Category: New York

Timehop Revives Old Memories from Facebook, Foursquare, and Twitter

Everyone wants to recapture pieces of the past these days. Facebook for example changed all profiles to the timeline format this year, and others in the social media space are pursuing ways of tracking the past. New York-based Timehop has developed its own technology to let individuals recall content from their personal histories, via once-day … Continue reading “Timehop Revives Old Memories from Facebook, Foursquare, and Twitter”

Capital Access Network Lands $30,000,000 New Financing Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=6149fee2-cb96-4757-b74e-026bfdbd3c8d&Preview=1 Date 2/8/2012 Company Name Capital Access Network Mailing Address 2 Overhill Road Scarsdale, NY 10583 Company Description Capital Access Network, Inc. (CAN) has been Collecting and Analyzing Data about Small Businesses for more than a Decade. Since 1998, we have learned that for many small businesses, the fight to survive is … Continue reading “Capital Access Network Lands $30,000,000 New Financing Round”

Spongecell Lands Series B Financing Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=176ca503-fee1-4f5d-832d-415e0adc2bc5&Preview=1 Date 2/8/2012 Company Name Spongecell Mailing Address 261 Madison Avenue 14th Floor New York, NY 10016 Company Description Spongecell transforms standard banner ads into dynamic flash ads with rich media-like functionality. The multi-media ads engage audiences longer, use no more real estate than a standard banner ad, and keep users on … Continue reading “Spongecell Lands Series B Financing Round”

Blip Garners $12,000,000 New Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=502288ab-5ce1-475f-b0d6-b58151126849&Preview=1 Date 2/8/2012 Company Name Blip Mailing Address 407 Broome St. Fifth Floor New York, NY 10013 Company Description We believe that the world is fundamentally changing as it becomes easier and easier for individuals and small groups of people to create their own video. Our mission is to make this even … Continue reading “Blip Garners $12,000,000 New Round”

Life Sciences VC Investing Up in Dollar Value, Down in Deal Volume

At first glance, a report released last week by PricewaterhouseCoopers and the National Venture Capital Association seems to portend rich times for life sciences startups. Biotech companies raised $4.7 billion in 2011—more than any other sector except for software and enough to help make last year one of the top three years for venture fundraising … Continue reading “Life Sciences VC Investing Up in Dollar Value, Down in Deal Volume”

Gotham Greens: Cleantech and Farm Tech Converge in Brooklyn

Hidden amid the technology startups clamoring for attention in New York, which is packed with media, data, and social networking players, is an unlikely company more interested in vegetables than video sharing. Gotham Greens Farms is out to prove its resilience by cultivating crops on rooftops in a landscape dominated by bricks, mortar, and steel. … Continue reading “Gotham Greens: Cleantech and Farm Tech Converge in Brooklyn”

FDA vs. Drug Ads: Cut the Kids and Dogs, Spell Out Side Effects

If you’ve turned on your TV anytime in the last, oh, decade or so, you’ve no doubt been bombarded by ads imploring you to “ask your doctor” about Drug X. And you’re well familiar with the routine: You get treated to happy images of folks dancing, perhaps, or walking their dogs in pretty green meadows, … Continue reading “FDA vs. Drug Ads: Cut the Kids and Dogs, Spell Out Side Effects”

TiqIQ Lands $1,700,000 Series A Financing

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=85991b31-f39a-4e66-87f3-f1b00ea7a787&Preview=1 Date 2/4/2012 Company Name TiqIQ Mailing Address 1440 Broadway 21st Floor New York, NY 10018 Company Description TiqIQ was founded two years ago with the singular mission to make buying event tickets more transparent, efficient, and simpler. We deliver on that mission each day by providing ticket buyers with real-time information … Continue reading “TiqIQ Lands $1,700,000 Series A Financing”

New York’s Venture Emergence: The Photos

Xconomy held its first Big Apple tech event (well, mostly tech, since there was one life sciences company on hand) on Wednesday. We called it New York’s Venture Emergence, and a fantastic crowd of nearly 250 turned out to the Apella Center on East 29th Street for an afternoon of startup snapshots, VC-entrepreneur stories about … Continue reading “New York’s Venture Emergence: The Photos”

10 Apps & Sites That Bring Back the Joy of Reading

You wouldn’t throw a fancy dinner party in a 7-Eleven. You wouldn’t hold a symphony concert in a subway station, or teach a meditation class on a tilt-a-whirl ride. So why does anyone expect readers to read long articles on the Web? Call me a traitor to my kind, but I think the World Wide … Continue reading “10 Apps & Sites That Bring Back the Joy of Reading”

7 Lessons from TechStars’ David Cohen on Building a Startup Culture

When it comes to tech startups—especially in Internet software and app development—San Diego has been adrift in the horse latitudes. That’s the term Spanish mariners had for the waters where the trade winds died out for days and even weeks at a time. Becalmed sailors desperate to gain some headway would heave their horses overboard … Continue reading “7 Lessons from TechStars’ David Cohen on Building a Startup Culture”

Fred Wilson, Todd Dagres, and More Cheer NY’s Growth in the VC Game

Much like the New York Giants charging onto the football field, companies such as bitly, BarkBox, and Gilt Groupe—along with their backers—have upped the caliber of innovation expected from startups in New York. In response to this upswell of activity, Xconomy brought some 250 members of the local investor and entrepreneurial community together Wednesday to … Continue reading “Fred Wilson, Todd Dagres, and More Cheer NY’s Growth in the VC Game”

Xconomist of the Week: Gilt Founders Say Friends Can Work Together

At Xconomy’s event yesterday, New York’s Venture Emergence, members of Gilt Groupe’s founding team fascinated a standing-room-only audience with the tale of how, in just four years, they grew from a scrappy startup to one of the most successful e-commerce sites on the Web. Co-founders Alexandra Wilkis Wilson, who is one of our Xconomists, and … Continue reading “Xconomist of the Week: Gilt Founders Say Friends Can Work Together”

The Web Without the Muck: A Long Interview with Longform.org

The Web, as we’ve known it, is all about velocity. It wants you to move along. Click here! Go there! Watch this! As a result, it’s never been a great place to settle down and focus for the 30 minutes it might take you to read an 8,000-word article—the sort of long, in-depth non-fiction that … Continue reading “The Web Without the Muck: A Long Interview with Longform.org”

Social Shopping App Snapette’s “Unexpected” Journey Takes It To NY

Snapette was supposed to be an unusual way for Sarah Paiji to spend the summer between her two years at Harvard Business School. It was a mobile app idea she started working on last winter with Harvard alum Jinhee Ahn Kim, aimed at enabling women to better share and find fashion products in brick-and-mortar stores. … Continue reading “Social Shopping App Snapette’s “Unexpected” Journey Takes It To NY”

ShoreTel Acquires M5 Networks for $160,000,000

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=2ffa1fbc-2c39-469c-ac45-1da0e2391fc3&Preview=1 Date 2/2/2012 Company Name M5 Networks Mailing Address 245 West 17th Street New York, NY 10011 Company Description M5 is a trusted hosted business VoIP phone system provider with proven customer satisfaction. Website http://www.m5net.com Transaction Type M&A Transaction Amount $160,000,000 Transaction Round Proceeds Purposes M&A Terms M5 shareholders will receive approximately … Continue reading “ShoreTel Acquires M5 Networks for $160,000,000”

See You at New York’s Venture Emergence Today

We’re just a few hours away from the start of Xconomy Forum: New York’s Venture Emergence. But there’s still plenty of time (relatively speaking) to get your tickets. We have nine left and up for grabs, which you can get by clicking here. We have a great lineup of speakers planned, including Fred Wilson, founder … Continue reading “See You at New York’s Venture Emergence Today”

Examville, Coursekit, and Others Disrupt Learning to Get Ahead

New York is known as the home to some of the world’s biggest education publishers, such as Pearson and McGraw-Hill. Even Apple came to New York to make its big iPad textbook announcement two weeks ago. But what’s not as well known is that the city is also teeming with education technology startups—companies leveraging the Web, … Continue reading “Examville, Coursekit, and Others Disrupt Learning to Get Ahead”

Artspace Secures $2,500,000 Series A Financing

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=314541a4-f158-47db-8b76-b0e0d2d91a42&Preview=1 Date 2/1/2012 Company Name Artspace Mailing Address 915 Broadway New York, NY 10010 Company Description Collect art from the best artists, museums and galleries in the world. Website http://www.artspace.com Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount $2,500,000 Transaction Round Series A Proceeds Purposes The company says it plans to use the money … Continue reading “Artspace Secures $2,500,000 Series A Financing”

Five Questions for Kemp on Raising VC as a Mature Company

When Long Island, NY-based Kemp Technologies revealed on its blog on January 24 that it had raised $16 million in venture capital, it might have been easy to overlook the funding as just another sign of the latest tech boom. But this was no ordinary funding: Kemp is an 11-year-old company with revenues and profits … Continue reading “Five Questions for Kemp on Raising VC as a Mature Company”

Optimer, Following Pfizer’s Playbook, Has Big Plans for Antibiotic

Pfizer was where Pedro Lichtinger learned about pharmaceutical marketing from people who did some amazing things. For starters, New York-based Pfizer (NYSE: [[ticker:PFE]]) turned an old-school antifungal medicine into a $1.6 billion cash cow. Now as the CEO of San Diego-based Optimer Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: [[ticker:OPTR]]) Lichtinger is borrowing some ideas from that experience, looking to make … Continue reading “Optimer, Following Pfizer’s Playbook, Has Big Plans for Antibiotic”

IBM Acquires WorkLight for Undisclosed Sum

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=89b8e241-409c-43c9-8c93-08b8a06a23ae&Preview=1 Date 1/31/2012 Company Name WorkLight Mailing Address 12 West 31st Street 11th Floor New York, NY 10001 Company Description WorkLight is a global leader in multi-channel software and services that power mobile, desktop and web applications for banking, e-commerce and the enterprise. The WorkLight Solution enables businesses to reach and engage … Continue reading “IBM Acquires WorkLight for Undisclosed Sum”

Four Themes to Watch in Personalized Medicine

Good morning from Mountain View, CA, and from the close of the 2012 Personalized Medicine World Conference, which brought together thought leaders of business, government, healthcare-delivery, research and technology. Four themes that emerged from this year’s program: • Greater optimism, triggered by the 2011 approvals of two major oncologic agents paired with companion diagnostics: vemurafenib … Continue reading “Four Themes to Watch in Personalized Medicine”

Vision Without Execution is Hallucination

Last week Steve Case wrote an op-ed in the Washington Post called “Give Entrepreneurs Room and They Will Grow the Economy.” For those not familiar with him, Case was the founding CEO of AOL and has been an active healthcare investor, among other things, for the past seven years. My firm, Psilos Group, has co-invested … Continue reading “Vision Without Execution is Hallucination”

Some “Q’s” for SecondMarket Founder at Our Feb. 1 Venture Forum

“It is the ‘silver’ age of VC/entrepreneurship. It would be the ‘golden’ age if we could fix the liquidity issues.” Those are the words of Michael Greeley, general partner of Flybridge Capital Partners in Boston and treasurer of the National Venture Capital Association, referring to the very tight IPO market that is limiting capital-raising options … Continue reading “Some “Q’s” for SecondMarket Founder at Our Feb. 1 Venture Forum”

Never Back Smug: A Lesson for Life Sciences From Newt Gingrich

Newt Gingrich comes across on TV as someone who radiates smugness. It’s that sense that he’s not just confident in his own abilities, but extremely satisfied with his talents and his utter superiority over mere mortals like you and me. I’m no political pundit, nor a psychologist, so I’ll let others analyze whether Newt is … Continue reading “Never Back Smug: A Lesson for Life Sciences From Newt Gingrich”

Apple Textbook Controversy Isn’t About Books-It’s About Teaching

I don’t think there’s ever been a textbook that made it this easy to be a good student. —Roger Rosner, vice president of productivity applications, Apple Whenever a company as powerful as Apple, Facebook, or Google announces a big new product push, it evokes wonder and acclaim from some observers, head-scratching and horror from others, … Continue reading “Apple Textbook Controversy Isn’t About Books-It’s About Teaching”

Brand Matters: Turning Your Brand Into a Competitive Advantage

Join Phin Barnes, principal at First Round Capital, for an enlightening evening workshop on defining your brand and maximizing the leverage this can create. Participants will work through customer definition, brand values, and messaging to either design a brand and craft a consistent brand voice, or apply the exercises to their existing companies. Register here.

The Other 99 Percent: Entrepreneurs

In my recent piece Reengineering Capitalism I highlighted a phenomenon that the global entrepreneurship ecosystem is paying very little attention to: Over 99 percent of entrepreneurs who seek funding get rejected. Yet, the entire world is focused on the 1 percent that is “fundable.” The media, when pitched a startup story, is interested in who … Continue reading “The Other 99 Percent: Entrepreneurs”

Start-Up Business Incubators in NYC

Come to this afternoon panel discussion to gather advice from many of New York’s startup incubators about how to find the right home for your business idea. You’ll hear from representatives from 10 incubators, including General Assembly, Women Innovate Mobile, BioBAT, and Varick Street. Register here.

Angels, Accelerators & Incubators: The New Funders of Health Innovation

Accelerators, incubators, government innovation grants, privately-funded competitions—these are just some of the funding options available to entrepreneurs today. Join NYC Health Business Leaders for an evening panel discussion about how these funding vehicles work and how they can help you get your business off the ground. Speakers include Steve Hochberg, managing partner, Ascent Biomedical Ventures, … Continue reading “Angels, Accelerators & Incubators: The New Funders of Health Innovation”

Technology You Can Touch

New York Investment Fund’s NYC Tech Connect presents an evening of networking for entrepreneurs in bioscience, hardware, material science, and cleantech. Schmooze with engineers, venture scientists, and fellow entrepreneurs and make connections to enhance your business. Register here.

Mobile Technology and Social Change

The New York Technology Council presents this panel discussion about the impact of mobile technology on social justice. Come to this event for forward-looking insight into the ways that social connectivity is being integrated into mobile operating systems, the persuasiveness of mobile computing, and how simple text messages can drive social movements. Register here.

New Kids on the Startup Block Coming to NY Venture Emergence

Rising stars in the local startup community BarkBox, HackNY, and Gotham Greens will be on hand at Xconomy Forum: New York’s Venture Emergence event on Feb. 1. They will enlighten the crowd with “burst” presentations, during which they’ll describe their companies and their growth plans. It’s all part of an exciting half-day event that will … Continue reading “New Kids on the Startup Block Coming to NY Venture Emergence”

2012 Venture Outlook: Some Bright Spots and Some Gloom

It’s that outlook time of year, and Mark Heesen, president of the National Venture Capital Association (NVCA), was in San Diego earlier this week, talking about the 2012 outlook for venture capital. Today he’ll make a similar presentation to the New Jersey Technology Council. Next week,  John Taylor, the NVCA’s director of research is set … Continue reading “2012 Venture Outlook: Some Bright Spots and Some Gloom”

Assholicism: Do CEOs Need to Be Jerks to Be Successful?

It’s a question as old as human nature. You’ve heard the stories, you know all the famous examples. Steve Jobs, Larry Ellison, Michael Eisner, the list goes on. All difficult characters with strong personalities—and hugely successful companies. So, in today’s ultra-competitive tech and business world, does a CEO have to be an asshole to be … Continue reading “Assholicism: Do CEOs Need to Be Jerks to Be Successful?”

SocialGuide Garners $400,000 New Funding

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=f0ceddcb-7637-4133-bc23-000eb5ea303a&Preview=1 Date 1/27/2012 Company Name SocialGuide Mailing Address 68 Jay St. Brooklyn, NY 11201 Company Description The company operates a website that allows users to find out what’s on television in a social network format. Website http://www.socialguide.com Transaction Type Debt Transaction Amount $400,000 Transaction Round Undisclosed Proceeds Purposes Proceeds purposes were not … Continue reading “SocialGuide Garners $400,000 New Funding”

J&J’s Janssen Launches $250,000 Challenge to Improve Transition Care

Janssen Healthcare Innovation, part of Johnson & Johnson’s reconstituted R&D operation in San Diego, is announcing an incentive prize challenge with awards totaling $250,000 for technology solutions that improve care for patients who’ve just been discharged from a hospital. Janssen says it’s working with the National Transitions of Care Coalition to establish criteria and to … Continue reading “J&J’s Janssen Launches $250,000 Challenge to Improve Transition Care”

Xconomist of the Week: Mark Lowenstein on Mobile’s Next Waves

Mark Lowenstein has made some pretty bold statements about what’s going to happen in the wireless industry this year. More mergers and acquisitions among mobile operators. Same goes for the handset makers. Mobile payments won’t take off just yet. And enterprises may have jumped the gun on tablets. Lowenstein, a Verizon Wireless veteran and now … Continue reading “Xconomist of the Week: Mark Lowenstein on Mobile’s Next Waves”

Not Your Grandfather’s War

War really is going out of style. At least that’s what Joshua Goldstein, professor emeritus of international relations at American University, and Steven Pinker, a psychology professor at Harvard wrote in a New York Times op-ed piece last month. Throughout the editorial, Goldstein and Pinker dissect the meaning of “war” today, its various categorizations, and … Continue reading “Not Your Grandfather’s War”

Monster Slashes 400 Jobs, Restructures for Profitability

Monster Worldwide (NYSE: [[ticker:MWW]]), the New York parent company of Maynard, MA-based Monster.com, the jobs and recruiting site, said in a regulatory filing that it has laid off about 400 employees, or 7 percent of its worldwide staff of 5,700. The layoffs include fewer than 100 job cuts in Massachusetts, according to the Boston Business … Continue reading “Monster Slashes 400 Jobs, Restructures for Profitability”

Celgene Buys Avila for $350M, Gaining Promising “Covalent” Drugs

[Updated 1/26/12 8:30 am. See below.] When Avila Therapeutics’ CEO Katrine Bosley spoke with Xconomy in December, she predicted the oncology world would show “a lot of excitement” for drugs that inhibit an enzyme called Bruton’s tyrosine kinase (Btk)—and in particular for Avila’s experimental compound in that category, AVL-292. Her words were prescient: Today Summit, NJ-based … Continue reading “Celgene Buys Avila for $350M, Gaining Promising “Covalent” Drugs”

Visual Revenue Lands $1,700,000 New Financing Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=f0582dc4-bbd1-497e-b10c-ab372ce3c157&Preview=1 Date 1/26/2012 Company Name Visual Revenue Mailing Address 14th Floor Associated Press 450 West 33rd St New York, NY 10001 Company Description Based out of midtown New York, NY, Visual Revenue provides a predictive analytics solution that helps online media organizations set a better front page. Our Front Page Automation Platform … Continue reading “Visual Revenue Lands $1,700,000 New Financing Round”

Digital Media Center Brings Tech Players and Investors to Times Square

With a kind of candor that speaks of the motivation in the startup and investment communities, angel investor Jerry Neumann talked bluntly Tuesday evening about the companies he backs. “All of my entrepreneurs are irritating,” he said jokingly during a panel discussion at the Digital Media Center event held at Times Square in New York. … Continue reading “Digital Media Center Brings Tech Players and Investors to Times Square”

NY Angels Pledge 50 Tickets for Xconomy’s Feb. 1 Venture Forum

We’re just a week away from Xconomy’s first big New York City event, Xconomy Forum: New York’s Venture Emergence. And the New York Angels have stepped up to sponsor admissions for 50 NYC startups. Most of these free tickets will be distributed through the city’s startup incubators, but we have 10 to hand out ourselves … Continue reading “NY Angels Pledge 50 Tickets for Xconomy’s Feb. 1 Venture Forum”

Timehop Receives New Financing Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=4a936ff7-e428-4a3e-9944-3349849cbf64&Preview=1 Date 1/25/2012 Company Name Timehop Mailing Address 22 West 21st St 8th Fl New York, NY 10010 Company Description The product Timehop offers is a daily email that shows you what you did 1 year ago today, every morning. It’s a daily dose of nostalgia that must be experienced first-hand to … Continue reading “Timehop Receives New Financing Round”

Performance Horizon Group Garners New Funding

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=8c884255-dc25-4289-afc8-3a7f316c790f&Preview=1 Date 1/25/2012 Company Name Performance Horizon Group Mailing Address 55th and 6th New York, NY 10019 Company Description Providing powerful insight into online performance marketing is at the heart of Performance Horizon Group (PHG). The founding team at PHG have over 50 years’ experience within the online performance marketing space, having … Continue reading “Performance Horizon Group Garners New Funding”