Xconomy is celebrating another great year for Colorado tech and life sciences companies with two special events next week that will bring together some of the leaders of Colorado’s software, IT, biotech, cleantech, and venture capital communities—and maybe you. The events, our annual “Meet the Xconomists” receptions, are a chance to network, share ideas, and … Continue reading “A Chance to Celebrate With Xconomy and Meet the Xconomists”
Category: National
Solar Roundup: OneEnergy Funding, SolarCity Bonds, Mariners, Natural Gas
The business of solar power continues to attract more money as innovative companies refine ways to finance and connect solar projects to the electrical grid. OneEnergy Renewables, a Seattle company developing mid-sized solar power projects, has raised $5 million in Series B funding, as residential solar giant SolarCity announced plans to sell solar-backed bonds to … Continue reading “Solar Roundup: OneEnergy Funding, SolarCity Bonds, Mariners, Natural Gas”
Welltok Raises $25M More, Takes Aim at $2.7T Healthcare Industry
You’ve got a fitness tracker on your wrist and a phone loaded with health apps in your pocket. You know all about the latest technology that can help you stay—or get—in shape, and you’re pretty sure you know all the names of the biggest startups (and giant companies like Nike) trying to sell you new … Continue reading “Welltok Raises $25M More, Takes Aim at $2.7T Healthcare Industry”
Illumina Admits First Startup Accelerator Class
Bioinformatics giant Illumina (NASDAQ: [[ticker:ILMN]]) is getting into the accelerator game, along with other players in the life sciences and other fields. On Wednesday it announced the first three startups chosen to start the program this fall at its San Francisco lab space. San Diego-based Illumina, which makes genomic analysis systems, unveiled the program in … Continue reading “Illumina Admits First Startup Accelerator Class”
Qualcomm and Techstars Establish Accelerator for Robotics Startups
As the global market tops out for advanced smartphone processors, radios, and other wireless chips, Qualcomm (NASDAQ: [[ticker:QCOM]] is staking a claim in robotics. Under a partnership with Boulder, CO-based Techstars announced today, the wireless technology giant plans to host a four-month robotics accelerator for 10 startups at its San Diego headquarters next year. The … Continue reading “Qualcomm and Techstars Establish Accelerator for Robotics Startups”
NeuWave Medical Corrals $4.8M for Tumor-Zapping Tech
NeuWave Medical, a Madison, WI-based medical device maker, has raised $4.8 million through debt financing and securities options, a new SEC document shows. The funding round could eventually total $11.6 million. The company previously hauled in more than $29 million from the likes of H.I.G. BioVentures, Madison-based Venture Investors, the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation, and … Continue reading “NeuWave Medical Corrals $4.8M for Tumor-Zapping Tech”
Influenster Has Its Eyes on Amazon’s Crown for Product Reviews
Reaching tastemakers who can sway the masses is one way to win the marketing game. Influenster in New York developed software that links brands to well-connected folks who can talk up products and services to the public. On Wednesday, the company rolled out the newest version of its mobile app, which makes it easier for … Continue reading “Influenster Has Its Eyes on Amazon’s Crown for Product Reviews”
Protean Rebrands as Stratos, Closes $5.8 Million Seed Round
Stratos, the Ann Arbor-based mobile payment startup formerly known as Protean Payment, has closed on a $5.8 million seed funding round, with investments from Toba Capital, Western Technology Investment, Resonant Venture Partners, and Hyde Park Venture Partners. Stratos co-founder and CEO Thiago Olson says the funding will allow the company to step up its hiring … Continue reading “Protean Rebrands as Stratos, Closes $5.8 Million Seed Round”
Wisconsin Roundup: Exact Sciences, Epic, StartUp Health, & More
Here’s a rundown of recent important developments in Wisconsin’s tech and innovation community: —Shares of Madison-based Exact Sciences (NASDAQ: [[ticker:EXAS]]) shot up to a record $26.79 on Friday after it was announced that the company’s stool DNA test for detecting colorectal cancer, Cologuard, will be covered by Medicare. The stock closed last week at $24.60 … Continue reading “Wisconsin Roundup: Exact Sciences, Epic, StartUp Health, & More”
Ensighten Buys Anametrix Amid Consolidation in Digital Marketing
San Jose, CA-based Ensighten, which provides Web-based tag management technology for corporate customers, says today it has acquired Anametrix, a San Diego specialist in software-as-a-service used to analyze and optimize multi-channel digital marketing. It is Ensighten’s second acquisition this year, and extends a wave of consolidation that has been underway for more than a year … Continue reading “Ensighten Buys Anametrix Amid Consolidation in Digital Marketing”
Is Clean Energy the Sleeper Tech Industry in Boston?
When I step out of the Kendall Square subway stop in Cambridge, MA, on my way to work, it’s hard not to be reminded what a hub for innovation it is. During a short walk, I pass dozens of tech and life sciences companies packed into what’s become the midtown Manhattan of Cambridge. Having covered … Continue reading “Is Clean Energy the Sleeper Tech Industry in Boston?”
Selecta, Sharpening Focus, Gets $20M More to Make Biologics Safer
Selecta Biosciences started up six years ago with a plan to use nanoparticles to make customizable vaccines. Along the way, however, the Watertown, MA-based company found a potentially lucrative niche for its technology—helping to make other biologic drugs on the market safer. Today, it’s cashing a big check from a group of its venture backers … Continue reading “Selecta, Sharpening Focus, Gets $20M More to Make Biologics Safer”
EverTrue Expands, Raises $8M More for Alumni Donor Tools
Perhaps it’s no surprise that a tech company that’s all about alumni fundraising knows how to fundraise itself. Boston startup EverTrue has closed an $8 million Series B financing round led by previous investor Bain Capital Ventures, with some of the money coming from Silicon Valley Bank. The 40-person company has raised a total of … Continue reading “EverTrue Expands, Raises $8M More for Alumni Donor Tools”
Roundup: Mt. Elliott Makerspace, Rockwell Medical, Zell Lurie, More
Here’s a look at news from around Michigan’s innovation hubs: —Last week, I spotted a headline that made my heart sink: The eastside Detroit church that houses the Mt. Elliott Makerspace is struggling, and the funds that support programs like the makerspace are nearly exhausted. I visited the church in April 2012 and wrote about … Continue reading “Roundup: Mt. Elliott Makerspace, Rockwell Medical, Zell Lurie, More”
CommonAngels Ventures Raises $26.5M Fund in Shifting VC Landscape
There’s a newly raised tech-investment fund in town. Is it an angel fund or a venture fund? A bit of both, actually. But it’s been moving toward the latter. CommonAngels, the Boston-area angel investment group, has closed its fourth fund at $26.5 million. It has also officially changed its name to CommonAngels Ventures. (Disclosure: CommonAngels … Continue reading “CommonAngels Ventures Raises $26.5M Fund in Shifting VC Landscape”
Why It Requires Rocket Engineers to Make Your House Comfortable
There are dozens of startups building various pieces of the “smart home,” but Boston-based Ecovent is starting in unusual place: heating and cooling vents. The company today said it raised $2.2 million from angel investors to speed up production of sensors and vents that make homes more comfortable and energy efficient. The year-old company was … Continue reading “Why It Requires Rocket Engineers to Make Your House Comfortable”
2nd Watch Lands $10M More As Enterprise Cloud Transition Accelerates
2nd Watch, a Washington state company that helps businesses move their IT infrastructure to Amazon’s cloud service, has raised another $10 million in less than a year. The company also has appointed a new chief executive as it grows to accommodate increasing demand. “Really what’s pushed us this year has been continued enterprise adoption,” says … Continue reading “2nd Watch Lands $10M More As Enterprise Cloud Transition Accelerates”
Public Company, Meet Startup: Demandware Snaps Up CQuotient
While most eyes have been on the IPOs of Wayfair and Hubspot this month, it’s good to remember the last batch of Boston-area tech companies that went public. One of them is Demandware, a Burlington, MA-based maker of online shopping software for brands and retailers. The company had its IPO in 2012, and its stock … Continue reading “Public Company, Meet Startup: Demandware Snaps Up CQuotient”
R/GA Accelerator Grad Footmarks Lands Investor and New Team Member
Footmarks on Tuesday announced it closed a $1.85 million seed round that also brought an experienced entrepreneur to the team. Shawn Englund, founder of LearnLive Technologies, led the round and joined Footmarks as head of sales and operations. The company graduated in March in the inaugural class of the R/GA Techstars Accelerator in New York, … Continue reading “R/GA Accelerator Grad Footmarks Lands Investor and New Team Member”
Venture Firms Turn Down Funding Volume, but Still Rockin’ in Q3
Venture capital activity descended from the stratosphere during the third quarter, but it was still flying high, as venture firms invested nearly $9.8 billion in 879 deals across the United States, according to a report released today by the financial data firm CB Insights. The amount invested during the quarter was down 30 percent from … Continue reading “Venture Firms Turn Down Funding Volume, but Still Rockin’ in Q3”
With $24M and Pharma Backing, Ex Epizyme Prez Aims to “Raze” Tumors
Jason Rhodes has taken the helm of a new startup biotech. And in some ways, it’s a bit like the one he just left, Cambridge, MA-based Epizyme—a developer of cancer drugs. Now the question is whether he can help steer the new one, Raze Therapeutics, towards the billion-dollar valuation Epizyme enjoys today. Fresh off his … Continue reading “With $24M and Pharma Backing, Ex Epizyme Prez Aims to “Raze” Tumors”
Marquette’s Lovell Moves Quickly to Boost Campus Entrepreneurship
The University of Wisconsin-Madison is widely seen as the state’s leading school for entrepreneurship, driven by more than $1 billion in annual research spending, a respected licensing and tech transfer arm, and a track record of successful spinouts. The school gives universities in Wisconsin’s largest city, Milwaukee, something to aspire to. In the past few … Continue reading “Marquette’s Lovell Moves Quickly to Boost Campus Entrepreneurship”
Biotech Startups Tap Spider Genes in Quest to Spin Silk Gold
A modern-day Silk Road is emerging, and traffic on it is building up. These explorers aren’t traversing routes across continents, but instead are seeking scientific and agricultural alchemy to produce a sort of holy grail in apparel: commercial amounts of spider silk. Spider silk is a multi-purpose fiber able to be transformed into surgical bandages, … Continue reading “Biotech Startups Tap Spider Genes in Quest to Spin Silk Gold”
Untying the Knots in Big Data and Big Biology: Q&A with Andrew Su
As big data becomes increasingly important in using genomic information, the National Institutes of Health is funding a sweeping initiative to help untie the knots that make it hard to extract and apply meaningful information from huge biomedical data sets. The program was conceived, in the words of NIH Director Francis Collins, to “overcome the … Continue reading “Untying the Knots in Big Data and Big Biology: Q&A with Andrew Su”
Roundup: Partners for Ping Identity, Datalogix; Craftsy’s Milestone
Three of Colorado’s biggest startups made notable moves this week. Ping Identity and Datalogix announced new partnerships with major companies that have the potential to greatly expand their reach into new markets. Meanwhile, Craftsy announced it hit a milestone. Ping Identity, Sprint join forces: Denver-based Ping Identity has a new partner as it continues its … Continue reading “Roundup: Partners for Ping Identity, Datalogix; Craftsy’s Milestone”
Raleigh-Durham Roundup: Targacept, Chimerix, Red Hat, & More
Here are this week’s headlines in North Carolina tech and biotech news: —Targacept’s (NASDAQ: [[ticker:TRGT]]) decade-long strategic partnership with AstraZeneca (NYSE: [[ticker:AZN]]) is ending with no new drugs to show for it. Winston-Salem, NC-based Targacept quietly disclosed the end of the research and collaboration partnership in a regulatory filing, saying that the British drug giant … Continue reading “Raleigh-Durham Roundup: Targacept, Chimerix, Red Hat, & More”
Six Takeaways from Boston’s Life Science Disruptors
Failure isn’t just a possibility in biotech—it’s a probability. Plan accordingly, and don’t let your ego get in the way when you do. It doesn’t matter so much “how” a drug works, as long as it does. And when the inevitable fork in the road comes, don’t be afraid to take the more difficult path—as … Continue reading “Six Takeaways from Boston’s Life Science Disruptors”
U-M to Launch New Maker Space in Detroit’s Brightmoor Neighborhood
A new maker space is coming to Detroit’s Brightmoor neighborhood, and it’s backed by students and faculty from the University of Michigan’s Penny Stamps School of Art and Design and a $100,000 grant from the Knight Foundation. The Brightmoor Alliance community group and Detroit Community Schools will work with the Stamps School to get the … Continue reading “U-M to Launch New Maker Space in Detroit’s Brightmoor Neighborhood”
VoloMetrix Raises $12M to Market ‘People Analytics’ Software
Seattle startup VoloMetrix is helping large companies answer one of the most fundamental questions a business faces: How do the most effective employees spend their time? The company has raised $12 million from Split Rock Partners and prior investor Shasta Ventures to build a sales and marketing organization to get its “people analytics” software into … Continue reading “VoloMetrix Raises $12M to Market ‘People Analytics’ Software”
Former Dendreon CEO Gold Working on New Cancer Drug Startups
Fresh off a quick exit for his latest biotech startup, former Dendreon CEO Mitch Gold has a couple of new projects up his sleeve—but he’s not letting on much yet. Xconomy caught up with Gold on Wednesday after he gave a talk in Madison, WI, about the impact of low-cost genome sequencing and the scientific … Continue reading “Former Dendreon CEO Gold Working on New Cancer Drug Startups”
How Much Should I Work?
My son, a member of the optimization generation, where pretty much every aspect of his life will be tracked, measured, and ultimately ruled by the Alg, posed a fascinating question to me the other day. He simply asked, “How much should I work?” Now, the context for the question is that he’s undoubtedly a Type … Continue reading “How Much Should I Work?”
Bob Johnston Talks Less Adtech, More Diversity for NY Investments
It is time for a bit of a shakeup in the New York startup landscape, if you ask Robert (Bob) Johnston. He is founder of The Executive Council, which operates the New York Venture Capital Association. Johnston is also co-founder and CEO of SponsorHub in New York. Plenty of startups here chase ideas in adtech, he … Continue reading “Bob Johnston Talks Less Adtech, More Diversity for NY Investments”
New Eye Care Investor RevOptix Grabs Majority Stake in RevolutionEHR
San Francisco investment group RevOptix has acquired a majority stake in RevolutionEHR, a Madison, WI-based provider of electronic health records software for eye doctors. The amount of the investment wasn’t disclosed. RevolutionEHR isn’t calling the deal an acquisition because its staff will stay in place, including co-founder and CEO Scott Jens, and previous investors are … Continue reading “New Eye Care Investor RevOptix Grabs Majority Stake in RevolutionEHR”
Doctors Close to Implanting First Stem-Cell Therapy for Diabetes
Researchers from San Diego-based ViaCyte and UC San Diego provided new details about the first-ever human clinical trial of a stem cell-derived therapy for patients with type 1 diabetes yesterday at a scientific symposium at The Salk Institute. The early stage clinical trial is intended to test the safety of an approach that ViaCyte has … Continue reading “Doctors Close to Implanting First Stem-Cell Therapy for Diabetes”
App That Helps Find Lost Children Highlights Techstars Demo Day
Techstars startups have been making their pitches to investors in Boulder for eight years now. It’s unlikely one has ever been introduced by a police officer. Then again, there hasn’t been a graduate like the Lassy Project, a startup inspired by a real-life child abduction and murder case that shocked Colorado almost exactly two years … Continue reading “App That Helps Find Lost Children Highlights Techstars Demo Day”
Deerfield Pouring $125M Into WI Startup Shine Medical Technologies
[Updated 10/10/14, 7:55 a.m. See below.] Shine Medical Technologies, the Monona, WI-based startup that aims to be the first domestic producer of medical radioisotopes, said today it has inked an investment deal with New York-based Deerfield Management for up to $125 million. The investment is a mammoth one for a Wisconsin startup, given that a … Continue reading “Deerfield Pouring $125M Into WI Startup Shine Medical Technologies”
Learn From Leading Seattle Innovators at Xconomy Xchange Nov. 18
From the frontiers of modern multi-channel commerce to business intelligence deep inside networking infrastructure, another generation of Seattle innovators is pushing out boundaries to find new insights and opportunities. But what does it take to build an innovative company on those first key insights and ideas? That’s the central question we will answer through a … Continue reading “Learn From Leading Seattle Innovators at Xconomy Xchange Nov. 18”
West Coast Biotech Roundup: CareFusion, Sunesis, Second Genome, Etc.
After a week’s hiatus, the roundup is back. We’ve been busy. New Xconomy San Francisco editor Bernadette Tansey took a first look at a plan to build a local incubator for synthetic biology startups, while I covered an appearance by Tekmira Pharmaceuticals CEO Mark Murray, the first since his company’s drug was approved for emergency … Continue reading “West Coast Biotech Roundup: CareFusion, Sunesis, Second Genome, Etc.”
Loquidity Brings Crowdfunding to Midwestern Real Estate Markets
While U.S. investors and startups wait for the Securities and Exchange Commission to devise the rules regarding the crowdfunding piece of the JOBS Act, states are passing their own companion legislation to try to stimulate investing. In December 2013, Gov. Rick Snyder signed the Michigan Invests Locally Exemption (MILE) Act, which allows a business incorporated … Continue reading “Loquidity Brings Crowdfunding to Midwestern Real Estate Markets”
GE to Startups: Write Apps for our Industrial Internet Platform
General Electric’s Silicon Valley lab may be making a key operating platform for the next generation of computing. Next year, the industrial giant today said it plans to allow third-party software developers to write applications for Predix, its software for collecting and analyzing data from industrial equipment. GE has already made $1 billion on what … Continue reading “GE to Startups: Write Apps for our Industrial Internet Platform”
Allot Closing San Diego Operations Two Years After Ortiva Buyout
Israel’s Allot Communications (NASDAQ: [[ticker:ALLT]]) is shutting down its San Diego-based operations, which came with the 2012 acquisition of Ortiva Wireless, a spokeswoman confirmed today. About 20 employees are affected by the shutdown, according to an e-mail from Maya Lustig, director of communications for Allot, which is based near Tel Aviv, in Hod Hasharon. Ortiva, … Continue reading “Allot Closing San Diego Operations Two Years After Ortiva Buyout”
HubSpot in Dublin: Lessons in Building a Global Public Company
The latest U.S. tech company to go public is HubSpot, which has netted about $114 million in its IPO on the New York Stock Exchange. From a global perspective, what’s most interesting about the Boston-area online marketing company (NYSE: [[ticker:HUBS]]) has been its effort to go into new international markets. You’ve heard of founders Dharmesh … Continue reading “HubSpot in Dublin: Lessons in Building a Global Public Company”
Arrowhead Shares Tumble on Early Phase 2a Data For RNAi Drug
Shares of Arrowhead Research took a beating yesterday after preliminary data from the RNA interference drug developer’s Phase 2a trial of its hepatitis B treatment disappointed Wall Street investors. Arrowhead (NASDAQ: [[ticker:ARWR]])—which is based in Pasadena, CA, but has its core R&D team in Madison, WI—saw its shares fall as low as $5.47 yesterday, a … Continue reading “Arrowhead Shares Tumble on Early Phase 2a Data For RNAi Drug”
Can Salesforce1 Push the Workforce into the Mobile Age?
Dreamforce 2014 is quickly approaching, and it has me thinking about the impact Salesforce (NASDAQ: [[ticker:CRM]]) has had on the way we work and more generally on the future of work itself. Dreamforce is the annual Salesforce user conference, and it has more or less become a must-attend event for anyone in the cloud computing … Continue reading “Can Salesforce1 Push the Workforce into the Mobile Age?”
Online Pharmacy Startup PillPack Lands $8.75M, Led By Accel
A lot of technology startups get rightly criticized for not bothering to tackle a problem that will make anyone’s life better. PillPack is not one of those startups. The Manchester, NH-based company offers a new twist on the concept of a mail-order pharmacy. Instead of sending long-term supplies of drugs in conventional pill bottles, PillPack … Continue reading “Online Pharmacy Startup PillPack Lands $8.75M, Led By Accel”
Y Combinator, Move Over For IndieBio: A Second Biotech Accelerator
Y Combinator, which set off a whirlwind of skeptical commentary when it opened its highly ranked tech accelerator program to biotechnology startups last spring, now has some company. SOS Ventures, the international VC firm that already holds accelerator programs for software and hardware company founders, is launching a separate accelerator called IndieBio in San Francisco … Continue reading “Y Combinator, Move Over For IndieBio: A Second Biotech Accelerator”
Private Social Network Nextt Has Shut Down, CEO Confirms
Less than a year after launching its social planning app, Madison, WI-based Nextt has shut down. The closure had been rumored for several months, but co-founder and CEO Mark McGuire had declined to confirm it until Wednesday, when he published a blog post performing a post-mortem on the startup. McGuire is a Madison serial entrepreneur … Continue reading “Private Social Network Nextt Has Shut Down, CEO Confirms”
HubSpot IPO Raises $114M for Online Marketing Software
Online marketing software seller HubSpot, which helps mid-sized businesses attract customers with blog posts, e-mails, and social media campaigns, has raised about $114 million in its initial public stock offering. The Cambridge, MA-based company said Wednesday night that it sold 5 million shares of its stock at $25 each. That price was higher than HubSpot’s previously estimated price range, indicating … Continue reading “HubSpot IPO Raises $114M for Online Marketing Software”
PowerToFly at New York Tech Meetup, Helping Women Get Hired in Tech
Various efforts are underway to support women entrepreneurs and founders, but what about those who are looking for jobs in the technology scene? How can they find the right positions to put their skills to work in a male-dominated field? Those are some of the questions that the developers of PowerToFly in New York want … Continue reading “PowerToFly at New York Tech Meetup, Helping Women Get Hired in Tech”
OpenView Venture Partners Raises $250 Million Fund
Boston’s OpenView Venture Partners, a VC firm that backs growth-stage software companies, has raised $250 million for its fourth fund. The news was expected. Fortune reported in August that OpenView was hoping to hit that price tag for the new fund, which had been teased in an SEC filing. OpenView touts several successful investments, including Intel-acquired API service Mashery and marketing software seller … Continue reading “OpenView Venture Partners Raises $250 Million Fund”