We’ve hit the time of year dreaded by all public radio fans: pledge drive season, when stations hold your favorite NPR and American Public Media programs hostage until enough listeners pay up. Until recently, there’s only been one way around this semiannual torture ritual, and it’s only been available to listeners of KQED here in … Continue reading “Get Your Own Personal NPR Station with Swell”
Category: National
Xconomy Q&A: Triton Algae Innovations Co-founder Stephen Mayfield
[Corrected 9/7/13, 3:40 pm. See below.] San Diego’s Triton Algae Innovation’s scientific co-founder Stephen Mayfield was in Japan when the year-old synthetic biology startup disclosed that it had closed on $5 million in Series A funding from Heliae Technology Holdings. From the other side of the world, Mayfield responded to an e-mail I had sent … Continue reading “Xconomy Q&A: Triton Algae Innovations Co-founder Stephen Mayfield”
Ten Companies to Face Off Next Week to Be Colorado’s “Startup Idol”
The ten finalists for the upcoming Apex Challenge have practiced their pitches in front of mirrors and friends. Now it’s time for them to take the stage in front of about 1,000 people to compete for cash prizes totaling $20,000. The Apex Challenge is a pitch competition on Sept. 11 that’s part of the Colorado … Continue reading “Ten Companies to Face Off Next Week to Be Colorado’s “Startup Idol””
No More Rock Stars: Startups Like Swipely Are Hiring Collaborators
This is the story of a student, a mentor, a school, and a startup. Together they highlight the ways in which recruiting and talent development at New England companies have changed over the past decade. Bart Flaherty was an undergrad at Northeastern University. His major was communication studies, but halfway through he started taking computer … Continue reading “No More Rock Stars: Startups Like Swipely Are Hiring Collaborators”
Bay Area Deals News: AlienVault, Check, HotelTonight, StartX & More
[Updated and corrected, see below] It’s time for one of our (infrequent) roundups of local venture funding announcements and other deals. —San Mateo, CA-based AlienVault, which helps companies assess security vulnerabilities in their IT systems, announced today that it has completed a $26.5 million Series D investing round, with GGV Capital in the lead. Existing … Continue reading “Bay Area Deals News: AlienVault, Check, HotelTonight, StartX & More”
Dragon Innovation Kicks Off Crowdfunding, 2 Projects Rocket Ahead
Dragon Innovation, one of the key players in Boston’s new wave of hardware entrepreneurship, is showing off some early success with its new crowdfunding website. The site went live today, and two of the initial projects—which range from high-tech to basic tools—are hits with customers after just a few hours. Tessel, a microcontroller with add-on … Continue reading “Dragon Innovation Kicks Off Crowdfunding, 2 Projects Rocket Ahead”
Discount Aggregation App Larky Forms Partnership With Blue Cross
When the Ann Arbor, MI-based startup Larky launched its mobile app and website in April, its mission was to aggregate the many discounts offered by alumni associations, stores like Costco, organizations like AAA and AARP, and other groups looking to add value to their memberships. The problem, says co-founder Andrew Bank, was that Larky’s research … Continue reading “Discount Aggregation App Larky Forms Partnership With Blue Cross”
Crowdfunding A Better Classroom, One Penny At A Time
Entrepreneurs are turning to crowdfunding to help ease the pinch in school budgets. Online platforms are already used to boost fledgling culinary or music careers, to help pay for medical expenses or support new ideas for TV shows. So it’s not a surprise that entrepreneurs have turned to crowdfunding to innovate in the education sector. … Continue reading “Crowdfunding A Better Classroom, One Penny At A Time”
Why Qualcomm’s Paul Jacobs Will Stifle the Smartwatch He Created
The Toq smartwatch that Qualcomm (NASDAQ:[[ticker:QCOM]]) unveiled yesterday at its annual Uplinq developers’ conference was a pet project that was conceived and shepherded through development by Paul Jacobs, Qualcomm chairman and CEO. But at the end of the day, Jacobs told reporters and analysts, that doesn’t mean the San Diego wireless technologies giant he manages … Continue reading “Why Qualcomm’s Paul Jacobs Will Stifle the Smartwatch He Created”
72Lux Unwraps New Platform to Scale Up With More Online Merchants
Looking to draw a bit more attention, 72Lux, based in New York, introduced on Wednesday a new platform called Shoppable for Merchants that lets e-retailers selling most any type of product market their wares on publishers’ Web pages. This marks a new approach for 72Lux, which previously developed a white-label platform for selling high-end apparel … Continue reading “72Lux Unwraps New Platform to Scale Up With More Online Merchants”
5 Things Biotechs Should Do to Take Advantage of The Boom
We are currently enjoying a much needed resurgence in the biotechnology industry. The industry has been the best performing sector in the stock market for the last two years and it appears it will be again this year. This performance has enabled companies to raise capital, either publicly or privately, in record amounts. We expect … Continue reading “5 Things Biotechs Should Do to Take Advantage of The Boom”
Paul Allen Hires Oren Etzioni for New Artificial Intelligence Push
Paul Allen has tapped one of Seattle’s foremost professor-entrepreneurs to lead an ambitious new institute tasked with expanding the frontiers of artificial intelligence research. Dr. Oren Etzioni, a professor in the University of Washington Computer Science Department for more than two decades with a half dozen successful startup companies to his credit, began this week … Continue reading “Paul Allen Hires Oren Etzioni for New Artificial Intelligence Push”
Boston Roundup: RunKeeper, Arbor Networks, Datto, General Catalyst, Baker
Updated 4:50 pm Startup partnerships, acquisition deals, fundraising, and little bit of innovation-sector politics to catch up on: —RunKeeper is popping up on another smartwatch. The Boston-based fitness-tracking app, which has built its brand primarily on smartphones, is one of the first apps being made available on Samsung’s new Galaxy Gear device. The smartwatch communicates … Continue reading “Boston Roundup: RunKeeper, Arbor Networks, Datto, General Catalyst, Baker”
Platform Ecosystems in Big Data
I have written about the platform eco-system trend in technology recently. To recap, a business that has been gaining ground in the tech world is the technology platform developer network model, wherein large numbers of developers can use the platform to build their businesses cost-effectively without the handicap of huge infrastructure expenditure. Some of the … Continue reading “Platform Ecosystems in Big Data”
EMC’s Eric Herzog on Bullseyes, Red-Eyes, and Tech Paranoia
A big EMC product announcement is a good excuse to get to know the company’s higher-ups. Lord knows, I can’t keep up with the trade press and tech blogs that will dissect the data storage giant’s latest and greatest offering. But I can tell you about the man leading the charge today. He is Eric … Continue reading “EMC’s Eric Herzog on Bullseyes, Red-Eyes, and Tech Paranoia”
Zazma Comes Out of Stealth, Scores $10M from Sequoia and Spark
New York–based Zazma has emerged from stealth, announcing Tuesday it raised $10 million from Sequoia Capital and Spark Capital to help expand its team and services. The startup, founded in 2011, offers short-term credit through an online platform to small businesses. That credit is for small sums, up to $5,000 per transaction, to pay invoices … Continue reading “Zazma Comes Out of Stealth, Scores $10M from Sequoia and Spark”
Polar Users Have a Favorite Yahoo Logo. Will Marissa Mayer Agree?
At midnight Eastern time tonight, Yahoo (NASDAQ: [[ticker:YHOO]]) will announce which of the 30 logo variations it has previewed over the past month will become its new, permanent trademark. The veteran Internet company hasn’t said how it plans to choose the final logo. Given the lead time that goes into changing all the marketing materials … Continue reading “Polar Users Have a Favorite Yahoo Logo. Will Marissa Mayer Agree?”
iPierian Nabs $30M To Keep Alzheimer’s, Autoimmune Drugs Moving
iPierian could easily have crashed a couple years ago as just another overhyped stem cell startup. But the South San Francisco-based company has quietly kept plugging away the past couple years, and the reinvented antibody drug developer just secured a fresh $30 million in financing to take its two leading product candidates into clinical trials. … Continue reading “iPierian Nabs $30M To Keep Alzheimer’s, Autoimmune Drugs Moving”
Triton Algae Raises $5M to Bring First Product to Market Next Year
In the spring of 2012, when Jason Pyle announced his departure from San Diego’s Sapphire Energy, he told me he already was deeply involved with a new enterprise that was in stealth mode. Much of the work was being done in San Diego, he said, but nothing beyond that. Today the wraps are coming off … Continue reading “Triton Algae Raises $5M to Bring First Product to Market Next Year”
Dan Shapiro Builds a Board Game to Teach 3-Year-Olds Programming
In an era of ubiquitous digital devices, can an analog board game teach a preschooler to program? It can certainly get them started in the right direction, says Dan Shapiro, the Seattle serial entrepreneur and father of twin four-and-three-quarters-year-olds, who spent the summer making a game called Robot Turtles. He launched a Kickstarter campaign today … Continue reading “Dan Shapiro Builds a Board Game to Teach 3-Year-Olds Programming”
Simplee Demystifies Medical Billing for Hospitals and Consumers
After a terrible vacation, Simplee CEO Tomer Shoval quit a big corporate job to create the Mint-style medical bill payment platform. In September of 2009, Shoval was traveling in Mexico with his wife and three kids when they all got violently ill. Three months later, back in the states, the Shovals started receiving complicated invoices … Continue reading “Simplee Demystifies Medical Billing for Hospitals and Consumers”
Creator of Colorado’s Vice Finder Talks Website, Logo, and Pot Shot
Rick Griffith is the type of entrepreneur Colorado says it wants to support. Then again, maybe the home of the Mile High City doesn’t want to be associated with people like Griffith. It’s hard to tell, as the governor himself is sending mixed signals. Griffith and his team won the Hack4Colorado Hackathon in June, taking … Continue reading “Creator of Colorado’s Vice Finder Talks Website, Logo, and Pot Shot”
Extreme Reach Goes to Extreme Lengths With $485M DG Deal
Before autumn arrives in full swing, let’s take a closer look at one of the biggest deals of the summer. I’m talking about Needham, MA-based Extreme Reach, a video-ad delivery startup, buying the TV advertising business of Digital Generation (NASDAQ: [[ticker:DGIT]]), based in Irving, TX, for $485 million in cash. Here’s why the deal is … Continue reading “Extreme Reach Goes to Extreme Lengths With $485M DG Deal”
Detroit-based Rapt.fm Opens 24-hour Access; Inks Deals with Rappers
Rapt.fm is a startup based in Detroit, and has created a split-screen Web platform that allows users to engage in freestyle rap battles as Internet audiences watch, chat, and vote for who they like best. Tomorrow, Rapt kicks off its beta launch, having addressed past technical glitches, says Rapt’s co-founder Erik Torenberg. During the site’s … Continue reading “Detroit-based Rapt.fm Opens 24-hour Access; Inks Deals with Rappers”
Verizon Takes Full Grip of Verizon Wireless in $130B Deal with Vodafone
While much of the country gathered for barbecues on Labor Day, Verizon Communications (NYSE: [[ticker:VZ]]), based in New York, announced it worked out a $130 billion cash and stock deal to take complete ownership of joint venture Verizon Wireless. The transaction, expected to close by the first quarter of 2014, will give Verizon the remaining … Continue reading “Verizon Takes Full Grip of Verizon Wireless in $130B Deal with Vodafone”
A Silicon Valley Pioneer Molds the Next Wave of Innovators at Rice
Jack Gill went to northern California more than 40 years ago, becoming part of Silicon Valley’s formation. He landed there in the late ’60s and founded Autolab, which pioneered the use of microprocessor-based instruments and computers for chromatography laboratory applications and was later acquired by Spectra Physics. In 1981, Gill co-found Vanguard Ventures, one of … Continue reading “A Silicon Valley Pioneer Molds the Next Wave of Innovators at Rice”
Aileron Goes After Cancer’s Hard Target, P53, With Peptide Drug
Cancer biologists and drugmakers have tried, and failed, to find ways to protect a gene known as p53 for more than two decades, and for good reason: the famous tumor suppressor gets shut down in some form by every single known type of cancer. Yet an eight-year-old startup out of Cambridge, MA, named Aileron Therapeutics … Continue reading “Aileron Goes After Cancer’s Hard Target, P53, With Peptide Drug”
Microsoft Buys Nokia Smartphone Unit, Elop Returns as Executive
Turns out the Steve Ballmer retirement was just one of the big changes at Microsoft. Now, the software giant is making a bigger bet on producing its own hardware by buying the smartphone business of Finnish handset manufacturer Nokia for about $7.2 billion. Microsoft is paying for the deal with cash it has stowed overseas. … Continue reading “Microsoft Buys Nokia Smartphone Unit, Elop Returns as Executive”
Former Dendreon CEO and Dendreon Bull Start New Biotech Hedge Fund
Mitch Gold made a lot of money as the CEO of Dendreon (NASDAQ: [[ticker:DNDN]]), the Seattle-based cancer drug developer. David Miller made his reputation as an investment analyst with in-depth, bullish reports on the company. Now these two are going to work together on a new Seattle-based biotech hedge fund called Alpine BioVentures. Gold isn’t … Continue reading “Former Dendreon CEO and Dendreon Bull Start New Biotech Hedge Fund”
Fight Over Uber is Battle Over Innovation in Dallas
I’ve lived in Dallas almost my entire adult life, but until this week I had never attended a city council meeting. The meeting started off with a bang as a woman dressed in traditional African costume (along with an accompanist on drums,) who serenaded Mayor Mike Rawlings just before she accused the sergeant-at-arms of “wanting” … Continue reading “Fight Over Uber is Battle Over Innovation in Dallas”
Biotech and Fantasy Football Picks for Fall 2013
There’s an old saying about surgeons. They are “sometimes wrong; never in doubt.” If only the same could be said for biotech writers. I’ve been sometimes right, sometimes wrong, and sometimes embarrassingly wrong the past couple years I’ve made predictions about biotech and fantasy football. Last year, I doubted both Adrian Peterson, the Minnesota Vikings … Continue reading “Biotech and Fantasy Football Picks for Fall 2013”
Summits, Grassroots, Failures: 5 Takes on Colorado Innovation Week
With Colorado Innovation Week drawing to a close and the Colorado Innovation Network Summit wrapping up Thursday, it’s a good time to look back at the week’s highlights (beyond Sal Khan’s presentation) and collect some thoughts about the event. It was a stimulating and encouraging week that shows Colorado is thinking seriously about innovation and … Continue reading “Summits, Grassroots, Failures: 5 Takes on Colorado Innovation Week”
Boston Roundup: Acquia, 908 Devices, StarStreet
We’ve got one company shopping itself for a stock sale, and two more who have raised new money in this end-of-summer collection of innovation headlines: —Acquia, a website services firm, has hired a new chief financial officer as it prepares for a possible IPO: Dennis Morgan, formerly of Salesforce.com acquisition Buddy Media. The Burlington, MA-based … Continue reading “Boston Roundup: Acquia, 908 Devices, StarStreet”
San Diego Life Sciences Roundup: Orexigen, Volcano, MediciNova, & More
Like an unwelcome advance, an offshore monsoon has San Diego in a hot and humid headlock that is expected to improve only gradually by the Labor Day holiday. Try to stay classy San Diego… Oh! And here is my life sciences briefing. —San Diego-based Orexigen Therapeutics (NASDAQ: [[ticker:OREX]]) said it expects to collect enough new … Continue reading “San Diego Life Sciences Roundup: Orexigen, Volcano, MediciNova, & More”
Roundup: News from Optimum, Tagboard, BoldIQ, Twitter, IV, and Donuts
It turns out Seattle’s Optimum Energy gained some significant strategic investors in its latest financing round. Read on for details on that, plus funding for Tagboard and BoldIQ; new Seattle offices for Twitter and a DC presence for Intellectual Ventures; and another dozen (gTLDs for) Donuts. —Optimum Energy‘s substantial June financing has even more to … Continue reading “Roundup: News from Optimum, Tagboard, BoldIQ, Twitter, IV, and Donuts”
Meda Snaps Up Sequoia-Backed Acton Pharmaceuticals for $135M+
Venture backers of Acton Pharmaceuticals are breathing a little easier this morning. Meda has agreed to acquire the Marlborough, MA-based developer of respiratory drugs in a deal worth at least $135 million. The Swedish drugmaker didn’t break down exactly how much it will pay in total, but the transaction includes $135 million up front, a … Continue reading “Meda Snaps Up Sequoia-Backed Acton Pharmaceuticals for $135M+”
Help Save Our Innovation Economy from the SEC’s Rewrite of Reg D
Over the past 30 years, the United States has developed an infrastructure to nurture, grow, and fund early stage companies that is the envy of the world. There are more than 250,000 active angel investors in this country, and nearly one out of every five of the startup investments they make are in California. At … Continue reading “Help Save Our Innovation Economy from the SEC’s Rewrite of Reg D”
East Coast Life Sciences Roundup: Syndax, Enteris, Invivo, & More
The big news in biotech this week may have been Amgen (NASDAQ: [[ticker:AMGN]]) finally completing its high-profile quest to acquire Onyx Pharmaceuticals, but that isn’t all that happened. We’ve got your East Coast headlines below: —Waltham, MA-based Syndax Pharmaceuticals pocketed $26.6 million in equity financing this week from existing investors Domain Associates, MPM Capital, Forward … Continue reading “East Coast Life Sciences Roundup: Syndax, Enteris, Invivo, & More”
Sea Level Rise: Time for a Barrage of New Ideas
Everyone recognizes the Golden Gate Bridge. Even if you’ve never visited it in person, you’ve seen it in hundreds of movies and photographs. But I’ll bet you’ve never heard of the Golden Gate Barrage. That’s because it doesn’t exist yet. But as the atmosphere warms, ice sheets melt, and the unruly oceans slosh past their … Continue reading “Sea Level Rise: Time for a Barrage of New Ideas”
Small Company Innovation Program Announces Research Partnership Awards
The Michigan Corporate Relations Network (MCRN) has awarded five companies matching grants as part of its Small Company Innovation Program (SCIP). Under the SCIP, small- to medium-sized tech companies looking to speed up commercialization efforts can receive matching funds for research projects at one of the organization’s participating universities: Wayne State University; the University of Michigan; Michigan State University; Michigan … Continue reading “Small Company Innovation Program Announces Research Partnership Awards”
Starting a Company Is Hard. Good Health Insurance Makes It Easier.
Usually late August is fairly laid-back, but this year the debate over how states are implementing the federal Affordable Care Act seems to get louder by the day. Except here in Massachusetts, where it’s pretty quiet. Why? Because it’s already been addressed here. I must admit, I don’t remember there being very much angst at the … Continue reading “Starting a Company Is Hard. Good Health Insurance Makes It Easier.”
Greylock’s Andy Johns on Web Growth: “You’re Training a Mentality”
As an authority on getting consumer Web companies to soar along the elusive curve of exponential growth, Andy Johns has succinctly epitomized his expertise in his Twitter handle, “@ibringtraffic.” Last month Johns joined Menlo Park, CA-based Greylock Partners as the venture firm’s first “growth strategist in residence,” a title bestowed on the basis of his … Continue reading “Greylock’s Andy Johns on Web Growth: “You’re Training a Mentality””
Cleanweb Startups Make Their Debut at Start Demo Day
Houston’s prowess in energy has historically been the purview of the major oil companies whose headquarters’ marquees dot the city’s skyline. Efforts to boost startups in the sector are actually fairly new. But some new momentum is being created. On Wednesday, Start Houston, a startup incubator located in a gritty neighborhood east of downtown, held … Continue reading “Cleanweb Startups Make Their Debut at Start Demo Day”
Boulder Conference Seeks to Encourage Women Entrepreneurs to Lean In
Facebook executive Sheryl Sandberg might have made “lean in” a mantra for female entrepreneurs with her book this year, but it’s a lesson TRUSTe co-founder and chairwoman Fran Maier learned years ago—and she learned it the hard way. Maier was part of the team that founded Match.com and was the startup’s general manager in the … Continue reading “Boulder Conference Seeks to Encourage Women Entrepreneurs to Lean In”
Bamboo Offers “Family” Style Co-Working Space to Detroit Startups
Did you know MSNBC’s popular morning talk show, “Morning Joe,” was broadcasting from the Motor City today? I did, because my father, who lives upstate in Lansing, started sending a barrage of text messages urging me to tune in starting at 6 a.m. Much as I may have wanted to, I couldn’t sit in front … Continue reading “Bamboo Offers “Family” Style Co-Working Space to Detroit Startups”
An Accelerator with No Publicity or Demo Day?! That’s Just Crazy Talk!
Running an accelerator that does not promise funding or trot out its startups to woo backers may sound nuts—or maybe it’s a strategy to differentiate a program in a crowded scene. Edward M. Zimmerman, founder of New York-based First Growth Venture Network, says his four-year-old accelerator might not generate the buzz of other organizations, but … Continue reading “An Accelerator with No Publicity or Demo Day?! That’s Just Crazy Talk!”
Animoto Wants to Make You Cry
When Animoto hit the scene in 2007, its creators thought bands and their teenage fans would want to use the tool to make videos for their MySpace pages. How times have changed. Animoto’s basic features are still the same: the software grabs photos and video clips from your computer or smartphone and renders them into … Continue reading “Animoto Wants to Make You Cry”
MicroGREEN Raises $10M From Increasingly Active Tribal Investors
The cup that holds your morning coffee is a seemingly simple item to be used and discarded. It probably hasn’t changed much over the years. No big deal, except that Americans go through 137 billion disposable beverage cups each year, generating a tremendous amount of waste. That looks like a huge opportunity to MicroGREEN Polymers, … Continue reading “MicroGREEN Raises $10M From Increasingly Active Tribal Investors”
Bill Gates Invests in Boston’s Evolv, an Intellectual Ventures Spinout
When Boston startup Evolv Technologies surfaced earlier this month with an $11.8 million fundraising round, nobody tied to the company would talk about what it’s doing. Today, the secrecy is lifting. Evolv is developing advanced imaging products—think airport security scanners—that could be much smaller and more efficient thanks to the wave-bending properties of a technology … Continue reading “Bill Gates Invests in Boston’s Evolv, an Intellectual Ventures Spinout”
Quanttus and the Rise of Boston’s Personal Healthtech Cluster
File this one under “the start of something big… maybe.” A stealthy, year-old startup out of MIT is working on new kinds of sensors and software that it hopes will transform personal health and wellness. Its name is Quanttus, it’s very early stage, and it isn’t talking to the press yet. But if it succeeds, … Continue reading “Quanttus and the Rise of Boston’s Personal Healthtech Cluster”