Category: National

Plug and Play San Diego Selects Five Companies for Startup Camp

It was standing room only as Plug and Play San Diego selected five seed-stage tech companies to participate in its startup accelerator program, following presentations by 17 finalists yesterday at the Co-Merge shared workspace in downtown San Diego. The afternoon session represented Plug and Play’s third draft of companies in a San Diego-based selection process … Continue reading “Plug and Play San Diego Selects Five Companies for Startup Camp”

Texas Roundup: Capital Factory, DEC, UT-Dallas, & Austin Biosciences

The latest innovation news in Texas includes new accelerator partnerships, a new Big Data master’s program in Big D, and a deep dive into biosciences’ place in the Austin economy. —Google (NASDAQ: [[ticker:GOOG]]) announced Tuesday that Austin would be latest node on its now eight-city Tech Hub Network, a program that both hosts accelerator programs … Continue reading “Texas Roundup: Capital Factory, DEC, UT-Dallas, & Austin Biosciences”

Re-engineering Journalism at Stanford

“Journalism is dying.” That is the response of many when I say I’m pursuing a graduate degree and career in journalism. With local newspapers closing every day, more and more people absorbing news through Twitter and Facebook and a drought in the hiring of journalists of color, they may be right—or so they think. Yes, … Continue reading “Re-engineering Journalism at Stanford”

Get a Window on the Innovation Future at Boston 2034 on June 10

It’s gotten to be an easy rant—chastising entrepreneurs for not thinking big enough. But that’s plain wrong, especially in the Boston area. New England visionaries have long been tackling some of the world’s biggest problems. Among the efforts underway: Providing clean water for the developing world Bringing Internet connectivity and advanced educational tools to children … Continue reading “Get a Window on the Innovation Future at Boston 2034 on June 10”

“Fledgling” Startups Provide Power, Light, and Food in East Africa

Three of the startup companies graduating from Seattle incubator Fledge on Wednesday are focused on doing well by doing good in one particular East African country: Tanzania. These entrepreneurs—hailing from outside Toronto, the Bay Area, and the foot of Mt. Kilimanjaro—found and applied for Fledge in the typical ways. But over the course of the … Continue reading ““Fledgling” Startups Provide Power, Light, and Food in East Africa”

A Little Look at Big Data: Microsoft Research NYC Opens Up for a Visit

Monday night, in New York’s Flatiron District, Microsoft Research opened its doors to give the world a glimpse of what its data scientists are up to. Jennifer Chayes, co-founder of the New York lab and managing director at Microsoft Research New England in Cambridge, MA, cut the ribbon last evening for the latest home of … Continue reading “A Little Look at Big Data: Microsoft Research NYC Opens Up for a Visit”

Restaurant Reservations App Table8 Snags $4.6 million, Plans NY Expansion

Table8, maker of an app that allows users to make last-minute reservations at sought-after restaurants for a fee, today announced a $4.6 million funding round led by angel investors and Concur, a business travel and expense management platform based in Bellevue, WA. Concur’s $150 million Perfect Trip Fund is dedicated to investing in companies in … Continue reading “Restaurant Reservations App Table8 Snags $4.6 million, Plans NY Expansion”

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”

Google Buys Austin’s Adometry, Maker of Online Marketing Dashboard

Google has purchased Austin, TX, online ad attribution company Adometry for an undisclosed price, the companies announced today. Adometry creates a sort of digital dashboard for chief marketing officers to help them evaluate which tactics—a retailer’s online ad or through a Google search—resulted in a customer making a purchase. “We couldn’t be more excited to … Continue reading “Google Buys Austin’s Adometry, Maker of Online Marketing Dashboard”

Rhythm Eyes Pivotal Study as GI Drug for Diabetics Hits Phase 2 Mark

Along with all the well-known and frightening effects of diabetes, people with the disease also suffer debilitating gastrointenstinal problems that often send them to the emergency room. Rhythm Pharmaceuticals wants to replace a decades-old drug for diabetic gastroparesis with one of its own, and data released today bring the Boston-based biotech an important step closer. … Continue reading “Rhythm Eyes Pivotal Study as GI Drug for Diabetics Hits Phase 2 Mark”

Houston’s GripeO Markets Online Customer Service Platform

Social media is chockablock with complaints from consumers less than satisfied with products and services. But one Houston startup says it has a platform that makes it more likely those #badservice hashtags will get the attention of the purported offenders. Launched in early March, GripeO is a website and a mobile app designed to standardize … Continue reading “Houston’s GripeO Markets Online Customer Service Platform”

LogMeIn Acquires Ionia for $12M, Intensifying “Internet of Things” Focus

About a year ago, Boston-based business software provider LogMeIn rolled out a new product intended to take the company in a new direction.  That product, called Xively, is an online software platform for building the “Internet of Things,” a long-prophesied world in which machines and appliances of all kinds are connected to the Internet—just like … Continue reading “LogMeIn Acquires Ionia for $12M, Intensifying “Internet of Things” Focus”

360-Degree Centr Video Camera Gives a Thumb’s-Eye View of the World

Since we didn’t evolve with eyes on the backs or the sides of our heads, it’s no surprise that Bill Banta and his team had trouble anticipating all of the problems they would run into with their 360-degree video camera. The former Apple procurement manager—who was in charge of more than $500 million in annual … Continue reading “360-Degree Centr Video Camera Gives a Thumb’s-Eye View of the World”

MCW’s Clarke Wants to Build Critical Mass of Medical Entrepreneurs

For academic researchers trying to turn an idea into a business, it’s easy to get caught up in the discovery’s “cool” factor and overlook the fact that it needs to be something people will pay money for. As the Medical College of Wisconsin’s newly named director of research commercialization, Bill Clarke knows this dynamic well. … Continue reading “MCW’s Clarke Wants to Build Critical Mass of Medical Entrepreneurs”

Deal Aims to Grow “Humanized” Organs in Pigs for Transplantation

A San Diego startup that specializes in re-engineering genes and a multi-billion-dollar biotech giant in Silver Springs, MD, say they are now working together on an audacious goal—developing “humanized” organs in pigs that can be transplanted into humans. Under a multi-year R&D collaboration being announced today, San Diego-based Synthetic Genomics and Lung Biotechnology, a subsidiary … Continue reading “Deal Aims to Grow “Humanized” Organs in Pigs for Transplantation”

QPID Health Raises $12M to Expand Medical Record Search Software

A colonoscopy isn’t one of those appointments that you can just show up for. As anyone who’s had the pleasure of undergoing the procedure will certainly tell you, there’s a lot of preparation involved to make sure the bowel is empty enough for your doctor to see what’s going on. Now imagine running through that … Continue reading “QPID Health Raises $12M to Expand Medical Record Search Software”

Segterra Scores $2.5M to Shed Some Blood in Personal Health Tracking

Personal health and wellness continues to climb the tech-investment charts. Now a Boston-area startup is getting in on the action, thanks to a prominent New York investor. Segterra, the maker of Web-based health platform InsideTracker, has quietly raised a $2.5 million Series A funding round from New York bigwig Henry Kauftheil. The new money brings … Continue reading “Segterra Scores $2.5M to Shed Some Blood in Personal Health Tracking”

San Diego’s Ambrx Files for IPO to Advance Antibody-Drug Conjugates

[Corrected 5/6/14, 11 am. See below.] San Diego-based Ambrx, a biotech company with a new approach to developing protein therapeutics for treating, cancers, diabetes, and other diseases and disorders, plans to raise as much as $86 million in an IPO, according to a regulatory filing that was made public Friday. The company submitted its IPO … Continue reading “San Diego’s Ambrx Files for IPO to Advance Antibody-Drug Conjugates”

First Class of Startups Chosen for New York Fashion Tech Lab

Fashion has always been huge in New York, and now a local lab created to nurture tech startups in this industry is welcoming its inaugural class. The New York Fashion Tech Lab is a collaborative effort by Springboard Enterprises, the Partnership Fund for New York City, and others. The eight chosen startups will go through a … Continue reading “First Class of Startups Chosen for New York Fashion Tech Lab”

Wisconsin Roundup: Wozniak, Bridge to Cures, Isomark

Here are a few recent notable announcements from Wisconsin’s tech and innovation community: —Madison, WI-based Isomark said it received a $150,000 investment from the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation (WARF) that will help fund a 110-patient study of the company’s non-invasive “Canary” breath analyzer at the UW Hospital and Clinics. The device is meant to provide early indication of potentially … Continue reading “Wisconsin Roundup: Wozniak, Bridge to Cures, Isomark”

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”

Orbotix Raises $15.5M to Develop Next Generation of Toys

Orbotix remains on a roll, announcing today that it has closed a $15.5 million funding round that the company will use to continue developing the next generation of high-tech toys that bridge the physical and the digital worlds. Orbotix is best known as the maker of Sphero, the robotic ball that can be controlled with … Continue reading “Orbotix Raises $15.5M to Develop Next Generation of Toys”

Jumio Looks to Reduce Fraud, Hassle of Mobile Transactions

As viruses like Heartbleed and security breaches like Target’s massive credit card data hack become more and more common, it’s obvious to Jumio CEO Daniel Mattes that our current online security measures just aren’t cutting it. Basic security precautions like questions about your mother’s maiden name are useless in the age of social media. “These … Continue reading “Jumio Looks to Reduce Fraud, Hassle of Mobile Transactions”

Smartsheet Wins Big Customers, $35M From Sutter Hill Ventures

An important aspect of the consumerization of corporate IT is the way new products are initially adopted and ultimately deployed by a large business. For many business software makers, the idea now is to get an easy-to-use tool in the hands of a few people or a small team, and let them spread it throughout … Continue reading “Smartsheet Wins Big Customers, $35M From Sutter Hill Ventures”

Doctors Use the Web at Work, But Wary of What Patients Read Online

Whatever happened to Health 2.0? You know, the trend toward using Web tools and resources for healthcare that started in the mid-2000s? The name may have gone out of style, but the movement led to new online communities for patients and doctors, lots of health-information sites, and changing patient-doctor relationships. More than three-quarters of U.S. … Continue reading “Doctors Use the Web at Work, But Wary of What Patients Read Online”

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”

Colorado Tech Roundup: News From SendGrid, Zayo Group, and JumpCloud

Here is a quick roundup of some news from Colorado startups and tech companies, featuring SendGrid, Zayo Group, and JumpCloud. SendGrid’s New Partners: One of Colorado’s fastest-growing startups recently formed a new partnership to help other startups step on the accelerator. SendGrid announced this week it is partnering with startup accelerators Techstars, 500 Startups, and … Continue reading “Colorado Tech Roundup: News From SendGrid, Zayo Group, and JumpCloud”

Equity Crowdfunding Platform Return on Change Has Million-Dollar Baby

It may happen in careful, tiptoeing steps, but a local equity crowdfunding platform is maturing. On Wednesday, New York-based Return on Change revealed that a cleantech startup, Geostellar, used its website to close a $1 million round. It is the first company using Return on Change to break seven figures in one campaign, giving some … Continue reading “Equity Crowdfunding Platform Return on Change Has Million-Dollar Baby”

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”

Cleantech Roundup: Inslee Points Toward Cap and Trade; EnergySavvy Funding

Washington Gov. Jay Inslee, who has made combating climate change his signature issue, directed a taskforce to research a state cap-and-trade policy this week. Meanwhile, EnergySavvy collected fresh funding for its energy efficiency software, while early-stage funding for cleantech startups all but dried up in the first quarter. More details: —Washington Gov. Jay Inslee spent … Continue reading “Cleantech Roundup: Inslee Points Toward Cap and Trade; EnergySavvy Funding”

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”

GlobeRanger Acquired by Japan’s Fujitsu for RFID Business

[Updated 5/2/14 1:41 pm. See below.] A suburban Dallas maker of RFID technologies specialized for the U.S. military was bought Friday by Japanese electronics giant Fujitsu to shore up its portfolio of national security and defense-related products and services. [Comments from GlobeRanger CEO George Brody and Bill Sproull at the Richardson Economic Development Partnership added.] “The opportunity … Continue reading “GlobeRanger Acquired by Japan’s Fujitsu for RFID Business”

East Coast Biotech Roundup: Concert, Merrimack, Vertex, & More

A near-death experience for an IPO, new life for a cancer drug company, and plenty of clinical trial results dot the roundup this week. Those stories and more below. —Lexington, MA-based Concert Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: [[ticker:CNCE]]) may have priced its IPO at the top of its range earlier this year, but not without a fair bit … Continue reading “East Coast Biotech Roundup: Concert, Merrimack, Vertex, & More”

San Diego Life Sciences Roundup: Otonomy, Verdezyne, and IPOs

It was another busy week for San Diego’s life sciences sector. Here’s my roundup. —The federal Jumpstart Our Business Startups (JOBS) Act that was enacted two years ago has made it easier for life sciences companies to “test the waters” with potential investors in stealth mode before launching their IPOs. A record-setting 23 life sciences … Continue reading “San Diego Life Sciences Roundup: Otonomy, Verdezyne, and IPOs”

The Experiment Begins: Y Combinator Admits First Biotech Startups

Mark your calendars: the high-profile tech incubator Y Combinator holds its Demo Day in August. Even though its alumni include runaway tech successes AirBnB and Dropbox, much of the scrutiny will land on the handful of biotechnology companies that, for the first time, Y Combinator is admitting to its program for the upcoming summer session. … Continue reading “The Experiment Begins: Y Combinator Admits First Biotech Startups”

Boston Tech Roundup: BookBub, Kronos, Techstars, & More

It’s been a pretty busy week for startups and larger companies alike around the Boston-area innovation sector, with financing news, revenue growth, an acquisition, an accelerator demo day, and a college pitch competition: —BookBub, a Cambridge, MA-based startup that markets discounts on books to an e-mail list of nearly 3 million, has attracted a $3.8 … Continue reading “Boston Tech Roundup: BookBub, Kronos, Techstars, & More”

Wireless Health Summit: Barriers to Adoption and Tools for Change

As a co-founder and CEO of the San Diego-based Wireless-Life Sciences Alliance, Rob McCray has spent the past decade or longer shepherding the convergence of innovative wireless technologies and healthcare. To paraphrase the poet, he still has miles to go before he sleeps. McCray has done his tour of duty as the voice in the … Continue reading “Wireless Health Summit: Barriers to Adoption and Tools for Change”

Halcyon Biomedical Aims to “Wash” Blood for Safer Transfusions

Nearly 10 million people in America donate blood every year, which starts the clock ticking on a perishable product becoming less and less useable. Blood cells can get damaged during donation or in the storage process. Burst cells, for example, could lead to inflammation or blood clots in a recipient. The longer blood sits before … Continue reading “Halcyon Biomedical Aims to “Wash” Blood for Safer Transfusions”

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”

With New SF Office, Cengage Looks to Rival Tech Giants

Cengage Learning, the billion-dollar edtech giant that started life as Thomson Learning before it was sold off in 2007, is celebrating a brand-new office in San Francisco this week. The new facility will be a testing ground for fostering engagement and innovation in the workspace, and CEO Michael Hansen says the company expects to use … Continue reading “With New SF Office, Cengage Looks to Rival Tech Giants”

Speed Dating: Wisconsin’s Experiment to Connect Startups, Big Boys

Entrepreneurs can raise all the venture capital they want, but they know that in the long run, they don’t have a business without dollars flowing in from customers. For startups aiming to crack the big company market with B2B products and services, it can be challenging just to score a meeting with potential corporate customers, … Continue reading “Speed Dating: Wisconsin’s Experiment to Connect Startups, Big Boys”

Merrimack Heads to FDA as Pancreatic Cancer Drug Succeeds in Phase 3

[Updated, 8:10 am ET] Merrimack Pharmaceuticals has taken its share of punches from investors over the past year while trying to prove that its computer-aided drug discovery approach can lead to effective therapeutics. But the Cambridge, MA-based company can finally talk about some good clinical news today, because it might have a shot to break … Continue reading “Merrimack Heads to FDA as Pancreatic Cancer Drug Succeeds in Phase 3”

Data, Dinner Parties, and . . . a Monkey Take Over ERA Demo Day

Everyone relax; it was not a real monkey lurking around the presenters’ stage at demo day. On Tuesday, 10 startups graduated from the Entrepreneurs Roundtable Accelerator (ERA) in New York. A diverse array of themes were on display. Part of the class presented ideas for helping businesses understand and use data; other startups had a … Continue reading “Data, Dinner Parties, and . . . a Monkey Take Over ERA Demo Day”

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”