San Diego has a new semiconductor startup, courtesy of venture funding from the Bay Area. San Diego-based Pervasive, a fabless semiconductor design company that is focused on smart grid applications, raised $6 million from investors, according to a recent filing with securities regulators. The startup’s founding president and CEO is Reza Mirkhani, a former director … Continue reading “San Diego Fabless Startup Gets $6M to Pursue Smart-Grid Chip”
Category: San Diego
Pervasive Obtains $6,000,000 New Funding
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=bac751e2-e44c-4cfb-88a9-f071c53b41b4&Preview=1 Date 6/16/2010 Company Name Pervasive Mailing Address 4840 Almondwood Way San Diego, CA 92130 Company Description We are a venture backed System on a Chip (SoC) company focused on providing Power Line Communication (PLC) and control solutions for Smart GRID applications. Website http://www.pervasiveinc.com Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount $6,000,000 Transaction … Continue reading “Pervasive Obtains $6,000,000 New Funding”
Anaphore Names 2 to Board
Anaphore, a San Diego biotech that occupies a different corner of the same building as Xconomy San Diego, recently named Russell G. Greig, the retired president of SR One as its executive chairman. Greig capped his almost 30-year career at GlaxoSmithKline as head of its venture arm, and Anaphore was a portfolio company. Anaphore, which … Continue reading “Anaphore Names 2 to Board”
Qualcomm Bids $1B for Spectrum in India, Software Analytics Target Smart Grid, San Diego Expects Diverse Run of Electric Vehicles, & More San Diego BizTech News
Qualcomm dominated San Diego’s BizTech news last week, with the kickoff of its World Cup coverage on FLO TV, making a $1 billion bid for broadband spectrum in India, and an acquisition in the Netherlands. You can get that and more here. —Qualcomm (NASDAQ: [[ticker:QCOM]]) says it’s the provisional winner after bidding more than $1 billion … Continue reading “Qualcomm Bids $1B for Spectrum in India, Software Analytics Target Smart Grid, San Diego Expects Diverse Run of Electric Vehicles, & More San Diego BizTech News”
Three University Teams Get Early Stage Funding
A collaborative program coordinated by the San Diego mayor’s office will provide a total of $150,000 in grants to help commercialize cleantech technologies being developed by three research teams at UC San Diego and San Diego State University. The pre-seed funding comes at a time when local VC funding has evaporated, and many local technologists … Continue reading “Three University Teams Get Early Stage Funding”
Machinima.com Garners $9,000,000 Series B Financing
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=2d4c7bde-6bf3-45b5-87d9-57d2a0359cca&Preview=1 Date 6/15/2010 Company Name Machinima.com Mailing Address 140 South Citrus Ave Los Angeles, CA 90040 Company Description Machinima.com is the premiere online entertainment network showing original videos from your favorite video games. Watch thousands of trailers, gameplay, montages, music videos and original machinima series and movies created in World of Warcraft, … Continue reading “Machinima.com Garners $9,000,000 Series B Financing”
MaxLinear CEO Among E&Y’s EOYs in San Diego
Carlsbad-based wireless chipmaker MaxLinear (NYSE: [[ticker:MXL]]) says today that its CEO, Kishore Seendripu, was named last week as the 2010 Ernst & Young “entrepreneur of the year” in the technology category. Other San Diego categories and winners are: Consumer Products, Larry Gilbert of Event Network; Health Sciences, Scott Huennekens, Volcano; Emerging, Russ Mann of Covario; … Continue reading “MaxLinear CEO Among E&Y’s EOYs in San Diego”
BrainCells Inc, With Novel Depression Drug, Seeks a Way Forward After Mixed Result
BrainCells Inc. has made its name with a novel approach for treating depression, by stimulating the growth of new neurons. Now the San Diego-based company will have some hard choices to make, since a clinical trial showed its drug doesn’t work any better than a placebo for most people with depression. The results also suggest, … Continue reading “BrainCells Inc, With Novel Depression Drug, Seeks a Way Forward After Mixed Result”
Xconomy Arrives in San Francisco Bay Area, Telling Stories of Innovation in the Global Capital of Technology and Entrepreneurship
MIT’s Robert Solow won the 1987 Nobel Prize in economics for showing that long-term growth in advanced economies like the United States is not driven so much by capital investment, the pillar of classic economics, as by technological progress. Nearly three years ago, on June 27, 2007, Xconomy began publishing online from Kendall Square, Cambridge, … Continue reading “Xconomy Arrives in San Francisco Bay Area, Telling Stories of Innovation in the Global Capital of Technology and Entrepreneurship”
Cognionics, Wireless Sensor Startup, Wins UCSD Entrepreneur Challenge
He got the beat. Yu “Mike” Chi, a graduate student in electrical engineering at UC San Diego, put a quarter-sized wireless sensor over his suit jacket and displayed the resulting electrocardiogram to win the UCSD Entrepreneur Challenge. The live demonstration on June 2 of technology that Chi had developed for his research thesis (and the … Continue reading “Cognionics, Wireless Sensor Startup, Wins UCSD Entrepreneur Challenge”
Genetic Testing Companies in San Diego, Boston, & San Francisco Studying FDA Letters
Five companies that provide genetic testing services—including San Diego’s Illumina (NASDAQ: [[ticker:ILMN]]), 23andMe and Navigenics in the San Francisco Bay Area, and Knome in Cambridge, MA—no doubt spent the weekend parsing letters issued Friday by the FDA. The letters, which were posted on the FDA website and signed by Alberto Gutierrez of the FDA’s office … Continue reading “Genetic Testing Companies in San Diego, Boston, & San Francisco Studying FDA Letters”
Innovations in Smart Energy: Using IT and Other Advances to Curb Runaway Dependence on Fossil Fuels
Almost from the moment that Thomas Edison had the first filament of an idea, the light bulb has been a symbol of invention—and of the Eureka! moment that comes with innovation. But as public awareness of green and clean technologies has gained currency, the incandescent light bulb of yore might just as easily serve as … Continue reading “Innovations in Smart Energy: Using IT and Other Advances to Curb Runaway Dependence on Fossil Fuels”
Qualcomm Bids $1B to Win Broadband Wireless Spectrum in India
San Diego-based Qualcomm (NASDAQ:[[ticker:QCOM]]) says it submitted the winning bid in an auction for India’s broadband wireless access (BWA)—spectrum in the 2.3 gigahertz (GHz) band. In a statement today, the wireless technologies giant said it is the provisional winner of the 20 megahertz (MHz) slot in the telecom circles of four cities—Mumbai, Delhi, Haryan, and … Continue reading “Qualcomm Bids $1B to Win Broadband Wireless Spectrum in India”
In World Cup Broadcasts to Mobile TV Users, Qualcomm’s FLO TV Misses Bigger Goal—Fervor for World’s Most Popular Sporting Event
[Updated 6/18/10 4:10 pm. See below.] The World Cup soccer tournament that begins today in South Africa ranks as the world’s biggest sporting event in terms of broadcast audience. Alas, if only San Diego-based Qualcomm’s (NASDAQ: [[ticker:QCOM]]) FLO TV could tap a significant fraction of it. FLO TV, the Qualcomm subsidiary that provides the broadcast … Continue reading “In World Cup Broadcasts to Mobile TV Users, Qualcomm’s FLO TV Misses Bigger Goal—Fervor for World’s Most Popular Sporting Event”
Otonomy Lands $10,000,000 Series A Funding
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=771e4b2f-8aa1-4854-b840-248955c3e9e6&Preview=1 Date 6/11/2010 Company Name Otonomy Mailing Address 5626 Oberlin Dr. San Diego, CA 92121 Company Description Otonomy is a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company developing novel drug therapies for disorders of the inner and middle ear. This field represents a large opportunity as there are no approved drug treatments for the nearly … Continue reading “Otonomy Lands $10,000,000 Series A Funding”
Xconomy Welcomes Susan Hunt Stevens to Our Board
A lot of great things have been happening here at Xconomy lately. We have done syndication deals with the Boston Globe and Motley Fool, launched our new Health IT channel, and expanded to Detroit—with another geographic expansion coming up very soon (stay tuned). Today, though, I am extremely pleased to announce that we have expanded … Continue reading “Xconomy Welcomes Susan Hunt Stevens to Our Board”
Sony Selling 3D TVs
Sony Electronics, whose North American headquarters is in San Diego, says it is now taking orders for 3D televisions that the company previewed for reporters at the beginning of the year. Sony, which is following the debut of 3D TVs from Samsung and Panasonic, has placed its bet on technology that requires active shutter 3D … Continue reading “Sony Selling 3D TVs”
Otonomy Pockets $10M For Hearing Loss
Hearing loss and other diseases of the ear affect millions of people, but that hasn’t translated into millions of dollars for biotech entrepreneurs. But that may be changing, as San Diego-based Otonomy has collected an initial round of $10.5 million in venture capital. The financing in Otonomy (Oh-TAWN-uh-me) could be worth as much as $26 … Continue reading “Otonomy Pockets $10M For Hearing Loss”
Syndax’s Breast Cancer Drug Advances, Arena Raises Equity Financing, BeneChill Recruits a CEO, & More San Diego Life Sciences News
The pace of life sciences news slowed in the past week, but we know from experience the lull is temporary. You can catch up on the headlines here. —A raft of studies from provided additional evidence that a urine test from Gen-Probe (NASDAQ: [[ticker:GPRO]]) might help eliminate the need for additional biopsies in men with … Continue reading “Syndax’s Breast Cancer Drug Advances, Arena Raises Equity Financing, BeneChill Recruits a CEO, & More San Diego Life Sciences News”
The Genomics Comeback
One of the things that fascinates me most about the slow-paced business of biotech is how utterly mismatched it is against the demands of Wall Street. Asking for quarterly earnings reports from companies that are in the red, and likely to remain so for years, while they test drug candidates in early-stage clinical trials (which … Continue reading “The Genomics Comeback”
Collecta Receives $4,700,000 New Funding
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=7b3e34b3-ccdf-4b7d-bf5c-19182ad7a92a&Preview=1 Date 6/10/2010 Company Name Collecta Mailing Address Undisclosed Los Angeles, CA 90049 Company Description Collecta is not like other search engines. The web is alive with real-time information. So why search a stale archive? Collecta monitors the update streams of news sites, popular blogs and social media, and Flickr, so we … Continue reading “Collecta Receives $4,700,000 New Funding”
CrowdGather Acquires Adisn for $5,500,000
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=910976d7-b81c-492c-9566-104c7ba50e6d&Preview=1 Date 6/10/2010 Company Name Adisn Mailing Address 3777 Long Beach Blvd Long Beach, CA 90807 Company Description Adisn is a next generation Ad Network that uses relationship data from the social web to enhance targeting. Adisn has proven that the aggregate of web conversations, web profiles, online blogs, and behavior create … Continue reading “CrowdGather Acquires Adisn for $5,500,000”
Illumina Slashes Cost of Individual Genome Sequencing Service
[Updated 6/11/10 12:05 am. See below.] The cost of getting your genome sequenced continues to drop. San Diego’s Illumina (NASDAQ: [[ticker:ILMN]]) has lowered the cost of its individual sequencing service to $19,500 from $48,000. The company is offering a discounted price of $9,500 for people with serious medical conditions who could potentially benefit from having … Continue reading “Illumina Slashes Cost of Individual Genome Sequencing Service”
Gen-Probe Prostate Cancer Test Looks Promising
Gen-Probe (NASDAQ: [[ticker:GPRO]]) appears to be on the right track with its experimental prostate cancer test, judging from a raft of recent clinical studies in men being screened for prostate cancer. The research, presented at the annual meeting of the American Urological Association in San Francisco last week, provided additional evidence that Gen-Probe’s PCA3 urine … Continue reading “Gen-Probe Prostate Cancer Test Looks Promising”
See You This Afternoon at the Xconomy Forum: The Rise of Smart Energy
We’ll be turning on the lights soon for our big afternoon event, the Xconomy Forum on smart energy. On the other hand, we might not need the lights inside Atkinson Hall, where we’re gathering at Calit2, because we’ve recruited some of the brightest minds from San Diego and beyond to discuss energy and innovation. After … Continue reading “See You This Afternoon at the Xconomy Forum: The Rise of Smart Energy”
Syndax Pharma Seeks to Reprogram Tumor Cells to Treat Breast Cancer
Women lose a valuable weapon against their breast tumors when the potency of hormone therapy fades. But what if there was a way to “reprogram” breast tumor cells to be receptive to hormone therapy? Waltham, MA-based Syndax Pharmaceuticals might have such a way. Syndax has shown in a 26-patient clinical trial that its drug, entinostat, … Continue reading “Syndax Pharma Seeks to Reprogram Tumor Cells to Treat Breast Cancer”
San Diego Chargers: Region Serves as a Testbed for new EVs and Their Charging Stations
San Diego County, which is bounded to the South by the U.S. border with Mexico, along the West by the Pacific Ocean and in the East by the parched deserts of Imperial Valley, has often served as a test market for everything from light beer to broadband wireless plans. And over the next year or … Continue reading “San Diego Chargers: Region Serves as a Testbed for new EVs and Their Charging Stations”
Biogen’s CEO Retires Tomorrow, COO to Follow
Biogen Idec will officially be CEO-less starting tomorrow. James Mullen, Biogen’s chief executive, retires on June 8 after a decade on the job and the Cambridge, MA-based company hasn’t named his successor. The company (NASDAQ:[[ticker:BIIB]]), which also has significant operations in San Diego, said this afternoon that its in the final stages of selecting the … Continue reading “Biogen’s CEO Retires Tomorrow, COO to Follow”
Qualcomm Invests in Anteryon
San Diego-based Qualcomm says today its European venture arm has led a new round of funding for Anteryon of Eindhoven, the Netherlands, a 2006 spinoff from Philips that makes wafer-based optical modules for mobile phone cameras and laser projection. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Existing shareholders BNP Paribas Private Equity and Biggell Finance … Continue reading “Qualcomm Invests in Anteryon”
BeneChill Hires CEO
Alan Raffensperger, an Amgen executive director who led the biotech’s nephrology franchise, has been named as the new CEO at San Diego-based BeneChill, according to a report today in Venture Wire. BeneChill, which Xconomy’s Denise Gellene profiled in December, is getting ready to launch its portable RhinoChill device in Europe. The device is used to … Continue reading “BeneChill Hires CEO”
Smart Grid Innovations in Energy and Analytics Take Root in San Diego—Previewing Xconomy’s Smart Energy Event
Over the next decade, San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E) and other public utilities in California must undergo a massive transformation in the ways they generate and transmit electricity to meet aggressive regulatory requirements for renewable energy. We’re starting to see some of those changes today. In less than two years, SDG&E is expected to … Continue reading “Smart Grid Innovations in Energy and Analytics Take Root in San Diego—Previewing Xconomy’s Smart Energy Event”
DivX Buyout Anticipates Boom in Internet TV, ViaSat Sees Big Bet Paying Off, Solekai Leads Charge in Smart Grid Software Development, & More San Diego BizTech News
It was a short week, but we saw a spate of deals involving San Diego companies, beginning with the $323 million buyout of DivX, which could be the prelude to a coming boom in Internet TV. Tune in now for our high-def view of the big picture. —Novato, CA-based Sonic Solutions (NASDAQ: [[ticker:SNIC]]) agreed to … Continue reading “DivX Buyout Anticipates Boom in Internet TV, ViaSat Sees Big Bet Paying Off, Solekai Leads Charge in Smart Grid Software Development, & More San Diego BizTech News”
Of Cuban Missiles and Chinese Wind Turbines
Recently I had the opportunity to participate in a series of meetings in Washington, DC, together with an impressive array of business leaders and investors. The group that held the meetings is called the Progressive Business Leaders Network, and it focuses on a select set of issues that are critical to driving U.S. competitiveness. PBLN’s … Continue reading “Of Cuban Missiles and Chinese Wind Turbines”
Microsoft’s Windows Phone 7 and Mobile Strategy
Microsoft’s Toni Abrusia and Daniel Egan host a session to explain the next major mobile phone release, which is slated for availability later this year, and how to leverage the robust application platform to develop games and applications for Marketplace. Registration begins at 5:30 p.m., or register online here.
2010 International ESRI User Conference
TED Conference founder Richard Saul Wurman will discuss the impacts of urban supercenters and the role of GIS in problem solving in his keynote address at the annual ESRI User Conference in San Diego. More information and online registration is here.
Legislative Roundtable with California Assemblyman Joel Anderson, R-El Cajon
Assemblyman Joel Anderson represents California’s 77th Assembly District, which encompasses more than 420,000 people in East San Diego County. He sits on the Assembly’s Select Committee on Biotechnology, the Insurance Committee and the Water, Parks and Wildlife Committee. He also is vice-chair of the Governmental Organization Committee. More information and registration is here.
Fresh Starts and Offshoots at Advanced BioHealing
Advanced BioHealing has turned Dermagraft, its product for diabetic foot ulcers, into a success story for regenerative medicine. Kathy McGee, Advanced BioHealing’s vice president and general manager, will give a short presentation, and ABH representatives will be available for networking throughout the evening—and ABH is hiring. More information and online registration is here.
Using SDSU Mapping to Help Disaster Relief Workers Navigate Chaos
Through a partnership with the U.S. Navy, researchers at San Diego State University’s Visualization Center used high-resolution imagery from Navy P-3 aircraft to provide mapping and web services to relief organizations following the January quake in Haiti. Similar mapping, visualization and data integration efforts are also underway for the Mexicali earthquake and Gulf oil spill, … Continue reading “Using SDSU Mapping to Help Disaster Relief Workers Navigate Chaos”
Life Sciences Analytics: Bridging the Gap to Drug Discovery and Diagnostics
Life sciences analytics has adapted a number of techniques from other industries for successful forays into drug discovery and diagnostics. The San Diego Software Industry Council has organized a session to discuss how algorithms and research from outside life sciences are being adapted for new research and analysis. Speakers include Stephen Tanner of Illumina, Michael … Continue reading “Life Sciences Analytics: Bridging the Gap to Drug Discovery and Diagnostics”
ViaSat Buys Data Encryption Technology
ViaSat (NASDAQ: [[ticker:VSAT]]), the Carlsbad, CA-based provider of satellite-based digital media and wireless communications technologies, plans to buy privately held Stonewood Group of Dorset, England, in a cash and stock deal valued at $20 million, according to a statement today. Stonewood’s products are used to encrypt data on computer hard drives so that a lost … Continue reading “ViaSat Buys Data Encryption Technology”
San Diego’s Solekai Moves to Catch Wave of Smart Grid Software Development
Solekai Systems was founded in 2002, and quickly became one of San Diego’s fastest-growing privately held companies. By specializing in digital video software development and engineering services (set-top boxes and related hardware) for customers like Sony Electronics, TiVo, Pioneer, and DirectTV, Solekai’s revenue soared by 1,536 percent from 2003 to 2006—to $18.2 million. That was … Continue reading “San Diego’s Solekai Moves to Catch Wave of Smart Grid Software Development”
Let’s Abandon the Industrial-Decay Porn and Take a Closer Look at What’s Growing in Detroit
If you got all your information about Detroit from the blogosphere, the mainstream media, or the photography section of your local bookstore and never actually visited the Motor City, you could be forgiven for assuming that it’s one giant, bombed-out wasteland. That’s certainly the impression conveyed by many of the artists who have been criss-crossing … Continue reading “Let’s Abandon the Industrial-Decay Porn and Take a Closer Look at What’s Growing in Detroit”
Burstly Receives Series A Financing
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=5b2aba68-26ba-4831-8479-849597416e64&Preview=1 Date 6/4/2010 Company Name Burstly Mailing Address Undisclosed Pacific Palisades, CA 90272 Company Description Burstly is commited to providing the best platform for mobile developers to maximize both their marketing and revenue opportunities. We believe the first step to achieving this goal is to empower developers with the tools and data … Continue reading “Burstly Receives Series A Financing”
Arena Adds $35M From Deerfield
Arena Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: [[ticker:ARNA]]), the San Diego-based developer of an experimental obesity drug, said today it has raised $35.5 million through an equity financing from Deerfield Management. Arena agreed to sell 11 million shares to Deerfield at $3.23 apiece, the equivalent of yesterday’s closing stock price. Arena is getting ready for an important meeting of … Continue reading “Arena Adds $35M From Deerfield”
Feds’ Sequenom Probe Breaks Into the Open, Life Technologies Moves Into Synthetic Biology, DexCom Agrees to Re-Label Its Medical Devices, & More San Diego Life Sciences News
The big news came with a guilty plea by Sequenom’s former R&D chief, but it’s just the beginning. In pleading guilty, Elizabeth Dragon agreed to cooperate with a continuing criminal investigation of wrongdoing in the company’s development of a prenatal diagnostic test for Down syndrome. Our weekly wrap-up begins here. —The former chief of research … Continue reading “Feds’ Sequenom Probe Breaks Into the Open, Life Technologies Moves Into Synthetic Biology, DexCom Agrees to Re-Label Its Medical Devices, & More San Diego Life Sciences News”
Sequenom’s Former R&D Chief Pleads Guilty to Securities Fraud Charge
A former senior vice president for research and development at Sequenom (NASDAQ: [[ticker:SQNM]]) admitted today that she knew “blinded” studies the company was conducting of a genetic test for Down syndrome were falsified. Elizabeth A. Dragon, a former Sequenom senior vice president for research and development, admitted in an appearance before a federal judge this … Continue reading “Sequenom’s Former R&D Chief Pleads Guilty to Securities Fraud Charge”
Life Tech Bets $10M on Synthetic Genomics
[Updated: 12:15 pm, 6/3/10] Life Technologies (NASDAQ: [[ticker:LIFE]]), the Carlsbad, CA-based maker of lab supplies and instruments, has invested $10 million out of an equity financing that could be worth as much as $50 million for San Diego-based Synthetic Genomics, the startup co-founded by genomics pioneer J. Craig Venter, according to a regulatory filing. Synthetic … Continue reading “Life Tech Bets $10M on Synthetic Genomics”
Founders Seeking Buyers for SDNN, Local Online News Startup
The San Diego News Network, or SDNN, which launched a regional news website in March 2009, boasted of rapid expansion plans, and which reportedly raised close to $3.2 million, is searching for a buyer. SDNN is continuing to publish San Diego news on its website with a reduced staff, according to SDNN President (and former … Continue reading “Founders Seeking Buyers for SDNN, Local Online News Startup”
Sonic Solutions to Merge With DivX as Battle Looms for Internet TV Dominance
Media technology company Sonic Solutions (NASDAQ:[[ticker:SNIC]]) of Novato, CA, is acquiring DivX (NASDAQ: [[ticker:DIVX]]), the San Diego digital media and video codec developer, in a deal valued at roughly $323 million. The buyout, which was announced by both companies today, will help Sonic accelerate its development of Web-based infrastructure for streaming online video movies and … Continue reading “Sonic Solutions to Merge With DivX as Battle Looms for Internet TV Dominance”
Arena FDA Panel Set for Sept. 16
Arena Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: [[ticker:ARNA]]), the San Diego-based developer of a new obesity drug, said today that the FDA has notified the company of tentative plans for an advisory committee meeting to discuss its treatment on September 16. Arena first sought clearance from the FDA to start selling lorcaserin in the U.S. in December, and the … Continue reading “Arena FDA Panel Set for Sept. 16”