the companies’ legal challenges in New York aren’t over: the state attorney general told Bloomberg he still plans to pursue claims of false advertising and consumer fraud.
—Washington, DC-based co-working space operator Cove is closing two of its Boston-area locations and canceling the planned opening of another area location, BostInno reported. That will leave Cove with just one Boston-area space, a Kendall Square office opening later this summer in partnership with a coffee shop, Barismo.
Cove’s consolidation is surprising, given that it entered the Boston market last year and raised $3.4 million from investors last month. In an e-mail to Boston customers obtained by BostInno, Cove attributed the move to a desire to focus on larger spaces and spaces shared with partners.
—Diane Hessan will step down as CEO of Boston-based Startup Institute to work on an undisclosed project, BostInno reported. Startup Institute offers training and mentorship programs in Boston, New York, and Chicago that help people gain skills in Web development and design, technical marketing, and sales.
—Boston telehealth company American Well named its first chief technology officer, promoting its senior vice president of research and development, Jon Freshman, to the position.
