Category: San Diego

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”

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”

‘Unwind’ with the San Diego Life Science Network

Join roughly 250 friends (and some new ones!) from the biotech, pharma, med device, diagnostics, and research communities in San Diego to eat, drink and connect at an informal event organized by the San Diego Life Science Network. Event sponsor Thomson Reuters will raffle off a Kindle Fire! More information and online registration is here.

Dean Kamen: ‘Our Bright Future Belongs to the Innovators’

The San Diego Chapter of ARCS (Achievement Rewards for College Scientist) is hosting inventor Dean Kamen as the ARCS Foundation 2012 Scientist of the Year. Since the San Diego chapter was founded in 1985, it has issued a total of nearly $7.2 million in college financial awards to 966 graduate and undergraduate scholars attending San … Continue reading “Dean Kamen: ‘Our Bright Future Belongs to the Innovators’”

Luxtera Garners $21,700,000 Series C Funding Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=47a8a78a-8e45-47fb-b779-baf9db7e1a66&Preview=1 Date 2/27/2012 Company Name Luxtera Mailing Address 2320 Camino Vida Roble Carlsbad, CA 92011 Company Description Luxtera, Inc., a fabless semiconductor company and the world leader in silicon photonics is focused on fulfilling the insatiable demand for bandwidth by uniting the benefits of optical communication technology with the low-cost, high-volume advantages … Continue reading “Luxtera Garners $21,700,000 Series C Funding Round”

XCOR Aerospace Receives $5,000,000 New Funding

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=c4c866eb-9416-44d7-8b0c-7227516bfacb&Preview=1 Date 2/27/2012 Company Name XCOR Aerospace Mailing Address PO Box 1163 Mojave, CA 93502 Company Description Founded in 1999, XCOR Aerospace is a small, privately-held California C-Corporation. Our headquarters and development facilities are located at the Mojave Spaceport and Civilian Aerospace Test Center in Mojave, California. XCOR engages in research, development, … Continue reading “XCOR Aerospace Receives $5,000,000 New Funding”

BillMyParents Secures $229,000 Series B Financing

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=b69f1c39-c09c-4e5e-b26f-6e22553523c3&Preview=1 Date 2/25/2012 Company Name BillMyParents Mailing Address 6440 Lusk Blvd San Diego, CA 92121 Company Description BillMyParents, Inc. is a financial solutions company focused on helping teens and young adults between the ages of 13 and 18 to manage spending. Website http://www.billmyparents.com Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount $229,000 Transaction Round … Continue reading “BillMyParents Secures $229,000 Series B Financing”

Sensory Medical Lands $500,000 Series B Financing

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=aa83c12b-9237-451d-8d01-e93f7b135611&Preview=1 Date 2/25/2012 Company Name Sensory Medical Mailing Address 1235 Puerta Del Sol San Clemente, CA 92673 Company Description Sensory Medical is a medical device firm focused on treatments for Restless Legs Syndrome (RLS). Website http://www.sensorymedical.com Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount $500,000 Transaction Round Series B Proceeds Purposes Proceeds purposes were … Continue reading “Sensory Medical Lands $500,000 Series B Financing”

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?”

SDVG’s 10th Annual Venture Summit

The San Diego Venture Group has organized this half-day conference as a showcase for local startups, with major presentations and discussions that cover a range of industry trends and concerns. Hundreds attended last year’s summit, which featured XPrize Foundation founder and CEO Peter Diamandis. More information and online registration is here.

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”

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”

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”

Receptos Receives $10,806,610 New Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=c3102ebe-6eda-4c9f-a0d3-238622a6d336&Preview=1 Date 2/22/2012 Company Name Receptos Mailing Address 10835 Road to the Cure San Diego, CA 92121 Company Description Receptos is developing the next generation in GPCR drug discovery. Website http://www.receptos.com Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount $10,806,610 Transaction Round Undisclosed Proceeds Purposes Proceeds purposes were not disclosed. SEC regulatory filing. M&A … Continue reading “Receptos Receives $10,806,610 New Round”

California Stem Cell Secures $1,950,000 New Financing Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=23777f1f-cc4a-48e7-80bb-a423b1386306&Preview=1 Date 2/22/2012 Company Name California Stem Cell Mailing Address 5251 California Ave Irvine, CA 92617-3077 Company Description California Stem Cell, Inc. is a privately held company focused on the manufacturing of high-purity human cells for therapeutic development and clinical application. Since its founding in Irvine, Calif., in 2005, CSC has developed … Continue reading “California Stem Cell Secures $1,950,000 New Financing Round”

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”

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”

GoodRx Receives $1,000,000 Seed Financing Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=34a8a566-c10c-4302-88bf-d70a0c5762fb&Preview=1 Date 2/20/2012 Company Name GoodRx Mailing Address Undisclosed Los Angeles, CA 90049 Company Description GoodRx is the first and only prescription drug price comparison tool created for consumers with prices from pharmacies nationwide. GoodRx’s founders are seasoned technology executives who were early employees at Facebook, Yahoo and other successful companies. Website … Continue reading “GoodRx Receives $1,000,000 Seed Financing Round”

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”

Signs of Resurgence in SD as EvoNexus Opens Tech Incubator

It could have been just another lame ribbon-cutting ceremony. There was a proclamation signed by the Mayor and the San Diego City Council that declared Feb. 16th as “EvoNexus Downtown Day.” There were speeches, and Mayor Jerry Sanders and the VIPs crowded together with a pair of oversized scissors to snip a ribbon. But something … Continue reading “Signs of Resurgence in SD as EvoNexus Opens Tech Incubator”

LinkedIn: The Missing Manual Worth Reading

I picked up The Start-up of You, the new book published this week by LinkedIn founder Reid Hoffman and journalist-entrepreneur Ben Casnocha, with some trepidation. I feared that the title was intended literally—that this would be one of those dreary business books that spends seven chapters twisting reality to fit its gimmicky metaphor. (I’ve got … Continue reading “LinkedIn: The Missing Manual Worth Reading”

Vital Therapies Garners $929,831 New Funding

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=182e4dbe-5107-4348-a88b-8ad48021abf4&Preview=1 Date 2/17/2012 Company Name Vital Therapies Mailing Address 15222 Avenue of Science San Diego, CA 92128 Company Description Vital Therapies, Inc. (VTI) is a new company formed in 2003 to continue the development of the ELAD (Extracorporeal Liver Assist Device) System, which augments the metabolic functions of a patient’s liver, thereby … Continue reading “Vital Therapies Garners $929,831 New Funding”

SD Life Sciences Roundup: Celladon, Gen-Probe, Organovo, and More

Here’s our wrap-up of news from San Diego’s life sciences sector since last week. —San Diego’s Celladon raised $43 million to recapitalize the company and to conduct a 200-patient study of a gene therapy intended to help people with advanced heart failure. Celladon had previously raised more than $73 million in venture capital, according to … Continue reading “SD Life Sciences Roundup: Celladon, Gen-Probe, Organovo, and More”

Xconomist of the Week: Peter Kuhn on Detecting Circulating Tumor Cells

Worrying whether a solid tissue tumor might spread elsewhere in the body represents one of the biggest unknowns for many cancer patients, according to Peter Kuhn, an associate professor of cell biology at The Scripps Research Institute in San Diego. “As long as the disease is confined to the primary tumor, the oncologists can deal … Continue reading “Xconomist of the Week: Peter Kuhn on Detecting Circulating Tumor Cells”

Will New Business Models Enhance or Endanger Drug Discovery?

The most successful biotechs of the past quarter century have been companies that established relatively large, cutting edge research programs, such as Biogen, Immunex, and Genentech. I’ll refer to this as the B.I.G. model. These companies were able to hire young, innovative scientists by promising them a certain degree of intellectual freedom to pursue research … Continue reading “Will New Business Models Enhance or Endanger Drug Discovery?”

Celladon Garners $43,000,000 New Funding Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=7ac7e5d2-59bf-4caf-9cb9-4cac4bc9c2d9&Preview=1 Date 2/16/2012 Company Name Celladon Mailing Address 2223 Avenida de la Playa La Jolla, CA 92037 Company Description Celladon Corporation is an exciting new biotechnology company focused on developing treatments for cardiovascular diseases through the application of scientific discoveries in molecular cardiology. Website http://www.celladon.net Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount $43,000,000 … Continue reading “Celladon Garners $43,000,000 New Funding Round”

FileTrek Lands $10,000,000 Series B Funding Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=43d5400f-bce1-4f58-9317-e0e5d4677c36&Preview=1 Date 2/16/2012 Company Name FileTrek Mailing Address 350 S. Figueroa St Los Angeles, CA 90071 Company Description FileTrek Software Inc. is a provider of mobile content management and tracking solutions for complete visibility of sharing, syncing and versioning activities on the desktop and in the cloud. Website http://www.filetrek.com Transaction Type Venture … Continue reading “FileTrek Lands $10,000,000 Series B Funding Round”

Agile RF Garners $500,000 New Financing Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=73913282-ff4a-4e7f-8d84-f2d9b4cd089f&Preview=1 Date 2/16/2012 Company Name Agile RF Mailing Address 93 Castillian Drive Santa Barbara, CA 93117 Company Description Agile Materials and Technologies uses a novel material technology to design and fabricate tunable integrated components that have a wide range of applications in wireless communications. The key feature of our components and circuits … Continue reading “Agile RF Garners $500,000 New Financing Round”

Eccentex Secures $7,500,000 Series A Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=0af0b5d5-f6e4-4836-9d78-fa69f5f615b6&Preview=1 Date 2/16/2012 Company Name Eccentex Mailing Address 6101 W.Centinela Ave Culver City, CA 90230 Company Description Eccentex was founded in 2005 with one goal in mind: To allow organizations to leverage the power of the cloud delivery model to rapidly and cost-effectively automate their business processes in order to: Reduce Risk, … Continue reading “Eccentex Secures $7,500,000 Series A Round”

Celladon Raises $43M, Wins Fast-Track Status for Heart Treatment

It’s been more than a year and a half since San Diego’s Celladon revealed that its gene therapy treatment might help people suffering from heart failure, a period of quietude that left some folks wondering if the life sciences startup still had a heartbeat. But Celladon sprang to life today with some major news. The … Continue reading “Celladon Raises $43M, Wins Fast-Track Status for Heart Treatment”

AirHop and InterDigital Working to Combine “Network of Networks”

San Diego-based AirHop Communications and InterDigital (NASDAQ: [[ticker:IDCC]]) have been collaborating to integrate AirHop’s technology for self-organizing networks with InterDigital’s bandwidth management technology, according to a statement today. The companies plan to demonstrate their new capability at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona at the end of this month. The joint effort to optimize bandwidth … Continue reading “AirHop and InterDigital Working to Combine “Network of Networks””

FDA Approves New Gen-Probe Test for Men at Risk of Prostate Cancer

The FDA has approved a new diagnostic assay for prostate cancer gene 3 (PCA3), according to San Diego’s Gen-Probe (NASDAQ: [[ticker:GPRO]]), which says the test gives doctors a new diagnostic tool for men who are at higher risk for developing prostate cancer. The company says the test can help determine if additional prostate biopsies are … Continue reading “FDA Approves New Gen-Probe Test for Men at Risk of Prostate Cancer”

SDBN February Networking Event

The San Diego Biotechnology Network is holding its February networking event in the tasting room of San Diego’s Green Flash micro-brewery. SDBN’s affiliated marketing firm, Comprendia, will be on hand to provide free social media and marketing consulting for life sciences companies. The event is free, with food and beverages available for purchase. More information … Continue reading “SDBN February Networking Event”

Organovo Raises $6.5M, Lists on OTC, in Alternative Public Offering

Shares of San Diego-based “bio-printing” company Organovo are set to begin trading over the counter today, following a reverse merger and $6.5 million in private placement financing, which Organovo CEO Keith Murphy collectively describes as an alternative public offering. Events leading up to the announcement were fairly complex, based on recent filings with the Securities … Continue reading “Organovo Raises $6.5M, Lists on OTC, in Alternative Public Offering”

Venture Capital Is the Essence of Everything Good in Capitalism

I was heartened this month to see that the Private Equity Growth Capital Council launched a multi-million-dollar education and public affairs campaign on the Internet highlighting the basics of private equity. Hopefully, this will address a general lack of understanding about private equity, which, among other things, is too often confused with venture capital. This … Continue reading “Venture Capital Is the Essence of Everything Good in Capitalism”

Clearity Foundation Series: How Personalized Medicine Is Failing Patients

This is the first event in the Clearity Foundation’s “Personalized Medicine Symposium Series,” which has been planned as a venue for productive discussion of the challenges and opportunities in bringing the promise of personalized medicine to reality. The inaugural panel will explore some of the commercial issues in bringing personalized medicine to patients. More information … Continue reading “Clearity Foundation Series: How Personalized Medicine Is Failing Patients”

San Diego Tech Roundup: Ecor, Qualcomm Life, Applied Proteomics

Get your week started with our San Diego technology news briefing. —The Qualcomm Life Fund made a strategic investment in San Antonio, TX-based AirStrip Technologies, solidifying their alliance to develop technology for wireless home monitoring of patients with congestive heart failure. AirStrip did not disclose the size of Qualcomm’s investment.  AirStrip already has an FDA-approved … Continue reading “San Diego Tech Roundup: Ecor, Qualcomm Life, Applied Proteomics”

Option to Buy: The New Face of Biotech Funding?

When Cambridge, MA-based Warp Drive Bio launched on January 10, the startup was as notable for its financing structure as it was for its technology—maybe more. That’s because part of the $125 million in funding that Warp Drive received came from French pharmaceutical giant Sanofi (NYSE: [[ticker:SNY]]) , which received in return the chance to … Continue reading “Option to Buy: The New Face of Biotech Funding?”

WaveTec Vision Systems Secures $1,500,000 New Funding

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=d15feb09-1fb1-425c-bc35-b95ee7717ccc&Preview=1 Date 2/13/2012 Company Name WaveTec Vision Systems Mailing Address 66 Argonaut Aliso Viejo, CA 92656 Company Description The company is developing a system to help optimize patient outcomes after intraocular lens replacement procedures. Website http://www.wavetecvision.com Transaction Type Debt Transaction Amount $1,500,000 Transaction Round Undisclosed Proceeds Purposes Proceeds purposes were not disclosed. … Continue reading “WaveTec Vision Systems Secures $1,500,000 New Funding”

AllTrails and National Geographic Team Up to Get Hikers Oriented

The United States is essentially an unpopulated wilderness. If you scattered the citizenry evenly across the country, we’d each have a luxurious eight acres to ourselves. But here’s the weird thing: In a country where the outdoors is so vast, people rarely go there. Even folks who think of themselves as outdoorsy types don’t leave … Continue reading “AllTrails and National Geographic Team Up to Get Hikers Oriented”

SD Life Sciences Roundup: Illumina, Applied Proteomics, & Tocagen

—It wasn’t exactly news when the board at San Diego-based Illumina (NASDAQ: [[ticker:ILMN]]) said it had rejected the $5.7 billion hostile takeover offer from Swiss drug maker Roche. Now Wall Street’s arbitragers are placing their bets on whether Roche can prevail. The most intriguing news about the deal, however, came from The Wall Street Journal, … Continue reading “SD Life Sciences Roundup: Illumina, Applied Proteomics, & Tocagen”

The 9th Annual San Diego MIT Wine Social

The San Diego MIT Enterprise Forum wine social, held annually, is one of the premier networking event for San Diego’s technology and biotechnology community. With more than 700 founders and executives of growth companies, business development personnel, investors, and service providers, this industry networking social creates an opportunity for technology sector leaders and entrepreneurs across … Continue reading “The 9th Annual San Diego MIT Wine Social”