San Diego’s Cytori Therapeutics (NASDAQ: [[ticker:CYTX]]) says it is raising $850,000 today by selling shares to Seaside 88, a fund managed by Orlando, FL-based Seaside Capital Management, under a private placement agreement. Cytori, which has been developing regenerative medicine technologies for breast reconstruction and other treatments, says Seaside has agreed to purchase as many as … Continue reading “Cytori Raises Cash In Stock Sale”
Category: San Diego
Vical Hits Milestones
Vical, (NASDAQ: [[ticker:VICL]]) the San Diego biotech developing DNA vaccines for cancer and infectious disease, says it has received a $1.5 million milestone payment from Merck for its early stage development of a cancer vaccine based on Vical’s technology. In a statement, Vical CEO Vijay Samant says, “We have leveraged our technologies through license agreements … Continue reading “Vical Hits Milestones”
Waitaminnit—San Diego is the Headquarters of America’s Latest Green Auto Startup?
When Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal announced that a startup automaker based in San Diego will build a new line of fuel-efficient cars in Monroe, LA, nobody was more surprised than some folks at Cleantech San Diego. The V-Vehicle Company, founded in 2006 by former Oracle executive Frank Varasano, says it “will produce a high-quality, environmentally … Continue reading “Waitaminnit—San Diego is the Headquarters of America’s Latest Green Auto Startup?”
San Diego’s Wireless Incubator Hatches, Geospatial Software Gains Ground, EcoDog Gets an Angel, & More San Diego BizTech News
As the unemployment rate climbed to 11.5 percent statewide in California, and 9.4 percent in San Diego County, two local industry groups announced major initiatives to encourage and support innovation in the region. Read up on that and the rest of San Diego’s business and technology news: —San Diego’s software industry, which already hosts a … Continue reading “San Diego’s Wireless Incubator Hatches, Geospatial Software Gains Ground, EcoDog Gets an Angel, & More San Diego BizTech News”
Should You Sign Up for Google Voice? Xconomy Readers Share Their Beta Experiences
Back in March, I wrote a column about Google Voice, the reincarnated version of a voicemail unification service that Google acquired from Grand Central back in 2007. The free service gives you a single phone number for life that isn’t tied to any particular land line or cellular device—instead, calls ring through to whichever phones … Continue reading “Should You Sign Up for Google Voice? Xconomy Readers Share Their Beta Experiences”
Norman Steps in at Supercomputer Center
The San Diego Supercomputer Center at U.C. San Diego today named UCSD astrophysicist Michael L. Norman as interim director. Norman replaces Fran Berman, a specialist in grid computing (and San Diego Xconomist), who has served as the center’s director since 2001. Berman plans to join the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute as vice president of research, effective … Continue reading “Norman Steps in at Supercomputer Center”
Sorrento Therapeutics Raises $2.3 Million
San Diego-based Sorrento Therapeutics has raised $2.3 million in a one-time equity investment, according to a filing yesterday with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The biotech, which specializes in new methods for developing 100-percent human monoclonal antibodies, was founded in 2006 and lists Steve Zaniboni, Antonius Schuh, and Henry Ji as executives and directors. Zaniboni … Continue reading “Sorrento Therapeutics Raises $2.3 Million”
Accumetrics Gunning To Be the Medical Diagnostics Standard for Managing Cardiovascular Disease
Doctors often prescribe a drug like clopidogrel (Plavix) or aspirin to help prevent their patients from suffering a heart attack, stroke, or even waxy plaque buildup along the inside of blood vessels. But how do they know if the dosage is correct, and that the drug prescribed is actually working as intended to prevent blood … Continue reading “Accumetrics Gunning To Be the Medical Diagnostics Standard for Managing Cardiovascular Disease”
Employee Ownership and Lessons Learned from the Collapse
In the aftermath of last year’s market collapse, learn what works and doesn’t work for entrepreneurs who are willing to re-envision the company as a shared resource of capitalism. San Diego is home to more than 100 companies that have significant employee ownership and broad-based stock options and profit sharing. Explore the benefits of employee … Continue reading “Employee Ownership and Lessons Learned from the Collapse”
Inside the Startup Circle: Barbara Bry and Melanie Bivens
StartupCircle hosts San Diego serial entrepreneur Barbara Bry as the main attraction in a double feature with Soul Shine co-founder and president Melanie Bivens. StartupCircle is a new San Diego organization created to support entrepreneurs at their proof-of-concept stage. StartupCircle helps by providing access to business mentors, networks, and resources. Register online here.
Boston’s Digital Entertainment Economy Begins to Sense Its Own Strength
Let’s say you live in Boston and you’ve just hit on a great concept for a cross-media property, with all the attendant merchandising tie-ins: a special-effects-laden movie, a console video game, a comic, a kids’ cartoon, action figures, a novelization, a persistent online world—in other words, the next Matrix or Transformers or Harry Potter. To … Continue reading “Boston’s Digital Entertainment Economy Begins to Sense Its Own Strength”
Qualcomm’s Don Jones and the Year of Inflection for Wireless Health
At the Wireless-Life Sciences Convergence Summit in San Diego a few weeks ago, healthcare industry veteran Rob McCray told me, “We may well look back and say 2009 was the year of inflection for wireless health.” By wireless health, he means healthcare information and services delivered via wireless networks and devices. The emerging industry certainly got off to … Continue reading “Qualcomm’s Don Jones and the Year of Inflection for Wireless Health”
Trius Approaches Next Stage in Drug Development, China Partnerships a Hot Topic at CalAsia, Lpath Headed to Critical Juncture, & More San Diego Life Sciences News
We all look for milestones in life, but several San Diego biotechs are approaching important junctures where they’re expected to report positive results from their drug development studies. Read on to find out which ones, and to catch up on the rest of San Diego’s life sciences news. —San Diego’s Ardea Biosciences (NASDAQ: [[ticker:RDEA]]) reported … Continue reading “Trius Approaches Next Stage in Drug Development, China Partnerships a Hot Topic at CalAsia, Lpath Headed to Critical Juncture, & More San Diego Life Sciences News”
EcoDog Angel is Former Utility CEO
EcoDog, a Vista, CA-startup developing a “watchdog” device to help consumers monitor their electricity use, inaugurated its plans to raise $5.6 million in angel funding today by naming its first angel investor. CEO Ron Pitt, who founded EcoDog in his garage four years ago, told me Tom Page, the former chairman and CEO of San … Continue reading “EcoDog Angel is Former Utility CEO”
Arena Lines Up $100 Million in Final Push for Obesity Drug
After reporting comprehensive findings from its major study of obesity drug lorcaserin 11 days ago, San Diego’s Arena Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: [[ticker:ARNA]]) said today it has arranged $100 million in debt financing with Deerfield Management, a significant shareholder. That should provide the means for Arena to take the drug through the FDA drug review process. In … Continue reading “Arena Lines Up $100 Million in Final Push for Obesity Drug”
Lpath, a Developer of Lipid-Targeting Drugs, Nears a Fork in the Road
Is San Diego’s Lpath (OTC: [[ticker:LPTN]]) on the right path? The answer will emerge over the next several weeks as the biotechnology company wraps up a key clinical test of its experimental cancer drug. A successful outcome will position the cash-starved company to receive $39 million from development partner Merck Serono of Switzerland, enabling Lpath … Continue reading “Lpath, a Developer of Lipid-Targeting Drugs, Nears a Fork in the Road”
San Diego’s Wireless Industry Establishes Startup Incubator
At a time when communications startups are about as rare in San Diego as a newborn Panda at the zoo, the local wireless industry is delivering a nursery. CommNexus, the San Diego communications industry group, and San Diego-based Leap Wireless (NASDAQ: [[ticker:LEAP]]) are establishing a non-profit business incubator here to nurture startups developing communications technologies. CommNexus … Continue reading “San Diego’s Wireless Industry Establishes Startup Incubator”
Specialized Capabilities Put San Diego on the Geospatial Map
Yash Talreja says most people don’t know that cell phones were around for 30 years before they became affordable, useful, and prevalent devices for ordinary consumers. Now he says the same thing is happening with geographic information systems, or GIS. “For 30 years, it was a very specialized area,” Talreja says. “It was used by … Continue reading “Specialized Capabilities Put San Diego on the Geospatial Map”
The DivX Story: From Downloading ‘The Matrix’ to Watching it on All Three Screens
DivX is a codec that packs large video files into a smaller size. It’s also the San Diego company that has commercialized the technology. CEO Kevin Hell talks of DivX moving towards “any online content on any device” as the next step in the evolution of consumer media, and “video freedom”, which means you will … Continue reading “The DivX Story: From Downloading ‘The Matrix’ to Watching it on All Three Screens”
RoyaltyShare Expands UK Service
San Diego’s RoyaltyShare, which provides software-as-a-service for record labels that want to track and collect music royalties, says its technology now supports the U.K.’s Mechanical-Copyright Protection Society. Bob Kohn, RoyaltyShare’s co-founder, chairman and CEO, says creating an automated process for reporting royalties to MCPS represents a “significant milestone” for RoyaltyShare. “They have 100 percent market … Continue reading “RoyaltyShare Expands UK Service”
Accelrys Names New CEO
San Diego-based Accelrys, which develops software for computer-aided design and modeling, today named Scipio Carnecchia as president and chief executive. Carnecchia previously was president of Interwoven, a provider of content management software that was acquired by Autonomy earlier this year. Carnecchia, who also is joining the board at Accelrys (NASDAQ: [[ticker:ACCL]]), replaces Mark Emkjer, who resigned as CEO in … Continue reading “Accelrys Names New CEO”
Hollis-Eden Names Frincke CEO
San Diego’s Hollis-Eden Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: [[ticker:HEPH]]) today named James Frincke as CEO, three months after the biotech terminated founder Richard Hollis. Frincke, who was the biotech’s chief operating officer, was named interim CEO at the time. Hollis founded the biotech 15 years ago to develop therapies based on a synthetic form of HDEA, an adrenal … Continue reading “Hollis-Eden Names Frincke CEO”
MadCap Competes by Innovating, VC Partners See Influx of Foreign Investment, Qualcomm’s Media Flo Begins Delayed Network Expansion, & More San Diego BizTech News
While tech deals remained scarce last week in San Diego, Qualcomm served up some of the biggest news by launching the delayed expansion of its Media Flo network and signaling an increase in its wireless chip sales, at least in the current quarter. More on all that, and the rest of last week’s San Diego … Continue reading “MadCap Competes by Innovating, VC Partners See Influx of Foreign Investment, Qualcomm’s Media Flo Begins Delayed Network Expansion, & More San Diego BizTech News”
Q&A With Hui Cai on Biotech in the Asia Pacific Region: Sharing Risks and Building Sustainable Businesses
As cross-pacific partnerships multiply among life science companies in California and Asia, San Diego biotech companies are increasingly interested in learning how to do business in China, India, and other countries. At least 250 representatives of the international life science community are expected to gather for CalAsia, a two-day conference that begins today at the … Continue reading “Q&A With Hui Cai on Biotech in the Asia Pacific Region: Sharing Risks and Building Sustainable Businesses”
Trius Looks to Cut a Deal, Gears Up For Final Stage of Trials with New Antibiotic
San Diego-based Trius Therapeutics saw what it wanted from a clinical trial of its new antibiotic against deadly MRSA infections, and now it’s gearing up this summer to take its game to a higher level. Trius reported earlier this week some impressive results from a trial of 188 patients with complicated skin infections who took … Continue reading “Trius Looks to Cut a Deal, Gears Up For Final Stage of Trials with New Antibiotic”
German Web 2.0 Clothing Retailer Spreadshirt Finds Boston Fits It to a T
When you’re a technology reporter and you stumble across the same startup two or three times in quick succession, it’s the journalism gods telling you to write a story. I first stumbled across Spreadshirt on Tax Day, April 15. (As I’d later learn, the Leipzig, Germany-based startup has been famous among Web-savvy fashionistas for years, … Continue reading “German Web 2.0 Clothing Retailer Spreadshirt Finds Boston Fits It to a T”
Small Indian Tribe Lands Big Wind Energy Deal
A Chicago-based developer of large-scale renewable energy projects will build a 160-megawatt wind farm on the Campo Indian Reservation about 60 miles east of San Diego, under an agreement announced today. If completed as expected by 2012, the 100-turbine facility in the Laguna Mountains will generate enough electricity during peak production for more than 100,000 … Continue reading “Small Indian Tribe Lands Big Wind Energy Deal”
Ardea Sees Early Signs of Effectiveness With Gout Drug
Ardea Biosciences, the San Diego-based developer of a treatment for gout, has shown in a small clinical trial that a treatment its scientists stumbled upon by accident just might work. Ardea (NASDAQ: [[ticker:RDEA]]) said today that 6 of the first 7 patients who got its lead drug candidate for gout were able to bring their … Continue reading “Ardea Sees Early Signs of Effectiveness With Gout Drug”
Anadys Cuts Jobs, Obesity Drug Developers Show Intriguing Results, Trius Antibiotic Passes Key Test, & More San Diego Life Sciences News
There was a lot of life sciences news over the past week in San Diego, with much of it coming out of the American Diabetes Association annual meeting in New Orleans. —At a time when San Diego’s Amylin Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: [[ticker:AMLN]]) doesn’t need more challenges, Denmark’s Novo Nordisk announced that liraglutide, its once-daily diabetes drug, … Continue reading “Anadys Cuts Jobs, Obesity Drug Developers Show Intriguing Results, Trius Antibiotic Passes Key Test, & More San Diego Life Sciences News”
DTT Surveillance Inc Lands $7,000,000 New Funding Round
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=b829a503-64e3-49a9-ab14-3db4900eb03f&Preview=1 Date 6/11/2009 Company Name DTT Surveillance Inc Mailing Address 1755 N. Main St Los Angeles, CA 90031 Company Description Innovation begins with experience. Founded in 1999, Los Angeles-based DTT Surveillance is the leading supplier of digital surveillance products for the restaurant industry. Since first launched DTT has equipped, serviced and supported … Continue reading “DTT Surveillance Inc Lands $7,000,000 New Funding Round”
By Fostering Innovation, San Diego Will Pull Venture Capital From Everywhere
Against the backdrop of a broad decline in venture investing nationwide, some concerns have been raised about San Diego’s hometown VCs and whether they are continuing to actively invest. But San Diego remains a vibrant community for venture capitalists to invest. We enjoy diverse industries including biotech, wireless, software, cleantech, and more. Good money follows … Continue reading “By Fostering Innovation, San Diego Will Pull Venture Capital From Everywhere”
Digital TV Conversion Clears Way for Qualcomm’s Flo TV Expansion to Boston, Other Markets
Qualcomm’s delayed plan to substantially expand the scope of its Flo TV service should finally take effect tomorrow, once television broadcasters in 39 markets turn off their analog transmitters and switch to digital TV broadcasts. Tomorrow’s planned DTV transition will free broadband spectrum on what was UHF Channel 55 that will be used by Flo … Continue reading “Digital TV Conversion Clears Way for Qualcomm’s Flo TV Expansion to Boston, Other Markets”
Avalon’s aFraxis Raises $750K
San Diego’s aFraxis has raised $750,000 in early stage funding, according to a recent regulatory filing submitted to the Securities and Exchange Commission. The startup backed by San Diego’s Avalon Ventures was founded in 2007, and is focused on developing treatments for Fragile X syndrome and autism. Avalon’s Jay Lichter is listed as chief executive … Continue reading “Avalon’s aFraxis Raises $750K”
Raj Krishnan: Moving From Cancer Diagnosis Innovation to a Business
What recourse does an entrepreneur have when there is no venture capital for a start-up with a truly promising invention? At San Diego’s Biological Dynamics, 27-year-old founder Raj Krishnan’s solution is to win entrepreneur and student competitions—and so far he has won 13 awards, nine of them this year, including most recently a $40,000 first … Continue reading “Raj Krishnan: Moving From Cancer Diagnosis Innovation to a Business”
Survey Shows VCs Expect Huge Shifts in Fundraising, Global Investing
We keep hearing there’s no better opportunity to start a company than during hard times, but a survey of venture capitalists shows that doesn’t necessarily translate into increased investment activity. In fact, results of a survey of VCs around the world being released today show that just over half (51 percent) of 725 VCs who … Continue reading “Survey Shows VCs Expect Huge Shifts in Fundraising, Global Investing”
Sorenson Gets Video to iPhone
After rolling out its Sorenson 360 video delivery network last month, Sorenson Media of Carlsbad, CA, says its network now enables any website owner to publish video that can viewed on the iPhone’s web browser. The online media company founded in Salt Lake City, UT, says its enhanced video publish platform is compatible with all … Continue reading “Sorenson Gets Video to iPhone”
Biogen Idec Confirms Second Icahn Pick Elected to Board of Directors
Carl Icahn has landed a one-two punch on Biogen Idec. Today, the Cambridge, MA-based biotech confirmed what the activist investor had proclaimed last week—that two members of Icahn’s board slate have been elected to Biogen’s board of directors. This afternoon, the company acknowledged that Richard Mulligan, a professor of genetics at Harvard Medical School and … Continue reading “Biogen Idec Confirms Second Icahn Pick Elected to Board of Directors”
Tapping Into the Federal Economic Stimulus Package
Technology-based startup companies that once looked to venture capital firms for funding are now turning to the federal government. Stimulus funding is available to both large and small tech companies. But they key is understanding the proper steps to access federal money. Panelists include experts in federal government relations from Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney and … Continue reading “Tapping Into the Federal Economic Stimulus Package”
MadCap Offers a Lesson in Bootstrapping, and a Case Study on Offshoring
San Diego’s MadCap Software may stand as an exemplar in showing how a small American technology company can compete against rivals that take advantage of low-cost development offshore. The startup, founded in 2005, specializes in developing authoring software that is used by technical writers and others to create owners’ manuals, user guides and other types … Continue reading “MadCap Offers a Lesson in Bootstrapping, and a Case Study on Offshoring”
After Years of Red Ink, Vical Says DNA-Based Vaccines ‘Ready for Prime Time.’
For a lesson in surviving tough times, look no further than San Diego’s Vical. (NASDAQ: [[ticker:VICL]]) The vaccine developer has endured two decades of red ink and by any sort of business logic should have folded its tent long ago. Instead, Vical is slowly but steadily advancing its “naked DNA” technology for use as a … Continue reading “After Years of Red Ink, Vical Says DNA-Based Vaccines ‘Ready for Prime Time.’”
Trius, Developer of Antibiotic for Deadly MRSA Bacteria, Passes Key Test
Trius Therapeutics, the San Diego-based biotech company, has passed an important milestone in its quest to develop a more convenient, more effective antibiotic against deadly MRSA bacterial infections that people tend to get in the hospital. Trius released results today from a study in which 188 patients with severe skin infections were randomly assigned to … Continue reading “Trius, Developer of Antibiotic for Deadly MRSA Bacteria, Passes Key Test”
Adventrx Raises $2M
San Diego’s Adventrx Pharmaceuticals (NYSE Amex: [[ticker:ANX]]) says it has raised about $2 million through a private placement sale of stock that is convertible into Adventrx’s common stock at a price of slightly more than 11 cents a share. The investor, who was not identified, also will receive warrants to buy more than 8 million … Continue reading “Adventrx Raises $2M”
Display Technology That Shines Like Butterfly Wings, Venture Capital Resets Business, Promising Start-Ups Recognized, & More San Diego BizTech News
San Diego has retained its status among the country’s top regions for innovation, but the hometown venture community is contracting to the point where venture funding is back where it was in the 1990s. —Qualcomm is getting ready to deliver its latest innovation, a display screen for mobile devices that provides great visibility outdoors. The … Continue reading “Display Technology That Shines Like Butterfly Wings, Venture Capital Resets Business, Promising Start-Ups Recognized, & More San Diego BizTech News”
VoxOx Launches Text Callback Service for International Calls
After launching a beta version of its free VoxOx universal communications service in November, San Diego’s TelCentris is rolling out a revision today that could make it easier for VoxOx users to place low-cost international calls. The privately held startup says it has updated its SMS (text messaging) service so that you can place an international call … Continue reading “VoxOx Launches Text Callback Service for International Calls”
Amylin’s Would-Be Savior, Once-Weekly Diabetes Shot, Shows Two-Year Benefit
The dust has settled in the boardroom battle for control over Amylin Pharmaceuticals, and now it’s time to get back to fundamentals. The San Diego-based biotech company hopes to grab the attention of physicians and investors this weekend with some new clinical trial data that suggests its once-weekly shot for diabetes was able to maintain … Continue reading “Amylin’s Would-Be Savior, Once-Weekly Diabetes Shot, Shows Two-Year Benefit”
Arena Obesity Drug Helps Patients Shed a Few Pounds, Lower Risk of Heart Disease
San Diego-based Arena Pharmaceuticals disappointed a lot of investors a couple months ago when its obesity drug didn’t help people shed as many pounds as hoped. But after combing through the data in greater detail, the company says it has evidence that its drug can help many patients lose weight, and that it leads to … Continue reading “Arena Obesity Drug Helps Patients Shed a Few Pounds, Lower Risk of Heart Disease”
Orexigen Obesity Drug Produces “Modest” Weight Loss, Lowers Cardiovascular Risk
Orexigen Therapeutics, the San Diego-based obesity drug developer, underwhelmed investors back in January with its incremental ability to help patients lose weight. But now the company is presenting more detailed results from a clinical trial that says it had a positive effect on lowering the risk of heart disease while improving patients’ quality of life. … Continue reading “Orexigen Obesity Drug Produces “Modest” Weight Loss, Lowers Cardiovascular Risk”
For San Diego’s Hometown VCs, It’s Déjà vu All Over Again
Robert Kibble’s arrival in San Diego in 1996 was celebrated as a kind of watershed in some quarters of the region’s emerging information technology community. While a couple of prominent biotech VCs already were established in San Diego by the early 1990s, some local software executives viewed the region as semi-arid when it came to … Continue reading “For San Diego’s Hometown VCs, It’s Déjà vu All Over Again”
Optimer Rides Investment See-Saw With Promising Drug for “C.diff” Infections
Biotech investing can sometimes be a downright confusing game, even for people who are supposed to know what they are talking about. Ask the folks at San Diego-based Optimer Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: [[ticker:OPTR]]). Optimer has been one of a few bright spots in biotech over the past year. Back in November, its lead drug candidate, an … Continue reading “Optimer Rides Investment See-Saw With Promising Drug for “C.diff” Infections”
Are You a Victim of On Demand Disorder?
If this column has a repeating theme, it’s the amazing new capabilities we’re all gaining as a result of the digital media explosion. Yet like all revolutions, this one is destroying old values, attitudes, and behaviors even as it creates new ones. I would never trade the Web, mobile computing, and the instant access to … Continue reading “Are You a Victim of On Demand Disorder?”