San Francisco – Page 226

Food Hackers Cook Up a Storm of Startup Ideas in San Francisco

File this under “more evidence that food-tech is one of the hottest areas for Bay Area entrepeneurs.” A weekend Food Hackathon contest at SOMACentral’s new 450 Townsend Street space attracted some 170 developers, designers, entrepreneurs, and food lovers for 30 hours of brainstorming and frantic coding, culminating in a pitchfest late Sunday afternoon with $25,000 … Continue reading “Food Hackers Cook Up a Storm of Startup Ideas in San Francisco”

The Publishing Industrial Complex is Dead. Long Live the Publishers!

When Fred Wilson wrote about Simplified Content Marketing, he got hundreds of comments, many of them saying essentially that this was nothing new. They are wrong. There’s something really dramatically new going on, but the shift is so massive, so tectonic, that it’s a little hard to even see while being in the middle of … Continue reading “The Publishing Industrial Complex is Dead. Long Live the Publishers!”

The Brain Map Shouldn’t Get $100M a Year. It Should Get Much More

The human brain, as Francis Collins recently said, “is the most complicated organ in the universe.” We only have vague ideas today of how it works at the level of genes, and neural circuits. Deeper understanding could help us unravel some of today’s great mysteries, from autism to Alzheimer’s to epilepsy. The sequencing of the … Continue reading “The Brain Map Shouldn’t Get $100M a Year. It Should Get Much More”

SteadyMed Therapeutics Lands $3,000,000 New Financing

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=423ea417-3ff1-44e6-883b-37cbb80c7857&Preview=1 Date 4/8/2013 Company Name SteadyMed Therapeutics Mailing Address Undisclosed San Francisco, CA 94123 Company Description SteadyMed Therapeutics, Inc. is a private, venture funded, Drug Delivery Therapeutics Company. We are leaders in the development and commercialization of prefilled, size efficient and disposable patch pump technology. Website http://www.steadymed.com Transaction Type Debt Transaction Amount … Continue reading “SteadyMed Therapeutics Lands $3,000,000 New Financing”

Pharma Market Access Pricing and Reimbursement Conference

From the event organizers: The conference will provide attendees with an opportunity to learn about the key developments impacting the future of pharmaceutical pricing and reimbursement, including: The increasing importance of generating, collecting and analyzing reimbursement evidence early in product development and identifying points of differentiation of a product versus existing standards of care The … Continue reading “Pharma Market Access Pricing and Reimbursement Conference”

The Strategic Execution Conference

From the event organizers: The Stanford Advanced Project Management (SAPM) program is excited to announce The Strategic Execution Conference, a premier two-day event for senior and rising organizational leaders and project, program and portfolio managers, from the world’s most innovative companies. Participants will learn how their peers are overcoming barriers to strategic execution today – … Continue reading “The Strategic Execution Conference”

Glimpse: The Social Discovery Conference

From the event organizers: “Glimpse is a day-long conference focused on the next phase of social interaction: social discovery. Companies and products in the social discovery space aim to connect people with new places, people and products that they will enjoy based on their social interactions and existing interests. Glimpse brings together leading experts in … Continue reading “Glimpse: The Social Discovery Conference”

The JOBS Act: One Year Later

From event organizers, Latham & Watkins: “The Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act of 2012, or JOBS Act, has changed the IPO process in the United States for a new category of issuer, called an emerging growth company or EGC. Under the JOBS Act, emerging growth companies benefit from a streamlined IPO process and phased transition … Continue reading “The JOBS Act: One Year Later”

3 Takeaways from Sheryl Sandberg’s “Lean In” Tour

I haven’t read all of Sheryl Sandberg’s book yet. I’m not on Facebook. Also, I’m a man. That makes me a perfect commentator for her “Lean In” book tour, which hit Boston this week. Sandberg, the chief operating officer of Facebook, spoke to a crowd of several hundred entrepreneurs, investors, and startup/marketing folks at the … Continue reading “3 Takeaways from Sheryl Sandberg’s “Lean In” Tour”

Eye on the Living Room: How Dropcam Makes Surveillance Feel Safe

Ten years ago this month, I edited a cover story for MIT’s Technology Review magazine called “Surveillance Nation.” Written by veteran science journalist Charles Mann and network security guru Dan Farmer, the story looked at the state of digital video circa 2003 and envisaged a near future where every home, business, and street would be … Continue reading “Eye on the Living Room: How Dropcam Makes Surveillance Feel Safe”

New Accelerator Crowdfundx Kicks Off in NY with Plans to Go Global

Players from the crowdfunding and innovation community came together Thursday at the General Assembly campus in New York to announce a new accelerator called Crowdfundx (stylized as CROWDFUNDx). Folks from Startup Weekend, Social Media Week, the Startup America Partnership, the Small Business & Entrepreneurship Council, and Crowdfunder will serve as the backbone for Crowdfundx. The … Continue reading “New Accelerator Crowdfundx Kicks Off in NY with Plans to Go Global”

Now is the Time to Push for a Robot-Assisted Surgery Revolution

As recently reported in The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, and Bloomberg News, there is a controversy brewing over robotic surgery and whether it is superior to alternative surgical approaches. Robotic training practices have also been questioned and it has been debated whether surgeons are receiving enough supervised cases before flying solo. What … Continue reading “Now is the Time to Push for a Robot-Assisted Surgery Revolution”

TV Apps Aim to Channel the Flood of Online Video

A telling moment for the future of 9×9.tv, a video discovery startup headquartered in Silicon Valley, came in January. That’s when chief operating officer Jack Chang bumped into a YouTube product manager inside the Samsung pavilion at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. The employee was running a YouTube kiosk inside the Samsung booth, … Continue reading “TV Apps Aim to Channel the Flood of Online Video”

Sequencing Seattle: An Idea for the Future of the Northwest

Let me make a modest proposal: Seattle should commit to sequencing and interpreting the genomes of every willing member of its population and should do it within the next five years. This program would elevate Seattle to the forefront of personalized genomic medicine, leverage many advantages unique to our area, and create a vibrant and … Continue reading “Sequencing Seattle: An Idea for the Future of the Northwest”

SEC’s New Social Media Guidance: Sensible, Fair, Inevitable

Give the SEC a lot of credit…the headline they chose for their press release yesterday about public companies using social media could not have been more clear: “SEC Says Social Media OK for Company Announcements if Investors Are Alerted.” With those words, and a full report here, the commission has blessed the inevitable modernization of corporate … Continue reading “SEC’s New Social Media Guidance: Sensible, Fair, Inevitable”

Iddiction Receives $5,512,850 New Funding

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=ebcf90f4-2608-4f38-9087-6cee97645143&Preview=1 Date 4/3/2013 Company Name Iddiction Mailing Address 230 S California Street Palo Alto, CA 94306 Company Description Iddiction is named after a slang term to describe dependency on mobile devices — particularly iPhones and iPads. The company is looking to improve “the experience of discovering apps for the user” in a … Continue reading “Iddiction Receives $5,512,850 New Funding”

Close.io Garners New Financing Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=7407542c-4c1f-4761-9fc8-830ff7f04dbf&Preview=1 Date 4/3/2013 Company Name Close.io Mailing Address Undisclosed San Francisco, CA 94105 Company Description Close.io is a startup that aims to improve communication and customer management for sales people. Website http://www.close.io Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount Undisclosed Transaction Round Undisclosed Proceeds Purposes Proceeds purposes were not disclosed. M&A Terms Venture … Continue reading “Close.io Garners New Financing Round”

MuleSoft Receives $37,000,000 New Funding

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=a87b0bbb-4d83-4bcc-88fa-c56eafaf9cec&Preview=1 Date 4/3/2013 Company Name MuleSoft Mailing Address 77 Geary Street San Francisco, CA 94108 Company Description MuleSoft is the Web Middleware company, providing enterprise-class software based on the world’s most popular open source application infrastructure products, Mule ESB and Apache Tomcat. Website http://www.mulesoft.com Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount $37,000,000 Transaction … Continue reading “MuleSoft Receives $37,000,000 New Funding”

Midokura Lands $17,300,000 Series A Financing Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=72509827-84b2-4aae-ad94-dde7ee856fea&Preview=1 Date 4/3/2013 Company Name Midokura Mailing Address 221 Pine Street 2nd Floor San Francisco, CA 94104 Company Description Midokura’s vision is to provide a more flexible, customizable and adaptable network infrastructure for companies worldwide through network virtualization. It is Midokura’s mission to unleash the full power of an organization’s networks – … Continue reading “Midokura Lands $17,300,000 Series A Financing Round”

EAT Club Receives $5,000,000 Series A Funding Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=e8828d57-3950-475a-ae04-e2cd8f2c60d4&Preview=1 Date 4/3/2013 Company Name EAT Club Mailing Address 175 Acalanes Dr Sunnyvale, CA 94086 Company Description EAT Club was born out of the Stanford Graduate School of Business, where co-founders Kevin and Rodrigo became friends as co-Presidents of the food club. Website http://www.myeatclub.com Transaction Type Accelerator Transaction Amount $5,000,000 Transaction Round … Continue reading “EAT Club Receives $5,000,000 Series A Funding Round”

Haiku Deck Secures $3,000,000 Series A Financing Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=2b12c528-d8e1-4277-84c8-f16e804d8b55&Preview=1 Date 4/3/2013 Company Name Haiku Deck Mailing Address 619 North 35th Street Bellevue, WA 94103 Company Description Haiku Deck is rooted in a few simple principles. We know everyone has great stories and ideas ready to be set free. We believe crafting a compelling story should be a joyful creative exercise. … Continue reading “Haiku Deck Secures $3,000,000 Series A Financing Round”

ConnectSolutions Acquires NextUC for Undisclosed Sum

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=eddc1079-9e56-4bf1-8e4a-2ecf6cd9ad06&Preview=1 Date 4/3/2013 Company Name NextUC Mailing Address 950 Tower Ln Foster City, CA 94404 Company Description NextUC immediately enables full collaboration for business teams on the tools they already use and with additional products that will improve collaboration, communication and productivity tomorrow. Website http://www.nextuc.com Transaction Type M&A Transaction Amount Undisclosed Transaction … Continue reading “ConnectSolutions Acquires NextUC for Undisclosed Sum”

Healthcare IT: Making Good Progress

The cost of healthcare administration is a hot issue in America. According to the Center for American progress, in the U.S. healthcare system an estimated $361 billion annually goes to cover administrative costs. That number is a 14 percent of total healthcare expenditure nationwide. Improvements in IT are expected to reduce these expenditures dramatically. The … Continue reading “Healthcare IT: Making Good Progress”

Startups Offer Webcam Workouts for the Gym-Averse

From the Nike+ FuelBand to the Wii Fit, and from YouTube workout videos to Fitbit, there are more ways than ever to work out and track exercise and health without ever setting foot in the gym. But there’s still a lot these apps and gadgets can’t do. Wearing a sensor to track your steps/strokes/stairs can … Continue reading “Startups Offer Webcam Workouts for the Gym-Averse”

CreditKarma Obtains $30,000,000 Series B Financing

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=9267b729-6815-43cd-8149-7f1ca53628c1&Preview=1 Date 4/2/2013 Company Name CreditKarma Mailing Address 115 Sansome Street San Francisco, CA 94104 Company Description Credit Karma offers a new way to track your credit score and a unique way to benefit from it. For the first time you can get a truly free credit score with no hidden costs … Continue reading “CreditKarma Obtains $30,000,000 Series B Financing”

Balanced Obtains $2,000,000 Seed Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=dd6603b2-4ebf-484f-b4fe-df31884429cd&Preview=1 Date 4/2/2013 Company Name Balanced Mailing Address Undisclosed Palo Alto, CA 94301 Company Description A 14 year-old Matin Tamizi ordered his first webcam on eBay in early 1999. UPS delivered the webcam and collected the money using cash on delivery. It was simple and beautiful. That day started an obsession with … Continue reading “Balanced Obtains $2,000,000 Seed Round”

Harvard Common Press Has Something New Baking in San Francisco

Harvard Common Press, a Boston-based publisher of cookbooks and parenting guidebooks, said today that it has opened a second office in San Francisco. Why should startup entrepreneurs and other Xconomy readers care about that? Because the company also makes seed investments in food-tech startups—and it’s looking to make a lot more. The 37-year-old firm, owned … Continue reading “Harvard Common Press Has Something New Baking in San Francisco”

Bot & Dolly’s Robotic Cameramen Rewrite the Script in Hollywood

If we were running our April 11 robotics forum as an Oxford-style debate, the motion would be this: Over the next decade, robots are going to transform our workplaces just as radically as personal computers did in the 1980s and 1990s. And by “workplaces” we don’t just mean assembly-line floors, where robots have been common … Continue reading “Bot & Dolly’s Robotic Cameramen Rewrite the Script in Hollywood”

Gilead Sciences Building on HIV, Becoming Cancer Drug Force

Gilead Sciences has had what you could call a “high-class problem” the last few years. Biotech companies that are great at one thing eventually must prove they can be great at something else. And Gilead is showing signs that it’s finally on its way to becoming a truly diversified biotech industry leader, with a plan … Continue reading “Gilead Sciences Building on HIV, Becoming Cancer Drug Force”

MyBuys Garners $1,000,000 New Financing Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=8f2d095f-115a-4b99-93b8-a46d99b11b8e&Preview=1 Date 4/1/2013 Company Name MyBuys Mailing Address 411 Borel Avenue San Mateo, CA 94402 Company Description MyBuys makes it possible to dynamically merchandise your site for each and every shopper. We know how to do this right – by truly understanding both the merchant and the shoppers, not just the technology. … Continue reading “MyBuys Garners $1,000,000 New Financing Round”

MyBuys Obtains $1,000,000 New Funding Round

2NDNATURE Obtains $20,000 New Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=11689918-3727-42c5-8743-b21f7320052a&Preview=1 Date 3/31/2013 Company Name 2NDNATURE Mailing Address 500 Seabright Ave Santa Cruz, CA 95062 Company Description How do we track improvements as result of restoration, pollutant source control, BMP implementation, LID or other actions? How do we prioritize future actions and actualize adaptive management? 2NDNATURE develops standardized, scientifically defensible and cost-effective … Continue reading “2NDNATURE Obtains $20,000 New Round”

To Do Or Not To Do? That Is the Question

Do you really need a to-do list? In the age of personal optimization, when books like The 4-Hour Workweek peddle the idea that you could be superhumanly productive if you just had the right tools, the question is almost blasphemous. Of course you need a to-do list. How else are you supposed to know what … Continue reading “To Do Or Not To Do? That Is the Question”

ENCODE and the Truth

Constant facts of all scientific endeavors – Nature always wins. The truth will come out. An absorbing article last month in The Scientist called The A@#hole Scientist wondered if scientists could be a-holes, as it called them. Of course they can. Simple logic. Scientists are human and humans can be a-holes. QED. According to the … Continue reading “ENCODE and the Truth”

MobiTV Receives New Funding Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=1320f73a-2799-4f9a-9c33-636e8691dc9e&Preview=1 Date 3/29/2013 Company Name MobiTV Mailing Address 6425 Christie Ave 5th Floor Emeryville, CA 94608 Company Description MobiTV, Inc. is the first mobile television and digital radio service provider for cellular, WiFi and broadband enabled devices worldwide. Website http://www.mobitv.com Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount Undisclosed Transaction Round Undisclosed Proceeds Purposes … Continue reading “MobiTV Receives New Funding Round”

Visual.ly Secures $330,476 New Financing Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=9e517f30-6ddd-4d4d-b558-94fc3fc04aab&Preview=1 Date 3/29/2013 Company Name Visual.ly Mailing Address Undisclosed San Francisco, CA 94105 Company Description Infographics and data visualizations are shifting the way people find and experience stories, creating a new way of seeing the world of data. They help communicate complex ideas in a clear, compact and beautiful way, taking deep … Continue reading “Visual.ly Secures $330,476 New Financing Round”

Deliv Receives $1,000,000 Seed Funding Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=ccc409f7-7bd7-4e75-bedb-9c7b60717c7c&Preview=1 Date 3/29/2013 Company Name Deliv Mailing Address 530 Lytton Avenue 2nd Floor Palo Alto, CA 94301 Company Description Deliv was founded in 2012 to do one thing and one thing only – to seriously make online shopping simpler and more convenient. Website http://www.deliv.co Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount $1,000,000 Transaction … Continue reading “Deliv Receives $1,000,000 Seed Funding Round”

SpinalMotion Obtains $5,000,000 New Financing Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=6bd82cbc-7985-45c7-9dd3-9e515fe5a041&Preview=1 Date 3/29/2013 Company Name SpinalMotion Mailing Address 201 San Antonio Circle Mountain View, CA 94040 Company Description SpinalMotion is dedicated to preserving motion in the spine for patients with degenerative disc disease. Website http://www.spinal-motion.com Transaction Type Debt, Venture Equity Transaction Amount $5,000,000 Transaction Round Undisclosed Proceeds Purposes Proceeds purposes were not … Continue reading “SpinalMotion Obtains $5,000,000 New Financing Round”

SpinalMotion Obtains $5,000,000 New Funding

TiKL Receives $2,100,000 New Financing

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=4b83de21-4238-4fbf-a111-af5b941b3663&Preview=1 Date 3/29/2013 Company Name TiKL Mailing Address Undisclosed Sunnyvale, CA 94024 Company Description Turn your smart phone into the ultimate push to talk walkie-talkie with TiKL. App available in Android Market and iPhone App Store. Its free. TiKL’s mission is to redefine the way we communicate. Making it simple. Making it … Continue reading “TiKL Receives $2,100,000 New Financing”

Nurix Receives $2,200,000 New Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=90d70b52-f749-4fd5-be8b-dee3cf76efed&Preview=1 Date 3/29/2013 Company Name Nurix Mailing Address 1700 Owens Street San Francisco, CA 94158 Company Description The company is focused on the discovery and development of small molecule inhibitors of ubiquitin ligases to treat a broad range of proliferative and degenerative diseases. Website http://www.nurix.com Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount $2,200,000 … Continue reading “Nurix Receives $2,200,000 New Round”

Amazon’s Acquisition of Goodreads: The True Ventures Perspective

Amazon announced this afternoon that it has acquired San Francisco-based Goodreads, the online community where 16 million people find and share book recommendations. Born six years ago as the brainchild of Otis Chandler, a scion of the Chandler publishing family in Los Angeles, Goodreads is home to more than 23 million book reviews and 30,000 … Continue reading “Amazon’s Acquisition of Goodreads: The True Ventures Perspective”

Boulder and Denver, a Mile High Sibling Rivalry

Dear Xconomy, Welcome to Colorado. We’re glad to have you, but there’s a… thing you should know about. From the outside, the startup environment in Colorado just seems like one big funky but remarkably effective family of startup goodness. But, like any family, we have our internecine feuds. We are speaking, of course, about the … Continue reading “Boulder and Denver, a Mile High Sibling Rivalry”

Announcing Xconomy Boulder/Denver—7th Region in Our Network

Thank you Boulder and Denver! We are extremely pleased to announce today the launch of Xconomy Boulder/Denver, the seventh bureau in our growing network of news sites covering the business of technology in key innovation clusters around the United States. We couldn’t have done it without the incredible support of the entrepreneurial and innovation communities … Continue reading “Announcing Xconomy Boulder/Denver—7th Region in Our Network”

Still Waiting for the Ships to Come in at Third Rock Ventures

Third Rock Ventures was in the enviable position of turning away some institutional investors when the life sciences venture firm recently closed on $516 million for its third venture fund. So first let me say, “Congratulations!” to team Third Rock. Mark Levin has demonstrated at Third Rock and as the chairman and CEO of Cambridge, … Continue reading “Still Waiting for the Ships to Come in at Third Rock Ventures”

Boxbee: Cloud-Style Storage for Your Actual Stuff

Is minimalism practical? Can you really have a tidy, modern living space like the ones in the architecture magazines, where there are acres of bare tabletops and the sofas look like they’ve never been loafed on? Yes, you can, but there’s a dark secret behind all those magazine spreads. Before the photographers showed up, the … Continue reading “Boxbee: Cloud-Style Storage for Your Actual Stuff”

Women and Startups

The news from PyCon rekindles a long-running discussion about the lack of women in tech startups. The description of the roomful of men, cracking fraternity-scale jokes without regard for the few women in the room brings back plenty of memories of other rooms full of men in my twenty years of tech startup life. Far … Continue reading “Women and Startups”

Uber Launches On-Demand Car Service in Detroit

If you’re a car-challenged Detroiter like me, you have at least five phone numbers for taxis in your contact list. There’s the industry standard Checker Cabs, whose line is busy more often than not; there’s the friendly cab driver you had one time who gave you his private number and said to call that number … Continue reading “Uber Launches On-Demand Car Service in Detroit”

Reel Solar Secures $4,000,000 New Financing Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=c7a1060d-7545-415b-b379-11e1823da900&Preview=1 Date 3/28/2013 Company Name Reel Solar Mailing Address 2526 Qume Street San Jose, CA 95131 Company Description The company operates as a solar energy company. Website Undisclosed Transaction Type Debt, Venture Equity Transaction Amount $4,000,000 Transaction Round Undisclosed Proceeds Purposes Proceeds purposes were not disclosed. SEC regulatory filing. M&A Terms Venture … Continue reading “Reel Solar Secures $4,000,000 New Financing Round”