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/

GT Solar Wins $173M Contract with Korean Chemical Firm

In a call with journalists after the release of his company’s first-ever quarterly earnings report last Tuesday, Tom Zarella, CEO of GT Solar (NASDAQ: [[ticker:SOLR]]), the Merrimack, NH-based maker of equipment for manufacturing solar photovoltaic cells, said the company had just won a $177 million contract to supply 48 polysilicon reactors to DC Chemical of … Continue reading “GT Solar Wins $173M Contract with Korean Chemical Firm”

IRobot Wins Open-Ended, $200M Army Contract: Could Extend Beyond Packbot

Bedford, MA-based iRobot (NASDAQ: [[ticker:IRBT]]) said today that the U.S. Army has awarded it a contract for military robots, spare parts, training, and repair services that could bring the company up to $200 million over the next 5 years and give the Army more flexibility to order robots for new missions. The Army uses iRobot’s … Continue reading “IRobot Wins Open-Ended, $200M Army Contract: Could Extend Beyond Packbot”

Greenfield Ditches Quadrangle, Merges with Microsoft in $468M Deal

Wilton, CT-based Greenfield Online (NASDAQ: [[ticker:SRVY]]), which owns a network of Internet-based consumer survey and comparison shopping sites, announced a complex sequence of changes today. The company is backing out of a previously announced merger with New York-based Quadrangle Group. Simultaneously, it’s selling its Internet survey business to an as-yet-unnamed buyer from the financial services … Continue reading “Greenfield Ditches Quadrangle, Merges with Microsoft in $468M Deal”

Sprint Picks uLocate to Power Location Services on WiMax Service

Overland Park, KS-based Sprint, which is building a nationwide WiMax network called XOHM, has picked Boston’s uLocate to power the local information and mapping services for XOHM subscribers. XOHM, a so-called “4G” network, will cover entire metropolitan areas with broadband wireless data at speeds approaching those of cable Internet service. In an announcement yesterday, uLocate … Continue reading “Sprint Picks uLocate to Power Location Services on WiMax Service”

Photographing Spaces, Not Scenes, with Microsoft’s Photosynth

Up to now, software giant Microsoft has largely missed out on the digital photography revolution. The most popular photo editing tools come from Microsoft competitors like Adobe and Apple. Flickr, every geek’s favorite photo-sharing site, was invented in Microsoft’s backyard in Vancouver, BC, but went on to become part of Yahoo. And Corbis, Bill Gates’ … Continue reading “Photographing Spaces, Not Scenes, with Microsoft’s Photosynth”

North Bridge, Canaan Pitch In $80M for Active Network

Private Equity Hub reported yesterday that San Diego-based Active Network has raised $80 million in a sixth round of funding led by existing investors North Bridge Venture Partners of Waltham, MA, Canaan Partners of Westport, CT, and ESPN. Existing investor Charles River Ventures of Waltham did not return for this round, which brings the firm’s … Continue reading “North Bridge, Canaan Pitch In $80M for Active Network”

Red Sox Owner’s Simulation Startup, iRacing.com, Waves the Green Flag

In Boston and Seattle, the professional sports teams aren’t just for entertainment—they’re managed by some of the biggest movers and shakers in the two regions’ high-tech economies. In the Seattle area, the Seahawks and the Portland Trail Blazers are part of Vulcan Inc., owned by Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen. The Kraft Group, owner of the … Continue reading “Red Sox Owner’s Simulation Startup, iRacing.com, Waves the Green Flag”

Acquia Expands Beta Testing of Commercial Drupal

At the Drupalcon Boston conference back in March, Acquia, the Andover, MA, startup formed as a commercial home for the open-source Drupal social publishing system, showed off a demonstration version of its nascent product, code named “Carbon.” A select group of beta users have been testing Carbon for some time, and today Acquia vice president … Continue reading “Acquia Expands Beta Testing of Commercial Drupal”

$10M for Expressor Software

Burlington, MA-based Expressor Software, whose products rely on semantic descriptions to simplify the integration of data from disparate sources into data warehouses, announced today that it has raised $10 million in a Series B venture round led by Commonwealth Capital Ventures. Existing investors Globespan Capital Partners and Sigma Partners also participated in the round.

PicWing Out to Simplify Photo Sharing on Digital Frames

In an ideal world, your digital photos would be shared and archived instantly, behind the scenes, as soon as you snapped them. They’d be wirelessly transmitted to your friends’ phones or e-mail addresses, a photo sharing site like Flickr or Snapfish, your social-networking accounts at Facebook or MySpace, a media storage site like Box.net, your … Continue reading “PicWing Out to Simplify Photo Sharing on Digital Frames”

Software Radio Firm Vanu Collects $32 Million Second Round

Vanu, the Cambridge, MA, company whose “all-software radios” allow wireless operators to broadcast using multiple standards such as GSM and CDMA, has raised $32 million a stealthy Series B venture round, Dan Primack of Private Equity Hub is reporting today. Waltham, MA-based Charles River Ventures, which led a $9 million Series A round for Vanu … Continue reading “Software Radio Firm Vanu Collects $32 Million Second Round”

The Ins and Outs of Making Money from Online Video

An evening seminar sponsored by MITX, with moderator Will Richmond, president of VideoNuze, and panelist Waikit Lau, CEO of ScanScout. From the event page: “Ok, so your online video site is up and running, or maybe you’re still planning its launch. Your attention quickly turns to the most urgent question of all: how can you … Continue reading “The Ins and Outs of Making Money from Online Video”

JumpTap Raises Another $26 Million for Mobile Search and Advertising

Investors still see the mobile search and advertising market as one of the hottest tickets in the digital economy. Since its founding in 2004, mobile advertising startup JumpTap, neighbors of Xconomy just down First Street in Cambridge MA, has raised about $47 million from the likes of General Catalyst Partners, Summerhill Venture Partners, Redpoint Ventures, … Continue reading “JumpTap Raises Another $26 Million for Mobile Search and Advertising”

Mall Networks Gets $7 Million to Help Clients Compete for Loyalty

Why do airlines give away frequent flyer miles? For the same reason that credit card issuers offer cash-back programs: because hanging on to existing customers by giving them rewards is generally cheaper than recruiting new ones. That basic truth has made frequent-flyer programs and other loyalty programs into a huge business: one in three Americans … Continue reading “Mall Networks Gets $7 Million to Help Clients Compete for Loyalty”

ABRY Buys Q9 Networks

Toronto, Ontario-based Q9 Networks, a data center operator, said today that it has agreed to be acquired by CDC Acquisition Corp., an affiliate of ABRY Partners, a Boston private equity firm focused on media and communications investments. The purchase price of approximately $361 million in Canadian dollars, or $17.05 per share, represents a 38 percent … Continue reading “ABRY Buys Q9 Networks”

Venture-Funded Consultants at Security Innovation Show Companies How to Make Software Unbreakable

Outside of a few giants like IBM, you’d be hard pressed to find many technology companies that offer both consulting services and boxed software products. Harder still would be finding a venture firm daring enough to fund a startup that wants to combine these two seemingly disparate lines. But software security startup Security Innovation, which … Continue reading “Venture-Funded Consultants at Security Innovation Show Companies How to Make Software Unbreakable”

Buzzwire to Cover Dems in Denver

Boston- and Denver-based Buzzwire, which provides streaming video and audio content viewable on many Verizon, T-Mobile, Sprint, and AT&T mobile phones, says it’s launching a “DNC 2008” channel on August 25, to coincide with the opening of the Democratic National Convention in Denver. The channel will feature reports from Barely Political‘s Obama Girl and convention … Continue reading “Buzzwire to Cover Dems in Denver”

Build Guild

From the Build Guild website: “Created by two Salem web geeks, Marc Amos & Angelo Simeoni, the Build Guild is a monthly event (occurs every 2nd Tuesday of the month) where folks in the web industry—designers, coders, project managers, hobbyists, etc.—can get together to talk web, debate industry topics, share ideas, make professional connections, land … Continue reading “Build Guild”

Greylock Funds Refocus Imaging

Waltham, MA- and San Mateo, CA-based Greylock Partners is the leader in a $250,000 Series A financing round for Refocus Imaging, according to regulatory filings cited today by PE Week Wire. The Mountain View, CA, startup is pursuing “computational photography” techniques developed by Stanford researcher Ren Ng that, among other things, allow photographers to adjust … Continue reading “Greylock Funds Refocus Imaging”

Pogue on the iPhone 3G: A Product Manual You Won’t Be Able to Put Down

The Apple iPhone is easily the most powerful, multitalented phone ever marketed. As I and many others have pointed out, it’s really a handheld multimedia computer, with camera and (in the iPhone 3G) GPS functions to boot. So it’s a little baffling that the only set of instructions you get when you buy an iPhone … Continue reading “Pogue on the iPhone 3G: A Product Manual You Won’t Be Able to Put Down”

Rhode Island Backs Mobile Website Builder MoFuse

With the number of Web-capable mobile phones sold every year far exceeding sales of desktop and laptop computers, more and more online publishers are rushing to create versions of their sites that look good on the small screens of mobile devices. At Providence, RI-based MoFuse, that’s the specialty of the house: the company builds streamlined … Continue reading “Rhode Island Backs Mobile Website Builder MoFuse”

TripAdvisor Takes FlipKey Majority Stake

Newton, MA-based travel media network TripAdvisor said yesterday that it has acquired a majority stake in FlipKey, a Boston-based consumer review site for rental vacation homes. FlipKey was launched in March by TJ Mahony, Carl Query and Jeremiah Gall; Mahony and Query previously founded Boston-based web analytics and marketing firm Compete.com, which was purchased by … Continue reading “TripAdvisor Takes FlipKey Majority Stake”

Coskata Refutes Energy Analyst’s Critique, Says It’s On Track to Make Ethanol for Under $1 Per Gallon

The idea that a strain of bacteria discovered at the bottom of a lagoon on the campus of Oklahoma State University could hold an answer to U.S. dependence on foreign oil sounds improbable to many. It certainly does to Robert Rapier. The chemical engineer at Arnhem, Netherlands-based Accsys Technologies published a blog post last weekend … Continue reading “Coskata Refutes Energy Analyst’s Critique, Says It’s On Track to Make Ethanol for Under $1 Per Gallon”

Terrafugia On Track for First Flight This Year

The idea of a drivable vehicle that also flies has a firm grip on the public imagination. Woburn, MA-based Terrafugia, the subject of two highly popular Xconomy stories back in May (here and here), showed its prototype “roadable aircraft,” the Transition, to big crowds at the Experimental Aircraft Association’s AirVenture show in Oshkosh, WI, from … Continue reading “Terrafugia On Track for First Flight This Year”

Microsoft, Novell Continue Unlikely Windows-Linux Partnership

In November 2006, Redmond, WA-based Microsoft and Waltham, MA-based Novell surprised the software world by announcing that Microsoft would market Novell’s version of the Linux operating system to its own customers, and that the two companies would set up an “Interoperability Lab” in Cambridge, MA. Nearly two years later, the partnership is still in place, … Continue reading “Microsoft, Novell Continue Unlikely Windows-Linux Partnership”

With uTest, U Find Software Bugs, U Save

There’s no such thing as a flawless software application: the only question is how many bugs its developers had time to catch and fix before release, and how many will be discovered by customers. And with software being written today for so many different platforms and operating systems, from servers to desktops to mobile devices … Continue reading “With uTest, U Find Software Bugs, U Save”

Emerging Technologies Conference at MIT

Technology Review Magazine’s annual summit of companies and researchers working on bleeding-edge technologies promises to be as informative and exciting as the previous seven. Keynote speakers during the three-day summit will include Craig Mundie, chief research and strategy officer at Microsoft, and as always, a highlight of the conference will be the unveiling of the … Continue reading “Emerging Technologies Conference at MIT”

Remember Palm, Symbian, Java, and Blackberry? AT&T Dangles Incentives for Non-iPhone, Non-Android Mobile Apps

Perhaps eager to remind software developers that the Apple iPhone isn’t the only game in town—or even its only game in town— AT&T is sponsoring a contest for New England-based makers of mobile applications for competing platforms. The so-called “Fast-Pitch New England” contest, which was announced yesterday and runs through September 30, will end with … Continue reading “Remember Palm, Symbian, Java, and Blackberry? AT&T Dangles Incentives for Non-iPhone, Non-Android Mobile Apps”

Skyhook Gets Neighborhood Data from Urban Mapping

So, you’re at the corner of Harrison Street and Union Park Street in Boston. Are you in the South End, or in the trendier but less widely recognized SoWa (South of Washington) district? Both, technically—and if you’ve got a location-sensitive mobile device, it can be tricky for mobile data providers to know which neighborhood’s information … Continue reading “Skyhook Gets Neighborhood Data from Urban Mapping”

Canada’s Zi Corporation Hopes to Fend Off Nuance Takeover; Companies Issue Dueling Statements

Zi Corporation (NASDAQ: [[ticker:ZICA]]), a struggling Calgary, Alberta-based company whose software is designed to speed text entry on mobile devices, today rejected a takeover offer from Burlington, MA-based speech recognition giant Nuance Communications (NASDAQ: [[ticker:NUAN]]). Nuance reacted angrily, calling the rejection “perplexing and inappropriate” given Zi’s financial condition. Last Thursday—the same day Zi announced widening … Continue reading “Canada’s Zi Corporation Hopes to Fend Off Nuance Takeover; Companies Issue Dueling Statements”

GameLogic Doubles Down with $8 Million in Series C Funding

Waltham, MA-based GameLogic, which manages online games that double as customer loyalty programs for patrons of bricks-and-mortar casinos, has collected $8 million of a $10 million Series C funding round, according to a regulatory filing cited by Private Equity Hub. Backers included existing investors Bain Capital Ventures, General Catalyst Partners and Maveron.

The Boston and Seattle iPhone Apps Catalog

It’s been one month to the day since Apple simultaneously released the iPhone 3G, pushed the 2.0 version of the iPhone firmware to all iPhone owners, started distributing native iPhone applications through the App Store, and launched its MobileMe communications service. Of all these changes, the most momentous, in the context of the mobile industry … Continue reading “The Boston and Seattle iPhone Apps Catalog”

NEC Snaps Up Netcracker

Netcracker Technology, a Waltham, MA, company that makes software used by telecom companies to manage order fulfillment and other operations, announced today that it will be acquired by Tokyo-based electronics and communications giant NEC. The companies didn’t disclose the terms of the deal.

In Defense of the Endangered Tree Octopus, and Other Web Myths

This March marked the 10th anniversary of the campaign to save the Pacific Northwest Tree Octopus from extinction. If you’re not familiar with the elusive tree octopus, it’s an arboreal cephalopod found in the temperate rainforests of the Olympic National Park west of Seattle. Every spring the creatures migrate from their lairs in the forest … Continue reading “In Defense of the Endangered Tree Octopus, and Other Web Myths”

Will Popcuts Out-Surrge Surrge with Music Rewards Program?

The news in TechCrunch last night about the public beta launch of Popcuts, a startup founded by Cambridge, MA- and Mountain View, CA-based Y Combinator that proposes to reward music buyers by giving them a slice of the revenue every time someone else buys a song they already bought, sounded awfully familiar. Then it came … Continue reading “Will Popcuts Out-Surrge Surrge with Music Rewards Program?”

If You Can Beat BeatThat.com’s Prices, They’ll Pay You

For many online shoppers, no sooner have they hit the “buy” button than they’re struck by angst over whether they missed out on a better deal at another site. But at BeatThat.com, a consumer electronics shopping site that emerged from beta testing yesterday, there’s less reason to worry: the site digs up the Web’s best … Continue reading “If You Can Beat BeatThat.com’s Prices, They’ll Pay You”

Verenium, BP in $90 Million Ethanol Deal

Verenium (NASDAQ: [[ticker:VRNM]]), a Cambridge, MA-based biofuel firm, and BP, the United States’ largest oil and gas producer, announced a strategic partnership today under which Verenium will receive up to $90 million over the next year and a half for work on facilities producing low-cost cellulosic ethanol. Verenium controls the rights to a class of … Continue reading “Verenium, BP in $90 Million Ethanol Deal”

In Coda to Robotic FX Lawsuit, iRobot Introduces Its Own Version of Negotiator Robot

The last time I saw a Negotiator robot was in a federal courtroom in Boston, where Jameel Ahed—the founder and CEO of Robotic FX and the defendant in an intellectual-property-theft lawsuit brought by his former employer, iRobot—was driving the nimble little device around the judge’s bench via remote control. Robotic FX lost that suit last … Continue reading “In Coda to Robotic FX Lawsuit, iRobot Introduces Its Own Version of Negotiator Robot”

VideoSchmooze: Boston

From the event listing at Eventbrite: “Did you know Boston is the epicenter of the broadband video world, home to more exciting startups and established companies that are changing the video landscape than anywhere else in the country? Come to VideoNuze’s VideoSchmooze, the first event of its kind bringing together the executives, entrepreneurs, investors, and … Continue reading “VideoSchmooze: Boston”

DynaTrace Takes $12.9 Million

Waltham, MA-based DynaTrace Software, whose products diagnose performance problems in large, distributed enterprise systems from companies like SAP, Microsoft, and IBM, announced today that it has closed a second round of funding totaling $12.9 million. The Series B investors included Bay Partners of Menlo Park, CA, and existing investor Bain Capital Ventures of Boston. In … Continue reading “DynaTrace Takes $12.9 Million”

RFID Kits Go On Sale at ThingMagic Store

Last week we wrote about ThingMagic’s compact new RFID reader, Astra, which is designed to fit into small spaces such as office ceilings, allowing more kinds of organizations to use RFID technology to track tagged items. This week ThingMagic is bringing out an additional set of products intended to help organizations experiment with RFID technology. … Continue reading “RFID Kits Go On Sale at ThingMagic Store”

Core Security Brings Penetration Testing to Broader Market

If you’re a typical homeowner, it would probably be overkill to have a live-in plumber who spends all his time checking the pipes for leaks. But if your plumbing system were constantly getting new parts, carrying volatile new liquids, and fending off corrosive agents, it might not be such a bad idea. That’s the basic … Continue reading “Core Security Brings Penetration Testing to Broader Market”

Affinnova, Evolver of Consumer Products, Evolves Itself

Creating a new diet soda, deodorant, or dish soap is a notoriously chancy business: consumers are unpredictable, and experience and intuition can only get a product designer so far. But what if you could apply the power of evolution to product development—subjecting various ideas to generation after generation of Darwinian competition, with consumers themselves as … Continue reading “Affinnova, Evolver of Consumer Products, Evolves Itself”

Two Alternative Energy Companies Brave Anti-IPO Winds

August doldrums don’t appear to be affecting the New England clean energy industry. Two area companies—one in wind, one in solar—filed for initial public offerings with the Securities and Exchange Commission yesterday. Together the companies hope to raise three-quarters of a billion dollars—and to restore some movement to the technology IPO market, which has been … Continue reading “Two Alternative Energy Companies Brave Anti-IPO Winds”

Turn your iPhone or iPod into a Portable University

You can’t earn a college degree just by watching iPod videos (at least, not yet). But if it’s pure knowledge you’re after, there’s a veritable bounty of it available at the “iTunes University” section of Apple’s iTunes store, tuition-free. iTunes U isn’t new—Apple launched it on May 30, 2007, the same day it introduced iTunes … Continue reading “Turn your iPhone or iPod into a Portable University”