Acorns Grow Receives $5,500,000 New Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=bc2a7db8-1dc6-4956-8d84-815b5098b254 Date 3/13/2014 Company Name Acorns Grow Mailing Address 4600 Campus Drive Newport Beach, CA 92660 Company Description Acorns Grow Inc., doing business as Acorns, operates in the technology industry. The company was incorporated in 2012 and is based in Newport Beach, California. Website http://www.acorns.com Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount $5,500,000 … Continue reading “Acorns Grow Receives $5,500,000 New Round”

Fundable Acquires LaunchRock for Undisclosed Sum

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=7b3da1ec-8501-4714-b994-df66c312893e Date 3/13/2014 Company Name LaunchRock Mailing Address 340 S Lemon Ave Walnut, CA 91789 Company Description The company provides online advertising and marketing services to enable businesses to improve user acquisition. Website http://www.launchrock.com Transaction Type M&A Transaction Amount Undisclosed Transaction Round Proceeds Purposes M&A Terms Financial terms of the deal were … Continue reading “Fundable Acquires LaunchRock for Undisclosed Sum”

The 2014 Rock Stars of Innovation Summit

The annual Rock Stars of Innovation Summit, presented by Connect & Xconomy, is the premier industry gathering for both technology and life sciences innovation in Southern California. The conference, preceded by an evening jam session and networking reception, draws the nation’s top venture capitalists and institutional investors and provides a stage for San Diego’s most … Continue reading “The 2014 Rock Stars of Innovation Summit”

TaxJar Raises $600K as Congress Resumes Debate on Internet Sales Tax

When TaxJar CEO Mark Faggiano introduced himself to Bay Area angel investor and 500 Startups co-founder Dave McClure in San Diego recently, he explained that TaxJar is a local Web startup that helps online merchants track how much sales tax to pay, and where to pay it. “Your life is about to get very interesting,” … Continue reading “TaxJar Raises $600K as Congress Resumes Debate on Internet Sales Tax”

Patch of Land Receives $376,500 New Funding

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=d3ff7ac7-bde3-4e29-8d49-14951d88bd25 Date 3/12/2014 Company Name Patch of Land Mailing Address 340 S. Lemon Ave. Walnut, CA 91789 Company Description Patch of Land is the world first crowd-funded Real Estate Rentals investment service. With your help, we rescue homes and neighborhoods. Own a Patch of Land today! Website http://www.patchofland.com Transaction Type Debt Transaction … Continue reading “Patch of Land Receives $376,500 New Funding”

PatientSafe Solutions Lands $3,000,000 New Funding

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=99604cd5-d816-46e4-92e7-42b3809b35a1 Date 3/12/2014 Company Name PatientSafe Solutions Mailing Address 5375 Mira Sorrento Place San Diego, CA 92121 Company Description We believe nurses are the center of the care system. They’re the healthcare professionals who patients spend the most time with once they’re admitted, and who make sure the care continues when they’re … Continue reading “PatientSafe Solutions Lands $3,000,000 New Funding”

Amid Cyber-Theft Onslaught, Calit2 Begins New Program Focused on IP

In a recent issue of his weekly newsletter, the IT futurist Mark Anderson writes that the nature of Internet-based security threats—like a lot of other things on the Web—underwent a wholesale metamorphosis after 2003. Before 2003, Anderson says U.S. network administrators and security experts spent most of their time dealing with “old school” cyber threats … Continue reading “Amid Cyber-Theft Onslaught, Calit2 Begins New Program Focused on IP”

Whisper Obtains $30,000,000 New Funding

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=09df2b73-d4b2-44e3-a86d-66958e0c7d84 Date 3/11/2014 Company Name Whisper Mailing Address 3420 Ocean Park Blvd. Santa Monica, CA 90405 Company Description At the heart of Whisper’s app is the ability to anonymously share secrets with others. Those secrets take the form of photos that users can overlay text on top of. It looks a lot … Continue reading “Whisper Obtains $30,000,000 New Funding”

Lumena Pharmaceuticals Receives $45,000,000 Series B Financing Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=fd233ae5-7650-4f64-b8cb-89a0b3810044 Date 3/11/2014 Company Name Lumena Pharmaceuticals Mailing Address 12531 High Bluff Drive San Diego, CA 92130 Company Description Lumena Pharmaceuticals is focused on advancing treatments in metabolic diseases that have high unmet clinical needs. Website http://www.lumenapharma.com Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount $45,000,000 Transaction Round Series B Proceeds Purposes Lumena will … Continue reading “Lumena Pharmaceuticals Receives $45,000,000 Series B Financing Round”

GroundMetrics Lands $2,357,702 New Funding Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=4bfd822f-22a3-4a42-977b-d8ae94a8815d Date 3/11/2014 Company Name GroundMetrics Mailing Address 4217 Ponderosa Ave San Diego, CA 92123 Company Description GroundMetrics, Inc is the world leader in the development of land-based EM sensing and is working with oil, gas, mining, and geothermal companies to commercialize a new class of sensor system and methods and to … Continue reading “GroundMetrics Lands $2,357,702 New Funding Round”

Five Ways To Avoid Losing Money as An Angel Investor

I have an angel investor friend—let’s call this friend “Alex.” Alex has great deal flow and works hard to pick the best opportunities for investment. Alex has been frustrated over the past several years, however, because she doesn’t seem to be making any money. This is despite solid operational performance by several of the companies … Continue reading “Five Ways To Avoid Losing Money as An Angel Investor”

Vobile Acquires Blayze for Undisclosed Sum

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=6afef224-22f9-4e61-98bd-950dfa573957 Date 3/10/2014 Company Name Blayze Mailing Address 910 Colorado Ave Santa Monica, CA 90401 Company Description The first online video audience development platform that empowers brands, YouTube channels, and media companies to buy and sell highly targeted new viewers. Website http://www.blayze.com Transaction Type M&A Transaction Amount Undisclosed Transaction Round Proceeds Purposes … Continue reading “Vobile Acquires Blayze for Undisclosed Sum”

San Diego Life Sciences Roundup: Acadia, Ignyta, Tracon, & More

An ambitious bid to build the world’s biggest human genome sequencing operation in San Diego dominated the region’s life sciences news this week. Here are the details, along with other local developments. —J. Craig Venter, one of the pioneers of human genetic research, said he has co-founded a new San Diego-based company called Human Longevity … Continue reading “San Diego Life Sciences Roundup: Acadia, Ignyta, Tracon, & More”

Dave McClure: Inspired by Dr. Seuss and Disrupting Venture Capital

[Corrected 3/7/14, 6:45 am. See below.] In the four years since Dave McClure co-founded the venture fund and incubator program 500 Startups, he has acquired a reputation as an outspoken geek, an entrepreneur’s entrepreneur, and an irreverent Silicon Valley insider who invests in Internet startups. When he came to San Diego last week, McClure was … Continue reading “Dave McClure: Inspired by Dr. Seuss and Disrupting Venture Capital”

Machinima Lands $18,000,000 New Financing

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=d3b521c1-b34e-45da-b6b8-52e1494eea52 Date 3/7/2014 Company Name Machinima Mailing Address 140 South Citrus Ave Los Angeles, CA 90040 Company Description Machinima 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 Lands $18,000,000 New Financing”

WaveTec Vision Systems Garners $2,893,286 New Funding

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=0c47b2dc-587c-45ad-8d4d-69d763a78b9a Date 3/7/2014 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 Venture Equity Transaction Amount $2,893,286 Transaction Round Undisclosed Proceeds Purposes Proceeds purposes were not … Continue reading “WaveTec Vision Systems Garners $2,893,286 New Funding”

Genomatica Obtains $6,753,740 New Funding Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=56e34acd-2819-43dc-a9fc-d1bbbe147322 Date 3/7/2014 Company Name Genomatica Mailing Address 4757 Nexus Center Drive San Diego, CA 92121 Company Description Genomatica is a San Diego-based chemical company that, through biotechnology, develops and commercializes innovative bio-manufacturing processes for the sustainable production of high value chemical products. Website http://www.genomatica.com Transaction Type Debt Transaction Amount $6,753,740 Transaction … Continue reading “Genomatica Obtains $6,753,740 New Funding Round”

Emotient Secures $6,000,000 Series B Funding Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=48f07e8e-6404-43d3-93c2-f7e0938d2cab Date 3/7/2014 Company Name Emotient Mailing Address 4435 Eastgate Mall San Diego, CA 92121 Company Description Emotient is the leading authority on facial expression recognition and analysis technologies that are enabling a future of emotion aware computing. Website http://www.emotient.com Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount $6,000,000 Transaction Round Series B Proceeds … Continue reading “Emotient Secures $6,000,000 Series B Funding Round”

Human Longevity Obtains $70,000,000 New Financing Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=99553ad4-0437-41ab-9672-0f44f00a52e9 Date 3/6/2014 Company Name Human Longevity Mailing Address 10835 Road to the Cure San Diego, CA 92121 Company Description HLI, a privately held company headquartered in San Diego, CA was founded in 2013 by pioneers in the fields of genomics and stem cell therapy. Website http://www.humanlongevity.com Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction … Continue reading “Human Longevity Obtains $70,000,000 New Financing Round”

International BIO Conference 2014 in San Diego

The BIO International Convention is the biotech industry’s largest global event. The conference provides key networking and partnering opportunities as well as insights on major trends affecting the industry and breakout sessions on a variety of science and business topics. More information and online registration is here.  

SDEE: Life Sciences Networking with Neighbors

The San Diego Entrepreneurs Exchange, a grassroots organization for local life sciences entrepreneurs has organized an exhibit and networking event. Look for collaborators, vendors, customers, advisors, jobs, employees, and fellow entrepreneurs in your neighborhood. More information and online registration is here.  

Innovation and Intellectual Property Are Driving the Global Economy

State-sponsored industrial espionage and Internet raids to steal intellectual property have prompted universities and other research centers to rethink the process of value creation and how to protect it. Calit2 and INVNT/IP have organized a half-day conference focused on how academic innovation creates value, and how that drives the global economy. Co-sponsors include the UCSD … Continue reading “Innovation and Intellectual Property Are Driving the Global Economy”

Farewell, Xconomy Readers. I’m Going to Climb a New Mountain

This is my last week on the job at Xconomy. After almost six years, I’m moving on. I’m going to finish writing a biography of Leroy Hood, the pioneer of high-speed DNA sequencing and genomic-based personalized medicine. And then I’ll see what’s next. When I first joined Xconomy, it had been founded 10 months earlier … Continue reading “Farewell, Xconomy Readers. I’m Going to Climb a New Mountain”

4 Ways to Stop Social Media from Blowing Up In Your Startup’s Face

Social media offers startups a powerful platform to cost-effectively market their products and services, get their brand recognized, and engage with a wide audience of customers. Yet social media also throws up multiple risks. Many of these risks—be they security and privacy risks, compliance risks, or reputational risks—are not new. However, companies have become more … Continue reading “4 Ways to Stop Social Media from Blowing Up In Your Startup’s Face”

Auction.com Receives $50,000,000 New Financing

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=8066ee1c-cde0-4912-b04b-24aa027fc890 Date 3/5/2014 Company Name Auction.com Mailing Address 1 Mauchly Irvine, CA 92618 Company Description Auction.com is the nation’s leading online real estate marketplace and has sold $26 billion of property since inception. Website http://www.auction.com Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount $50,000,000 Transaction Round Undisclosed Proceeds Purposes We believe that having Google … Continue reading “Auction.com Receives $50,000,000 New Financing”

Astute Medical Obtains $2,014,125 New Funding Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=78803a43-8a04-415a-9493-257cc529f268 Date 3/5/2014 Company Name Astute Medical Mailing Address 3550 General Atomics Court San Diego, CA 92121 Company Description Astute Medical’s mission is to identify and validate protein biomarkers of severe acute disease.Our focus is community and hospital acquired acute conditions that require rapid diagnosis and risk assessment. Our emphasis is on … Continue reading “Astute Medical Obtains $2,014,125 New Funding Round”

Privlo Secures $3,820,207 New Financing

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=74ed7236-d4f6-49b1-8db4-37142079ef78 Date 3/5/2014 Company Name Privlo Mailing Address 8500 Steller Dr. Culver City, CA 90232 Company Description Privlo is the largest online mortgage marketplace for borrowers to find private lenders. Privlo, Inc. operates as online mortgage marketplace for borrowers. Website http://www.privlo.com Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount $3,820,207 Transaction Round Undisclosed Proceeds … Continue reading “Privlo Secures $3,820,207 New Financing”

P4RC Lands $710,000 New Funding

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=8f04fb1e-958a-41c7-87bd-4a6642841c71 Date 3/5/2014 Company Name P4RC Mailing Address 4039 Lamarr Ave. Culver City, CA 90232 Company Description P4RC is a powerful marketing and customer retention engine that drives user engagement, leading to increases in frequency and duration of gaming sessions and greater revenues for our game development partners. With P4RC, developers have … Continue reading “P4RC Lands $710,000 New Funding”

Rooster Vacation Rentals Acquires LeisureLink for Undisclosed Sum

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=84620243-058c-4b80-a2ce-d1a1c47158d2 Date 3/5/2014 Company Name LeisureLink Mailing Address 70 South Lake Avenue Pasadena, CA 91101 Company Description LeisureLink’s mission is to create a distributed electronic marketplace that connects travelers with vacation rental suppliers worldwide. Website http://www.leisurelink.com Transaction Type M&A Transaction Amount Undisclosed Transaction Round Proceeds Purposes M&A Terms Financial terms of the … Continue reading “Rooster Vacation Rentals Acquires LeisureLink for Undisclosed Sum”

San Diego’s Connect Names Pharma Executive Greg McKee as CEO

Connect, San Diego’s nonprofit program that supports technology innovation and entrepreneurship, today named Greg McKee, a healthcare and financial industry executive, as CEO. He is the fourth leader at Connect, an organization founded in 1985 to help innovators start and build new biotech and technology companies. McKee, 50, succeeds the late Duane Roth, who led … Continue reading “San Diego’s Connect Names Pharma Executive Greg McKee as CEO”

Craig Venter’s Latest Startup Gets $70M To Sequence Loads of Genomes

J. Craig Venter, the human genome pioneer, today unveiled a new San Diego-based venture with an ambitious goal of providing whole genome sequencing and cell-therapy-based diagnostic services for patients. Venter said he co-founded the company, Human Longevity Inc., or HLI, with Robert Hariri, who oversaw Celgene Cellular Therapeutics and Peter Diamandis of the X Prize … Continue reading “Craig Venter’s Latest Startup Gets $70M To Sequence Loads of Genomes”

Supreme Court Should Scale Back Securities Class Actions

Class-action lawsuits against publicly traded companies, which ironically are meant to protect investors like me, have officially jumped the shark.  That was the only conclusion I could come to after learning last week that one firm alone, Levi & Korsinsky, is suing not one, but three companies I invest in—Aegerion Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: [[ticker:AEGR]]), Sarepta Therapeutics … Continue reading “Supreme Court Should Scale Back Securities Class Actions”

Why It’s Time to Retire the Term “Life Sciences”

I originally thought about titling this piece “Life Sciences, Biosciences, BioPharma, Biotech, and Healthcare: What’s the Difference?” but that was simply too unwieldy. Many people use these terms interchangeably without thinking about what they specifically refer to, and which types of jobs and activities they encompass. Are they all the same thing? I don’t think … Continue reading “Why It’s Time to Retire the Term “Life Sciences””

Beats Electronics Acquires Topspin Media for Undisclosed Sum

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=23c84310-45f5-4e55-993e-48066dba7d93 Date 3/4/2014 Company Name Topspin Media Mailing Address 1538 20th Street 1st Floor Santa Monica, CA 90404 Company Description Topspin is a media technology company dedicated to developing leading-edge marketing software and services that help artists and their partners build businesses and brands. We help artists manage their catalogs, connect with … Continue reading “Beats Electronics Acquires Topspin Media for Undisclosed Sum”

San Diego Life Sciences Roundup: Thesan, Zogenix, Illumina, and More

The battle continues over an extended-release formulation of a potent opioid painkiller developed by San Diego’s Zogenix. I have the details, along with the rest of the region’s life sciences news over the past week. —San Diego’s Thesan Pharmaceuticals said it has raised $49 million in a Series B round of equity funding to advance … Continue reading “San Diego Life Sciences Roundup: Thesan, Zogenix, Illumina, and More”

Bob Doyle and the Magic of Merlin, the First Mobile Game

If you sat down to make a list of the key turning points in the history of mobile computing, you’d definitely have to include 2007, the year Apple released the iPhone. Its glowing touchscreen became a personalized portal to our friends, to the Web, and to hundreds of thousands of games and other specialized apps. … Continue reading “Bob Doyle and the Magic of Merlin, the First Mobile Game”

How to Tell When a Startup Is Ready for Investment

Since 2005 startup accelerators have provided cohorts of startups with mentoring, pitch practice, and product focus. However, accelerator Demo Days are a combination of graduation ceremony and pitch contest, with the uncomfortable feel of a swimsuit competition. Other than “I’ll know it when I see it”, there’s no formal way for an investor attending Demo … Continue reading “How to Tell When a Startup Is Ready for Investment”

Bruin Biometrics Secures $10,000,000 New Funding Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=2d42cf8e-8046-48b0-ae5b-6ab2415402c4 Date 2/28/2014 Company Name Bruin Biometrics Mailing Address 10960 Wilshire Blvd. Los Angeles, CA 90024 Company Description At BBI, we are relentlessly committed to using technology to improve the way that health care is delivered. By developing innovative medical device systems that can cost-effectively detect and monitor select medical conditions with … Continue reading “Bruin Biometrics Secures $10,000,000 New Funding Round”

San Diego’s StackIQ Gets First-Day Funding Boost on OurCrowd Website

StackIQ, which provides Software-as-a-Service for managing “Big Data” computing systems, said today it is the first San Diego startup selected to raise capital from accredited investors through OurCrowd, the online crowdfunding firm based in Jerusalem. StackIQ, founded in 2006 with technology out of the San Diego Supercomputer Center at UC San Diego, had raised about … Continue reading “San Diego’s StackIQ Gets First-Day Funding Boost on OurCrowd Website”

Innovations in Equity Crowdfunding Take Center Stage in San Diego

Securities regulators are still formulating new rules that would allow startups to use Kickstarter-like campaigns for equity crowdfunding. But in the meantime, a couple of investment groups have put together Internet crowdfunding platforms for people who qualify as accredited investors under existing law. One of the crowdfunding portals, OpenRound, was unveiled last October by Roth … Continue reading “Innovations in Equity Crowdfunding Take Center Stage in San Diego”

A New Era for Microsoft: Overcoming the Innovator’s Dilemma

I don’t know if Microsoft will be a $300 billion company 50 years from now, but I do know one thing: selecting Satya Nadella as CEO gives it a better chance than some of the names that were discussed in the news since Steve Ballmer announced he would be stepping down. The reason is simple: … Continue reading “A New Era for Microsoft: Overcoming the Innovator’s Dilemma”

Bitium Garners $6,500,000 Series A Financing

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=a644fff9-b023-465b-bfd4-1d65d858ea30 Date 2/27/2014 Company Name Bitium Mailing Address 2448 Main Street Santa Monica, CA 90405 Company Description Manage all of your apps in one place with Bitium. Use Bitium with collaboration tools, social networks, CRM, accounting programs,bug trackers, customer service dashboards and other web-based software. Website http://www.bitium.com Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction … Continue reading “Bitium Garners $6,500,000 Series A Financing”

Vanguard Space Technologies Secures New Financing Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=aaefb529-a124-4457-bcf7-851b589a948f Date 2/27/2014 Company Name Vanguard Space Technologies Mailing Address 9431 Dowdy Drive San Diego, CA 92126 Company Description Vanguard is a leading supplier of high-performance, lightweight and precision aerospace structures. Working alongside our clients, we provide full-service engineering, tooling, manufacturing, assembly and testing of satellite antenna reflectors, spacecraft structures, instrument structures … Continue reading “Vanguard Space Technologies Secures New Financing Round”

Encore Entrepreneurs: They’re Older and They Have More Insurance

OK, I want you to take a quick test and answer the question with the first thing that comes to mind: What does a “start-up entrepreneur” look like? OK, do you have a picture in your mind? If you are like most people, I bet your first thought was someone who looks suspiciously like a … Continue reading “Encore Entrepreneurs: They’re Older and They Have More Insurance”

Vonjour Secures $380,100 New Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=22a43f98-1aae-4cfc-8ccb-1ac2619a2286 Date 2/26/2014 Company Name Vonjour Mailing Address Undisclosed Santa Monica, CA 90291 Company Description Vonjour is our contribution to the progression of the Internet. The central problem set to solve is that there’s no central hub to converse with a customer. There are separate phone solutions, chat tools, and conferencing solutions, … Continue reading “Vonjour Secures $380,100 New Round”

Vonjour Obtains $380,100 New Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=22a43f98-1aae-4cfc-8ccb-1ac2619a2286 Date 2/26/2014 Company Name Vonjour Mailing Address Undisclosed Santa Monica, CA 90291 Company Description Vonjour is our contribution to the progression of the Internet. The central problem set to solve is that there’s no central hub to converse with a customer. There are separate phone solutions, chat tools, and conferencing solutions, … Continue reading “Vonjour Obtains $380,100 New Round”