Health care reform discussions almost always revolve around health insurance, as if care and insurance are synonymous. Understanding the difference can lead to the delivery of better care for less money, and help break the health care reform logjam in Congress. An amendment introduced this week by U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell to America’s Healthy Future … Continue reading “It’s About Health Care, Not Health Insurance”
Category: National
Robonica President, an Ex-Hasbro Exec, Hopes to Put Boston Back on Toy Industry Map with Rolling Robots
Boston is home to a huge cluster of hot game companies, from Harmonix to Turbine to 38 Studios. But you might be surprised to learn just how deep the region’s gaming history goes. If Xconomy had been around a century ago, we probably would have been writing about Parker Brothers, which got its start in … Continue reading “Robonica President, an Ex-Hasbro Exec, Hopes to Put Boston Back on Toy Industry Map with Rolling Robots”
Amazon Plows Ahead in E-Books, Electronics, and Retail—An Update
For some reason, it has been even harder than usual to keep up with Amazon (NASDAQ: [[ticker:AMZN]]) this month. Here’s a quick roundup of the week’s most interesting news regarding the Internet giant’s place in the e-book and retail world. —Every day, it seems like a new e-book reader comes on the market to compete … Continue reading “Amazon Plows Ahead in E-Books, Electronics, and Retail—An Update”
CEO Chase Franklin on Daptiv’s “Tremendous Potential”—and an Offer He Couldn’t Refuse
On Monday, Seattle-based Daptiv, a maker of project management software, announced Chase Franklin has joined the firm as its new chief executive. Franklin, the former co-founder and CEO of Qpass (now owned by Amdocs), succeeds Jeff Pancottine, who stepped down as Daptiv’s CEO this summer. I reached Franklin by e-mail this week to hear his … Continue reading “CEO Chase Franklin on Daptiv’s “Tremendous Potential”—and an Offer He Couldn’t Refuse”
A123Systems Pulls Off Big IPO, PrimeraDx Grabs $20M, Conduit Labs Collects $3M, and More Boston-Area Deals News
The big news this week was obviously the A123Systems IPO, but quite a few other New England tech and life sciences firms had deals to report as well. —Mansfield, MA-based PrimeraDx—a developer of automated lab equipment spun off by Providence, RI-based Sention four years ago—raised $20 million in a Series C financing round. New investor … Continue reading “A123Systems Pulls Off Big IPO, PrimeraDx Grabs $20M, Conduit Labs Collects $3M, and More Boston-Area Deals News”
Ansel Adams Meets Apple: The Camera Phone Craze in Photography
[Corrected 9/28/09: Chase Jarvis is based in Seattle, not San Francisco. I regret the error and apologize to our Seattle readers!] Seattle-based commercial photographer Chase Jarvis is known for his arresting, color-saturated images of people in motion—skiing, swimming, somersaulting. He’s also known for (literally) trademarking the phrase “the best camera is the one you have … Continue reading “Ansel Adams Meets Apple: The Camera Phone Craze in Photography”
HP’s New High-End Printer Bypasses the PC, Connects Directly to the Web
After two years of project development, Hewlett-Packard is preparing for the official sales launch of a new inkjet printer that the technology giant bills as the world’s first “Web-connected home printer,” a peripheral that cuts the cord to the PC by connecting directly to the Internet. The Palo Alto, CA-based company says the device, which … Continue reading “HP’s New High-End Printer Bypasses the PC, Connects Directly to the Web”
Lee Hood’s New Idea, Calypso Scores $50M, Novo’s Historic Mistake Pays Off for Seattle, & More Seattle-Area Life Sciences News
This week featured the best run of positive news for Seattle biotech I’ve seen this year. —Seattle-based Calypso Medical Technologies raised the biggest venture capital round of the year in the Northwest, pulling in $50 million. Calypso, which sells a device that pinpoints radiation therapy for prostate cancer so it doesn’t go off track and … Continue reading “Lee Hood’s New Idea, Calypso Scores $50M, Novo’s Historic Mistake Pays Off for Seattle, & More Seattle-Area Life Sciences News”
A123Systems’ IPO Gives Shareholders a Big Jolt
[Corrected 9:05 a.m. 9/25/09, see below] In a performance reminiscent of the frothy days of the dot-com boom, stock in Watertown, MA-based lithium ion battery maker A123Systems (NASDAQ: [[ticker:AONE]]) soared more than 50 percent in its first day of trading yesterday. It’s been years since a New England technology firm burst out of the IPO … Continue reading “A123Systems’ IPO Gives Shareholders a Big Jolt”
Shareaholic Collects Angel Funding Round
Shareaholic founder Jay Meattle was in touch today to say that his Cambridge startup has raised its first round of angel funding. Back in July, I reviewed Shareaholic’s popular browser plugin, which makes it easy to save or share material found on the Web via common social networking, social bookmarking, and news aggregator services. Meattle … Continue reading “Shareaholic Collects Angel Funding Round”
Top 10 Takeaways from WTIA’s Healthcare-IT Event: Follow the Money, Startup Opps, & More
The role of information technology in healthcare reform is such a huge, sprawling topic that it’s hard to make any real progress in just an hour or two of discussions. Yet that’s just what transpired at a stellar event last night called “Healthcare-IT—Innovations That Will Transform Healthcare Now and in the Future.” It all took … Continue reading “Top 10 Takeaways from WTIA’s Healthcare-IT Event: Follow the Money, Startup Opps, & More”
SAIC Officially Relocates HQ to McLean VA
SAIC’s plans to move its corporate headquarters from San Diego, where the company was founded in 1969, to McLean, VA, may rank as one of the defense contractor’s worst-kept secrets. Today the company also known as Science Applications International Corp. made it official. In a statement issued by the company, new CEO Walt Havenstein says, … Continue reading “SAIC Officially Relocates HQ to McLean VA”
Investors Inject $51M B Round into Zogenix to Combat Migraines
San Diego-based Zogenix has closed a $51 million equity financing to fund the planned January 2010 launch of its needle-free system for delivering a drug for serious headaches, according to the company. The commercialization dollars from the Series B round of preferred stock will fill a funding void the firm faced when it cancelled its … Continue reading “Investors Inject $51M B Round into Zogenix to Combat Migraines”
Dendreon to Turn in Provenge Application to FDA in Mid-November
Dendreon has been saying for months that it plans to file its amended application to the FDA in the fourth quarter, and today it got a little more specific, saying it expects to complete that job by mid-November. That means it should be on target to start selling sipuleucel-T (Provenge) to U.S. prostate cancer patients … Continue reading “Dendreon to Turn in Provenge Application to FDA in Mid-November”
A123Systems IPO Massively Exceeds Estimates
[Updated 4:15 p.m. 9/24/09 with A123System’ closing stock price for the day, see below] A123Systems, the Watertown, MA-based developer of advanced lithium-ion batteries for cars and power tools, said this morning that it has priced its initial public offering of 27.5 million shares of common stock at $13.50 per share—way above the $8 to $9.50 … Continue reading “A123Systems IPO Massively Exceeds Estimates”
Sirtris’ Westphal and Collaborators Launching New Nonprofit to Help People Live Longer
Christoph Westphal, the CEO of biotech firm Sirtris, says that he and several of his colleagues are forming a new nonprofit group in the Boston area called the Healthy Lifespan Institute. The institute is being formed to research non-pharmaceutical measures that people can take to live longer and healthier lives and to educate people about … Continue reading “Sirtris’ Westphal and Collaborators Launching New Nonprofit to Help People Live Longer”
Peter Brooke and Terry McGuire Team Up for Unprecedented Discussion of Venture Capital and Private Equity—Sign Up Fast for the Next Xconomy Forum
As the world digs out from under the effects of one of the greatest economic crises in history, there are few people who can survey the financial landscape and provide experience, perspective, and wisdom the way Peter Brooke can. The chairman and founder of Advent International and before that the founder of TA Associates, Brooke … Continue reading “Peter Brooke and Terry McGuire Team Up for Unprecedented Discussion of Venture Capital and Private Equity—Sign Up Fast for the Next Xconomy Forum”
Swine Flu Could Benefit Some Biomedical Companies, Local Biotechs Are Looking Healthier, Arena Happy With Obesity Drug Results, & More San Diego Life Sciences News
As the flu season nears, it’s still unclear how severe the H1N1 strain of swine flu will be. But several San Diego companies are nevertheless riding a wave of investor enthusiasm for the public companies that could benefit. Get that and other biotech news here. —The financial health of San Diego’s public life sciences companies … Continue reading “Swine Flu Could Benefit Some Biomedical Companies, Local Biotechs Are Looking Healthier, Arena Happy With Obesity Drug Results, & More San Diego Life Sciences News”
Biotech Pioneer Steve Gillis on Life as a VC, How Today’s Entrepreneurs Can Make It, and Seattle’s Future in Life Sciences (Part 2)
Yesterday, we ran the first installment of an extended interview with Steve Gillis, the biotechnology pioneer who’s now a managing director at Arch Venture Partners. Today, we have the second half of the conversation, in which Gillis talks more about ways biotech entrepreneurs can adjust to the tough fundraising climate, and Seattle’s realistic assets as … Continue reading “Biotech Pioneer Steve Gillis on Life as a VC, How Today’s Entrepreneurs Can Make It, and Seattle’s Future in Life Sciences (Part 2)”
Life Tech and Illumina, Two San Diego Biotech Giants, in Patent Dispute
In what is shaping up as the battle of San Diego’s biotechnology tools titans, Life Technologies (NASDAQ: [[ticker:LIFE]]) has filed a patent-infringement suit against rival Illumina, claiming that some of Illumina’s best-selling genetic-sequencing products violate Life Tech’s intellectual property. The suit, filed in U.S. District Court in Delaware, claims that certain Illumina products, including the … Continue reading “Life Tech and Illumina, Two San Diego Biotech Giants, in Patent Dispute”
Five Big Questions For Dendreon’s Analyst Day
Dendreon shocked the cancer research world back in April, proving for the first time in a major clinical trial that a drug which actively stimulates the immune system can be effective against tumors. Now the Seattle-based company has to wrestle with a whole new set of challenges to make sure it fully exploits the potential … Continue reading “Five Big Questions For Dendreon’s Analyst Day”
Ze-gen Ramps Up its Waste Gasification Process: Lessons from a Clean-Energy Startup
Xconomy has been around for 27 months now, long enough to watch quite a few of our fellow Boston-area startups expand, deal with serious challenges, and start to get their technologies out into the world. One of them is Ze-gen, a waste gasification company that I first visited in August 2007. This week I got … Continue reading “Ze-gen Ramps Up its Waste Gasification Process: Lessons from a Clean-Energy Startup”
Ignition Partners Talk Cloud Computing and Virtualization—A Crucial Part of the VC Firm’s Strategy
Now that the media craze around cloud computing seems to have died down just a bit, I thought it would be a good time to take a considered look at what one of the Northwest’s most prominent venture capital firms is working on in this space, which is having increasing influence in every area of … Continue reading “Ignition Partners Talk Cloud Computing and Virtualization—A Crucial Part of the VC Firm’s Strategy”
Genzyme Says Supplies, Sales of Two Enzyme Drugs Will Be Even Lower Than Previously Predicted
When Cambridge, MA-based Genzyme (NASDAQ: [[ticker:GENZ]]) shut down its Allston, MA, bioreactor plant in June after discovering viral contamination, it was clear that there would be worldwide shortages of its best-selling enzyme replacement therapies, agalsidase beta (Fabrazyme) and imiglucerase (Cerezyme), and that there would be a hit to the company’s bottom line. The company got … Continue reading “Genzyme Says Supplies, Sales of Two Enzyme Drugs Will Be Even Lower Than Previously Predicted”
The San Diego Biotech Survival Index: Local Firms Make Strong Rebound In First Half of 2009
When Xconomy published its first analysis of the financial health of San Diego’s publicly traded biotech companies last November, half of the nation’s 248 unprofitable biotechs were running on fumes, with less than a year’s worth of cash in the bank. A lot of predictable, painful cuts have followed. Yet a majority of San Diego’s … Continue reading “The San Diego Biotech Survival Index: Local Firms Make Strong Rebound In First Half of 2009”
Four Boston Startups Make Their DEMO Debuts in San Diego
Company presentations and new product launches officially began yesterday in San Diego at the “launchpad for emerging technology” otherwise known as the DEMOfall 09 conference. More than 550 demonstrators, attendees, and others have registered for the three-day event, according to organizers. In the main event that ends today, company founders get 6 minutes on stage … Continue reading “Four Boston Startups Make Their DEMO Debuts in San Diego”
Paul Allen’s Digeo Bought by Arris for $20M
Kirkland, WA-based Digeo, a 10-year-old home entertainment company backed by Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen, has been sold to Arris, a broadband communications firm based in Suwanee, GA, for about $20 million in cash. Digeo is known for its high-definition digital video recorder, called Moxi. The acquisition gives Arris expertise, intellectual property, and talent in video … Continue reading “Paul Allen’s Digeo Bought by Arris for $20M”
Humedica Wants to Dose U.S. Healthcare Crisis with Clinical Analytics, Raises $30M from Investors
Imagine a national repository of detailed information on patient populations organized by their disease types, treatments received, and other metrics—similar to a U.S. Census for healthcare. Hospitals could use this trove of data to track the quality and costs of care. Pharmaceutical companies could gain new insight into how their products are consumed. Humedica, a … Continue reading “Humedica Wants to Dose U.S. Healthcare Crisis with Clinical Analytics, Raises $30M from Investors”
Biotech Pioneer Steve Gillis on Life as a VC, How Today’s Entrepreneurs Can Make It, and Seattle’s Future in Life Sciences (Part 1)
Most Seattleites would probably list Bill Gates, Paul Allen, Howard Schultz, and Jeff Bezos when asked to name local entrepreneurs who built not just successful companies but entirely new industries. But they’d be forgetting Steve Gillis. Gillis would have to be considered something like the Fifth Beatle in a group like that—you can walk into … Continue reading “Biotech Pioneer Steve Gillis on Life as a VC, How Today’s Entrepreneurs Can Make It, and Seattle’s Future in Life Sciences (Part 1)”
Wireless 2.0: Vicious to Virtuous?
In the mid 1990s, three on-ramps led us on to the information superhighway: AOL, Prodigy and CompuServe. For a monthly fee, users were served up a customized version of the Web offered by one of these network providers. They took a walled garden approach, offering applications only through their services and limiting e-mails within their … Continue reading “Wireless 2.0: Vicious to Virtuous?”
Goby—Exploring the Web’s Depths So You Can Explore the World
It’s Friday, the weekend is beckoning, and you’ve got your Web browser open. As much as we’d love it if you spent the weekend reading Xconomy, there’s now a less sedentary option, from a Boston startup called Goby. It’s a search engine designed specifically to help you find fun things to do out in the … Continue reading “Goby—Exploring the Web’s Depths So You Can Explore the World”
Gov. Gregoire “Committed” to Biotech Fund While Juggling DC Health Reform, Economy
Gov. Chris Gregoire has been in the thick of the health care reform talks in the other Washington. To hear her tell the story, she has been talking with President Obama’s top health policy aide, Nancy Ann DeParle, U.S. Health Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, and one of the leading Senators on health … Continue reading “Gov. Gregoire “Committed” to Biotech Fund While Juggling DC Health Reform, Economy”
MeLLmo Raises $4M to Expand its Market for Mobile Business Intelligence Software
MeLLmo, a Del Mar, CA, startup developing graphics and visualization software, has raised $4 million from private investors to accelerate its penetration in the market for 3G mobile devices. The secondary round means MeLLmo has now raised a total of $10 million from its angel investors since the company was founded 21 months ago. “I … Continue reading “MeLLmo Raises $4M to Expand its Market for Mobile Business Intelligence Software”
Microsoft Buys Interactive Supercomputing
Microsoft (NASDAQ:[[ticker:MSFT]]) confirmed yesterday on its Windows Server Division Weblog that the company has purchased the technology assets of Interactive Supercomuting (ISC), a Waltham, MA, developer of parallel computing software. Financial details of the acquisition weren’t revealed. The Microsoft blog says that ISC’s CEO, Bill Blake, and his firm’s technical experts are moving into the … Continue reading “Microsoft Buys Interactive Supercomputing”
San Diego’s MindTouch Uses Open Source to Develop Software—and Strategy
Aaron Fulkerson begins his story about San Diego-based MindTouch in the middle. He says MindTouch today is a Web-based business collaboration and integration platform, with 20 million users and hundreds of thousands of active installations. The company’s software is meant to help engineering groups, business teams, and others collaborate on projects by sharing documents, information, … Continue reading “San Diego’s MindTouch Uses Open Source to Develop Software—and Strategy”
The Seattle Biotech Survival Index: Companies Bounce Back in Mid-2009
Seattle’s biotechnology industry is in significantly better financial shape than it was six months ago. The turnaround has been nothing short of amazing, thanks to a frantic run of dealmaking, cost-cutting, and remarkable clinical trial results that have made local companies some of the best-performing stocks this year on the NASDAQ. Indeed, while our first … Continue reading “The Seattle Biotech Survival Index: Companies Bounce Back in Mid-2009”
Alibaba Brings Entrepreneur Competition to Seattle; Contenders To Vie for $100K in Prizes
‘Tis the season for startup-pitching events. Last week, it was the Zino Society’s investment forum in Seattle. Today it’s the DEMOfall09 conference in San Diego, where four Northwest companies are presenting. And tonight there is nPost’s networking and demo event for tech startups at the Columbia City Theater in South Seattle. But there is also … Continue reading “Alibaba Brings Entrepreneur Competition to Seattle; Contenders To Vie for $100K in Prizes”
Free & Clear Acquired for $100M-Plus, Calypso Gets $50M, Ensequence Ensnares $20M, & More Seattle-Area Deals News
The last official week of summer brought a slew of Northwest deals, to go along with today’s heat wave. Two of the year’s biggest financings happened in tech and life sciences, along with a big acquisition in healthcare, while a host of smaller deals went down in software, digital media, and advertising—and one company inched … Continue reading “Free & Clear Acquired for $100M-Plus, Calypso Gets $50M, Ensequence Ensnares $20M, & More Seattle-Area Deals News”
New England’s Vizit Turns the Digital Photo Frame from a Dumb Display into a Sophisticated Media Hub
The digital photo frame is one of those consumer-electronics categories that seems perpetually poised to take off, but never quite gets airborne. I bought a Ceiva frame for my grandmother back in 2001—it plugged into a phone line and downloaded new pictures from the Ceiva website every night at 3 a.m. Today, things are pretty … Continue reading “New England’s Vizit Turns the Digital Photo Frame from a Dumb Display into a Sophisticated Media Hub”
Lee Hood’s New Idea, Integrative Diagnostics for Early Cancer Detection, Raises $7.5M
[Update: 09/21/09, 6:27 pm. See below.] Leroy Hood’s new idea for a company that detects cancer at its earliest, most treatable stages in the bloodstream has gotten some venture capital after a year of effort. Seattle-based Integrative Diagnostics has secured $7.5 million out of a $30 million equity round, according to a filing with the … Continue reading “Lee Hood’s New Idea, Integrative Diagnostics for Early Cancer Detection, Raises $7.5M”
Four Northwest Startups Presenting at DEMO: A Sneak Preview
The DEMOfall 09 conference, billed as “the launchpad for emerging technology,” kicks off today in San Diego, with company presentations and new product launches officially starting tomorrow morning. The Seattle and Portland, OR, metro areas are well-represented in the mix, with three Seattle-area startups and one Portland company scheduled to present their stuff. That’s all … Continue reading “Four Northwest Startups Presenting at DEMO: A Sneak Preview”
Chase Franklin, Former Qpass Founder and CEO, Takes Charge of Daptiv
Score one more for the Qpass mafia. Chase Franklin, the co-founder and former CEO of digital commerce firm Qpass (sold to Amdocs for $275 million in 2006), has joined Seattle-based Daptiv as its chief executive, effective immediately. Daptiv makes collaborative business software, and raised $9 million in Series B funding back in August 2008. Its … Continue reading “Chase Franklin, Former Qpass Founder and CEO, Takes Charge of Daptiv”
With $37M Investment and New Corporate Partner, San Diego’s Cibus to Develop Enhanced Crop Strains for Europe
Agricultural products company Makhteshim-Agan of Tel Aviv, Israel, says it has formed a strategic development alliance and is investing $37 million over the next five years in San Diego-based Cibus Global, a privately held agricultural biotech company founded in 2001. Under the joint development partnership, Cibus will use its proprietary technology (which offers an alternative … Continue reading “With $37M Investment and New Corporate Partner, San Diego’s Cibus to Develop Enhanced Crop Strains for Europe”
PrimeraDx Raises $20 Million More for Molecular Diagnostics Tool
PrimeraDx, a four-year-old startup in Mansfield, MA, said today it has closed a $20 million Series C financing round to continue work on automated lab equipment that, according to the company, could vastly speed up a host of medical tests. New investor CHL Medical Partners of Stamford, CT, led the round. Existing investors Abingworth, Burrill … Continue reading “PrimeraDx Raises $20 Million More for Molecular Diagnostics Tool”
Swine Flu Spurs Investor Interest in San Diego Biomedical Firms
San Diego’s Quidel, which signaled it would report better-than-expected quarterly results on Sept. 10, isn’t the only San Diego biomedical company to get a boost from worries about swine flu. At least four other companies with flu-related products or research programs also have seen their share prices surge since June 11, when World Health Organization … Continue reading “Swine Flu Spurs Investor Interest in San Diego Biomedical Firms”
Enology 101: Three Things Every Startup Should Learn from Seattle’s Zino Society
The results of last Thursday’s investment forum organized by the Zino Society are still wafting through the Seattle business community. Six finalists were chosen for two $50,000 investment prizes—Photon Machines, Enroute, and Giftango in the “tech” category, and MicroGreen Polymers, Harbor Wing, and Zero Crossing in the “non-tech” category. Zino founder and CEO Cathi Hatch … Continue reading “Enology 101: Three Things Every Startup Should Learn from Seattle’s Zino Society”
SAIC Leans Eastward, CEOs on Culture In a Word, SDG&E Leads Smart Grid Coalition, & Other San Diego BizTech News
Former BAE Systems executive Walt Havenstein takes over today as SAIC’s new CEO, but the big question is if the new boss will move the company’s headquarters from San Diego to McLean, VA. Get our roundup of San Diego’s biztech news here. —San Diego defense contractor SAIC (NYSE: [[ticker:SAI]]), which has been shifting some key … Continue reading “SAIC Leans Eastward, CEOs on Culture In a Word, SDG&E Leads Smart Grid Coalition, & Other San Diego BizTech News”
New VC in Boston: Arch Venture Partners Opens Small Office With Eye Toward Basic Science, Multidisciplinary Collaborations
[Updated, Sept. 22, 11:15 am. See end of story] You might have seen Alex Rives around town in the past year, particularly if you’ve spent time hanging out at coffee shops near MIT, Harvard Medical School, and other bastions of basic research. He’s the one invariably wearing dark jeans and a sport coat over a … Continue reading “New VC in Boston: Arch Venture Partners Opens Small Office With Eye Toward Basic Science, Multidisciplinary Collaborations”
Seattle Companies Most Flush With Venture Cash Are Still Cutting Jobs
When a startup company raises a big wad of venture capital, logic would say they are likely to hire a bunch more smart people. That may have been true in the past, but lately we’ve spotted a disturbing trend: Some of the Northwest companies with the biggest recent VC cash infusions have instead been cutting … Continue reading “Seattle Companies Most Flush With Venture Cash Are Still Cutting Jobs”
Akamai Aims to Help Companies Switch to Virtual Desktops
More and more big companies are supplying their employees not with standard desktop PCs and office software, but with “virtualized desktops.” If your company has made the switch, then your desktop may still look the same, but your office programs are actually running in your company’s data center, where a server is feeding a screen … Continue reading “Akamai Aims to Help Companies Switch to Virtual Desktops”