[Updated 8/6/15, 10:44 am. See below.] Back in early 2012, cybersecurity researcher Cameron Camp wrote a blogpost under the heading, “Could your next new car be hacked (should you be scared)?” Camp identified significant potential dangers as automakers moved beyond the simpler computers first installed in cars years ago—to do tasks like calculating fuel inputs … Continue reading “Jeep Cyberattack: Why Cars Are Much Bigger Security Risks Than Mobile Devices”
Author: Bernadette Tansey
Bernadette Tansey is a former editor of Xconomy San Francisco. She has covered information technology, biotechnology, business, law, environment, and government as a Bay area journalist. She has written about edtech, mobile apps, social media startups, and life sciences companies for Xconomy, and tracked the adoption of Web tools by small businesses for CNBC. She was a biotechnology reporter for the business section of the San Francisco Chronicle, where she also wrote about software developers and early commercial companies in nanotechnology and synthetic biology.
Smartwatch Maker Olio Raises $10M: ‘No Need For Cellphones On Wrists’
At first glance, the story of veteran technology product design expert Steve Jacobs could be told as a version of “David and Goliath.” But in this case, it’s a bit more like “David and Two Goliaths.” With his startup smartwatch company, San Francisco-based Olio Devices, Jacobs is clearly challenging tech heavyweight Apple, whose long-anticipated Apple … Continue reading “Smartwatch Maker Olio Raises $10M: ‘No Need For Cellphones On Wrists’”
Recipe App Handpick Launches Online Meal Kit Service for the 99%
Lately I’ve been thinking a lot about tech sectors that are well established, but still see new entries keep piling in. Why are all these latecomer startups so hopeful as they launch, for example, another digital marketing idea or cloud collaboration toolset? Are there some sectors that can still reward clever newbies in a crowded … Continue reading “Recipe App Handpick Launches Online Meal Kit Service for the 99%”
Money, Mergers & Expansions For Booktrack, Other SF Startups
While big tech companies like Google filed their quarterly reports this week, a number of their smaller brethren in San Francisco caught my eye as they recorded their own benchmarks of progress. —Booktrack, which enhances the allure of e-books by adding music and sound effects, said it had closed a Series B financing round that … Continue reading “Money, Mergers & Expansions For Booktrack, Other SF Startups”
RocketClub Floats Sweat Equity Crowdfunding Hub To Attract Startup Users
Close to a thousand entrepreneurial teams competed for ten spots in the winter startup camp at the Plug and Play accelerator in Sunnyvale, CA this year. One young company got in because it offered a possible solution to a major problem facing 90 percent of all tech startups, says Plug and Play managing director Alireza … Continue reading “RocketClub Floats Sweat Equity Crowdfunding Hub To Attract Startup Users”
Sharing Economy Companies Sharing the Heat In Contractor Controversy
[Corrected 7/31/15, 2:34 pm. See below.] For some time, Uber and other Silicon Valley tech companies have been fighting off lawsuits and other claims that their labor practices are unfair to on-demand workers they classify as independent contractors rather than as employees. The heat mounted this week on a number of fronts. The issue took … Continue reading “Sharing Economy Companies Sharing the Heat In Contractor Controversy”
Symantec and Frost Data Capital To Fund Data Security Startups
Information security giant Symantec is joining with Frost Data Capital to provide seed funding for 10 new startups a year aimed at filling technology gaps that make corporations vulnerable to hacker attacks via connected devices and other means, the companies announced today. But don’t expect to see scouts for Mountain View, CA-based Symantec or its … Continue reading “Symantec and Frost Data Capital To Fund Data Security Startups”
Tech Hiring Matchmaker HackerRank Draws $7.5M From Global HR Firm
HackerRank, which hosts online competitions that help programmers flaunt their skills to potential employers like Amazon and Quora, said today it has landed a $7.5 million investment from the funding arm of Japan-based human resources giant Recruit. The new alliance with Recruit will help Palo Alto, CA-based HackerRank scale up its business in the Asia … Continue reading “Tech Hiring Matchmaker HackerRank Draws $7.5M From Global HR Firm”
Pluralsight Buys San Francisco Coding Mentorship Site HackHands
Pluralsight, an online learning company focused on high-end programming skills, said today it has acquired HackHands, a San Francisco startup that offers on-demand coding help from technology professionals. The price wasn’t disclosed. For the past two years, Utah-based Pluralsight has been building up its suite of online resources by acquisition, and now covers basic and … Continue reading “Pluralsight Buys San Francisco Coding Mentorship Site HackHands”
Costanoa Closes $135 M Second Fund To Back Cloud, Data Startups
Costanoa Venture Capital, an early stage investment firm founded in late 2012 with $100 million to manage, enjoyed a quick score by late 2014 when one of its first portfolio companies, Westminster, CO-based Datalogix, drew an acquisition bid from Oracle and shortly sold for a reported $1.2 billion. With that short track record, Palo Alto, … Continue reading “Costanoa Closes $135 M Second Fund To Back Cloud, Data Startups”
Nordic Innovation House Nurtures Challenger To Apple’s Garage Band
One of the great things about reporting on tech in the Bay Area is that the world comes to you. People of all nationalities have shaped the history of Silicon Valley, and they’re still coming. Today I’m catching up with some news from our Scandinavian contingent. Soundtrap, a startup from Stockholm, Sweden, announced the launch … Continue reading “Nordic Innovation House Nurtures Challenger To Apple’s Garage Band”
Spire, Planet Labs Shrug Off Launch Disaster For Elon Musk’s SpaceX
This week began shakily for the aerospace industry with news that an unmanned rocket launched by Elon Musk’s company SpaceX had exploded shortly after launch on Sunday. What Musk described on Twitter as “an overpressure event in the upper stage liquid oxygen tank” scuttled one of the company’s missions to take supplies to astronauts at … Continue reading “Spire, Planet Labs Shrug Off Launch Disaster For Elon Musk’s SpaceX”
Planwise’s Real Estate Reality Check: Keeping Homebuyers On Budget
Buying a house has huge financial consequences for a family, but the decision is often based on emotion rather than dollars and cents, says Vincent Turner, a veteran developer of online real estate tools for consumers. As an Australian tech entrepreneur, Turner watched the U.S. financial system nearly buckle between 2007 and 2009, in part … Continue reading “Planwise’s Real Estate Reality Check: Keeping Homebuyers On Budget”
Library High: San Francisco Public Library Offers Online Diploma With Cengage
[Corrected 6/26/15, 9:32 am. See below.] Educational technology is often cast as a solution to the high cost of a college degree, which Americans see as the essential gateway to reasonable earnings. But in San Francisco, which has one of the most highly educated populations in the country, more than 30,000 people over 25 lack … Continue reading “Library High: San Francisco Public Library Offers Online Diploma With Cengage”
Second Life Creator Linden Lab Prepares To Test Parallel VR Universe
[Corrected 6/26/15, 10:02 am. See below.] San Francisco-based Linden Lab, the granddaddy of virtual reality companies, is celebrating the 12th birthday of its cyberworld Second Life this week with a digital fairground full of fanciful constructions, including a concert stage shaped like a birthday cake. But Linden, founded in 1999, is also getting ready to … Continue reading “Second Life Creator Linden Lab Prepares To Test Parallel VR Universe”
Cash Flow: Credit Karma Pulls Down Another $175 M
[Updated 6/24/15, 9:40 am. See below.] San Francisco-based Credit Karma, an online personal finance site that raised $75 million in September, followed up with a $175 million Series D financing round announced today. Observers had valued the company at about $1 billion after the September round, but are now estimating Credit Karma’s worth at $3 … Continue reading “Cash Flow: Credit Karma Pulls Down Another $175 M”
Bay Area Funding Roundup: Fitbit, Cohesity, Doctor On Demand, Fetch
Fitbit’s mammoth initial public offering was the big Bay Area fundraising event of the week, roping in more than $700 million for the company and giving investors who paid the IPO price of $20 an immediate 50 percent bump in the first day of trading Thursday. But a few other companies in the region also … Continue reading “Bay Area Funding Roundup: Fitbit, Cohesity, Doctor On Demand, Fetch”
Fitbit Races Across IPO Finish Line, Makes Day for Investors, News Punsters
Newly public San Francisco fitness wearables company Fitbit (NYSE: [[ticker:FIT]]) made skeptical Wall Street observers believe in unicorns on its first day of trading today, as its shares sold for 50 percent more than the $20 price set for its initial public offering. Fitbit’s line of business—tech-enabled wristbands and other wearable items that track jogging … Continue reading “Fitbit Races Across IPO Finish Line, Makes Day for Investors, News Punsters”
A GitHub for Tech-Friendly Artists? Kadenze Debuts As Arts Edtech Site
[Corrected 6/17/15, 1:04 pm. See below.] Stanford University and two California art schools are part of an international consortium of 16 academic institutions partnering with edtech startup Kadenze, which today launched an online creative arts education site that offers both free and fee-based courses that span visual art, music, and technology. Art and music have … Continue reading “A GitHub for Tech-Friendly Artists? Kadenze Debuts As Arts Edtech Site”
EdCast Recruits Experts to Lead Informal Video Learning Channels
One sign that a Silicon Valley company has made its mark is that a new verb arises from its name. People these days Google, they tweet, they Uber across town. Now a Bay Area educational technology company is hoping its own action verb will catch on: EdCasting. Mountain View, CA-based EdCast, which provides a cloud … Continue reading “EdCast Recruits Experts to Lead Informal Video Learning Channels”
Thiel Foundation Names New Class of College Dropout-Entrepreneurs
[Updated 6/17/15, 1:15 pm. See below.] When PayPal founder and tech investor Peter Thiel first beckoned young people to drop out of college and become entrepreneurs, the alternative he offered was pretty controversial, Thiel Foundation CEO Alana Ackerson says. In 2011, 430 college-age people applied to join the first group of 20 awarded the Thiel-led … Continue reading “Thiel Foundation Names New Class of College Dropout-Entrepreneurs”
Diffbot Challenges Google Supremacy With Rival Knowledge Graph
When you do a Google search at your desktop for a common health condition, you’ll get links to tons of webpages you can sift through in hopes of finding the specific facts you want. But if you’ve searched Google from a mobile device recently, you may have been rewarded with a summary of important facts … Continue reading “Diffbot Challenges Google Supremacy With Rival Knowledge Graph”
Udemy Reaps $65M To Grow Global Online Ed Smorgasbord
Udemy, the San Francisco-based online education marketplace, said today it has raised $65 million to expand its international course offerings in subjects ranging from Web development to writing and other skills that can lead to higher earnings. Udemy CEO Dennis Yang says the company will continue to build its global community of seven million students … Continue reading “Udemy Reaps $65M To Grow Global Online Ed Smorgasbord”
Analyze This: Sumo Logic Raises $80M To Expand Data Analytics Service
Redwood City, CA-based Sumo Logic is announcing an $80 million funding round today that will support a doubling of its staff and help it keep pace with customer demand for its data analytics services. Sumo is benefiting from the transformation of businesses in sectors such as travel, entertainment, and retail into software-driven enterprises that generate … Continue reading “Analyze This: Sumo Logic Raises $80M To Expand Data Analytics Service”
Virtual Currency Companies Grapple with Role as Crime Watchdogs for Feds
When Chris Morton and his partners co-founded BlockScore in June 2013, they initially planned to get into the business of Bitcoin remittances. That’s a new way to send money via the Web to someone in another country, with the virtual currency Bitcoin as a medium of exchange. Such services—often available through a mobile phone—can be … Continue reading “Virtual Currency Companies Grapple with Role as Crime Watchdogs for Feds”
NerdWallet’s Big Ambitions: Personal Finance App Aims for Dominance
Tim Chen was working at a long/short equity hedge fund in New York, and on Christmas Day he had no thoughts of a career change. But it was late 2008, in the middle of the nation’s worst financial crisis since the Great Depression, and Chen was one of those who lost his job. It might … Continue reading “NerdWallet’s Big Ambitions: Personal Finance App Aims for Dominance”
AltspaceVR Launches Social Media-Virtual Reality Combo
Virtual reality has been pegged as the province of 18-35-year-old males eager to enhance their gamer experiences, AltspaceVR CEO Eric Romo says. But it won’t stay that way for long, if Romo’s entrepreneurial vision comes true. Romo’s Redwood City, CA-based startup today launched its free software designed to appeal to a user base as broad … Continue reading “AltspaceVR Launches Social Media-Virtual Reality Combo”
1776’s Top Edtech Startups: Handsfree Learning, LearnLux, Cognotion
With the explosion of online education, plenty of technology professionals are using skills they learned on their laptops rather than in university lecture halls. But how would you feel about a doctor who picked up surgical techniques the same way? Year-old startup Handsfree Learning is starting to make that kind of online physician training possible—and … Continue reading “1776’s Top Edtech Startups: Handsfree Learning, LearnLux, Cognotion”
Fitbit’s Fitness Open To Scrutiny With IPO Filing
One of the downsides for a young company filing to go public is that it has to start revealing all its secrets to the world. So far, though, observers dissecting Fitbit’s IPO bid have been impressed by the financial numbers disclosed today in the company’s S-1, the registration statement lodged with the SEC for an … Continue reading “Fitbit’s Fitness Open To Scrutiny With IPO Filing”
Big Bay Area Funding Week: Banjo, AltSchool, Twilio, Robinhood
Big chunks of change were falling into the hands of Bay area companies this week, with three of them netting $100 million capital infusions and others in the multi-million dollar range. Maybe the most surprising of the three top fundraisers was a fledgling elementary school chain, AltSchool. But the San Francisco-based education company is no … Continue reading “Big Bay Area Funding Week: Banjo, AltSchool, Twilio, Robinhood”
DroneExtra: DJI Raises $75 M; New FAA Initiatives
Big Silicon Valley venture firm Accel Partners has placed a hefty bet on the potential of commercial drones, and it’s one of the VC’s largest funding commitments to date. Accel announced a $75 million investment today in Shenzhen, China-based drone manufacturer DJI, a major player in the fast-developing industry. The big DJI funding news came … Continue reading “DroneExtra: DJI Raises $75 M; New FAA Initiatives”
AirMap: App Helps Drone Flyers Navigate Airspace Restrictions
When a government worker was investigated by the Secret Service for crashing a small drone on the White House lawn in January, most people probably thought, “How dumb could the guy be?” After all, he could have avoided any hassle just by flying the small recreational quadcopter in a park or an open field somewhere. … Continue reading “AirMap: App Helps Drone Flyers Navigate Airspace Restrictions”
DC-Based Incubator 1776 Buys Hattery, Gains West Coast Outpost
Two-year-old incubator and seed fund 1776 helps startups make government connections in Washington, D.C., and now it’s setting up shop in San Francisco to strengthen its links to Silicon Valley’s VCs. Its new outpost is at Hattery, a co-working studio and event space that 1776 is buying for an undisclosed sum from long-time associates who … Continue reading “DC-Based Incubator 1776 Buys Hattery, Gains West Coast Outpost”
Fetch Unveils Robot Duo to Adapt Warehouses for Quick-Delivery Era
Consumers are getting spoiled—not only do they want movies on demand via digital networks, they also want physical things like books and diapers delivered almost as fast. Amazon, which has fueled these consumer expectations, uses colonies of Kiva robots in automated warehouses to help achieve its fast shipping times. Modest-sized retailers and distribution centers can’t … Continue reading “Fetch Unveils Robot Duo to Adapt Warehouses for Quick-Delivery Era”
Fun Was the Goal, But Learning Sneaks Up On Teen Game Developer
Harrison Yuan, the bright 12-year-old child of two professionals in San Francisco, was destined to attend the city’s private International High School. Then he found a website where he could spend hours playing the kind of online game called a “first-person-shooter.” One of the function keys on his computer now stood for a new command: … Continue reading “Fun Was the Goal, But Learning Sneaks Up On Teen Game Developer”
Cybersecurity Experts: Internet of Things Punches Holes in Web Defense
Webcams may guard our homes against burglars, and Fitbits may protect us against the flab we’d put on without exercising. But the proliferation of such connected devices is also perforating the Web with millions of holes that hackers can drive through, network security experts reported as the annual RSA Conference on cybersecurity got under way … Continue reading “Cybersecurity Experts: Internet of Things Punches Holes in Web Defense”
Edtech Companies Hail New Rival LinkedIn As Industry Catalyst
Are online education companies biting their nails now that their competitor Lynda.com is about to become part of Mountain View, CA-based LinkedIn, the dominant social media network for professionals? The big public company, with more than $2 billion in annual revenues, has a new mission to steer its members toward Lynda.com skills classes that might … Continue reading “Edtech Companies Hail New Rival LinkedIn As Industry Catalyst”
Robo Madness West: The Photos and Takeaways
Xconomy’s fourth annual Robo Madness conference in Menlo Park this week drew the best of robotics audiences and speakers, carrying on a strong tradition. This original Robo Madness event is now called Robo Madness West, because its successes in the Bay Area spurred Xconomy to export the idea to Boston this year. For the lively … Continue reading “Robo Madness West: The Photos and Takeaways”
Robots Uncaged At Xconomy’s Robo Madness West
“Would you trust your life to a robotic technology?” Restoration Robotics CEO Jim McCollum asked a crowd full of engineers who have invested their careers in the fast-moving field of automating intelligent actions formerly done only by humans. McCollum himself recently entrusted his scalp and his coiffure, at least, to a robot hair transplantation suite … Continue reading “Robots Uncaged At Xconomy’s Robo Madness West”
Doudna’s Caribou Bio Raises $11M To Expand Uses For Gene Editing Tech
Caribou Biosciences, one of the biotech startups working to advance a much-watched new technology for precise gene editing, announced today it has raised an $11 million Series A round from venture capital firms and Swiss drug giant Novartis. The money will help Berkeley, CA-based Caribou speed up its efforts to adapt a versatile genome editing … Continue reading “Doudna’s Caribou Bio Raises $11M To Expand Uses For Gene Editing Tech”
Ittavi Raises $2.6M To Take The Sting Out of Child Support
App developers are dangling thousands of new options before us in our spare time—should we learn a new language before that big trip, join a neighborhood network and share intel about yard sales and lost dogs, or design fabulous outfits by combining the best items from luxury fashion lines? Sheri Atwood is just one of … Continue reading “Ittavi Raises $2.6M To Take The Sting Out of Child Support”
Diffbot Turns Online Comments Into Market Intelligence Databases
Let’s say you’re a tech enterpreneur whose groundbreaking gizmo got rave reviews in influential publications, spurring months of lucrative sales. But later, sales slide downward, and you don’t know why. Turns out, a rumor is circulating in discussion forums that your product has a high failure rate after six months of use—a mistaken impression or … Continue reading “Diffbot Turns Online Comments Into Market Intelligence Databases”
Novartis Bets $250M-Plus on Aduro’s Immuno-Oncology Work
How bullish are big drugmakers on cancer immunotherapy these days? Take a read from the deal Novartis announced today with Berkeley, CA-based Aduro Biotech, which is getting a nine-figure check from the Swiss drug giant for an immunotherapy approach that hasn’t yet been tested in humans. Novartis will pay Aduro $200 million in cash, make … Continue reading “Novartis Bets $250M-Plus on Aduro’s Immuno-Oncology Work”
Back Office Cloud App Provider FinancialForce.com Raises $110M
FinancialForce.com, whose applications for back office business functions like billing and hiring are based on the Salesforce1 cloud infrastructure, announced late Wednesday it has raised $110 million to fund its continued growth. San Francisco-based FinancialForce reported revenue growth late last year that, if maintained, would put the company on pace to bring in $50 million … Continue reading “Back Office Cloud App Provider FinancialForce.com Raises $110M”
EchoPixel’s Virtual Anatomy Models FDA-Cleared for Diagnosis, Surgical Planning
Imagine you’re a surgeon steeling yourself to operate on a child’s defective heart. In the future, doctors like you might be able to do a fail-safe trial run by snipping through a 3D image of the patient’s faulty cardiac anatomy while it floats in mid-air above a desktop. That’s the ultimate goal for Mountain View, … Continue reading “EchoPixel’s Virtual Anatomy Models FDA-Cleared for Diagnosis, Surgical Planning”
Tech Pup of the Day: Jobvite’s Pancake
Many workers in Silicon Valley have overcome enormous obstacles to achieve brilliant success in technology fields. But it’s always inspiring to read another story that shows what leaps are possible for those willing to put in the effort. No one would have expected this relatively new staff member at San Mateo, CA-based Jobvite to move … Continue reading “Tech Pup of the Day: Jobvite’s Pancake”
SignalFx Raises $20M, Launches Monitoring Tool for Web-Based Apps
Startup SignalFx today emerged from two years in stealth mode to unveil a troubleshooting tool it designed for Web-based software developers and for other businesses that conduct operations on widely distributed computers and devices. The San Mateo, CA-based company also announced the completion of a $20 million Series B fundraising round led by Charles River … Continue reading “SignalFx Raises $20M, Launches Monitoring Tool for Web-Based Apps”
The Hive Raises $22M for Second Startup Fund
Things are buzzing at The Hive this week. The seed fund and startup accelerator in downtown Palo Alto announced today it has raised a total of $22 million for its second fund. That’s well above the $8 million contributed by individual investors to The Hive’s first fund, Hive I, which has supported six young companies. … Continue reading “The Hive Raises $22M for Second Startup Fund”
Elastica Scores $30M To Expand Cloud Data Security Business
About a year after launching its system to protect business data stored on the Web, cybersecurity company Elastica has landed $30 million from investors to continue its expansion into the global market. San Jose, CA-based Elastica was founded in 2012 to provide the traditional services of cybersecurity companies, such as risk assessment and data loss … Continue reading “Elastica Scores $30M To Expand Cloud Data Security Business”
Evercharge and Others Nab Last Finalist Slots in $650K Challenge Cup
In the Bay Area’s environmentally conscious neighborhoods such as Berkeley, electric cars hum almost silently through streets of single family homes. But what about the apartment dwellers who would eagerly buy these cars if they had a place to charge them? Startup company Evercharge is trying to create that option for people who don’t have … Continue reading “Evercharge and Others Nab Last Finalist Slots in $650K Challenge Cup”