Category: Detroit

Wayne State Med Students To Get Access to Latest Surgical Simulation Tools

The Health and Wellness Foundation of Greater Detroit announced last week that it has awarded $250,000 to finance the construction of nine web-enabled laparoscopic training simulators for residents and medical students on the Detroit Medical Center campus of Wayne State University’s School of Medicine. This grant is intendede to give students access to the latest simulation technologies in developing … Continue reading “Wayne State Med Students To Get Access to Latest Surgical Simulation Tools”

A Shortcut in Engine Design: Specialized Software Models Soot Formation

In Fairbanks, AK (where I spent a year after I graduated from college), winter temperatures can plunge to minus 40 degrees (F) for weeks at a time, creating ideal conditions for a local phenomenon called “ice fog.” When temperatures get that cold, the air can’t hold much water vapor. Automotive engine exhaust is mostly water … Continue reading “A Shortcut in Engine Design: Specialized Software Models Soot Formation”

Biopharmaceuticals: Nothing Compares to You

Are biotech and pharma companies doing well, or falling apart at the seams? People will have differences of opinion on this, but one thing is clear: it’s all relative. At a speech to a trade group in Philadelphia last month, James Greenwood, president of the biotechnology trade group BIO, asked the government to stop picking … Continue reading “Biopharmaceuticals: Nothing Compares to You”

YCharts Garners $3,250,000 Series B Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=e2bce0c7-9005-46bc-96c5-b9bae12df3e5&Preview=1 Date 11/17/2011 Company Name YCharts Mailing Address 333 W. Wacker Drive Chicago, IL 60606 Company Description YCharts was founded in Chicago in 2008 by executives with experience at top companies including Google, The Wall Street Journal and Bear Stearns. YCharts’ powerful company and market research tool combines advanced data analysis, proprietary … Continue reading “YCharts Garners $3,250,000 Series B Round”

Hot Wiring Entrepreneurship: An Experiment in Detroit

It’s an exciting time to be an entrepreneur. There are no shortage of problems to solve, ever-lowering barriers to entry, and near-ubiquitous access to low/no-cost technologies, which makes damn near anything possible. I adore working side-by-side with those who also see the world as an experience in which to participate rather than just consume. I … Continue reading “Hot Wiring Entrepreneurship: An Experiment in Detroit”

Join Us for a Live “Tweetchat” on the Biotech VC Crisis with Daphne Zohar of PureTech Ventures

The biotech VC world is in crisis. Just in the space of a few weeks, some venerable names have made some disturbing news. Prospect Venture Partners said it was unable to raise a new fund, Morgenthaler Ventures and Advanced Technology Ventures said they are splitting off their life sciences teams to raise a new merged … Continue reading “Join Us for a Live “Tweetchat” on the Biotech VC Crisis with Daphne Zohar of PureTech Ventures”

Angie’s List Obtains $114,314,304 New Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=91d83ee4-997a-4bd4-bd23-54767ef1cc9e&Preview=1 Date 11/16/2011 Company Name Angie’s List Mailing Address 1030 E. Washington St. Indianapolis, IN 46202 Company Description Angie’s List (NASDAQ: ANGI) is a growing collection of homeowners’ real-life experiences with local service companies. The people who join Angie’s List are like you — looking for a way to find trustworthy companies … Continue reading “Angie’s List Obtains $114,314,304 New Round”

FanFueled Obtains $1,000,000 Seed Funding Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=a60fafae-48a6-4877-b88e-adf5667402bf&Preview=1 Date 11/16/2011 Company Name FanFueled Mailing Address 400 N. State St Chicago, IL 60654 Company Description FanFueled is a social ticketing platform that transforms Fans into promoters. FanFueled gives fans easy ways to tell their friends on Facebook and Twitter about events they are attending. Website http://www.fanfueled.com Transaction Type Venture Equity … Continue reading “FanFueled Obtains $1,000,000 Seed Funding Round”

Aastrom Reports Positive Phase 2 Trial Results

Aastrom Biosciences (Nasdaq: ASTM), a developer of experimental therapies for severe, chronic cardiovascular diseases, announced yesterday that it had achieved positive 12-month final results from a Phase 2 clinical trial testing ixmyelocel-T as a treatment for critical limb ischemia (CLI) patients with no revascularization options. CLI is a severe form of cardiovascular disease in the legs, … Continue reading “Aastrom Reports Positive Phase 2 Trial Results”

Reinventing the Board Part II: The Role of the Chair in Increasing Board Effectiveness

Technology companies’ boards of directors need better leadership. I made a case last month about reinventing the board of directors by treating the board as a team and doing annual assessments against company needs. Boards that are structurally more aligned with their company’s operations are better able to help them achieve success-or at least reduce … Continue reading “Reinventing the Board Part II: The Role of the Chair in Increasing Board Effectiveness”

Hey, Where Is Everybody Going? The Flight from Healthcare Investing

If you are simply reading the paper or engaging in any random cocktail party conversation these days, it doesn’t take long before you are reading or talking about healthcare. Health and healthcare issues have been a dominant topic in the national media since the 2008 Presidential election and have been constantly in the news as … Continue reading “Hey, Where Is Everybody Going? The Flight from Healthcare Investing”

‘TechTown 2.0’ Expands Focus

TechTown has undergone some changes recently as Leslie Smith transitions into her new role as executive director. Nothing drastic, she says, but rather an expansion of its incubator business model to include targeted outreach to a few Detroit neighborhoods in order to make its entrepreneurial mission more accessible, an increased focus on microenterprise and procurement … Continue reading “‘TechTown 2.0’ Expands Focus”

The Herman Cain-Inspired “1-100-0” Plan for Personalized Medicine?

You could feel Herman Cain’s presence last week on the biotech beat. And there was a lot of grousing about it. Cain, the Republican presidential candidate known for his simple 9-9-9 tax plan and some dubious extra-curricular activities, didn’t attend the Personalized Medicine Conference at Harvard Medical School. But a former advisor to President Obama, … Continue reading “The Herman Cain-Inspired “1-100-0” Plan for Personalized Medicine?”

Klip: iPhone Video Sharing Refined to A High Art

Put high-quality cameras into devices with broadband wireless connections. Add powerful smartphone operating systems like iOS or Android and app-store ecosystems like iTunes and the Android Market. Mix in some sloth and disinterest on the part of established photo-sharing destinations like Flickr, Facebook, and Twitter. Under these conditions, it was probably inevitable that entrepreneurs would … Continue reading “Klip: iPhone Video Sharing Refined to A High Art”

NewLink Genetics Receives $43,400,000 New Funding Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=40e676f9-d13d-4186-b484-47f7ce1bb0e2&Preview=1 Date 11/11/2011 Company Name NewLink Genetics Mailing Address 2503 South Loop Drive Ames, IN 50010 Company Description NewLink Genetics (NASDAQ: NLNK) is an emerging biopharmaceutical company focused on discovery and development of novel, immunotherapeutic agents. Our mission is to achieve breakthrough improvements in the survival and quality-of-life of cancer patients. The … Continue reading “NewLink Genetics Receives $43,400,000 New Funding Round”

Seven Innovation Policy Ideas to Spark an Economic Recovery in the U.S.

In San Diego, Connect is the non-profit organization that reaches into most corners of the local innovation community. Connect likes to say that it has assisted in the formation of more than 3,000 technology and life sciences companies in the area, and more than 50 cities around the world have emulated its programs for mentoring … Continue reading “Seven Innovation Policy Ideas to Spark an Economic Recovery in the U.S.”

Menlo Park Software Company Cataphora Expands to New Office in Ann Arbor

Cataphora, a Menlo Park, CA-based software company that specializes in applying its technology to the modeling of individual and organizational behavior, has just opened an office in Ann Arbor, MI. Cataphora said it made to move to take advantage of local talent, most notably from the University of Michigan. “The decision was made to expand … Continue reading “Menlo Park Software Company Cataphora Expands to New Office in Ann Arbor”

Qualcomm Buys HaloIPT (and Patents) for Wireless Charging Technology

Qualcomm (NASDAQ: [[ticker:QCOM]]), the San Diego wireless technology giant, turned in a new direction today with its acquisition of HaloIPT, a startup founded last year by Auckland University’s UniServices and Arup, the engineering design giant, to develop technology that can transmit electricity without wires. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. With technology from … Continue reading “Qualcomm Buys HaloIPT (and Patents) for Wireless Charging Technology”

Next Week Packed With Entrepreneurial Events, Deadlines

Though November may mean shorter days and chillier nights, the entrepreneurial-events calendar is heating up. Take advantage of the action before things quiet down for the holidays by attending one of these events, which are open to the public. On November 14, head to the Cobo Center in Detroit for Michigan Emerging, a Global Entrepreneurship … Continue reading “Next Week Packed With Entrepreneurial Events, Deadlines”

MEDC Announces New ‘Economic Gardening’ Pilot Program

A new program announced by the Michigan Economic Development Corporation yesterday will connect 54 Michigan small businesses with a team of national experts, who will provide each company with 35 hours of guidance in the areas of strategy and management; market research and competitive intelligence; Internet and social media strategy; and help with identifying potential customers in other … Continue reading “MEDC Announces New ‘Economic Gardening’ Pilot Program”

The Wisdom of the Crowd: Social Networking Meets Capital Formation

Last year I had a chance to visit Washington D.C. and tour the Washington Monument. I later learned that this magnificent national icon was, in fact, an early example of crowd funding. Crowd funding is the process of aggregating small amounts of money from a large number of people in order to accomplish great things. … Continue reading “The Wisdom of the Crowd: Social Networking Meets Capital Formation”

Autonomic Materials Lands $750,000 New Financing Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=b9786bd5-333b-4477-ad70-cc08c9a56602&Preview=1 Date 11/8/2011 Company Name Autonomic Materials Mailing Address 60 Hazelwood Dr. Champaign, IL 61820 Company Description The company is developing unspecified materials technology. Website http://www.autonomicmaterials.com Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount $750,000 Transaction Round Undisclosed Proceeds Purposes Proceeds purposes were not disclosed. SEC regulatory filing. M&A Terms Venture Investor Undisclosed

Get Launched!

Wayne State University’s Blackstone LaunchPad hosts this student business-plan competition where entrepreneurs compete for $5,000 in prizes. Josh Linkner, CEO and founder of Detroit Venture Partners, will deliver the keynote address. The event is free and open to the public. For details and registration, click here.

Could Detroit Become the Silicon Valley of Social Entrepreneurship?

The first rule of starting any entrepreneurial venture is: Find a problem that needs solving. Detroit, as we all know, has some big social problems: poverty; crime; homelessness; abysmal literacy rates; rampant unemployment. It should hardly be a surprise, then, that a motivated young class of social entrepreneurs has sprung up in the city, and … Continue reading “Could Detroit Become the Silicon Valley of Social Entrepreneurship?”

XL Hybrids, With New D.I.Y. Approach, Gears Up to Go Beyond Vehicle Retrofits

If you want something done right, the old saying goes, do it yourself. That’s exactly what XL Hybrids, a Boston-based transportation tech startup, is up to these days. Despite a thin layer of gloom that pervades much of the cleantech industry, XL Hybrids is advancing in its quest to make commercial vans and trucks greener … Continue reading “XL Hybrids, With New D.I.Y. Approach, Gears Up to Go Beyond Vehicle Retrofits”

Groupon: The IPO With More Sizzle, and Money, Than the Entire Biotech IPO Class of 2011

Groupon raked in so much cash through its initial public offering last week that it could buy the entire class of life sciences companies that have gone public in 2011. For those of you who aren’t following the Groupon melodrama, the Chicago-based online daily deals site raised $700 million last week in its IPO after … Continue reading “Groupon: The IPO With More Sizzle, and Money, Than the Entire Biotech IPO Class of 2011”

enStratus Secures $3,500,000 Series A Funding

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=ef133922-0edd-4bcd-ac7f-340814bc7e1f&Preview=1 Date 11/7/2011 Company Name enStratus Mailing Address 1201 Marquette Ave Minneapolis, MN 55403 Company Description enStratus is a cloud infrastructure management solution for deploying and managing enterprise-class applications in public, private and hybrid clouds. enStratus has a multi-cloud architecture that provides security, reliability and cloud independence. Website http://www.enstratus.com Transaction Type Venture … Continue reading “enStratus Secures $3,500,000 Series A Funding”

How to Secure a Government Contract

Sharon Richards Truvillion, owner of Truvillion Trucking, is the first African-American woman in Detroit to manage aggregate hauling and mass excavation on major construction projects in city, including Ford Field, the McNamara Terminal, and the Compuware headquarters. She’ll discuss how to cut through the red tape to secure government contracts. For more information, click here.

Entrepreneur’s Forum

Automation Alley hosts this free event where up-and-coming tech startups pitch their business plans. Their presentations are then critiqued by attending investors, business professionals, and venture capitalists. For registration and details, click here.

Intro to Market Research

Novice entrepreneurs in the pre-launch stage of development are the target audience for this workshop led by TechTown mentor and business expert Wendy Richardson. Admission is $10 per person and open to the public. To learn more, click here.

Entrepreneurial Leadership Workshop

TechTown, the business incubator located on the campus of Wayne State University, hosts this workshop where leadership coach Richard Gibson will discuss the top 10 factors of the successful entrepreneur. Admission is $10 per person and is open to the public. For more information, click here.

Mobile App Search is So Bad AltaVista Could Have Done It. Chomp Is Biting Off the Problem

There are roughly 500,000 iPhone and iPad apps in Apple’s iTunes App Store, and almost that many smartphone and tablet apps in Google’s Android Market. That gives mobile consumers lots of choices, but it has created an untenable situation for mobile developers. Unless you get lucky and your app vaults onto the top-5 or top-10 … Continue reading “Mobile App Search is So Bad AltaVista Could Have Done It. Chomp Is Biting Off the Problem”

Xconomists of the Week: Tom Maniatis and Marc Tessier-Lavigne Lead the Charge on the New York Genome Center

Today marked the official launch of the New York Genome Center, a collaboration among 11 top academic institutions that’s designed to accelerate genomic research. The initiative—supported by the City of New York and private and public institutions—is being guided by two of our Xconomists: Rockefeller University’s Marc Tessier-Lavigne, who will serve on the center’s board … Continue reading “Xconomists of the Week: Tom Maniatis and Marc Tessier-Lavigne Lead the Charge on the New York Genome Center”

TechTown’s Charlton Wins $100K Purpose Prize

Randal Charlton, who recently announced he’s stepping down as TechTown’s executive director to lead a program aimed at assisting baby boomers who want to become entrepreneurs, has just been awarded the 2011 Purpose Prize. This annual $100,000 award honors social entrepreneurs over 60 who use their experience and passion to effectively address societal challenges. Charlton … Continue reading “TechTown’s Charlton Wins $100K Purpose Prize”

Infographic: College or Incubator for Startup Founders?

[Updated 11/4 at 2:30 pm] Not everyone can be a Gates, Allen, Jobs, or Zuckerberg—founders who dropped out of college and went on to change the technology industry by starting landmark companies. But there are more options available for budding entrepreneurs these days, most notably the explosion of incubators, accelerators, and other startup nurseries that … Continue reading “Infographic: College or Incubator for Startup Founders?”

Tangent Medical Technologies Garners $4,500,000 Series A Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=7dae3c99-3601-426e-9af4-0583de486185&Preview=1 Date 11/3/2011 Company Name Tangent Medical Technologies Mailing Address 58 Parkland Plaza Ann Arbor, MI 48103 Company Description Tangent Medical Technologies, Inc., is a development stage medical device development company formed in 2009 as a spinout from the University of Michigan’s Medical Innovation Center fellowship program. Website http://www.tangentmedical.com Transaction Type Venture … Continue reading “Tangent Medical Technologies Garners $4,500,000 Series A Round”

Groupon Lands $700,000,000 IPO Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=e8624200-4d12-4d22-9111-37433af8aca4&Preview=1 Date 11/3/2011 Company Name Groupon Mailing Address 600 W Chicago Ave Chicago, IL 60654 Company Description Launched in November 2008, Groupon (NASDAQ: GRPN) features a daily deal on the best stuff to do, see, eat, and buy in a variety of cities across the United States. We have about 40 wonderful … Continue reading “Groupon Lands $700,000,000 IPO Round”

CallCopy Garners $6,500,000 New Financing

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=264d5005-31e0-489f-8551-c52210ead980&Preview=1 Date 11/3/2011 Company Name CallCopy Mailing Address 530 W. Spring St Columbus, OH 43215 Company Description CallCopy, Inc., headquartered in Columbus, Ohio, has established itself as a leading provider of innovative call recording and contact center solutions through its commitment to the highest standards of customer and employee satisfaction. Website http://www.callcopy.com … Continue reading “CallCopy Garners $6,500,000 New Financing”

Seeding Entrepreneurship: How to Build a Venture-Finance Ecosystem

[Editor’s note: Cross-posted from The Economist, 11/2/11] New York Mayor-entrepreneur Michael Bloomberg, not known for shyness, recently proclaimed New York City as America’s new entrepreneurship capital, roaring past Boston in venture capital and soon to leave Silicon Valley in the dust as the “go to” destination for entrepreneurs. Indeed, the world media are awash with … Continue reading “Seeding Entrepreneurship: How to Build a Venture-Finance Ecosystem”

ATDynamics Works to Reduce Drag in the Slow-to-Change Trucking Industry

Semi-trailers suck. Literally. As these boxy shapes barrel down the freeway, they leave a vacuum in the air behind them, and this area of turbulence and low pressure generates suction that accounts for at least a quarter of all aerodynamic drag on a tractor-trailer rig. If you could do something to disrupt the vacuum and … Continue reading “ATDynamics Works to Reduce Drag in the Slow-to-Change Trucking Industry”

RetroSense Therapeutics Licenses Vision Restoration Technology From Wayne State

Ann Arbor, MI-based RetroSense Therapeutics recently inked a deal with Wayne State University to license a novel gene-therapy approach to treating blindness that was originally studied in the university’s School of Medicine. The treatment offers promise to people suffering with incurable blindness caused by age-related macular degeneration (AMD) and retinitis pigmentosa (RP). AMD is the … Continue reading “RetroSense Therapeutics Licenses Vision Restoration Technology From Wayne State”

Steel in Their Eyes—Why VCs should be Startup CEOs

A man who carries a cat by the tail learns something he can learn in no other way. —Mark Twain Venture capitalists who are serious about turning their firms into more than one-fund wonders may want to have their associates actually start and run a company for a year. Running a company is distinctly different … Continue reading “Steel in Their Eyes—Why VCs should be Startup CEOs”

Achates Power Cites “Huge” Improvement in Diesel Fuel Savings, Emissions

San Diego’s Achates Power, a startup developing a radical new design for a diesel-powered truck engine, is blowing its own air horn today about its progress in demonstrating significant improvements in the efficiency and performance of its engine. Through a series of tests that began just over a year ago, Achates says its prototype has … Continue reading “Achates Power Cites “Huge” Improvement in Diesel Fuel Savings, Emissions”

Biopharma Industry Meetings Could Use Some Fresh Voices

One or more notices of upcoming biopharma industry conferences arrive in my email every day. I give their agendas a quick glance before deleting them, as they’re seldom in areas I focus on. The vast majority of presenters are plucked from the ranks of top-tier Big Pharma; there’s a seminar from Pfizer, a speaker from … Continue reading “Biopharma Industry Meetings Could Use Some Fresh Voices”

The Economy in 17 Syllables, All of Them Gloomy

For the third quarter of 2011, the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation leavened its otherwise morose quarterly survey of economics bloggers (PDF) with something new: a haiku contest. The 63 academics, entrepreneurs, investors, and journalists who participated in the survey, including myself, were asked to describe the state of the economy in the form of a haiku, … Continue reading “The Economy in 17 Syllables, All of Them Gloomy”

Bizdom U: Transforming Detroit’s Brain Economy

Bizdom U, the Detroit incubator backed by Dan Gilbert, will now be nurturing even more local entrepreneurs thanks to a change in its business model. Starting with the fall session, which began on October 17, Bizdom switched to a model similar to that of TechStars or Y Combinator: After undergoing a rigorous screening, 30 startups … Continue reading “Bizdom U: Transforming Detroit’s Brain Economy”