When people started lugging around the first brick-sized, 2G mobile phones in the late 1980s, I said to myself, “Eventually, those will be small enough and cheap enough that everyone will have one.” And what do you know—by 1999 I was carrying around a slim little Nokia candybar phone. When the Enterprise crew started using … Continue reading “Join Xconomy on March 9 as We Come to Grips with the Mad Pace of Change in Mobile Computing”
Author: Wade Roush
Between 2007 and 2014, I was a staff editor for Xconomy in Boston and San Francisco.
Since 2008 I've been writing a weekly opinion/review column called VOX: The Voice of Xperience. (From 2008 to 2013 the column was known as World Wide Wade.)
I've been writing about science and technology professionally since 1994. Before joining Xconomy in 2007, I was a staff member at MIT’s Technology Review from 2001 to 2006, serving as senior editor, San Francisco bureau chief, and executive editor of TechnologyReview.com. Before that, I was the Boston bureau reporter for Science, managing editor of supercomputing publications at NASA Ames Research Center, and Web editor at e-book pioneer NuvoMedia.
I have a B.A. in the history of science from Harvard College and a PhD in the history and social study of science and technology from MIT. I've published articles in Science, Technology Review, IEEE Spectrum, Encyclopaedia Brittanica, Technology and Culture, Alaska Airlines Magazine, and World Business, and I've been a guest of NPR, CNN, CNBC, NECN, WGBH and the PBS NewsHour. I'm a frequent conference participant and enjoy opportunities to moderate panel discussions and on-stage chats.
My personal site: waderoush.com
My social media coordinates:
Twitter: @wroush
Facebook: facebook.com/wade.roush
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/waderoush
Google+ : google.com/+WadeRoush
YouTube: youtube.com/wroush1967
Flickr: flickr.com/photos/wroush/
Pinterest: pinterest.com/waderoush/
M/C Gains in NuVox Sale
Boston’s M/C Venture Partners is the big winner in the $647 million sale of NuVox, a Greenville, SC-based provider of business telecommunications services, to Windstream Corporation (NASDAQ: [[ticker:WIN]]), a deal announced yesterday. In a press release yesterday, M/C said that it became NuVox’s largest shareholder after NuVox absorbed M/C portfolio companies NewSouth in 2004 and … Continue reading “M/C Gains in NuVox Sale”
Battle of the Tech Bands 3: Boston vs. Seattle—A Video and Photo Extravaganza
It’s not every day you get to see three great East Coast rock bands on the same stage with two amazing West Coast bands—so we made a point of documenting our big fundraiser last Thursday, the Battle of the Tech Bands 3: Seattle vs. Boston. Today we want to share the amazing footage and images … Continue reading “Battle of the Tech Bands 3: Boston vs. Seattle—A Video and Photo Extravaganza”
Battle of the Tech Bands 3: The Slide Show
NEXT IMAGE >> Rock On — Xconomy’s third Battle of the Tech Bands took Cambridge by storm on February 4, featuring our first bicoastal smackdown: a faceoff between standout bands from past battles in Boston and Seattle. This shot shows the winning band, country rock act The Dirty Truckers, who edged out Deadbeat Darling for … Continue reading “Battle of the Tech Bands 3: The Slide Show”
How to Win Influencers and Friend People: Pursway Raises $6M, Arrives in Boston
If you change your tech startup’s name, you might get a one-line notice from the business press. If you get a prominent firm to invest in your technology, particularly if it’s a sizeable amount or if it’s your first big round of funding, we’ll probably write a paragraph or two. If you move your headquarters … Continue reading “How to Win Influencers and Friend People: Pursway Raises $6M, Arrives in Boston”
New CEO at Sand 9
Boston-based Sand 9, which is developing microelectromechanical resonators that could replace quartz crystal frequency sources in 3G phones, GPS devices, and other applications, said today that Vince Graziani, a board member and former CEO of VBrick, has been appointed chief executive officer. Founded in 2007, Sand 9 is backed by Flybridge Capital Partners, General Catalyst … Continue reading “New CEO at Sand 9”
TripAdvisor: The Travel Company That’s Really All About Data
TripAdvisor, which was founded 10 years ago this month, is a study in paradoxes: • The Newton, MA-based company’s family of travel-related websites attracts 35 million unique visitors each month, making it one of the most successful Web properties in the Boston area—yet few people even realize the company is headquartered in New England. • … Continue reading “TripAdvisor: The Travel Company That’s Really All About Data”
Massachusetts Business Development Officials Set Up Outpost at Cambridge Innovation Center
I stopped by the Cambridge Innovation Center this afternoon to welcome a special newcomer to the neighborhood (Xconomy’s headquarters is just three blocks away). It was Jason Schupbach, the creative economy director for the Massachusetts Office of Business Development. Schupbach—who is already a familiar face around the local innovation community, of course—is in the vanguard … Continue reading “Massachusetts Business Development Officials Set Up Outpost at Cambridge Innovation Center”
Kindle Conniptions: How I Published My First E-Book
This is the 80th edition of World Wide Wade since this weekly column on technology trends began in April 2008. Since we have so much material piling up in the archive, we at Xconomy decided to do something a bit different: We’re collecting all of the columns in the form of an e-book. It’s called … Continue reading “Kindle Conniptions: How I Published My First E-Book”
Pixel Nation: 80 Weeks of World Wide Wade
I love Thursdays, because that’s the day I get to sit down and write World Wide Wade, my wide-ranging column on digital media and Internet culture. We launched the the column in April 2008 and somehow–without really being conscious of it—I’ve now written 80 of the things. We decided to mark the occasion by collecting … Continue reading “Pixel Nation: 80 Weeks of World Wide Wade”
$1M for Powerhouse Dynamics
Powerhouse Dynamics, a home energy usage monitoring startup in Newton, MA, raised $225,000 last spring and let slip to journalists in November that it was raising more. Now there’s confirmation of that: the company has closed a $1.02 million financing round, according to a February 2 regulatory filing. According to a Powerhouse announcement, The round … Continue reading “$1M for Powerhouse Dynamics”
XL Hybrids Charges Up with $850K
Somerville, MA-based XL Hybrids, formerly known as Entergem Ventures, has collected $850,000 out of a planned $1.2 million in capital in a sale of warrants and convertible promissory notes, according to a regulatory filing published yesterday. Founded by a group of MIT-affiliated cleantech entrepreneurs, the two-year-old startup is focused on helping organizations acquire and manage … Continue reading “XL Hybrids Charges Up with $850K”
Economics Bloggers See Innovation, Immigration as Paths to Recovery
Despite official data showing that the U.S. economy is out of recession, leading economics bloggers remain cautious about the nation’s economic prospects, with almost half saying that conditions are worse than the official numbers indicate. But government policies boosting entrepreneurship and allowing more high-skilled immigrants into the country could bolster recovery, bloggers say. That’s all … Continue reading “Economics Bloggers See Innovation, Immigration as Paths to Recovery”
Online Voice Provider Vivox Raises Another $6.8 Million to Support “Explosive Growth”
Vivox, the Natick, MA, startup best known for voice software that allows inhabitants of virtual worlds such as Second Life, EVE Online, and EverQuest to talk with each other over the Internet, has completed a third round of venture funding totaling $6.8 million. New investor IDG Ventures SF of San Francisco led the round, with … Continue reading “Online Voice Provider Vivox Raises Another $6.8 Million to Support “Explosive Growth””
PRX Launches This American Life App
Ira Glass groupies, rejoice. The Public Radio Exchange (PRX), the Cambridge, MA-based clearinghouse for public radio programming, said today that it has created an iPhone app for This American Life, the popular weekly radio show from Chicago Public Radio. The $2.99 app, available starting today at Apple’s iTunes App Store, offers access to the complete … Continue reading “PRX Launches This American Life App”
Boston Scientific to Pay Johnson & Johnson $1.7 Billion in Stent Settlements
Pushing to get past a raft of pending patent infringement lawsuits, Boston Scientific (NYSE: [[ticker:BSX]]) said today that it will pay Johnson & Johnson $1.725 billion to settle three suits related to cardiac stent technology. The Natick, MA-based medical devices giant said it will pay Johnson & Johnson $1 billion today, and the remaining $725 … Continue reading “Boston Scientific to Pay Johnson & Johnson $1.7 Billion in Stent Settlements”
At Quick Hit, Players Can Now Draft NFL Legends for Virtual Currency
Just in time for fans facing the prospect of pigskin withdrawal after this weekend’s Saints vs. Colts Superbowl matchup, Foxborough, MA-based Quick Hit has added an intriguing, and potentially lucrative, new feature to its online football strategy game. For the first time, it’s giving players the chance to add past NFL greats of their choice … Continue reading “At Quick Hit, Players Can Now Draft NFL Legends for Virtual Currency”
Glasshouse Files for $75M IPO
Framingham, MA-based IT consulting company Glasshouse Technologies, which registered for a $100 million initial public offering in October 2007 and then nixed the plan in March 2009, citing unfavorable market conditions, is plunging back into the fray. In forms filed yesterday with the SEC, Glasshouse said it hopes to raise up to $75 million in … Continue reading “Glasshouse Files for $75M IPO”
What’s So Magical About an Oversized iPhone? Plenty—And There’s More to Come
The Apple iPad is one of the most eagerly anticipated computing devices in history. With all the heat and hype that preceded Wednesday’s public debut of the device, it was inevitable that the backlash from skeptical bloggers and Twitterers would be equally ferocious. Still, even after you filter out all the bozos who keep repeating … Continue reading “What’s So Magical About an Oversized iPhone? Plenty—And There’s More to Come”
Boston Startups Stake Out iPad Territory: Big Plans at Apperian, Jumptap, Skyhook
For Boston-area startups that have already spent years staking out their corners of the mobile marketplace, getting on board with the Apple iPad—and the new set of business opportunities it creates—is a no-brainer. At least two local companies have already announced they’re providing technologies or services targeted at the tablet-sized device, and the area’s application … Continue reading “Boston Startups Stake Out iPad Territory: Big Plans at Apperian, Jumptap, Skyhook”
Carbonite Eyes IPO, Aims to Be the Symantec of Online Backup
The first thing you should know about Carbonite, the Boston-based online backup company, is that it is indeed named after the ice-like substance in which Darth Vader encased Han Solo at the end of The Empire Strikes Back. David Friend, Carbonite’s co-founder and CEO, even has a replica of the frozen Solo in his office. … Continue reading “Carbonite Eyes IPO, Aims to Be the Symantec of Online Backup”
Harvest Power Strikes Deal with Waste Management to Turn Trash Into Fertilizer and Fuel
Homes and businesses in North America generate about 55 million tons of organic waste every year, and that’s without even counting sewage. Roughly half of this solid waste comes from grass clippings and other biomass from the typical yard, and the other half is food scraps. Most of the yard waste gets recycled, but most … Continue reading “Harvest Power Strikes Deal with Waste Management to Turn Trash Into Fertilizer and Fuel”
Brightcove Wants to Help Its Customers Adapt to Comcast’s Proposed Controls on Internet Video
Before the week gets away from me, I wanted to make brief note of an interesting piece of news yesterday out of Brightcove, the Cambridge-based provider of online distribution platforms for video publishers. Hundreds of companies use the Brightcove 4 platform to organize their video content online and serve it up on demand to Internet … Continue reading “Brightcove Wants to Help Its Customers Adapt to Comcast’s Proposed Controls on Internet Video”
The Apple Paradox: How a Company That’s So Closed Can Foster So Much Open Innovation
[Corrected and clarified, 1:30 p.m. 1/25/10, see page 2] Come Wednesday, we’ll learn a lot more about Apple’s presumed slate device. What we know right now, first hand, is a big fat nothing. Apple keeps a famously tight lid on its employees, suppliers, and partners, the only exception being the occasional strategic leak designed to … Continue reading “The Apple Paradox: How a Company That’s So Closed Can Foster So Much Open Innovation”
Another $3M for QD Vision
Little more than a month after announcing a $10 million round of venture financing, nanotech lighting startup QD Vision of Watertown, MA, said today that it has raised an additional $3 million from DTE Energy Ventures, a subsidiary of Detroit, MI-based power company Detroit Edison.“QD Vision’s Quantum Light platform will help lighting and display manufacturers … Continue reading “Another $3M for QD Vision”
Disruption in the Wind: Talking with FloDesign’s New CEO, Lars Andersen
On Tuesday, FloDesign Wind Turbine of Wilbraham, MA, announced that it has raised $35 million in Series B funding from a list of marquee venture capital firms and hired a new CEO to go along with the new money. Both moves are aimed at setting the company on the path to commercialization of its unusual … Continue reading “Disruption in the Wind: Talking with FloDesign’s New CEO, Lars Andersen”
“CrisisCamp” Hacker Session Planned in Cambridge to Help Haiti
Crisis Commons, a non-governmental organization formed last year to apply information technology to disaster management and humanitarian relief efforts, will mount a “CrisisCamp” session for Boston-area developers this Saturday in Cambridge. It’s the second weekend in a row the group has organized such sessions; similar camps took place last weekend in Los Angeles, Washington D.C., … Continue reading ““CrisisCamp” Hacker Session Planned in Cambridge to Help Haiti”
BuyWithMe Raises $5.5M
BuyWithMe, a Boston-based “group buying” site, said today it has closed a $5.5 million Series A venture financing round led by Matrix Partners, which has offices in Waltham, MA, and Menlo Park, CA. At the BuyWithMe website, merchants promote group discounts on products or services, deliverable only if BuyWithMe can assemble enough customers to meet … Continue reading “BuyWithMe Raises $5.5M”
Apperian Buys DS Media Labs
Apperian, a Boston-based developer of consumer and enterprise iPhone applications, announced today that it has acquired DS Media Labs, an 8-employee interactive design and development agency in West Palm Beach, FL. Apperian said the acquisition would give it the ability to develop applications for all major mobile platforms. “This team will also allow us to … Continue reading “Apperian Buys DS Media Labs”
Performable Wants to Take the Guesswork Out of Web Marketing
Being a large Web company has its benefits. If you have hordes of visitors to your website and hordes of programmers on staff, you can afford to study potential site changes using “multivariate testing”—a fancy term for presenting different pages to different visitors and measuring which ones induce the behaviors you want, be it clicking … Continue reading “Performable Wants to Take the Guesswork Out of Web Marketing”
FloDesign Wind Turbine Gets $35 Million and a Danish CEO
Wilbraham, MA-based FloDesign Wind Turbine, whose radical jet-engine-like design for a new form of wind turbine has whisked it from the world of student business plan competitions to national prominence in under three years, says it has raised a big chunk of new cash and installed a new chief executive. In an announcement today, FloDesign … Continue reading “FloDesign Wind Turbine Gets $35 Million and a Danish CEO”
Atlas Venture’s Fagnan Describes Consolidation as Tactical, Not Strategic
Atlas Venture, an early stage venture investing firm with offices in Waltham, MA, and London, announced today that it will consolidate its operations, downsize its UK office, and bring almost all of its active investment professionals together under one roof in the Boston area. That roof likely won’t be Atlas’s current office 890 Winter Street … Continue reading “Atlas Venture’s Fagnan Describes Consolidation as Tactical, Not Strategic”
Nexamp Raises $6.5M for Clean Energy Consulting
Nexamp, a North Andover, MA, company that helps clients design, finance, build, and analyze clean energy projects, has raised $6.5 million in equity-based financing, a regulatory filing revealed today. The four-year-old company, formerly known as NexGen Energy Solutions, originally focused on solar panel installation projects, but has grown to offer other services such as feasibility … Continue reading “Nexamp Raises $6.5M for Clean Energy Consulting”
Kiva’s Robots Go to Work Sorting Medical Devices at Boston Scientific
Robotics startup Kiva Systems of Woburn, MA, and medical device giant Boston Scientific (NYSE: [[ticker:BSX]]) said today that Kiva’s robots will be used to automate order fulfillment in two Boston Scientific warehouses, one in New England and one in the Netherlands. It’s a big win for Kiva, whose shelf-toting robots are increasingly common in the … Continue reading “Kiva’s Robots Go to Work Sorting Medical Devices at Boston Scientific”
StyleFeeder Acquired by Time Inc.
[Updated, see below] Time Inc., the New York-based magazine publishing giant, has acquired Cambridge, MA-based personalized shopping site StyleFeeder in a deal that closed on Friday. StyleFeeder founder and chief technology officer Phil Jacob, who I reached at his home this evening, confirmed the news, which was first publicly reported just before 8:00 p.m. Monday … Continue reading “StyleFeeder Acquired by Time Inc.”
CIC to Double Its Space
[Updated and corrected, 1/20/10] The Cambridge Innovation Center (CIC), which provides office space and services to hundreds of technology startups at One Broadway in Cambridge, MA, has signed a 10-year lease with One Broadway’s owner, MIT, that will allow it to expand its footprint in the building from 86,000 square feet to 122,000 square feet, … Continue reading “CIC to Double Its Space”
FitnessKeeper Announcement Gives New Meaning to “Scalable”
I caught up the other day with Jason Jacobs, the hyperkinetic founder and CEO of Boston-based FitnessKeeper, which is best known for its RunKeeper GPS fitness-tracking app for the Apple iPhone. That’s no mean feat, as Jacobs is one of those guys who walks the talk—he’s training to run in the Boston Marathon for the … Continue reading “FitnessKeeper Announcement Gives New Meaning to “Scalable””
Rue La La Closure Promotes Haiti Relief
Invitation-only discount clothing site Rue La La, a part of Boston-based Retail Convergence Incorporated (RCI), has closed its online boutiques until Saturday morning and is asking shoppers to donate instead to relief efforts in Haiti following the devastating earthquake there. At the Rue La La website, a statement from Rue La La CEO Ben Fischman … Continue reading “Rue La La Closure Promotes Haiti Relief”
Entrepreneurship May Work Like A Clock, But It Still Needs Winding: Exploring the Kauffman Study on New Firm Formation
Like others in the tech-journalism business, we here at Xconomy tend to pore over the latest statistics about the entrepreneurial economy pretty obsessively: how much money venture firms are raising and investing from quarter to quarter; how much they dole out to each new startup in their portfolios; how much these portfolio companies eventually return … Continue reading “Entrepreneurship May Work Like A Clock, But It Still Needs Winding: Exploring the Kauffman Study on New Firm Formation”
CitySquares Acquires Yokel
CitySquares Online, a 5-year-old Boston startup that operates a network of hyperlocal online business directories, said in a news release yesterday that it has acquired Yokel.com, another Boston startup specializing in local product search. Terms of the deal weren’t disclosed. “This deal was a ‘your chocolate in my peanut butter’ moment for CitySquares,” said CitySquares … Continue reading “CitySquares Acquires Yokel”
Oneforty Opens Twitter App Store for Business, Details Funding from Boston, Seattle, and Bay Area Investors
Starting today, developers of Twitter applications who list their apps at oneforty, the burgeoning Twitter app directory based in Boston’s Brighton neighborhood, can also sell their apps directly to oneforty visitors. That makes oneforty into the first true Twitter app store—a development that could help stimulate the growth of a substantial marketplace for applications related … Continue reading “Oneforty Opens Twitter App Store for Business, Details Funding from Boston, Seattle, and Bay Area Investors”
Unica Buys Pivotal Veracity
Marketing software provider Unica (NASDAQ: [[ticker:UNCA]]) of Waltham, MA, has acquired Pivotal Veracity of Phoenix, AZ, and Bradenton, FL, for $17.8 million in cash, according to an announcement today. Pivotal Veracity makes software that helps to ensure that marketing e-mails look the same across multiple devices and e-mail clients, and that they reach their intended … Continue reading “Unica Buys Pivotal Veracity”
Prysm Hopes Laser-Driven Screens Will Outshine LCD, LED Displays
If you’re seeing electronic displays on every wall, window, billboard, and passing dirigible, it’s a sure sign that you’re stuck in a science-fiction movie. While a few real-world destinations like New York’s Times Square and Tokyo’s Ginza district are plastered with outdoor displays, such technology is still too expensive and electricity-hogging to put everywhere. But … Continue reading “Prysm Hopes Laser-Driven Screens Will Outshine LCD, LED Displays”
ATG Acquires InstantService
Art Technology Group (NASDAQ: [[ticker:ARTG]]), the Cambridge, MA-based provider of e-commerce software and services, announced today that it has acquired Seattle-based InstantService, which offers SaaS-based live chat services, for $17 million in cash. ATG said the acquisition will make it easier for its clients to offer live text-based chat with customer service agents as an … Continue reading “ATG Acquires InstantService”
Gearing up for a Bicoastal Smackdown: Xconomy’s Battle of the Tech Bands 3 Coming February 4
Xconomy’s Battle of the Tech Bands has become a welcome wintertime ritual in Cambridge: every January or February we get a bunch of loud, enthusiastic musicians together with a loud, enthusiastic crowd at the Middle East Night Club for a night of hot tunes, bravura performances, and audience voting. But this year—on February 4, to … Continue reading “Gearing up for a Bicoastal Smackdown: Xconomy’s Battle of the Tech Bands 3 Coming February 4”
Larry Cheng on the Birth of Volition Capital
While many pundits predicted that the financial crisis of 2007-2008 would lead to a big shakeout on the venture-capital stage, there’s been remarkably little change in the cast of characters so far, at least in Boston. But Monday saw the demise of one established Boston venture fund and the birth of another, as the entire … Continue reading “Larry Cheng on the Birth of Volition Capital”
Fidelity Ventures Team Forms Volition Capital
There’s a new player on the venture scene in Boston. The team behind the U.S. branch of Fidelity Ventures, the venture investing wing of Fidelity Investments, has left Fidelity and relaunched itself under the name Volition Capital, according to an announcement today. The new firm—in which Fidelity has no ownership stake—says it will invest in … Continue reading “Fidelity Ventures Team Forms Volition Capital”
Optics for Hire Buys Actuality Assets
The patent portfolio and other assets of Actuality Systems, a Bedford, MA-based maker of visualization systems for medicine, oil and gas exploration, and other applications, has been acquired by Optics for Hire, the Arlington, MA, company announced December 28. Actuality launched in 1997 after winning the MIT $50K business plan competition; its flagship product, Perspecta, … Continue reading “Optics for Hire Buys Actuality Assets”
A SeaChange for VividLogic
Acton, MA-based SeaChange International (NASDAQ: [[ticker:SEAC]]), which specializes in hardware and software for video-on-demand television, announced last week that it has acquired VividLogic of Fremont, CA, for $12 million in cash plus $8.6 million in working capital. VividLogic supplies software for home video networking and recording to cable operators, set-top box makers, and consumer electronics … Continue reading “A SeaChange for VividLogic”
Progress Software Buys Savvion
Progress Software (NASDAQ: [[ticker:PRGS]]), the Bedford, MA-based maker of systems for integrating enterprise software applications, said this morning that it has acquired Santa Clara, CA-based Savvion for $49 million, net of Savvion’s cash. Savvion makes business process management software, and Progress president and CEO Richard Reidy said the acquisition “enhances our goal to provide unprecedented … Continue reading “Progress Software Buys Savvion”