Category: Detroit

Get Out of the Car and Start Exploring with Landmarked Detroit App

Suburbanites and tourists, we thank you for visiting Detroit and pumping some of your hard-earned cash into the local economy. We have a request, though: Next time you’re here for a Lions game or a concert at the Fox, would you consider adding an hour onto your trip to walk around downtown to see more … Continue reading “Get Out of the Car and Start Exploring with Landmarked Detroit App”

Three Big Themes from the Personalized Medicine Conference

Hello from Boston, and from the 2012 Partners Personalized Medicine Conference, which last week brought together life science thought leaders from business, research and technology. Several themes that emerged from this year’s program: Genomes, genomes, genomes. Previous personalized medicine conferences had tended to focus on commercialization of and reimbursement for traditional molecular diagnostics. This year, … Continue reading “Three Big Themes from the Personalized Medicine Conference”

MediaMath Acquires Tap.me for Undisclosed Sum

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=d935510d-ab97-4c82-8afa-6da997bc700b&Preview=1 Date 12/5/2012 Company Name Tap.me Mailing Address 222 Merchandise Mart Plaza 19th Floor Chicago, IL 60654 Company Description The company connects games to brands and brands to gamers with the next generation of in-game advertising. Website http://www.tap.me Transaction Type M&A Transaction Amount Undisclosed Transaction Round Proceeds Purposes M&A Terms Financial terms … Continue reading “MediaMath Acquires Tap.me for Undisclosed Sum”

Ann Arbor Startup MyFab5 Aims to Disrupt Yelp

MyFab5 co-founder Omeid Seirafi-Pour owns a house in Chicago, but when the startup bug bit him, he packed one suitcase and headed back to Ann Arbor, home of his alma mater,  the University of Michigan. He had an idea, and it was directly related to his annoyance with the long-winded, often “negative just to hear … Continue reading “Ann Arbor Startup MyFab5 Aims to Disrupt Yelp”

HHS CTO Bryan Sivak on How Government Can Spur Healthcare Innovation

It’s not every entrepreneur who even entertains the notion of moving from business to government. Bryan Sivak, though, has made the shift three times over. Sivak left his job at the company he helped create for a position in city government (as Chief Technology Officer for Washington, DC), then became Maryland’s Chief Innovation Officer, and … Continue reading “HHS CTO Bryan Sivak on How Government Can Spur Healthcare Innovation”

The Enduring Success of a Healthcare Radical

I’ve spent some time over the past few months reading about an American political figure’s transformative role in our health care system. His crusade began when his staff surveyed drug prices in 77 countries and found “of these, 28 allowed product patents and the prices of drugs in those countries were 18 to 255 times … Continue reading “The Enduring Success of a Healthcare Radical”

Xconomist of the Week: Helen Greiner’s CyPhy Works Unveils Drones

After roughly three years in development and some $3 million in venture investment, iRobot co-founder Helen Greiner is showing off her newest robotic creations. But don’t be fooled by the cool things this new pair of aerial drones can do—the real advancement is the cable that connects them to the ground. Greiner’s robotics startup, CyPhy … Continue reading “Xconomist of the Week: Helen Greiner’s CyPhy Works Unveils Drones”

TechTown Takes Business Acceleration Services to Brightmoor Neighborhood

The TechTown business incubator, which is affiliated with Wayne State University in Detroit, announced last month that it has received a $150,000 grant from the Marjorie S. Fisher Endowment Fund to support its efforts in the Brightmoor neighborhood in far Northwest Detroit. One reason this is notable is that it represents the first time a … Continue reading “TechTown Takes Business Acceleration Services to Brightmoor Neighborhood”

How Ed-Tech Companies Will Make (and Lose) a Few Fortunes

It’s bubble time in education technology. Over the past few years, investment dollars have started to flow in larger amounts. MBAs (like me and one of my co-founders) are starting to get interested, and I know of at least two separate groups in Boston alone trying to develop ed-tech incubation spaces. But for all the … Continue reading “How Ed-Tech Companies Will Make (and Lose) a Few Fortunes”

Where’s the Can-Do Spirit in Biotech? It’s Alive, Deep Down

How many people in the biotech industry today really feel like they are part of something special, something bigger than themselves? How many people feel such camaraderie with their co-workers that they’d show up to meet them at a reunion five years from now? How many people in biotech feel the task in front of … Continue reading “Where’s the Can-Do Spirit in Biotech? It’s Alive, Deep Down”

Five Characteristics VCs Look For in a Marketing Exec

Venture capitalists are paying more attention to the structure of the marketing teams they invest in. Why? Because marketing plays an increasingly influential role in the success of their portfolio companies. To ensure that the marketing department can generate the kind of leads that drive sales, they want to see a particular profile in a … Continue reading “Five Characteristics VCs Look For in a Marketing Exec”

Photo Books from Blurb: A High-Tech Gift Idea with Low-Tech Charm

SPOILER ALERT: If your name is Paul or Patricia Roush and you live in Central Lake, MI, stop reading now or you’ll ruin one of the surprises under the Christmas tree this year. Really. You’ve been warned! Every year I put “Amazon gift certificate” on my holiday and birthday wish lists so that I can … Continue reading “Photo Books from Blurb: A High-Tech Gift Idea with Low-Tech Charm”

U-M’s MCubed Seed Grants Fund 50 Researcher-Led Innovation Projects

The University of Michigan today announced the first 50 research projects to receive seed funding as part of the new MCubed program. MCubed is a first-of-its-kind, two-year, $15 million initiative that puts university professors in charge of divvying up immediate startup funds for “novel, high-risk, and transformative research projects.” The MCubed grants come just days after the … Continue reading “U-M’s MCubed Seed Grants Fund 50 Researcher-Led Innovation Projects”

CEED Microloan Orientation

Small businesses in need of financing who are facing obstacles in obtaining loans are invited to this meeting. Learn more about the requirements and process necessary to apply and obtain a microloan from the Center for Empowerment and Economic Development (CEED). For more information, contact [email protected].

Ann Arbor Open Coffee

Entrepreneurs, investors, and those who work in innovative sectors like cleantech, IT, and life sciences are invited to this free networking event. Click here for details.

Annual Collaboration for Entrepreneurship

This event unites entrepreneurs, investors, students, government officials, service providers, and other members of the business community to highlight and promote entrepreneurship in the Great Lakes region. Program includes panel discussions, breakout sessions, networking, a pitch competition, and a keynote speech by Xconomist Terry Cross. For details, click here.

Meet VeeMe: The Virtual Agent Programmed to Think Like Me

Meet VeeMe, my “virtual me” that acts like me and reacts like me. I’ve written about him/me before (here and here). If you think VeeMe sounds creepy, I agree! But I think it will happen. I both fear it and hope for it. So far, the information revolution has consistently performed beyond our imaginations. Twenty … Continue reading “Meet VeeMe: The Virtual Agent Programmed to Think Like Me”

NanoBio Obtains $11,000,000 Series C Financing Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=a3c9d269-9940-4f70-b860-092334c9c7ce&Preview=1 Date 11/29/2012 Company Name NanoBio Mailing Address 2311 Green Road Ann Arbor, MI 48105 Company Description NanoBio Corporation is a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing anti-infective products and mucosal vaccines derived from its patented NanoStat technology platform. Website http://www.nanobio.com Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount $11,000,000 Transaction Round Series … Continue reading “NanoBio Obtains $11,000,000 Series C Financing Round”

Detroit’s Ubi Video Offers Smaller Cable Providers a Way to Compete

The only shows I watch on regular TV anymore are sporting events. I’m an avid consumer of television, particularly those shows in the HBO-Showtime-AMC stable, but appointment television has become a thing of the past as I’ve discovered the joys of on-demand and its magnificent pause and fast-forward buttons. On Thanksgiving, I took my TV … Continue reading “Detroit’s Ubi Video Offers Smaller Cable Providers a Way to Compete”

Big Pharma’s Role in Supporting the Life Science Innovation Ecosystem

The life sciences industry has been challenged over the last several years with an economic environment that is not conducive to breeding new innovation. While things are slowly improving, reports abound of fewer investments in life science start-ups and fewer active investors in the sector. Many new ideas aren’t being developed—because the financial climate can’t … Continue reading “Big Pharma’s Role in Supporting the Life Science Innovation Ecosystem”

Tangent Medical Technologies Garners $8,624,988 New Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=97fbe2da-c6bf-4788-8906-6b6062d34506&Preview=1 Date 11/28/2012 Company Name Tangent Medical Technologies Mailing Address 8170 Jackson Road 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 $8,624,988 New Round”

Fitvia Obtains $25,000 Seed Funding Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=84cc7609-2bed-403e-98a6-2f9f526da87c&Preview=1 Date 11/28/2012 Company Name Fitvia Mailing Address 3558 Lee Rd Shaker Heights, OH 44120 Company Description FitVia allows users to post and view exercise schedules. Users can create a schedule of different exercise activities and open that schedule to all of their friends and social networks. When users create a schedule, … Continue reading “Fitvia Obtains $25,000 Seed Funding Round”

Tagora Lands $25,000 Seed Financing

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=9b407f2a-51c2-4c25-a076-393e7ad8c3c0&Preview=1 Date 11/28/2012 Company Name Tagora Mailing Address 3558 Lee Rd Shaker Heights, OH 44120 Company Description As a user, you never want to deal with the hassle of potential buyers, the different processes and guidelines to marketplaces, the timing, and the security of shipping/payments. Tagora is a service platform that solves … Continue reading “Tagora Lands $25,000 Seed Financing”

HooftyMatch Receives $25,000 Seed Financing

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=7bb993d4-49f3-47af-8d58-54462f8bbfa0&Preview=1 Date 11/28/2012 Company Name HooftyMatch Mailing Address 3558 Lee Rd Shaker Heights, OH 44120 Company Description When we eat food we want to know that it’s fresh, where it came from, and how it was made. But when we go to the grocery store or go out to eat at a … Continue reading “HooftyMatch Receives $25,000 Seed Financing”

Winners Circle Gaming Lands $25,000 Seed Funding

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=979bd8de-3e74-410e-9deb-87e5e70169b1&Preview=1 Date 11/28/2012 Company Name Winners Circle Gaming Mailing Address 3558 Lee Rd Shaker Heights, OH 44120 Company Description Winners Circle Gaming is an exclusive community dedicated to providing opportunities to gamers to achieve fame, fortune, and sponsorships playing the games they love. Request your invite! Website http://www.winnerscirclegaming.com Transaction Type Accelerator Transaction … Continue reading “Winners Circle Gaming Lands $25,000 Seed Funding”

Gtail Lands $25,000 Seed Financing Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=e975dc35-17b1-47b0-9495-a373216d529f&Preview=1 Date 11/28/2012 Company Name Gtail Mailing Address 3558 Lee Rd Shaker Heights, OH 44120 Company Description Gtail is truly a private, flash-sale website that always provides BlackFriday-like pricing on brand-name, brand-new, carefully curated products in each of the most popular consumer durable goods categories. Website http://www.gtail.com Transaction Type Accelerator Transaction Amount … Continue reading “Gtail Lands $25,000 Seed Financing Round”

Duel.fm Secures $25,000 Seed Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=edc2739c-5e28-49f0-a7b6-a9803bc5b3e2&Preview=1 Date 11/28/2012 Company Name Duel.fm Mailing Address 3558 Lee Rd Shaker Heights, OH 44120 Company Description Duel allows players a unique way to have fun answering trivia while also finding new music, learning more about people/places and earning free stuff like music downloads. Website http://www.duel.fm Transaction Type Accelerator Transaction Amount $25,000 … Continue reading “Duel.fm Secures $25,000 Seed Round”

iOTOS Obtains $25,000 Seed Financing Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=dfab788f-f396-42f4-973b-bd157b405ead&Preview=1 Date 11/28/2012 Company Name iOTOS Mailing Address 3558 Lee Rd Shaker Heights, OH 44120 Company Description iOTOS is an “Internet of Things” platform designed to control any product or appliance with a smart phone. We work with product manufacturers to connect their products/appliances to the internet immediately making them part of … Continue reading “iOTOS Obtains $25,000 Seed Financing Round”

Sliced Apples Lands $25,000 Seed Funding

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=5669a39e-2e36-4c91-ac8e-cd20f2ebf059&Preview=1 Date 11/28/2012 Company Name Sliced Apples Mailing Address 3558 Lee Rd Shaker Heights, OH 44120 Company Description Sliced Apples is a blogging platform that empowers businesses and brands. With Sliced Apples, publishers can dynamically create new writing assignments and crowdsource those opportunities to relevant experts and fledgling writers. Website http://www.slicedapples.com Transaction … Continue reading “Sliced Apples Lands $25,000 Seed Funding”

Mobile Madness Motor City: Linkner, Song, & More at Jan. 17 Forum

All of you smartphone-toting innovators know it’s true: Five short years since the first iPhones sparked lines around Apple stores, mobile computing has completely transformed our lives. Whether revolutionizing the way we communicate or how we run our companies, there’s hardly a business in operation that hasn’t been affected by the power of mobile. In … Continue reading “Mobile Madness Motor City: Linkner, Song, & More at Jan. 17 Forum”

And the Global Capital of Robotics Is…Everywhere

Here at Xconomy we’ve spilled considerable ink over the question of why Silicon Valley robotics companies seem to lag behind their peers in big centers of robotics like Boston and Pittsburgh. But if you look at the locations of robot makers worldwide, it’s clear that no single region really dominates this emerging industry. Makers of … Continue reading “And the Global Capital of Robotics Is…Everywhere”

Does Jerusalem Have What It Takes to Build A Life Sciences Cluster?

Dark news was coming out of Israel on the morning of November 15. But in a talk that morning at MIT, Nir Barkat, mayor of Jerusalem, painted a bright picture of the city’s future. Barkat—whose name, incidentally, means “light”—argues that Jerusalem’s “brand name” has been building for over 3,000 years. As a panelist at the … Continue reading “Does Jerusalem Have What It Takes to Build A Life Sciences Cluster?”

CampDoc Offers Web-Based Way to Manage Campers’ Medical Needs

Michael Ambrose grew up going to Tamarack Camps in Ortonville, MI,  each summer. Once he was too old to attend Tamarack, he began volunteering. All throughout college and medical school at the University of Michigan, he loved working in the camp’s health center, organizing health forms, distributing medications, and tending to injuries. As the world … Continue reading “CampDoc Offers Web-Based Way to Manage Campers’ Medical Needs”

Y Combinator Alters Investment Package to Avoid “Contested Divorces”

Startups admitted the Winter 2013 class at Y Combinator, the prestigious startup accelerator in Mountain View, CA, will be greeted by a smaller investment package. Under a new program outlined in a blog post today, startups will get $80,000 each from a group of four outside venture investors, in addition to Y Combinator’s investment of … Continue reading “Y Combinator Alters Investment Package to Avoid “Contested Divorces””

The Few and the Proud: The Biotech Startup Class of 2012

[Updated: 3:35 pm PT, 12/3/12] Quick: Can you name three exciting biotech companies that got started, in your city, in 2012? I can’t, as a citizen of Seattle. Chances are, no matter where you live in the U.S., and no matter how plugged-in you are into the industry, you can’t either. This wasn’t supposed to … Continue reading “The Few and the Proud: The Biotech Startup Class of 2012”

Harvest Express Brings Online Grocery Service to Detroit

[Corrected 11/26/12, 9:21 a.m. See below.] Jenile Brooks was born in raised in Detroit, and she always knew that one day she’d be back. Brooks headed East after high school and eventually settled in New York City, where she was working as a film producer. It was in that capacity that she finally returned to … Continue reading “Harvest Express Brings Online Grocery Service to Detroit”

Women 2.0, Google Partner to Launch Detroit Founder Friday

A popular networking series for female tech entrepreneurs that began in the Bay Area has now launched in Detroit. Called Founder Friday, it’s the product of the San Francisco-based Women 2.0, a media company offering “content and community” for current and aspiring women in tech, and Google for Entrepreneurs. Detroit is the only Midwestern city … Continue reading “Women 2.0, Google Partner to Launch Detroit Founder Friday”

Tel Aviv, L.A. Right Behind Silicon Valley in Startup Genome Rankings

Brace for some surprising news. As a place to build a startup, Tel Aviv, Israel, outranks every other major startup hub in the world except Silicon Valley. That’s according to a report set to be released today by Startup Genome, a San Francisco-based R&D project. All right, you say; surely the No. 3 spot after … Continue reading “Tel Aviv, L.A. Right Behind Silicon Valley in Startup Genome Rankings”

How To Build a Biotech Cluster That Isn’t Boston or SF

I live and work in Louisville, KY, a city that probably isn’t too different from a lot of communities in the U.S. that are not biotech hubs like San Francisco and Boston. Driven in part by economic development, many in my hometown would like to develop a biotech cluster. But building a biotech cluster is … Continue reading “How To Build a Biotech Cluster That Isn’t Boston or SF”

Xconomist of the Week: Q&A with General Assembly’s Brad Hargreaves

I hate New York sports teams. But I don’t mind New York startup incubators. Especially when they have a growing presence in Boston and other cities. General Assembly is much more than that, of course. The company runs a network of startup schools dedicated to entrepreneurship and education, primarily in the fields of technology, business, … Continue reading “Xconomist of the Week: Q&A with General Assembly’s Brad Hargreaves”

Celgene, Sanofi, Stryker Execs Charged With Insider Trading

Three high-powered New Jersey pharmaceutical executives from Celgene (NASDAQ: [[ticker:CELG]]), Sanofi (NYSE: [[ticker:SNY]]), and Stryker (NYSE: [[ticker:SYK]]) were charged today with insider trading by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and the U.S. Attorney’s Office. The SEC said in a statement that the three were part of a ring of former high school buddies and wine … Continue reading “Celgene, Sanofi, Stryker Execs Charged With Insider Trading”

Stanford’s Mike Snyder is Showing the Way With Personalized Medicine

Say the words “personalized medicine” to people from various walks of life, and you’re likely to get one of about four different reactions. A. “Personalized medicine? What’s that?” (Usually spoken by 99 percent of patients.) B. “Personalized medicine will bankrupt the country with expensive new diagnostic tests, and overrated targeted drugs.” (Usually spoken by health … Continue reading “Stanford’s Mike Snyder is Showing the Way With Personalized Medicine”

Algal Scientific is Big Winner at Accelerate Michigan Innovation Competition

The annual Accelerate Michigan Innovation Competition, the busi­ness-plan contest tar­geting mid-to-late-stage startups located in the state, wrapped up last night at Orchestra Hall in downtown Detroit, where a slew of overall and sector-specific winners were announced. At stake was more than $1 mil­lion in cash prizes, plus in-kind awards of ser­vices, staffing, and software. Plymouth-based Algal Scientific won … Continue reading “Algal Scientific is Big Winner at Accelerate Michigan Innovation Competition”