Here at Xconomy, we are gearing up for the biggest mobile event of the year in Boston: Mobile Madness 2012—Total Mobility, on March 14 at Microsoft NERD. I’ve been talking with a number of our conference speakers, taking the pulse of mobile innovation and getting a more complete picture of how all the pieces fit … Continue reading “ViziApps, Springpad, LevelUp, & LoseIt: A Mobile Madness Preview”
Category: National
Seven MI Universities to Partner in Tech Transfer Talent Network
The University of Michigan’s tech transfer office will lead a new two-year, $2.4 million initiative to help state universities take advantage of local entrepreneurs and innovators in an effort to commercialize university technology. The Michigan Economic Development Corporation is funding the Tech Transfer Talent Network, and other member universities are Wayne State University, Michigan State University, … Continue reading “Seven MI Universities to Partner in Tech Transfer Talent Network”
Dendreon Stock Tumbles As Company Projects ‘Moderate’ Sales Growth
Dendreon is finding out just how much investors love the precision of hard facts, and how irritated they can get with the squishiness of communicating in adjectives. The Seattle-based biotech company (NASDAQ: [[ticker:DNDN]]) saw its stock plummet about 21 percent today after saying in its quarterly financial update that it expects only “moderate” sales growth … Continue reading “Dendreon Stock Tumbles As Company Projects ‘Moderate’ Sales Growth”
Quiet Logistics’ Robotics Service Grows As Luxury E-Commerce Booms
Not long ago I wrote about how luxury retailers’ increased willingness to sell online has helped foster a new generation of fashion-focused Internet startups (particularly from Harvard Business School). But that categorical shift has also strengthened one local startup that customers wouldn’t necessarily notice when shopping online. Andover, MA-headquartered Quiet Logistics got its start in … Continue reading “Quiet Logistics’ Robotics Service Grows As Luxury E-Commerce Booms”
San Diego Tech Roundup: Entropic, Xpenser, OneRoof Energy, & More
—A federal bankruptcy court in Delaware has tentatively approved a $65 million bid from San Diego’s Entropic Communications (NASDAQ: [[ticker:ENTR]]) to acquire system-on-a-chip technology that Trident Microsystems developed for its set-top box business. Entropic, which develops technology for connected home systems, had initially offered $55 million when the arrangement was disclosed in January. In a … Continue reading “San Diego Tech Roundup: Entropic, Xpenser, OneRoof Energy, & More”
Killing Your Startup By Listening to Customers
The art of entrepreneurship and the science of Customer Development is not just getting out of the building and listening to prospective customers. It’s understanding who to listen to and why. Five Cups of Coffee I got a call from Satish, one of my ex-students, last week. He got my attention when he said, “Following … Continue reading “Killing Your Startup By Listening to Customers”
What Dell’s Purchase of Bain-Backed AppAssure Means for Big Data
A big acquisition in data protection is reverberating across the tech ecosystems of storage and backup—including in Boston. Dell (NASDAQ: [[ticker:DELL]]) said on Friday that it has acquired AppAssure Software, a data and application protection company based in Reston, VA, for an undisclosed sum. AppAssure opened a Boston-area office late last year and is backed … Continue reading “What Dell’s Purchase of Bain-Backed AppAssure Means for Big Data”
Vaultive Raises $10M, Emerges from Stealth in Cloud Data Security
New York-based Vaultive, a provider of encryption technology for Internet data, announced today it raised $10 million in a Series A round led by .406 Ventures, Harmony Partners, and New Science Ventures. Vaultive’s technology is designed to help big companies comply with increasingly stringent regulations on information security. The company, founded in late 2008, previously … Continue reading “Vaultive Raises $10M, Emerges from Stealth in Cloud Data Security”
Bruce Booth, a LifeSciVC Shining Some Much-Needed Light on Biotech
Techies who want to learn about high-tech venture capital learn quickly they must read blogs by guys like Fred Wilson and Brad Feld. They are insiders who speak with clear, consistent, and insightful voices about an otherwise opaque little corner of the investing world. Nobody has ever performed this kind of service for biotech venture … Continue reading “Bruce Booth, a LifeSciVC Shining Some Much-Needed Light on Biotech”
Indivly, Swoop, and Vivox: Three Boston Startups to Watch
Getting caught up on some startup news around town… Two new ones emerging from semi-stealth mode in the field of content-linked deals, and one gaming and communications veteran going direct-to-consumer for the first time. —Indivly is a social Web startup led by founder John Clark, perhaps best known as half of the creative team behind … Continue reading “Indivly, Swoop, and Vivox: Three Boston Startups to Watch”
What If Your Next TV Is a Tablet?
It is a dark time for the TV rebellion. Although legions of cord-cutters have abandoned their cable subscriptions, Hollywood troops have driven the early TV-technology startups from their hidden Silicon Valley bases and pursued them across the Internet. Evading the dreaded cable and satellite companies, a group of freedom fighters led by Boxee, Netflix, and … Continue reading “What If Your Next TV Is a Tablet?”
SocEnt Weekend: Business Ideas That Can Make a Difference
When they set out to start a business, plenty of entrepreneurs hope to change some slice of the world by solving a problem, making their customers happy, and giving people jobs along the way. And that’s plenty of work on its own. But some companies, says longtime mobile entrepreneur Michael “Luni” Libes, see business as … Continue reading “SocEnt Weekend: Business Ideas That Can Make a Difference”
Crescendo Bioscience Takes Arthritis Into the World of Hard Data
Medicine can still sometimes look awfully primitive, despite all the whiz-bang developments in biotech. Take rheumatoid arthritis. Scientists don’t know what causes it, and clinicians have little hard data to help them diagnose it or measure patients’ progress over time. But that’s starting to change, based on a new molecular test from South San Francisco-based … Continue reading “Crescendo Bioscience Takes Arthritis Into the World of Hard Data”
Enanta, Satori, Vertex & More of the Week’s Life Sciences Newsmakers
Drug development news was big this week in the Boston life sciences scene. —Watertown-based Enanta Pharmaceuticals inked a lucrative partnership with Novartis to co-develop an experimental hepatitis C drug. The deal gives Enanta $34 million in upfront cash, and potentially $440 million in milestone payments if the drug reaches certain goals, as well as royalties … Continue reading “Enanta, Satori, Vertex & More of the Week’s Life Sciences Newsmakers”
Z2Live Acquires Big Sandwich, Sees More Console Guys Going Mobile
If you wanted to illustrate the massive changes rippling through the video-game industry, you couldn’t do much better than Z2Live‘s acquisition of Vancouver, BC-based Big Sandwich Games. As a standalone studio, Big Sandwich was mostly focused on games for the traditional at-home consoles like the PlayStation or Xbox. In that side of the business, a … Continue reading “Z2Live Acquires Big Sandwich, Sees More Console Guys Going Mobile”
San Diego Life Sciences Roundup: Receptos, Vital Therapies, & More
Funding deals accounted for much of the life sciences news over the past week. We’ve got it all wrapped up here. —San Diego-based Receptos, which is using the structure of cellular G protein-coupled receptors to develop drug candidates for autoimmune therapies, has secured $10.8 million in a funding round that could be as much as … Continue reading “San Diego Life Sciences Roundup: Receptos, Vital Therapies, & More”
Xconomist of the Week: Rich Sheridan and the Business Value of Joy
[Corrected 2/24/12, 10:00 am. See below.] The first thing you notice upon walking into Menlo Innovations, a small open-plan office in Ann Arbor, MI, is how hard everyone is working. There is a hive-like focus and intensity, so much so that the 40-member staff seems oblivious to the presence of a stranger with a notebook and … Continue reading “Xconomist of the Week: Rich Sheridan and the Business Value of Joy”
Vertex Stays in HepC Game, as All-Oral Combo Passes Small Study
Vertex Pharmaceuticals, some investors theorized in recent months, was about to be left in the dust by other companies with more effective drugs in development against hepatitis C. Today, Vertex released some clinical trial data which just might make some folks wait a minute before declaring this story to be “Game Over.” The Cambridge, MA-based … Continue reading “Vertex Stays in HepC Game, as All-Oral Combo Passes Small Study”
Glympse Keeps it Simple, Racks up 2.5M Users
When building a technology product, a lot of people fall into the trap of larding it up with a boatload of features. Former Microsofties Bryan Trussel and Steve Miller, who co-founded the location-sharing app Glympse, know that impulse well. When they built their first prototype, they filled it with little tricks and widgets. It could … Continue reading “Glympse Keeps it Simple, Racks up 2.5M Users”
Truveris Adds $10M in Oversubscribed Series B
New York-based Truveris said today it has raised $10 million in funding from New Leaf Venture Partners, Tribeca Venture Partners, New Atlantic Ventures, and First Round Capital. The company, which makes a software-as-service platform for health insurers, previously raised $3.8 million in a Series A round a year ago. Truveris’ products allow health insurers and … Continue reading “Truveris Adds $10M in Oversubscribed Series B”
FirstFuel Takes In $10M for Building Energy Analytics
Lexington, MA-based FirstFuel Software announced today that it snapped up $10 million in Series A financing, led by Rockport Capital and joined by existing investors Nth Power and Battery Ventures. That comes atop a $2.4 million seed round the company raised last September. “The addition of RockPort Capital builds on the strength of our existing … Continue reading “FirstFuel Takes In $10M for Building Energy Analytics”
Seattle Genetics Gets New Commercial Boss for Early Days of Adcetris
[Update: 2/24/12, 11 am PT] Seattle Genetics is getting a new leader for the commercial side of its business, about six months after its first cancer drug hit the U.S. market. The Bothell, WA-based cancer drugmaker (NASDAQ: [[ticker:SGEN]]) said today that Chris Boerner, the former vice president of marketing, has been promoted to senior vice … Continue reading “Seattle Genetics Gets New Commercial Boss for Early Days of Adcetris”
Transparency Launches as Linux of Drug Development
When Tomasz Sablinski was working in pharmaceutical R&D, he was often frustrated by the demand for secrecy in the clinical trials process—a misdirected effort, he says, to keep competitors in the dark about what drug companies were up to. “The price you pay when you hide what you’re doing is you only get feedback from … Continue reading “Transparency Launches as Linux of Drug Development”
Solvate, backed by RRE Ventures and DFJ Gotham, to Shut Down on Mar. 1
Inability to scale is the culprit behind the pending demise of New York-based freelance talent search platform Solvate. In a note to users of Solvate, the five-year-old startup said it could not scale up the business “in its current configuration,” though it did not provide any details. The company had raised some $6.3 million since … Continue reading “Solvate, backed by RRE Ventures and DFJ Gotham, to Shut Down on Mar. 1”
Reinventing Biotech: Meet Corey Goodman, Kevin Starr & More April 3
When people think of innovation in biotech, it’s usually about the whiz-bang science behind new drugs. But after years of sticking to a pretty standard playbook, we’re now starting to see more creative thinking in the business models needed to attract investors who keep the industry afloat. This is one of the big questions of … Continue reading “Reinventing Biotech: Meet Corey Goodman, Kevin Starr & More April 3”
Intelligent.ly, Led by Balter & Hodges, Wants Boston to Learn New Tricks
At first I thought this might be a joke. Some fine wool pulled over the eyes of overworked, underslept journalists. The same week the “Bostlandia” video spoof comes out (shouldn’t it be Bostonia?) and there are all sorts of rumors flying around at Ruby Riot, surely this thing called “Intelligent.ly” isn’t for real. First of … Continue reading “Intelligent.ly, Led by Balter & Hodges, Wants Boston to Learn New Tricks”
Satori Snaps Up $15M for Alzheimer’s Drugs
A little more than 5 million people in the U.S. have Alzheimer’s disease, the numbers are climbing as baby boomers age, and pharma companies have never really come up with a good treatment. But now a group of venture capitalists are betting $15 million that a Cambridge, MA-based startup, Satori Pharmaceuticals, has found a better … Continue reading “Satori Snaps Up $15M for Alzheimer’s Drugs”
Tableau Taking More Steps Toward Possible IPO
Updated 12pm Pacific 2/23 Tableau Software is taking more steps toward a possible initial public offering of its stock, a move the data visualization company has publicly entertained for some time. The nearly 10-year-old company doesn’t seem to be in a rush, however, with its venture capital backer saying next year is the timeframe being … Continue reading “Tableau Taking More Steps Toward Possible IPO”
When the Magic Came: How Xpenser’s Web App Turned into Startup Gold
As San Diego’s point man for Xconomy, I must say I admire the xtremely hip name of Xpenser, a startup that helps people track and manage their work-related expenses. Founder Parand “Tony” Darugar tells me the basic concept of the company came to him out of necessity in 2008, while he was a Yahoo director … Continue reading “When the Magic Came: How Xpenser’s Web App Turned into Startup Gold”
SE Michigan Startups Nab Pre-Seed, Microloan Funding
Ann Arbor SPARK and Wayne State University recently announced that eleven Southeast Michigan startups have received investments from the Michigan Pre-Seed Capital Fund and microloan awards from the Ann Arbor/Ypsilanti Local Development Financing Authority (LDFA). The investments are meant to help early-stage companies commercialize their technology. Three companies from TechTown’s business accelerator program received pre-seed … Continue reading “SE Michigan Startups Nab Pre-Seed, Microloan Funding”
Reinventing Fire, An Evening with Amory Lovins-In Photos
Out-of-towner Amory Lovins drew a packed audience to Kendall Square last Thursday for a chat about his vision for our energy future—and how it can be achieved with better economics, no new acts of Congress or government regulation, and no major shift in our lifestyles. Lovins—co-founder, chairman, and chief scientist of the Rocky Mountain Institute—co-authored … Continue reading “Reinventing Fire, An Evening with Amory Lovins-In Photos”
AppSense Labs Competes with Google and Facebook for Tech Talent in NY
On the hunt for techies with entrepreneurial spirit, enterprise software developer AppSense announced today it formed a research division that has its epicenter at the company’s New York headquarters. AppSense Labs, as it is called, aspires to do more than hire new experts; it aims to disrupt the way the company’s technology is developed by … Continue reading “AppSense Labs Competes with Google and Facebook for Tech Talent in NY”
Zipcar and Fontinalis Bet $13.7M on Car-Sharing Startup Wheelz
The world of car-sharing just got more interesting. Zipcar (NASDAQ: [[ticker:ZIP]]), the Cambridge, MA-based pioneer in the sector, said today it has led a $13.7 million Series A investment in Wheelz, a Palo Alto, CA-based car-sharing startup that targets college students. Detroit-based Fontinalis Partners, a transportation tech investment firm, also participated in the round. As … Continue reading “Zipcar and Fontinalis Bet $13.7M on Car-Sharing Startup Wheelz”
InDi, Lee Hood’s Vision for Spotting Cancer in Blood, Snags $10M
Biotech pioneer Leroy Hood has spent years outlining a vision of finding networks of proteins in the blood that can offer an early warning sign of cancer on the move. Now the startup that Hood and Caltech’s Jim Heath founded to pursue that idea, Seattle-based Integrated Diagnostics, has raised another $10 million to turn it … Continue reading “InDi, Lee Hood’s Vision for Spotting Cancer in Blood, Snags $10M”
UW’s Matsuoka Stays at Nest, Brain Research Center Gets New Director
Multi-talented scientist Yoky Matsuoka is making it official: She won’t return to the University of Washington, choosing instead to focus on her new job as vice president of technology for Silicon Valley “smart thermostat” startup Nest. It’s a loss for the UW computer science and engineering department, but not a huge surprise. Matsuoka—a past winner … Continue reading “UW’s Matsuoka Stays at Nest, Brain Research Center Gets New Director”
Brand People for Startup Boards: A Q&A with NY Investor Michael Duda
Michael Duda uses the word fun quite a bit when talking about what he does. It’s not hard to see why. He’s co-founder of Consigliere Brand Capital, a New York-based investment and consulting firm focused crafting great brands from the ground up. Duda comes from the advertising agency Deutsch, and is joined by others from … Continue reading “Brand People for Startup Boards: A Q&A with NY Investor Michael Duda”
GreatPoint, Enanta, NextView, & More Boston Dealmakers
VC, cleantech, and biotech players populated the New England deal news this week. —Cambridge, MA-based coal-to-natural-gas company GreatPoint Energy formed a $1.25 billion partnership with China Wanxiang Holdings, according to a report in Dow Jones VentureWire. The deal also included $420 million in a Series D investment. —On-Q-ity, the Waltham, MA-based cancer diagnostics startup announced … Continue reading “GreatPoint, Enanta, NextView, & More Boston Dealmakers”
LiveSnip Nabs Startup Weekend Detroit Win Among A Talented Crowd
When I walked into the Madison Building Sunday night for the final round of Startup Weekend Detroit pitches, I worried for a moment that I might be the oldest person in the room. As MGMT and Deadmau5 throbbed from the auditorium’s speakers, groups of mostly male twentysomethings huddled in groups, intently pecking away on various … Continue reading “LiveSnip Nabs Startup Weekend Detroit Win Among A Talented Crowd”
Is Movik Networks the Next Starent? A Chat with Highland VC Sean Dalton
Here in Boston we can get a little provincial. It’s us against them, East Coast vs. West Coast, Boston vs. New York, the list goes on. This focus on local applies to the tech community as much as anything else: Who’s leading the resurgence of Boston startups? Why don’t Boston VCs invest in more local … Continue reading “Is Movik Networks the Next Starent? A Chat with Highland VC Sean Dalton”
San Diego Tech Roundup: EvoNexus, AirHop, & Beyster’s Gift to UMich
—CommNexus, the non-profit group for San Diego’s tech industry, held an open house for the new downtown EvoNexus incubator, which is intended to spur a proliferation of tech startups in the downtown area. While a baker’s dozen of startups are settling into the EvoNexus operation at 101 W. Broadway, companies like Take Lessons, Stay Classy, … Continue reading “San Diego Tech Roundup: EvoNexus, AirHop, & Beyster’s Gift to UMich”
University of Michigan Recognizes Beyster for $15M Gift
The University of Michigan Board of Regents agreed to name its computer science and engineering building the “Bob and Betty Beyster Building” in recognition of a $15 million gift from J. Robert Beyster, 87, who founded SAIC (NYSE: [[ticker:SAI]]) in San Diego 43 years ago. Beyster, who also is a San Diego Xconomist, received his … Continue reading “University of Michigan Recognizes Beyster for $15M Gift”
Enanta Enters HepC Big Leagues, With $34M Upfront From Novartis
Watertown, MA-based Enanta Pharmaceuticals just took a step ahead in the hepatitis C drug development derby. Enanta said today it has secured an exclusive deal with Novartis to co-develop an experimental hepatitis C drug, dubbed EDP-239, that’s designed to work by blocking a protein called NS5A. The deal provides Enanta with $34 million in upfront … Continue reading “Enanta Enters HepC Big Leagues, With $34M Upfront From Novartis”
Mobilisafe Study: Outdated OSs, Vanishing Devices Hamper Security
As if they didn’t have enough headaches to deal with, here’s some fresh fear, uncertainty, and doubt for small-business IT guys: Employees are not going to stop hauling their smartphones to work, and you probably don’t have a good idea of just who is tapping into your system. That’s the word from Seattle startup Mobilisafe, … Continue reading “Mobilisafe Study: Outdated OSs, Vanishing Devices Hamper Security”
Google Transit: A Search Giant Remaps Public Transportation
You can’t talk to a Googler for very long without hearing them recite the company’s mission statement: to organize the world’s information and make it universally accessible and useful. Not only does it sound noble, but it’s an all-purpose answer for the sorts of nosey questions tech journalists pose, like why Google would want to … Continue reading “Google Transit: A Search Giant Remaps Public Transportation”
Take the Interview Takes Manhattan in Strategic and Practical Maneuver
In a strategic play to be closer to existing investors, potential backers, and her own personal support system, Danielle Weinblatt, the CEO of Take the Interview, has moved her startup from Cambridge, MA, to New York City and is on the hunt for more funding. Take the Interview has developed a platform for recruiters to … Continue reading “Take the Interview Takes Manhattan in Strategic and Practical Maneuver”
Join The Group!
For an entrepreneur, figuring out how to get things done today with very little available capital is the key to successfully keeping his/her latest idea percolating. In the past, venture firms were eager to support early stage concepts because they could take a substantial stake, help control the decisions and directions taken by the company, … Continue reading “Join The Group!”
Oh, And One More Thing: A Wowser Moment in DNA Sequencing
[Updated and corrected, 10:15 am PT] Steve Jobs used to love being on stage, getting the audience in the palm of his hand. Famously, he’d say, “Oh, and one more thing,” to build suspense right before delivering some stunning line about a new Apple product. Last week, that same showmanship was at work in a … Continue reading “Oh, And One More Thing: A Wowser Moment in DNA Sequencing”
Applied Hope
The early bioneer Bill McLarney was stirring a vat of algae in his Costa Rica research center when a brassy North American lady strode in. What, she demanded, was he doing stirring a vat of green goo when what the world really needs is love? “There’s theoretical love,” Bill replied, “and then there’s applied love”—and kept on stirring. … Continue reading “Applied Hope”
Xconomy’s Timmerman Wins National Journalism Award
Xconomy’s national biotech editor, Luke Timmerman, has won a national award for column-writing from the Society of American Business Editors and Writers. It’s the first national journalism award for Xconomy, which was founded in 2007 and now operates a six-city network of news sites focused on business innovation. The award is for Luke’s weekly BioBeat … Continue reading “Xconomy’s Timmerman Wins National Journalism Award”
Cell Therapeutics Stock Rises on EU Recommendation for Lymphoma Drug
The roller coaster known as Cell Therapeutics is back on the ascent today. The Seattle-based biotech company (NASDAQ: [[ticker:CTIC]]) said its experimental lymphoma drug pixantrone (Pixuvri) has received a positive recommendation from the European Medicines Agency’s Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use. This is one of the key steps in the European regulatory process … Continue reading “Cell Therapeutics Stock Rises on EU Recommendation for Lymphoma Drug”