San Diego Serves as a Hotbed for Analytics Tech Cluster—at Least Up to a Point

When Tom Clancy introduced a panel discussion yesterday at a forum on analytics software, the founder of San Diego’s Tao Venture Partners said the forum was “founded four years ago by people who had an interest in seeing San Diego get established as a leading cluster in the analytics space.” The forum, which is sponsored … Continue reading “San Diego Serves as a Hotbed for Analytics Tech Cluster—at Least Up to a Point”

Cyntellect Raises $15.5M as it Expands Biotech Instrument Business

San Diego-based Cyntellect , which makes work stations used by biotechs for cell analysis, purification, and processing, has raised $15.5 million so far in a secondary round that aims to raise a total of $18.6 million, according to a recent regulatory filing. Cyntellect says its instruments are used in life sciences research, biopharmaceutical production, stem … Continue reading “Cyntellect Raises $15.5M as it Expands Biotech Instrument Business”

Israeli Startup Wins Inaugural QPrize

San Diego-based Qualcomm (NASDAQ: [[ticker:QCOM]]) says Panoramic Power, a wireless sensor startup based in Kidron, Israel, is the winner of the first QPrize, the incentive prize competition launched earlier this year by Qualcomm Ventures. Panoramic Power has developed energy monitoring wireless technology that enables a company or institution to deploy Smart Grid technologies within their … Continue reading “Israeli Startup Wins Inaugural QPrize”

SD Firm Gets $19.4M for Washington Wind Farm

The San Diego-based Cannon Power Group says it has received $19.4 million in federal renewable energy grants to help fund construction of a 400-megawatt wind farm in Klickitat County, WA, about 110 miles East of Portland, OR. Total investment in the project will be more than $1 billion. When completed, the Windy Point/Windy Flats project … Continue reading “SD Firm Gets $19.4M for Washington Wind Farm”

Qualcomm’s Lauer Outlines Efforts to Ease Network Bottlenecks at Wireless Conference

[Corrected 11/11/09, 3:15 pm. See below] Qualcomm chief operating officer, Len Lauer, says the San Diego wireless chipmaking giant is working across a broad front of technology development to accommodate a surge in wireless data traffic. “The mobile Internet has arrived,” Lauer says in the opening keynote talk yesterday at the 2009 3G CDMA Americas … Continue reading “Qualcomm’s Lauer Outlines Efforts to Ease Network Bottlenecks at Wireless Conference”

Life Technologies Acquiring BioTrove

Life Technologies (NASDAQ: [[ticker:LIFE]]), the Carlsbad, CA-based provider of biotech instruments and lab supplies, says it has agreed to acquire Woburn, MA-based BioTrove, which has developed a high throughput gene expression and genotyping analysis system. BioTrove, which withdrew plans to raise $75 million in an IPO last year, says the flexible array format of its … Continue reading “Life Technologies Acquiring BioTrove”

San Diego’s Platformic Expands Its Web Development Platform for Broadcasters

Mark Underhill says he was doing Web design and applications development for Clear Channel Communications when the San Antonio, TX-based media company announced plans to sell 448 of its 1,150 radio stations, along with its 42-station TV group. That was in November 2006. Underhill, who had initially been hired in San Diego six or seven … Continue reading “San Diego’s Platformic Expands Its Web Development Platform for Broadcasters”

San Diego’s Gizmo5 Reportedly Acquired by Google

San Diego’s Gizmo5, which was rumored to be a Skype acquisition target for $50 million about three weeks ago, is now reported to have been sold—except the buyer is identified as Google, and the price is put at $30 million. Both the Skype and Google reports were exclusives from TechCrunch’s Michael Arrington, who initially explained … Continue reading “San Diego’s Gizmo5 Reportedly Acquired by Google”

Good Things in Threes: Trius Therapeutics Files for IPO to Fund Phase 3 Clinical Trials, Marks San Diego’s Third IPO Filing

San Diego’s Trius Therapeutics, a venture-backed biotech developing a new antibiotic for treating acute and life-threatening bacterial infections, submitted a regulatory filing Friday to raise as much as $86 million in an initial public stock offering. It marks the third IPO filing by a company in the San Diego area so far this year. The … Continue reading “Good Things in Threes: Trius Therapeutics Files for IPO to Fund Phase 3 Clinical Trials, Marks San Diego’s Third IPO Filing”

San Diego’s PaxVax Developing Oral Tablet Vaccine, Looks to Raise More Cash With Support of Seattle’s Ignition Capital

PaxVax, a San Diego startup backed by Seattle’s Ignition Capital, has raised $2 million of a planned $6 million investment round, according to a document filed Friday with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The biotech was founded in early 2007 to develop new oral vaccine technology based on a common cold virus called the adenovirus. … Continue reading “San Diego’s PaxVax Developing Oral Tablet Vaccine, Looks to Raise More Cash With Support of Seattle’s Ignition Capital”

DHS Funds Chemical Sensors for Cell Phones, MaxLinear Files for IPO, EcoDog Wins GadgetFest, & More San Diego BizTech News

It was a busy week for local technology news. —Two teams from San Diego and a third from Northern California demonstrated their development of advanced chemical sensor prototypes that are tiny enough to be found inside ordinary cell phones. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security is funding the Cell-All program, with a goal of basically … Continue reading “DHS Funds Chemical Sensors for Cell Phones, MaxLinear Files for IPO, EcoDog Wins GadgetFest, & More San Diego BizTech News”

SpectraScience Raises $4.3M

SpectraScience, the San Diego medical device maker, has raised more than $4.3 million through a private placement that combines preferred shares and warrants, according to a regulatory filing today. As I reported previously, SpectraScience (OTCBB:SCIE) acquired its optical biopsy technology when CEO Jim Hitchin acquired certain assets from the bankruptcy of Minnesota’s GV Medical. In … Continue reading “SpectraScience Raises $4.3M”

A Cleantech Startup Looks to Raise $1.2M for the Greening of Hospitality Industry

Dave Paton and Dave Moody tell me they founded EESG, a San Diego cleantech startup also known as Energy Efficiency Systems Group, last year in anticipation that soaring energy prices would unleash strong demand for practical alternatives. But they didn’t focus on new technologies for alternative energy sources. They focused on energy efficiencies. They also … Continue reading “A Cleantech Startup Looks to Raise $1.2M for the Greening of Hospitality Industry”

GreatCall Paid With Stock for MobiWatch

A regulatory filing made last month by GreatCall, the San Diego-based parent of Jitterbug, offers some insight into the value of Jitterbug’s acquisition of Waltham, MA-based MobiWatch. Jitterbug announced the deal yesterday but declined to comment beyond its press release. The filing shows that GreatCall provided 630,000 shares of common stock to MobiWatch and its … Continue reading “GreatCall Paid With Stock for MobiWatch”

GadgetFest Crowd Names EcoDog Best in Show

The moderators of San Diego’s 9th Annual GadgetFest kept saying during Tuesday night’s showcase for new technology products that past winners have gone on to even greater glory and success. That may or may not be good news for the Motorola Droid that goes on sale tomorrow at Verizon stores nationwide. After making a cursory … Continue reading “GadgetFest Crowd Names EcoDog Best in Show”

Amylin Forms Global Alliance in Obesity Drug Development; TEDMED’s Show Will Go On, Sequenom Sued for Civil Fraud, & More San Diego Biotech News

TEDMED had Martha, Goldie, and other celebrity speakers, but San Diego-based Amylin Pharmaceuticals broke this week’s big news when it signed up a big Japanese partner to develop its line of obesity drugs. It’s all part of your regular dose of San Diego biotech news, and it’s ready now: —Amylin Pharmaceuticals, the San Diego-based diabetes … Continue reading “Amylin Forms Global Alliance in Obesity Drug Development; TEDMED’s Show Will Go On, Sequenom Sued for Civil Fraud, & More San Diego Biotech News”

Keeping Details to a Minimum, San Diego’s Jitterbug Announces Acquisition of MobiWatch of Waltham, MA

San Diego-based Jitterbug, the simple-to-use wireless phone and services provider, says today it has acquired MobiWatch, a startup in Waltham, MA, developing mobile personal emergency response services. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Jitterbug says the deal will provide its users with personal safety services that are intuitive, reliable and deliverable through its Samsung-made … Continue reading “Keeping Details to a Minimum, San Diego’s Jitterbug Announces Acquisition of MobiWatch of Waltham, MA”

An Entrepreneur’s Tale: Diego Borrego and the Twists and Turns Behind Networkfleet

To a large extent, the story of San Diego-based Networkfleet is also an intriguing tale about co-founder Diego Borrego. The privately held company, which currently has more than 100 employees, is one of the nation’s largest providers of technology and services for monitoring the location and status of company-owned vehicles. Borrego, a Mexican-American who says … Continue reading “An Entrepreneur’s Tale: Diego Borrego and the Twists and Turns Behind Networkfleet”

Arkeia Acquires Kadena Systems

San Diego’s Arkeia Software, which specializes in affordable network backup software, says today it has acquired Kadena Systems, a Santa Clara, CA-based developer of data de-duplication technologies. Financial terms were not disclosed. Arkeia, which shipped the industry’s first network backup solution for Linux in 1999, says it plans to integrate Kadena’s technology in its system. … Continue reading “Arkeia Acquires Kadena Systems”

New San Diego Incubator Adds Three More Startups on Opening Day

EvoNexus, San Diego’s free high-tech incubator, announced that it has enrolled three more startup companies during ceremonies yesterday that officially marked the opening of its new facility. CommNexus, the San Diego wireless industry group, announced five months ago that it was leading the creation of the free and “no strings attached” startup incubator, to be … Continue reading “New San Diego Incubator Adds Three More Startups on Opening Day”

ProQuo, Which Raised $15M in Venture Capital, Quietly Shut Down—Founder Calls It “Truly A Painful Experience”

I met recently with Bob Nascenzi, the software industry executive who stepped in last May as the CEO of ProQuo, the San Diego startup that was created to help consumers control their personal information and reduce their junk mail. I didn’t realize, however, that ProQuo had shut down. The last I heard about the company’s … Continue reading “ProQuo, Which Raised $15M in Venture Capital, Quietly Shut Down—Founder Calls It “Truly A Painful Experience””

Nascenzi Steps Into Extrabux

San Diego software industry executive Bob Nascenzi has joined Extrabux a just-launched San Diego retailing website that combines cash back and rebate offers with comparison shopping capabilities. Nascenzi tells me he’s joining Extrabux as both a board member and CEO. He previously was the interim CEO and a board member at San Diego-based ProQuo, former … Continue reading “Nascenzi Steps Into Extrabux”

Homeland Security Backs Cell Phone Sensors to “Crowdsource” Detection of Deadly Chemicals

[Updated at 4:45 pm 11/2/09 to clarify size of NASA Ames sensing device] The U.S. Department of Homeland Security has taken the wraps off a program to develop miniaturized sensor technologies for detecting deadly chemicals—sensors tiny enough to be installed inside ordinary cell phones. DHS officials meeting in San Diego last week say they have … Continue reading “Homeland Security Backs Cell Phone Sensors to “Crowdsource” Detection of Deadly Chemicals”

Qualcomm Creates Open-Source Subsidiary, SDG&E Gets $28M for Smart Grid & More San Diego BizTech News

San Diego’s tech sector got some money and glory during a week that was overshadowed by news from two life science conferences: TEDMED and the annual Biocom Investor Conference. Get your tech news now while it’s still hot. —To stay connected with open-source development for smart phones, San Diego’s Qualcomm created a subsidiary, the Qualcomm … Continue reading “Qualcomm Creates Open-Source Subsidiary, SDG&E Gets $28M for Smart Grid & More San Diego BizTech News”

CleanTECH San Diego Showcase: Smart Grid Technologies

Ellen Pao, a partner at the Silicon Valley venture capital firm Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, is scheduled to speak on the significance of smart grid technology to the nation’s electric power infrastructure. Her talk is followed by a panel discussion featuring local cleantech entrepreneurs. Online information and registration is here.

Lilly, With New Focus on Innovation (But Not Necessarily Inclusiveness), Opens San Diego Center for Biotech R&D

“Ouch.” I’m sorry to say I didn’t write about the grand opening that drug giant Eli Lilly held in La Jolla yesterday for its new biotechnology center of excellence. I didn’t know about it. I wrote last December about the difficulty of getting information from Lilly about the status of its plans to combine Applied … Continue reading “Lilly, With New Focus on Innovation (But Not Necessarily Inclusiveness), Opens San Diego Center for Biotech R&D”

Verdezyne Raises $3M in Venture Funding to Advance Industrial Biotechnology

Carlsbad CA-based Verdezyne, which just disclosed a $1.7 million government grant, has raised nearly $3 million of a planned $15.2 million round of venture capital, according to a regulatory filing yesterday. The company, which was previously known as CODA Genomics, is developing genetic engineering techniques and processes for producing industrial chemicals and fuels from microbes. … Continue reading “Verdezyne Raises $3M in Venture Funding to Advance Industrial Biotechnology”

San Diego’s Eric Topol Outlines a Coming Wave of Innovation in Wireless Health

Here at Xconomy, our focus on technology innovation is usually riveted on the interface where startups get built around new inventions and discoveries. But in a presentation last night at TEDMED, Eric Topol highlighted an innovative new medical device from an industrial giant that was unveiled last week at the Web 2.0 Summit in San … Continue reading “San Diego’s Eric Topol Outlines a Coming Wave of Innovation in Wireless Health”

TEDMED Sessions Seek the Patterns in Health Care and Life Sciences That Hold Ideas Together

It may be that TEDMED founder Richard Saul Wurman is the Brett Favre of emcees, or perhaps he’s like Al Pacino in Godfather III, who proclaims in exasperation, “Just when I thought I was out—they pull me back in!” But after a five-year hiatus, TEDMED has returned this week (opening last night at San Diego’s … Continue reading “TEDMED Sessions Seek the Patterns in Health Care and Life Sciences That Hold Ideas Together”

UK’s Enigma Diagnostics to Establish U.S. Headquarters in San Diego

Enigma Diagnostics, a UK-based medical diagnostics startup, plans to close its current U.S. office in San Francisco and open a new office in San Diego as its U.S. headquarters, according to chairman and CEO John McKinley. McKinley outlined Enigma’s development of rapid molecular diagnostic technology in a presentation yesterday at the annual investor conference organized … Continue reading “UK’s Enigma Diagnostics to Establish U.S. Headquarters in San Diego”

SDG&E Gets $28.1M Federal Grant for Smart Grid Innovations

[Updated 10/27/09 12:55 pm. See below.] The Department of Energy has released a list of utilities that are getting federal grants to spur energy innovations under the $787 billion economic stimulus package, and San Diego Gas & Electric is getting $28.1 million to help build out its “smart grid” system. Additional details are expected to … Continue reading “SDG&E Gets $28.1M Federal Grant for Smart Grid Innovations”

Two Things I Learned During My Tour of Sapphire Energy

Sapphire Energy has tried to maintain a relatively low profile since it established its headquarters in San Diego—especially since last fall when the media seized on reports that Bill Gates’ Cascade Investment had joined a $100 million secondary round of venture funding for the algae biofuels startup. So when Sapphire opened its San Diego headquarters … Continue reading “Two Things I Learned During My Tour of Sapphire Energy”

Qualcomm Forms New Subsidiary to Keep Pace With Open Software Development

San Diego-based Qualcomm (NASDAQ: [[ticker:QCOM]]) says it has established a separate wholly-owned subsidiary, Qualcomm Innovation Center, (QuIC), to ensure that certain open source software operates seamlessly with Qualcomm technology. The company says it has transferred experienced software engineers to the innovation center, where they will focus on open source initiatives such as Linux and Webkit, … Continue reading “Qualcomm Forms New Subsidiary to Keep Pace With Open Software Development”

VC Task Force Looks to Expand Early-Stage Capital, MojoPages Gets Strategy Advice, Founder Institute Enrolls First Area Class, & More San Diego BizTech News

Much of last week’s San Diego business news involved venture capital—how much VC cash was recently invested in this area, and how the local tech community is working to get more. Read on, gentle reader, for all the VC wranglings and the rest of the biz tech happenings: —The decline in San Diego-based venture capital … Continue reading “VC Task Force Looks to Expand Early-Stage Capital, MojoPages Gets Strategy Advice, Founder Institute Enrolls First Area Class, & More San Diego BizTech News”

Senomyx Ready to Commercialize Sweetness Enhancer

Senomyx (NASDAQ: [[ticker:SNMX]]), the San Diego company using biotechnology to develop proprietary flavor enhancers and blockers, says that S6973, a compound it has been developing to enhance the intensity of sucrose, can now be commercialized. In a statement today, Senomyx says it has learned that an expert panel that operates under the auspices of the Flavor … Continue reading “Senomyx Ready to Commercialize Sweetness Enhancer”

SDG&E Installing Pyron Solar System

San Diego Gas & Electric, a public utility operated by San Diego-based Sempra Energy (NYSE: [[ticker:SRE]]), says it is planning an 18-month field demonstration of a solar power system that floats in a shallow pool of water. When operational later this year, the 20-kilowatt system developed by San Diego’s Pyron Solar is expected to generate … Continue reading “SDG&E Installing Pyron Solar System”

Classes Set as Founder Institute’s “Training Camp for Startup CEOs” Launches in San Diego

The Founder Institute’s program for startup CEOs is forging ahead in San Diego, according to Jeanine Jacobson, who is heading the new business mentoring program with fellow startup enthusiast Cliff Currie. Jacobson tells me they have received about 30 applications for their training camp in entrepreneurship, and 15 have met the selection criteria so far. Jacobson … Continue reading “Classes Set as Founder Institute’s “Training Camp for Startup CEOs” Launches in San Diego”

Spread the Mojo: San Diego Web Startup MojoPages Gets Real World Advice on Building Communities to Review Local Businesses

One advantage of attending a presentation at the San Diego MIT Enterprise Forum is that the people who ask questions are a lot smarter than I am. And so it was Wednesday night, when MojoPages founding CEO Jon Carder laid out the strategy of his three-year-old San Diego Internet startup. MojoPages, which got $5 million … Continue reading “Spread the Mojo: San Diego Web Startup MojoPages Gets Real World Advice on Building Communities to Review Local Businesses”

Quips and Tips: Panel Searches for Signs of Recovery

A breakfast discussion on “Getting Ready for the Rebound” held yesterday by the San Diego Venture Group might have been more aptly billed as “Waiting for the Rebound: A Tragicomedy in Two Acts.” But then again, with San Diego News Network CEO Neil Senturia serving as moderator, there really can only be one act. The … Continue reading “Quips and Tips: Panel Searches for Signs of Recovery”

Solving San Diego’s Venture Capital Crisis is Mission for New Task Force of Tech Leaders

The evaporation of much of San Diego’s hometown venture capital base has prompted the city’s technology community to organize a business task force to find new ways of getting startup capital to early stage companies. Creating the task force is part of a broad initiative that Connect, a local non-profit organization for technology and entrepreneurship, … Continue reading “Solving San Diego’s Venture Capital Crisis is Mission for New Task Force of Tech Leaders”

Recent Launch of Onemarketplace.com Enables Multiple and Simultaneous Sales Listings

Brendan Boyd, a San Diego Internet entrepreneur, gave me an update today on the venture we discussed last April, when Boyd and his partners were developing ideas for a website that enables users to sell merchandise through multiple online venders. The website that Boyd had created with partners Jan Anton and Eric Jacobson was in … Continue reading “Recent Launch of Onemarketplace.com Enables Multiple and Simultaneous Sales Listings”

Reaction Design Gets $817K Grant

The Department of Energy is awarding an $817,384 grant to San Diego-based Reaction Design, which uses advanced computer-based modeling technology to simulate the fiery combustion reactions in turbines and other engines. The grant from the DOE’s National Energy Technology Laboratory is one of seven awards totaling $7 million that are intended to advance highly efficient … Continue reading “Reaction Design Gets $817K Grant”

San Diego’s Top 10 Third-Quarter Deals Reveal Slow Comeback in Venture Investing

[Corrected 10/20/09, 7:30 am. See below.]Venture Capital investing in the San Diego area has been slowly increasing since the fourth quarter of 2008, when venture investing in the area fell to an adjusted low point of $172.8 million and just 14 deals, according to Dow Jones VentureSource. [Corrects amount invested and number of startups.]The latest … Continue reading “San Diego’s Top 10 Third-Quarter Deals Reveal Slow Comeback in Venture Investing”

MoneyTree Survey of VC Activity Sees Pace of Investments Strengthening

Let optimism reign. A third survey of recent VC activity shows that venture investments increased 17 percent during the third quarter, compared with the previous quarter. While the actual numbers vary, the findings of the MoneyTree Report from PricewaterhouseCoopers and the National Venture Capital Association, based on data from Thomson Reuters, reinforces the more optimistic … Continue reading “MoneyTree Survey of VC Activity Sees Pace of Investments Strengthening”

Verdezyne Gets $1.7M Grant

[Corrrected 10/22/09, 11:30 a.m. to show Coda Genomics instead of Coda Genetics] Carlsbad CA-based Verdezyne, a synthetic biology company previously known as CODA Genomics, says it has received a $1.7 million Small Business Technology Transfer grant to develop mutant gene libraries for its computational and bioinformatics programs. The venture-backed startup says identifying such genes will … Continue reading “Verdezyne Gets $1.7M Grant”

VC is Up or Down Depending on Who You Read, Congress Looks to Revive SBIC Program, & More San Diego BizTech News

Dueling reports on venture capital activity came to contradictory conclusions last week when the numbers came in for the three-month period that ended Sept. 30. Catch up on that and the rest of San Diego’s technology innovation news: —New York-based ChubbyBrain says $6 billion in venture capital was invested nationwide in 680 deals during the … Continue reading “VC is Up or Down Depending on Who You Read, Congress Looks to Revive SBIC Program, & More San Diego BizTech News”

Bootstrapping Biotech

The San Diego Biotechnology Network has organized a panel discussion on starting and growing a life sciences company. The consultant-friendly environment today means startup biotech company’s now have more tools at their disposal to help their company grow. Understanding how traditional marketing and social media tools can work together also is a key for successful … Continue reading “Bootstrapping Biotech”

Is Venture Up or Down? Dow Jones Survey Shows Retreat in Q3 VC Activity, Flatly Contradicting Rival Report

After reporting earlier this week that third-quarter venture capital investments were up 14 percent nationwide over the second quarter—based on data from New York-based ChubbyBrain—we now have data from Dow Jones VentureSource for the same period that shows almost the opposite: a 5.5 percent decline in venture capital deployed during the quarter. Instead of the … Continue reading “Is Venture Up or Down? Dow Jones Survey Shows Retreat in Q3 VC Activity, Flatly Contradicting Rival Report”

Overtone Raises Almost $2.5M to Expand Online Monitoring Business

Overtone, a company that provides Web-based analytics that enables companies to monitor online sentiment about their brand and products, has raised nearly $2.5 million in a venture round that could be worth as much as $5.3 million, according to a recent regulatory filing. The company, though, defies any simple definition—at least based on a conversation … Continue reading “Overtone Raises Almost $2.5M to Expand Online Monitoring Business”