Category: National

Seattle Has the Greenest Drivers; What About Its Cleantech Companies?

Tired of city rankings yet? OK, I’ll be brief. So the July/August issue of Men’s Health, out this week, ranks Seattle #1 in “most environmentally conscious” drivers. Not that surprisingly, the Northwest did well in the survey overall: Portland, OR, and Spokane, WA, also made the top 10. The analysis of 100 American cities took … Continue reading “Seattle Has the Greenest Drivers; What About Its Cleantech Companies?”

Aspen Aerogels Scores $37 Million Venture Round For Nanotech Insulation

Aspen Aerogels, the maker of nanotechnology-based insulation products, has snagged $37 million in venture capital, according to a statement on the company’s website. The privately-held company, based in Northborough, MA, received the investment from Arcapita Ventures, Lehman Brothers Venture Partners, Reservoir Capital Group, and RockPort Capital Partners. The company says its aerogel-based insulation products are … Continue reading “Aspen Aerogels Scores $37 Million Venture Round For Nanotech Insulation”

Daily TIPS: Tech Policy Poll, Open-Source Healthcare, Tropical Disease, & More

Science Debate Needed, Tech Advisor Says Presidential candidates John McCain and Barack Obama ought to have a debate focusing on science and technology policy, a former White House technology advisor says. Mike Nelson, who worked in the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy under Bill Clinton, tells Wired‘s Threat Level blog that the … Continue reading “Daily TIPS: Tech Policy Poll, Open-Source Healthcare, Tropical Disease, & More”

Boston, Seattle Investors Pony Up for Twitter

Twitter, whose hybrid text messaging/social networking/microblogging service has made missives of 140 characters or less into the hottest new form of Internet communication, announced yesterday that it’s finally accepted a major venture funding round. The news couldn’t have come early enough for Twitter addicts, who have been increasingly frantic lately about the service’s frequent outages. … Continue reading “Boston, Seattle Investors Pony Up for Twitter”

Vlingo’s Latest App Gives Blackberrying Thumbs a Rest

Cambridge, MA, startup Vlingo announced back in February that it had built its speech recognition software into Yahoo’s oneSearch mobile search portal. Thanks to that collaboration, users of Blackberry smartphones could speak search terms into their devices rather than having to type them using the keypad. It worked great in our tests. And now Vlingo’s … Continue reading “Vlingo’s Latest App Gives Blackberrying Thumbs a Rest”

How EMC Turned Around Its Asia Business

Steve Leonard’s schedule for the next two weeks or so goes like this: Seoul, Tokyo, Hong Kong, Singapore, Mumbai, Bangalore, Singapore, London, Paris, London, Singapore, Australia. And for him, that’s not even that unusual—Leonard logs about 30,000 miles a month on airplanes, sleeping on a plane once or twice a week. “That’s part of being … Continue reading “How EMC Turned Around Its Asia Business”

Calypso Medical’s “GPS For the Body” Gaining Ground With Radiation Doctors

There might be a mutiny among radiation technicians at Swedish Medical Center if someone took away their Calypso machine. “Put it this way, you’d have some very unhappy people here,” says Timothy Mate, a radiation oncologist at the Seattle hospital who uses the system. It’s been almost two years since Seattle-based Calypso Medical Technologies won … Continue reading “Calypso Medical’s “GPS For the Body” Gaining Ground With Radiation Doctors”

Party Like It’s 2006: Seattle Ranks #1 in Tech Job Growth (and #9 in Tech Employment); Boston Ranks #6 (and #4)

The tech scene here is on the move. In comparison to other U.S. cities, Seattle has had the largest growth in tech jobs, and has moved up to #9 (from #10) in total number of tech workers. By comparison, Boston ranks #6 in number of jobs gained and #4 in total tech employment. That’s all … Continue reading “Party Like It’s 2006: Seattle Ranks #1 in Tech Job Growth (and #9 in Tech Employment); Boston Ranks #6 (and #4)”

University of Washington Hires Entrepreneur to Run Tech Transfer

The University of Washington has hired someone with business chops to run the office that transfers university inventions into the business world. Linden Rhoads, a serial entrepreneur at Seattle-based technology companies, will take over as Vice Provost for Technology Transfer on August 14, the university said in a statement. Rhoads has been involved in a … Continue reading “University of Washington Hires Entrepreneur to Run Tech Transfer”

Daily TIPs: Policing The Web, Geo-Engineering, Politics Online, & More

Conference Looks at Web’s Effect on Politics A two-day conference in New York this week is looking at the interaction of the Web and the political process, reports Ars Technica. At the Personal Democracy Forum’s confab, researchers presented tools for mapping and modeling the blogosphere. One speaker suggested that online fundraising is not as important … Continue reading “Daily TIPs: Policing The Web, Geo-Engineering, Politics Online, & More”

Geospiza Cuts Deal With Illumina, To Help Scientists Cope With Information Overload

Geospiza, a Seattle-based maker of software to support biological research, said today it is hitching its wagon to San Diego-based Illumina, a rising star in next-generation gene sequencing. Geospiza is joining Illumina Connect, a sort of referral service in which researchers who buy Illumina’s gene analysis machines are advised that Geospiza software can help them … Continue reading “Geospiza Cuts Deal With Illumina, To Help Scientists Cope With Information Overload”

InnovationRx: Getting Patients to Take Their Own Medicine, Literally

It’s one of the paradoxes of modern medicine in the United States. At the doctor’s office and the drugstore, we say we want prescription drugs. In fact, we spend more than $200 billion on them every year. Between 1994 and 2005, a period in which the U.S. population increased by only 9 percent, the number … Continue reading “InnovationRx: Getting Patients to Take Their Own Medicine, Literally”

Seeding Labs Kickstarts Science in Developing Countries

Late last year a fire destroyed the biochemistry department at the Southern University of Chile and dealt a severe blow to its researchers. But thanks to Seeding Labs, a non-profit based in Cambridge, MA, the labs might soon be up and running again. The organization collects discarded lab equipment, sorts and packs it, and ships … Continue reading “Seeding Labs Kickstarts Science in Developing Countries”

Consortium to Bring Massachusetts-Style Clinical Research to Italy

The newly-formed Clinical Research Consortium of Massachusetts has signed an agreement with the government of the Lombardy region in northern Italy to help make the area more attractive to drug companies seeking to do clinical research. Today, Italy only has a small sliver, about two per cent, of the multibillion-dollar European market for clinical trials. … Continue reading “Consortium to Bring Massachusetts-Style Clinical Research to Italy”

Olympic Flame Update: Google Exec One-Ups Microsoft (Again)

Last Friday we reported that three distinguished Microsoft employees, all formerly of the firm’s Beijing research lab (Microsoft Research Asia), were slated to run with the Olympic torch in the lead-up to the Summer Games. On Saturday, we learned that Microsoft search VP Harry Shum’s run in Lhasa, Tibet, went off without a hitch, and … Continue reading “Olympic Flame Update: Google Exec One-Ups Microsoft (Again)”

Washington: All Geared Up To Fight the Last War

By now you’ve seen the 2008 Milken Institute “State Technology and Science Index.” Washington ranks fifth, behind Massachusetts, Maryland, Colorado, and California. Not too shabby? Let’s take a look under the covers. At the outset, it’s important to acknowledge that all such rankings have a huge bogosity quotient—they’re highly sensitive to the precise criteria that … Continue reading “Washington: All Geared Up To Fight the Last War”

Technology Transfer Center Backs Teams from BU, MIT, MGH, Harvard

The Massachusetts Technology Transfer Center announced its latest round of Technology Investigation Awards for Massachusetts researchers today. The awards of $40,000 each went to seven teams of researchers working on projects they hope to develop into commercial products. According to MTTC, the center’s awards have helped to launch more than 20 companies since 2004 based … Continue reading “Technology Transfer Center Backs Teams from BU, MIT, MGH, Harvard”

Daily TIPs: Cleantech Boom, Ambulance Efficiency, Plant Fuel for Jets, Oil-Free Nations, & More

Study Finds Scientific Fraud The National Institutes of Health may have to start policing their grants better, after a study found that as many as 1000 incidents of scientific misconduct may go unreported each year. The study, by the NIH’s Office of Research Integrity, surveyed 2,212 scientists who receive NIH grants and found that researchers … Continue reading “Daily TIPs: Cleantech Boom, Ambulance Efficiency, Plant Fuel for Jets, Oil-Free Nations, & More”

GTC Biotherapeutics Signs up Ovation as U.S. Partner in “Pharming”

GTC Biotherapeutics is gearing up to take its first “pharming” product, a drug harvested from genetically modified goats, to the U.S. market. The Framingham, MA-based company said today it signed an exclusive partnership with Ovation Pharmaceuticals to develop and market ATryn in the United States. Currently, ATryn is only sold in Europe. GTC stands to … Continue reading “GTC Biotherapeutics Signs up Ovation as U.S. Partner in “Pharming””

Checkpoint Gobbles Up OATSystems

“Shrink management” may sound like an HMO for psychologists, but it’s actually the retail industry’s euphemism for measures that reduce product loss due to shoplifting, employee theft, and expired perishables. One of the leading shrink management companies makes its home in the Boston area—RFID software maker OATSystems of Waltham, MA—and lately it’s been expanding fast … Continue reading “Checkpoint Gobbles Up OATSystems”

Immune Design, Led By Star Scientists, Raises $18 Million To Build Vaccine Company

Vaccines are coming back in a big way. Immune Design, a Seattle-based startup vaccine company, made that clear today when it said it raised $18 million in an initial round of venture capital. The names involved are some of the biggest in immunology. The founders include Nobel Laureate David Baltimore of Caltech, Steve Reed of … Continue reading “Immune Design, Led By Star Scientists, Raises $18 Million To Build Vaccine Company”

Two-Minute Pitch Competition Yields Two Startups To Watch, in Internet and Energy

“Anyone know any investor jokes?” asks Carolynn Duncan of FundingUniverse. A pause, then someone on the side of the stage shouts “Yahoo!” We’re at Seattle LivePitch, in the Youngstown Cultural Arts Center in West Seattle, on a sunny Friday afternoon. (On the way over, I got my first look at the snow-capped Olympic Mountains—awesome.) Hosted … Continue reading “Two-Minute Pitch Competition Yields Two Startups To Watch, in Internet and Energy”

The Boston Health 2.0 Cluster

For the better part of a decade, advocates of computing in healthcare have fixated on the dream of paperless medicine—a new era in which every patient’s medical records would be stored digitally and every hospital, physician’s practice, pharmacy, and insurer would have access to these records, reducing paperwork costs and medical errors. But for all … Continue reading “The Boston Health 2.0 Cluster”

Olympic Flame, You’re in Good Hands with Microsoft (We Hope)

As the Olympic torch wends its way towards Beijing for the start of the Summer Games, you’d be interested to know that it has ties to the local tech community. It turns out that 12 people from Microsoft (NASDAQ: [[ticker:MSFT]]) were invited to be torchbearers. Among them are three guys that Bob and I know … Continue reading “Olympic Flame, You’re in Good Hands with Microsoft (We Hope)”

Daily TIPs: Electric Cars, Just Say No to MPG, Climate Plan for Business, DARPA A-OK, and More

Electrics Cars Coming to America Think, a Norwegian company that makes cars that run only on electricity, has opened a North American division and hopes to start-selling its autos in the U.S. in 2009, Business Week reports. The Think Ox is about the size of a Prius, runs for 125-155 miles per charge on rechargeable … Continue reading “Daily TIPs: Electric Cars, Just Say No to MPG, Climate Plan for Business, DARPA A-OK, and More”

Friday Funding Flurry: OwnerIQ, Sciformix, and Optaros Raise New Rounds

We usually get deluged with funding news on Mondays —but a small rash of venture capital rounds were announced (in one form or another) this morning, so we thought we’d wrap them up into one post. First up is OwnerIQ, which we have written about before. The two-year-old Newton, MA-based startup—which operates a network of … Continue reading “Friday Funding Flurry: OwnerIQ, Sciformix, and Optaros Raise New Rounds”

One Founder’s Opinion: Internet Entrepreneur Andy Sack Says Seattle Startups Need Less Money, More Mentoring

It’s going to be a busy summer for Andy Sack. The serial online entrepreneur and investor is getting deep into his latest venture, Founder’s Co-op, and he doesn’t have much time for chit-chat. I’m just able to catch him on his cell, while he’s rushing off to a meeting and getting ready to head out … Continue reading “One Founder’s Opinion: Internet Entrepreneur Andy Sack Says Seattle Startups Need Less Money, More Mentoring”

Metcalfe on Next Steps for GreenFuel: Series C and Partnership Deals Could Be Just Around Corner

With a new CEO (almost) in place, two potential term sheets on the way for a long-sought new round of financing, and another pair of partnership deals in the works, Cambridge, MA-based biofuels company GreenFuel Technologies could be on the threshold of a major new phase of its operations. That was the picture painted by … Continue reading “Metcalfe on Next Steps for GreenFuel: Series C and Partnership Deals Could Be Just Around Corner”

Space Needle Envy: A Bostonian’s Ode to Seattle

“Only one is a wanderer. Two, together, are always going somewhere.” It’s one of my favorite lines from my favorite movie—Hitchcock’s Vertigo—and now it’s true of Xconomy. By introducing our Seattle site this week, we’ve become a real network. Adding Seattle to our original Boston presence gives us the chance to show that the original … Continue reading “Space Needle Envy: A Bostonian’s Ode to Seattle”

Massachusetts #1, Washington #5 in State Tech and Science Rankings; New England Dominates List

As if its sports teams’ bragging rights weren’t enough, Massachusetts has now topped the state rankings in science and technology prowess. Meanwhile, Washington placed a respectable #5. That’s the word today from the California-based Milken Institute’s 2008 State Technology and Science Index. The rankings are based on 77 indicators across five broad categories: R&D inputs, … Continue reading “Massachusetts #1, Washington #5 in State Tech and Science Rankings; New England Dominates List”

Daily TIPs: Texting Privacy, Energy Spending, Electronic Medical Records, DARPA Cutbacks, & More

Court Finds Text Messages Are Private You can now text your BFF to your heart’s content and not worry about somebody reading the transcript, thanks to a federal court ruling. CNET News reports that the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled that the government must get a user’s consent before getting a service provider … Continue reading “Daily TIPs: Texting Privacy, Energy Spending, Electronic Medical Records, DARPA Cutbacks, & More”

Google, Microsoft, Akamai Join Powerhouse Speaker Lineup For Xconomy’s June 24 Cloud Computing Forum: Time’s Running Out to Register

In just a few days, Xconomy will hold its first public event of the summer, our forum on “The Promise and Reality of Cloud Computing.” Tickets for the June 24 event, which runs from 1:00 pm to 5:30 pm at Akamai headquarters at Eight Cambridge Center in Kendall Square, are going fast. But you can … Continue reading “Google, Microsoft, Akamai Join Powerhouse Speaker Lineup For Xconomy’s June 24 Cloud Computing Forum: Time’s Running Out to Register”

Icahn Nominee Concedes Defeat at Biogen Idec Annual Meeting

[Updated below.] In a major vote of confidence for current management under CEO James Mullen, shareholders at Biogen Idec’s annual meeting this morning have evidently rejected the slate of board nominees put forth by investor Carl Icahn and approved the company’s choices instead. “We think we didn’t succeed in getting onto the board of Biogen, … Continue reading “Icahn Nominee Concedes Defeat at Biogen Idec Annual Meeting”

University of Washington Tech Transfer Group, LaunchPad, Is Looking for the Next Big Startup

The University of Washington’s commencement ceremony may have been last weekend, but Jim Roberts and his team at UW TechTransfer aren’t winding things down—they’re gearing up for the high season. “During the summer it doesn’t drop off,” Roberts says. Roberts is the head business development officer at LaunchPad, a two-year-old initiative within the university’s tech … Continue reading “University of Washington Tech Transfer Group, LaunchPad, Is Looking for the Next Big Startup”

Vlingo’s CEO Fires Back at Nuance Over Patent Lawsuit—Says “When they Couldn’t Win Yahoo’s Business, This Was Their Reaction”

As soon as news broke Tuesday that Burlington, MA-based Nuance Communications was suing Harvard Square startup Vlingo for allegedly infringing one of Nuance’s speech-recognition patents, I requested an interview with Dave Grannan, Vlingo’s CEO. Grannan, who came to Vlingo from Nokia last year, has spent quite a bit of time with Xconomy in the past, … Continue reading “Vlingo’s CEO Fires Back at Nuance Over Patent Lawsuit—Says “When they Couldn’t Win Yahoo’s Business, This Was Their Reaction””

American Well Partners with Microsoft, Lands Hawaii Health Plan as First Major Customer

When I wrote my post yesterday about the launch of American Well, the Boston-based startup that plans to let patients visit with doctors via a multimedia Web interface, I couldn’t tell you the whole story. That post was tied to the company’s formal debut at the AHIP Institute 2008 meeting in San Francisco Wednesday morning–which, … Continue reading “American Well Partners with Microsoft, Lands Hawaii Health Plan as First Major Customer”

Daily TIPs: Genomic Testing, Entertainment Tech Growth, Virtual Companies, VoIP 911, & More

Should the Law Limit Gene Tests? Personal genomic testing is all the rage among people seeking to trace their ancestry or identify their risk of certain diseases, but last week the California Department of Public Health sent cease-and-desist letters to 13 gene-testing companies, ordering them to halt the practice because it violates state rules. The … Continue reading “Daily TIPs: Genomic Testing, Entertainment Tech Growth, Virtual Companies, VoIP 911, & More”

Microsoft Buys Navic Networks, Deliverer of Targeted TV Ads

Microsoft said yesterday that it’s buying Waltham, MA-based Navic Networks for an undisclosed sum. Navic, founded in 2001, makes software for set-top boxes that TV advertisers can use to target ads at specific digital cable subscribers and measure their responses. Its software can also be used to add interactive features such as voting and polls—for … Continue reading “Microsoft Buys Navic Networks, Deliverer of Targeted TV Ads”

Icahn Nominee to Biogen Idec Board Pledges to Work With Current Management to Restore Research Operations to Past Greatness

With a potentially momentous shareholder vote at hand, a top Carl Icahn strategist says he and others nominated by the investor for Biogen Idec’s board would not try to oust CEO James Mullen. What’s more, he says, they would work to restore the company’s research operations to the greatness he admired when a young MIT … Continue reading “Icahn Nominee to Biogen Idec Board Pledges to Work With Current Management to Restore Research Operations to Past Greatness”

The Doctor Will See You Online: American Well Launches Web-Based Medical Consultations

Boston startup American Well lifted the veil on its ambitious and long-awaited online health care marketplace today. With its 24/7 online network—where people with medical concerns can log on and be matched within minutes with a physician who will provide a live medical consultation—the company hopes to disrupt business-as-usual in the healthcare industry, and potentially … Continue reading “The Doctor Will See You Online: American Well Launches Web-Based Medical Consultations”

Will CombinatoRx Be the Next Cambridge Biotech Put on the Block?

Millennium Pharmaceuticals. Sirtris Pharmaceuticals. Maybe Biogen Idec (or maybe not). Will CombinatoRx (NASDAQ:[[ticker:CRXX]]) be next on the list of Cambridge, MA, biotech firms scooped up by a Big Pharma buyer? That’s the question raised by Bloomberg’s Kelly Riddell, who noted on Monday that several fund managers recently boosted their holdings in the eight-year-old firm. Riddell … Continue reading “Will CombinatoRx Be the Next Cambridge Biotech Put on the Block?”

Blue Heron Strives to Replace Gene-Making Grunt Work with Custom Manufacturing

It used to take weeks of labor for a drug company to make a batch of genes for an experiment. Those days are fading, as Blue Heron Biotechnology of Bothell, WA, and an emerging group of competitors have found ways to pump out industrial quantities of custom-manufactured genes, cheaper and faster than before. The market … Continue reading “Blue Heron Strives to Replace Gene-Making Grunt Work with Custom Manufacturing”

Open-Source Startup Pushes Mail to Millions of Phones

Castile Ventures of Waltham, MA, together with Nexit Ventures, Walden International, and HIG Ventures, have invested $12.5 million in Funambol, a firm based Redwood City, CA, that develops open source e-mail software for mobile phones. There are billions of cell phone users in the world, but only a tiny slice of us use our handsets … Continue reading “Open-Source Startup Pushes Mail to Millions of Phones”

Open Coffee at Louisa’s: Internet Startups, Investors, and One Notable No-Show

This morning I had the pleasure of attending my first Open Coffee Club at Louisa’s Bakery & Cafe up on Eastlake Avenue in Seattle. Every Tuesday morning from 8:30 to 10 (note to self: bus schedules mean nothing here, just like in Boston), it’s where local tech entrepreneurs gather to network and talk ideas over … Continue reading “Open Coffee at Louisa’s: Internet Startups, Investors, and One Notable No-Show”

Intel Spins Off $50M Solar Company: SpectraWatt To Open Facility in Oregon

Looks like Intel is officially entering the renewable-energy space. The Santa Clara, CA-based chipmaker, which has major operations in the Northwest, has announced that it is spinning out an independent solar-energy company called SpectraWatt (an awful name, can we all agree). Intel (NASDAQ: [[ticker:INTC]]) said in a statement that the company was formed “to spur … Continue reading “Intel Spins Off $50M Solar Company: SpectraWatt To Open Facility in Oregon”

Nuance Suit Against Vlingo Could Shut Down Yahoo’s Voice-Driven Mobile Search Service

[Story Updated 4:40 p.m. 6/18/06; see below] If a Texas district court grants an injunction sought by Burlington, MA-based Nuance Communications (NASDAQ: [[ticker:NUAN]]), it could force Yahoo to shut down the voice-enabled version of its mobile search platform. The search tool is powered by software from Vlingo, a Cambridge, MA-based startup Nuance sued yesterday for … Continue reading “Nuance Suit Against Vlingo Could Shut Down Yahoo’s Voice-Driven Mobile Search Service”

GreenFuel Announces CEO: One Step Left in Metcalfe’s Seven-Step Recovery Plan—Money

GreenFuel Technologies, the algae farming startup headed by Polaris Venture Partners (a major investor in the company) general partner Bob Metcalfe on an interim basis since last June, finally got its CEO, the Cambridge, MA-based company announced today. The new top executive, who won’t start until mid-July and was not available for direct comment, is … Continue reading “GreenFuel Announces CEO: One Step Left in Metcalfe’s Seven-Step Recovery Plan—Money”

AT&T Offers Buzzwire’s Streaming Media Content on Mobile Phones

It’s a big week for Boston-area mobile software companies looking to leverage the reach of national telecommunications firms. Yesterday Waltham, MA-based Quattro Wireless announced that Cox Newspapers has hired it to produce mobile-friendly versions of the websites for 19 Cox newspapers. Today, AT&T announced that its wireless subscribers can access a library of video, audio, … Continue reading “AT&T Offers Buzzwire’s Streaming Media Content on Mobile Phones”

Calling Any and All Late-Stage Investors: An OVP Partner’s Take on Seattle’s VC Scene

Yesterday I had a nice chat with Lucinda Stewart, a managing director at Kirkland-based OVP Venture Partners. A fast-rising star, Stewart focuses on investments in software, digital media, and security, and she serves on the board of directors of several area companies including Talyst, Vantos, and most recently Lucid Commerce, which announced a Series A … Continue reading “Calling Any and All Late-Stage Investors: An OVP Partner’s Take on Seattle’s VC Scene”