Category: Detroit

Are You a Human Lands $1,808,333 New Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=31acaf75-56b1-48cf-8082-2242f86e907d Date 5/14/2014 Company Name Are You a Human Mailing Address 1555 Broadway St. Detroit, MI 48226 USA Company Description Are You a Human, LLC develops human authentication applet for use on websites. The company was formerly known as AYaH, LLC. It was incorporated in 2011 and is based in Ann Arbor, … Continue reading “Are You a Human Lands $1,808,333 New Round”

Pixel Velocity Lands $995,000 New Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=8bab01b9-edb6-454d-b9b9-2df311e5c862 Date 5/14/2014 Company Name Pixel Velocity Mailing Address 3917 Research Park Drive Ann Arbor, MI 48108 USA Company Description A center for image processing research and the development of advanced sensor technology. With more than 30 years of experience working with the most demanding imaging applications in the defense industry, our … Continue reading “Pixel Velocity Lands $995,000 New Round”

MI’s Power Electronics Industry Collaborative Snags $500K Award

Today, NextEnergy announced that the Power Electronics Industry Collaborative (PEIC) has been awarded a two-year, $500,000 grant from the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). The award was given as part of the Advanced Manufacturing Technology Consortia, or AMTech, program to fund the PEIC’s efforts toward strengthening the domestic power electronics cluster and supply … Continue reading “MI’s Power Electronics Industry Collaborative Snags $500K Award”

Entrepreneurship Inside Corporations

There is a real trend developing right now of large corporations becoming crucibles of innovation and entrepreneurship in a systematic way. In this post, I will discuss four specific sub-categories of this trend that we’re seeing, and for all practical purposes, participating in. Intrapreneurship Incubation Corporations have come to realize that there are numerous great … Continue reading “Entrepreneurship Inside Corporations”

U-M Student Funds Talk About First 2014 Acquisition, New Investment

In April, the Wolverine Venture Fund, which is managed by students from the University of Michigan’s Zell Lurie Institute for Entrepreneurial Studies and Ross School of Business, announced that one of its portfolio companies, Silverpop, has been acquired by IBM. The terms of the deal were not disclosed. Erik Gordon, faculty managing director for the … Continue reading “U-M Student Funds Talk About First 2014 Acquisition, New Investment”

MI Roundup: Sandberg, U-M Mobility Center, Detroit Trends

Here’s a look at some of the news from around southeast Michigan’s innovation community that you may have missed: —Facebook COO and bestselling author Sheryl Sandberg was in town last week to talk marketing strategies at a meeting of the Adcraft Club in Troy, MI. The informal theme of the presentation was Detroit’s importance in … Continue reading “MI Roundup: Sandberg, U-M Mobility Center, Detroit Trends”

Radio is the New Netflix. Here’s Your Binge Listening Guide.

“Binge watching” TV shows wasn’t possible until the advent of full-season DVD sets in the late 1990s. And while bingeing was common enough in the 2000s—I definitely remember a few weekends spent inhaling 24, BSG, and The Wire—it didn’t really leap into the mainstream until 2013, when Netflix began streaming whole seasons of shows like … Continue reading “Radio is the New Netflix. Here’s Your Binge Listening Guide.”

Osborn Students Go Inside the Tech Bubble With Grand Circus Program

On Monday afternoon, a group of students from Detroit’s Osborn High School sat on the fourth floor of the Grand Circus office downtown, glued to their computer screens. They were there as part of a 10-week pilot program, in partnership with the Detroit Employment Solutions Corporation, called the Hacker Society—which aims to teach kids outside … Continue reading “Osborn Students Go Inside the Tech Bubble With Grand Circus Program”

Three Months in Berlin: One Tech Entrepreneur’s Journey

San Francisco is the center of the tech world. But after three months in Europe, my conclusion is that there’s a major new contender as a great place to start startups: Berlin. In this article I’ll tell you about the companies and investors I got the chance to work with, and then talk about the … Continue reading “Three Months in Berlin: One Tech Entrepreneur’s Journey”

Microsoft Ventures Opens Downtown Detroit Office

Microsoft Ventures today announced it will open an office in downtown Detroit’s Madison Building, the Dan Gilbert-owned tech hub that houses homegrown startups like UpTo and Detroit Labs as well as the local offices of tech giants like Google and Twitter. Microsoft Ventures partners with startups to offer funding, acceleration services, or general mentorship. According … Continue reading “Microsoft Ventures Opens Downtown Detroit Office”

4 Weeks Until Our Napa Summit on June 2-3–Request Your Invitation

We all know it’s important to get out of our boxes at times. By taking in new ideas from leaders outside of our own fields, we can return to face day-to-day challenges with fresh perspective and energy. Sometimes getting out of the box also means getting out of our comfort zones. But sometimes it’s better … Continue reading “4 Weeks Until Our Napa Summit on June 2-3–Request Your Invitation”

Organizing For Aging—An Investment Imperative

Starting now, venture capitalists should reflect on an opportunity that probably occupies them very little. They know they are in the medical progress business, having financed numerous hard-won successes in developing drugs and diagnostics for rare diseases. Along with general material progress, the application of DNA science and genomics in biotechnology is giving millions of … Continue reading “Organizing For Aging—An Investment Imperative”

Cultivating Accountability in the Workplace

Accountability is one of the most important aspects of any business. A company that holds its employees accountable for the choices they make and the tasks they perform witnesses high levels of productivity and efficiency. In a startup too, a shared sense of accountability among employees makes all the difference in how they approach their … Continue reading “Cultivating Accountability in the Workplace”

Soft Spots: Five Places Where Silicon Valley’s Bubble Could Pop

The main premise of J.J. Abrams’ Fringe—unquestionably one of the three best sci-fi shows made for television in this century, alongside Battlestar Galactica and Doctor Who—is that there’s a second, nearly identical universe coterminous with ours. The wall between the parallel worlds remains impenetrable until a grief-stricken scientist, Walter Bishop, figures out how to cross … Continue reading “Soft Spots: Five Places Where Silicon Valley’s Bubble Could Pop”

Innovation Hub: Jason Fried on the End of the Workplace

Jason Fried wants us to forget about meetings, stop talking to our managers, and avoid coming into the office. Mostly. Fried, the co-founder and CEO of the software company Basecamp, believes many workplaces are dysfunctional and should be reinvented. Why? And what’s Fried’s vision of the new office? I sat down to talk with him … Continue reading “Innovation Hub: Jason Fried on the End of the Workplace”

At Two-Year Mark, JOBS Act Is Regulation Even A Biotech Can Love

It’s been two years since President Obama signed the Jumpstart Our Business Startups (JOBS) Act into law and revamped the rules that govern private companies trying to raise money from all types of investors. The biotech crowd, usually hard pressed to find good things to say about federal regulation, couldn’t be more pleased with the … Continue reading “At Two-Year Mark, JOBS Act Is Regulation Even A Biotech Can Love”

Michigan Roundup: Renaissance VC Fund, ICIC, Cadillac, Urban Science

Here’s a look at some of the news from around Southeast Michigan’s innovation community that you might have missed: —Earlier this month, Renaissance Venture Capital Fund, a Detroit-based fund-of-funds created by Business Leaders for Michigan, invested in Ann Arbor, MI-based VC fund Plymouth Venture Partners III. The terms of the deal were not disclosed. Plymouth … Continue reading “Michigan Roundup: Renaissance VC Fund, ICIC, Cadillac, Urban Science”

PivotDesk Launches in 23 New Markets in Rapid Nationwide Expansion

Fresh off raising a $3.8 million Series B round, PivotDesk is expanding its footprint dramatically, announcing today it is launching its service in 23 new markets. The move nearly quintuples the startup’s number of markets and puts it in hubs such as Chicago, Seattle, and Austin, TX. PivotDesk is a Boulder CO-based startup that has … Continue reading “PivotDesk Launches in 23 New Markets in Rapid Nationwide Expansion”

New Napa Speakers: Kawasaki on Startups, Ashenfelter on Wine

McLuhan said that the medium is the message. Here at Xconomy, we agree, and we think it even goes for the venues we pick for our events. When we hold a big conference in a university lecture hall, the message we’re sending is: deep thoughts and nuanced arguments coming. If we gather at the campus … Continue reading “New Napa Speakers: Kawasaki on Startups, Ashenfelter on Wine”

BioPharma Learns From Marvel, Begins Real Life Search For “X-Men”

Biopharma employees read, as you might expect, a wide spectrum of scientific journals and trade publications. What might be surprising is that their reading lists appear to have expanded recently to include classic Marvel comics. What’s led me to this conclusion? The Belgian pharmaceutical company UCB has sponsored an Innovation Challenge on the InnoCentive Website … Continue reading “BioPharma Learns From Marvel, Begins Real Life Search For “X-Men””

Center for Automotive Research’s Knowledge Transfer Symposium

The Center for Automotive Research (CAR) will host the Knowledge Transfer Symposium, bringing together stakeholders to identify how the region can effectively create a sustainable knowledge transfer ecosystem. Creating successful knowledge transfer pathways that take innovations to market can be a challenge for our region. Over the past year, CAR has spoken to academic, community, … Continue reading “Center for Automotive Research’s Knowledge Transfer Symposium”

Self.Conference

This multi-discipline tech conference is intended to be the next evolution of the now-defunct DevDays. Expect to hear tech talks about web, mobile, embedded software and everything in between, including hardware talks about topics like Arduino or Raspberry Pi. For details and registration, click here.

MIT Enterprise Forum: Space, STEM, and Stars

The MIT Enterprise Forum Great Lakes hosts this talk featuring  space experts showing how Earth looks from outer space, the origins of the universe, and how STEM connects both to jobs and careers in Michigan. The speakers will be Tony England, former astronaut and dean of UM-Dearborn’s College of Engineering and Computer Science; Katie Freese, … Continue reading “MIT Enterprise Forum: Space, STEM, and Stars”

Beer Tasting with Reconsider and Unity Vibration

Home-brewed beer and kombucha tea are featured at this tasting event co-hosted by Reconsider/Revalue, along with plenty of discussion about social entrepreneurship, community capital, and success stories from local startups like Unity Vibration. Please RSVP to this event; details are here.

Telematics Detroit 2014

This annual event, which continues to grow each year, is the world’s largest forum dedicated to the future of connected auto mobility. Panels of industry leaders will discuss emerging tech and other business questions. For details and registration, click here.

Milwaukee Has Startup Ecosystem Elements, Awaits Chain Reaction

Obviously the startup communities on the coasts are different than those in “flyover country” (as it is often referred to). I’d like to comment on some of the differences between two startup communities I am familiar with: Boston and Milwaukee. While I grew up in Milwaukee, I left after high school to go to MIT … Continue reading “Milwaukee Has Startup Ecosystem Elements, Awaits Chain Reaction”

Verdezyne Gets $48M to Advance Industrial Biotechnology in Malaysia

President Obama and Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak applauded a business deal in Malaysia yesterday, as the Malaysian agricultural conglomerate Sime Darby Berhad agreed to lead a $48 million investment in Verdezyne, the Carlsbad, CA-based industrial biotech. The deal is expected to make Sime Darby the single largest investor in Verdezyne, which has committed itself … Continue reading “Verdezyne Gets $48M to Advance Industrial Biotechnology in Malaysia”

Algal Scientific Obtains $3,000,000 New Financing Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=5c2e529f-52a0-4067-bf6f-a09001671088 Date 4/29/2014 Company Name Algal Scientific Mailing Address 47050 Five Mile Road Northville, MI 48168 USA Company Description Algal Scientific’s proprietary technology provides advanced treatment for municipal and industrial wastewater, while producing high amounts of algal biomass that can be used for biofuels. We design, build, and sell treatment systems incorporating … Continue reading “Algal Scientific Obtains $3,000,000 New Financing Round”

Detroit’s Canvas Watch Co. Wants Customers’ Design Input

What makes a 26-year-old Michigan native leave a job working for Tesla in Silicon Valley? Shaun Reinhold, founder of the Canvas Watch Company, wanted to apply what he’d learned about supply chain management to a custom watch e-commerce business. “It started with the idea of building a physical product and selling it online,” Reinhold says. … Continue reading “Detroit’s Canvas Watch Co. Wants Customers’ Design Input”

“Top of Rockies” Honors Xconomy’s Davidson with 2 First Place Awards

We’re proud to report this morning that one of our own has added his name to the summit log in the “Top of the Rockies” journalism competition awards, a program organized by the Colorado Pro Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists. Michael Davidson, who joined Xconomy just over a year ago as editor of … Continue reading ““Top of Rockies” Honors Xconomy’s Davidson with 2 First Place Awards”

SirionLabs Receives $4,580,000 Series A Financing Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=bd6e52bc-ceb2-47e2-bbc4-92696983ad9b Date 4/28/2014 Company Name SirionLabs Mailing Address 100 West Big Beaver Road Troy, MI 48084 USA Company Description SirionLabs is transforming the world of supplier governance with our breakthrough enterprise supplier management platform – Sirion. Website http://www.sirionlabs.com Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount $4,580,000 Transaction Round Series A Proceeds Purposes The … Continue reading “SirionLabs Receives $4,580,000 Series A Financing Round”

In Need Of Revenues, Aastrom Buys Sanofi’s Cell Therapy Products

More than a year after the failure of its lead program forced a major overhaul, Aastrom Biosciences (NASDAQ:ASTM) announced Monday it had acquired pharmaceutical giant Sanofi’s cell therapy and regenerative medicine business for $6.5 million. “We’ve taken steps to strengthen Aastrom and broaden the business, and I think this transaction is a clear reflection of … Continue reading “In Need Of Revenues, Aastrom Buys Sanofi’s Cell Therapy Products”

Beauty Is Everywhere, Except On Your TV Screen. Time to Change That.

Your mother probably taught you to turn off the TV when you weren’t watching it. That made sense, back in the day: television sets used to consume a lot of juice. Today, they don’t. If you bought the largest, most electricity-guzzling flat-screen TV you could find and left it on all the time, you’d still … Continue reading “Beauty Is Everywhere, Except On Your TV Screen. Time to Change That.”

Rapid 2014

The RAPID conference and exposition, produced by SME, will connect attendees with the latest developments, trends, and techniques specific to 3D printing and additive manufacturing. For details and registration, click here.

Women 2.0 City Meetup

Those who work at, start, and fund tech companies are invited to this event to promote new networks amongst the entire technology ecosystem in innovative cities around the world. Both women and men are welcome. For registration, click here.

WorkForce Software Secures New Financing

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=00471b1a-1d3e-4c3b-bbd7-3abae89b0394 Date 4/24/2014 Company Name WorkForce Software Mailing Address 38705 Seven Mile Road Livonia, MI 48152 USA Company Description WorkForce Software, Inc. is a leader in workforce management software and time and attendance systems for mid-sized and large employers. Website http://www.workforcesoftware.com Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount Undisclosed Transaction Round Undisclosed Proceeds … Continue reading “WorkForce Software Secures New Financing”

Why Are Hybra’s Kickstarter Backers So Upset? CEO Joe Thiel Responds

[Updated 4/24/14 and 4/25/14. See below.] When we last reported on Hybra Advance Technology, a Traverse City, MI-based consumer electronics startup, it was September 2013, and the company was days away from closing an extremely successful Kickstarter campaign. Now, half a year later, Kickstarter backers are up in arms, some going so far as to … Continue reading “Why Are Hybra’s Kickstarter Backers So Upset? CEO Joe Thiel Responds”

Corporate Acquisitions of Startups: Why Do They Fail?

For decades large companies have gone shopping in Silicon Valley for startups. Lately the pressure of continuous disruption has forced them to step up the pace. More often than not the results of these acquisitions are disappointing. What can companies learn from others’ failed efforts to integrate startups into large companies? The answer – there … Continue reading “Corporate Acquisitions of Startups: Why Do They Fail?”

ProNAi Therapeutics Closes on $59.5M to Advance Cancer Drug

ProNAi Therapeutics, a Plymouth, MI-based developer of novel nucleic acid treatments targeting cancer and other genetic diseases, said this week that it has closed a Series D financing round worth $59.5 million. The round was led by Vivo Capital of Palo Alto, CA, and included new investors Frazier Healthcare Ventures, OrbiMed Advisors, Adams Street Partners, … Continue reading “ProNAi Therapeutics Closes on $59.5M to Advance Cancer Drug”

CrowdRise Secures $23,000,000 New Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=f31d5fcd-dec9-448c-8db3-d43157c8a6a0 Date 4/22/2014 Company Name CrowdRise Mailing Address 100 Michigan Ave. Detroit, MI 48226 USA Company Description CrowdRise is about giving back, raising lots of money for great causes and having the most fun in the world while doing it. CrowdRise is way more fun than anything else aside from being all … Continue reading “CrowdRise Secures $23,000,000 New Round”

ProNAi Therapeutics Obtains $59,500,000 Series D Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=211c8ccc-2d1d-4d89-a69e-eb6ecf6bf621 Date 4/22/2014 Company Name ProNAi Therapeutics Mailing Address 46701 Commerce Center Drive Plymouth, MI 48170 USA Company Description ProNAi Therapeutics, Inc. is an emerging biopharmaceutical company that is leveraging its novel and proprietary nucleic acid-based interfering technology, DNAi, to advance a next generation of therapies for patients with cancer and other … Continue reading “ProNAi Therapeutics Obtains $59,500,000 Series D Round”

MSU Event Showcases Homegrown Biology, Biometrics & Blueberries

Michigan State University held its fourth annual Innovation Showcase last Wednesday. It was a chance to show the world some of the innovative technology and startups coming out of the university. The MSU Innovation Center also recognized the MSU Inventor of the Year, Innovator of the Year, and Tech Transfer Achievement Award winners. A few … Continue reading “MSU Event Showcases Homegrown Biology, Biometrics & Blueberries”

A Big Day for Xconomy: Introducing Elise Craig and Alex Lash

At a growing media startup like Xconomy, there’s no task more thrilling than welcoming new editors and writers on board. Today is especially exciting, because I’ve got not one but two additions to tell you about. First, I’m extremely pleased to announce that Elise Craig has joined us as the new Editor of Xconomy San … Continue reading “A Big Day for Xconomy: Introducing Elise Craig and Alex Lash”