Burnaby, BC-based Delta-Q Technologies has raised $17 million in growth capital from Canadian firm Tandem Expansion, the company said yesterday. Delta-Q makes power conversion and power management systems for electric vehicles. Delta-Q was founded in 1999 to develop battery charging technologies for electric-drive vehicles. The company has since expanded its products to include power electronics … Continue reading “Delta-Q Raises $17M from Tandem Expansion to Push Electric Vehicle Technologies”
Category: Seattle
Alder Seeks to Treat Cancer in a Radical Way, Fighting Inflammation, Not Tumors
There are a lot of radical ideas for treating cancer, and most are pure bunk. But now one of Seattle’s most promising biotech startups, Alder Biopharmaceuticals, says it has the first hard evidence to support a concept that would have gotten them laughed out of the room by most cancer physicians a year ago. Alder’s … Continue reading “Alder Seeks to Treat Cancer in a Radical Way, Fighting Inflammation, Not Tumors”
David Berry of Flagship Ventures on Funding Advice, Investment Themes, Trends in Biofuels
A rising star of the Boston-area venture capital scene is in Seattle today. He’s David Berry, a partner with Flagship Ventures, and he’s speaking on a panel tonight that will tackle a question on every young company’s mind, when it comes to financing: to VC or not to VC? The event is organized by the … Continue reading “David Berry of Flagship Ventures on Funding Advice, Investment Themes, Trends in Biofuels”
See You This Afternoon at Seattle Health IT Event
The Xconomy Seattle team will soon be heading across the street to the Frye Art Museum for our afternoon event on how information technology is transforming healthcare. This is the fourth consecutive sell-out event we’ve convened over the past eight months in Seattle. In October, we examined the 20-year outlook for local life sciences. November … Continue reading “See You This Afternoon at Seattle Health IT Event”
Can academia bridge the gap between bench and bedside?
A few weeks ago I heard a pharmaceutical executive say at an industry meeting that academia shouldn’t be trying to develop drugs. They don’t know how to do it, his message was. Now, he didn’t specify what he meant: Was it that academics do not know how to discover and optimize promising drug candidates, or … Continue reading “Can academia bridge the gap between bench and bedside?”
How Internet Pioneer Larry Smarr Lost 20 Pounds by Becoming a “Quantified Self”
Larry Smarr is one of the people who had a vision in the 1980s for a high-speed computer network that grew to become the Internet of today. So sharing data is important to him. Now he has found a new source of data that he believes has great potential if shared widely: information from his … Continue reading “How Internet Pioneer Larry Smarr Lost 20 Pounds by Becoming a “Quantified Self””
Intellectual Ventures President Adriane Brown on Global Impact, Benefits of Being Uncomfortable, and “Positive Change Through People”
Adriane Brown was the CEO of Honeywell Transportation Systems, based in the Los Angeles area, when she got a call from a headhunter last year. The next thing she knew, she was talking with Intellectual Ventures, the Bellevue, WA, company focused on the business of invention. One thing led to another, and Brown is now … Continue reading “Intellectual Ventures President Adriane Brown on Global Impact, Benefits of Being Uncomfortable, and “Positive Change Through People””
Bio Architecture Lab Gets New CEO
Bio Architecture Lab, a spinoff from the University of Washington that’s developing biofuel from ocean seaweed, said today it has hired Daniel Trunfio to be its new CEO. Trunfio will replace CEO Nikesh Parekh, who will remain involved with the company in a new role to be determined, said spokesman John Williams. Trunfio spent 23 … Continue reading “Bio Architecture Lab Gets New CEO”
Bobber Interactive Looks to Make Financial Services More Social and “Gamified” for Teens
Video games have become so pervasive that I’m starting to hear entrepreneurs and investors talk about the “gamification” of websites and online services. This is a big emerging trend that’s all about making sites social, interactive, and goal-oriented. It’s being touted as a long-awaited way to make money from social networks. Now a small team … Continue reading “Bobber Interactive Looks to Make Financial Services More Social and “Gamified” for Teens”
InfoSpace Gets Into E-Commerce
Bellevue, WA-based InfoSpace, the online metasearch and discovery company, said today it has acquired the assets of Mercantila, an online retail and e-commerce company based in San Francisco, for $8 million in cash plus up to $5.9 million in “certain liabilities.” InfoSpace (NASDAQ GS: [[ticker:INSP]]) says acquiring Mercantila’s e-commerce software and 200-plus specialty stores on … Continue reading “InfoSpace Gets Into E-Commerce”
Pub Night at Bellevue Grille—WBBA Event
The Washington Biotechnology & Biomedical Association is organizing a Pub Night networking event on June 3. For more information on how to register, click here.
Ultrasound: From Diagnosis to Therapy
The French American Chamber of Commerce, in partnership with the WBBA, is organizing an event on the latest trends in ultrasound as a diagnostic and therapeutic tool on June 22. The event will be moderated by University of Washington dean of engineering Matt O’Donnell. Speakers include Jens Quistgaard of Medicis, Larry Crum of UW, Terry … Continue reading “Ultrasound: From Diagnosis to Therapy”
Tippr Expands to 10 Cities, Takes on Groupon in Social Buying Online
Tippr vs. Groupon. It sounds like a mismatch on paper. Groupon is the Chicago-based goliath of online “group buying” that seemingly came out of nowhere to raise $135 million last month at a company valuation north of $1 billion; at last count, it had some 270 employees. Tippr is the Seattle-based social discount voucher site … Continue reading “Tippr Expands to 10 Cities, Takes on Groupon in Social Buying Online”
Enterprise Mobile, with Microsoft’s Blessing, Moves Beyond Windows Phones
I’m going to start this article in a way that’s pretty unfair to Mort Rosenthal—the founding CEO of Enterprise Mobile in Watertown, MA—by referring to some things Rosenthal told me back in early 2008 about the leading smartphone platforms. At the time, Enterprise Mobile was just setting out on its mission to help big companies … Continue reading “Enterprise Mobile, with Microsoft’s Blessing, Moves Beyond Windows Phones”
Will People Bid Online for a Nose Job Just Like an Airline Ticket? PriceDoc Thinks So
If PriceDoc has its way, masses of people will go online to bid for routine medical and dental procedures a lot like airline tickets. Find a doc near your house. Agree on the price for a nose job. Pay the doc in cash. This is a simple idea with appeal to many doctors and patients, … Continue reading “Will People Bid Online for a Nose Job Just Like an Airline Ticket? PriceDoc Thinks So”
Doxo, Backed by Bezos and Mohr Davidow, Comes Out of Stealth, Wants to Help Businesses Go Paperless
Score another one for the “Qpass mafia.” A Seattle technology company called doxo, founded by former Qpass employees Steve Shivers, Roger Parks, and Mark Goris (see photo below), has emerged from stealth mode—sort of. The company has started talking publicly about its background and team, its basic idea, and its funding, but no specifics about … Continue reading “Doxo, Backed by Bezos and Mohr Davidow, Comes Out of Stealth, Wants to Help Businesses Go Paperless”
Former WTIA Head Ken Myer Joins UW Center for Commercialization
When we last caught up with Ken Myer, he was stepping down as president and chief executive of the Washington Technology Industry Association after three years on the job. Last week, I heard through the grapevine that Myer has joined the University of Washington in an advisory role, after assisting with the transition to WTIA’s … Continue reading “Former WTIA Head Ken Myer Joins UW Center for Commercialization”
Coronado Biosciences Nabs $7M
Coronado Biosciences, a Seattle-based developer of cancer drugs, has raised $7 million in equity and options, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The company lists RJ Tesi as its CEO, and Lindsay Rosenwald, the founder of Paramount Biosciences, as a member of its board.
Tekmira Expands Bristol Deal
Tekmira Pharmaceuticals, the Vancouver, BC-based developer of technology to RNA interference drugs, said today it has signed a four-year collaboration with Bristol-Myers Squibb. Bristol will pay Tekmira $3 million upfront, while Tekmira will be asked to deliver a pre-determined number of batches of RNAi drug candidates in lipid nanoparticles. Tekmira has other collaborations with Pfizer, … Continue reading “Tekmira Expands Bristol Deal”
How Emerald BioStructures Escaped deCode’s Bankruptcy With Help From Boston VCs
Lance Stewart woke up many times over the past two years, and asked himself, “How did I get here?” He had reason to be confused. Stewart had spent more than a decade building one of the world’s best structural biology research teams inside a light manufacturing facility on Bainbridge Island, WA. Revenues had climbed every … Continue reading “How Emerald BioStructures Escaped deCode’s Bankruptcy With Help From Boston VCs”
Modumetal Inks Deal with Steel Producer SDI to Put Nanotech to Work in Bridges and Buildings
Seattle-based Modumetal is taking an important step forward today in its quest to reinvent the metals industry. The nanotech and advanced materials company is announcing a partnership with Steel Dynamics (SDI), based in Fort Wayne, IN, which will put its nanolaminated coating technology into industrial-scale steel applications. Financial terms of the partnership weren’t given. But … Continue reading “Modumetal Inks Deal with Steel Producer SDI to Put Nanotech to Work in Bridges and Buildings”
Coronado Biosciences Garners $7,000,000 New Funding
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=3707d848-edf4-4f33-9983-51f5b3b63c0c&Preview=1 Date 5/10/2010 Company Name Coronado Biosciences Mailing Address 1700 7th Ave. Seattle, WA 98101 Company Description Coronado Biosciences is a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company focused on making cancer care better. How do we define better? We hope to make cancer care safer and more easily tolerated with improved outcomes. Website http://www.CoronadoBioSciences.com … Continue reading “Coronado Biosciences Garners $7,000,000 New Funding”
Microsoft VP Alex Gounares, Former Technology Assistant to Bill Gates, Leaving for AOL
One of Microsoft’s most respected executives announced today he is leaving the company. Alex Gounares, who was previously vice president of advertising research and development, has been hired as the chief technology officer of New York-based AOL and will be moving to the East Coast to take the job. The announcement was made internally at … Continue reading “Microsoft VP Alex Gounares, Former Technology Assistant to Bill Gates, Leaving for AOL”
Microsoft’s Kin Phones Resurrect the Lifelogging Debate
This week gadget reviewers got their first hands-on look at Microsoft’s much-discussed Kin One and Kin Two phones, which are designed from the ground up to support young hipsters’ social media and content sharing habits. So far, the pundits are raving about the phones’ novel operating system and the cloud-based “Studio” feature, a flashy private … Continue reading “Microsoft’s Kin Phones Resurrect the Lifelogging Debate”
Sparking a Global Health Movement for Young People: Kristen Eddings’s Vision (and a Party)
Young people get a bad rap in the media. They slack off, don’t vote, and have no money and no voice in society (except for a few outliers like Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg). If they are being asked about business or some serious issue, many are afraid they’ll say something dumb on the record. Some actually … Continue reading “Sparking a Global Health Movement for Young People: Kristen Eddings’s Vision (and a Party)”
Modumetal Wins ACA Award
Seattle-based Modumetal, a nanotech and advanced materials company, has won the inaugural Luis Villalobos Award for “the most ingenious and innovative idea” recently financed by a member angel group of the Angel Capital Association. The award, named after the founder of Tech Coast Angels, was announced in San Francisco today at the 2010 ACA Summit. … Continue reading “Modumetal Wins ACA Award”
2010 LOGIN Conference (Online Games)
Info and registration here. Each year in the game industry, there are conferences, summits, conventions, trade shows and more, all calling for your attendance and attention. Deciding which events are worth your time and investment can be complicated. The LOGIN Conference staff and Advisory Board members know there is only so much time in the … Continue reading “2010 LOGIN Conference (Online Games)”
Top 10 Takeaways From Seattle’s Engineering Summit: Electro-Active Wallpaper, Facebook Is Watching You, and Dendreon Detractors
Engineers are not salespeople. They are certainly not sound-bite machines either. If they were either of the above, there would have been a flurry of media stories coming out of Seattle this week centered around the National Academy of Engineering’s “grand challenges” summit held here on Sunday and Monday. Maybe that’s why it took me … Continue reading “Top 10 Takeaways From Seattle’s Engineering Summit: Electro-Active Wallpaper, Facebook Is Watching You, and Dendreon Detractors”
Hood Wins $100k Kistler Prize
Leroy Hood, the pioneer of high-speed gene sequencing technologies that made the Human Genome Project possible, has been awarded the 2010 Kistler Prize. The $100,000 award is named after Walter Kistler, the inventor and president of the Bellevue, WA-based Foundation for the Future. Past winners include famous scientists J. Craig Venter, Richard Dawkins, and Edward … Continue reading “Hood Wins $100k Kistler Prize”
The Underlying Impact of the “Apps” Phenomenon on VC-Backed Software Startups
New smartphone applications (“apps”) are being developed at a rate of nearly 1,000 new titles a day. While Apple’s brilliance in cultivating the developer community receives much of the credit for this incredible phenomenon, it has also ridden the back of the global economic meltdown coinciding with the rise of the iPhone. “Huh, come again,” … Continue reading “The Underlying Impact of the “Apps” Phenomenon on VC-Backed Software Startups”
Dendreon Makes History, Microsoft Tries Open-Source Biology, an OVP IPO Is Brewing, & More Seattle-Area Life Sciences News
This week, my Mom wrote to say she saw a Seattle biotech company featured on ABC’s World News Tonight. That may be a first in the nine years I’ve been writing about this business. So yes, this was a big week. —Seattle-based Dendreon (NASDAQ: [[ticker:DNDN]]) made history, and the TV network evening news, when it … Continue reading “Dendreon Makes History, Microsoft Tries Open-Source Biology, an OVP IPO Is Brewing, & More Seattle-Area Life Sciences News”
Arch’s Nelsen Joins NVCA Board
Robert Nelsen, a managing director with Arch Venture Partners in Seattle, has been elected to the board of the National Venture Capital Association, according to an NVCA statement. Nelsen was elected to a four-year term as one of five new directors on the board. Kate Mitchell of Scale Venture Partners is also replacing Terry McGuire … Continue reading “Arch’s Nelsen Joins NVCA Board”
MITEF Program: To VC or Not to VC?
Info and registration here. To VC or Not to VC? Growing and Financing Your Company Through Challenging Times As a proven source of funding, it’s understandable that emerging companies often look first to venture capital firms to support their big ideas. Today, however, many start-ups are weighing the advantages and disadvantages of VC money and … Continue reading “MITEF Program: To VC or Not to VC?”
Tableau Signs Up Zynga
Seattle-based Tableau Software, the data visualization company, said today that Zynga, the social gaming firm in San Francisco, has signed up to use Tableau’s analytics and business intelligence software. Financial details weren’t given. Zynga, the maker of such popular social games as FarmVille, Mafia Wars, and Cafe World, says it has more than 235 million … Continue reading “Tableau Signs Up Zynga”
AudienceScience Acquires Consorte Media
Bellevue, WA, and New York-based AudienceScience said today it has acquired Consorte Media, a digital marketing and advertising network firm based in San Francisco. Financial terms were not given. AudienceScience (formerly called Revenue Science) makes a technology platform for digital marketing, and this acquisition should help it connect advertisers with Hispanic communities. The company raised … Continue reading “AudienceScience Acquires Consorte Media”
What Facebook VP Mike Schroepfer Is Looking For in Seattle Engineers: Entrepreneurial Passion
Facebook made big local news this morning when it said it is planning to open a Seattle engineering office in July. This will be the Palo Alto, CA-based social networking company’s first engineering center in the U.S. outside of its headquarters. (It also has an engineering office in Tokyo.) Facebook currently boasts more than 400 … Continue reading “What Facebook VP Mike Schroepfer Is Looking For in Seattle Engineers: Entrepreneurial Passion”
Facebook Coming to Seattle in July: Engineering Center Could Hire 30 People
Facebook, the social networking phenom based in Palo Alto, CA, is planning to open an engineering office in Seattle in July. The company says it is actively looking for office space to accommodate as many as 30 employees over the next year, and it is recruiting for experienced engineers in Seattle starting today. The news … Continue reading “Facebook Coming to Seattle in July: Engineering Center Could Hire 30 People”
Christina Lomasney of Modumetal: Science & Technology Discovery Series
Christina Lomasney, the CEO of Seattle-based Modumetal, will be the featured speaker along with Modumetal chief scientist John Whitaker, at the Technology Alliance’s Science and Technology Discovery Series meeting on May 14. The Technology Alliance asks attendees to register by Noon on May 10. For more information, contact Amy Bell at [email protected] or (206) 389-7261.
Big Ideas for Health IT from Hood, Smarr, Lazowska: Highlights of the OVP Tech Summit
The fabled convergence of information technology and biology has been going on for a long time, but merging these fields ain’t easy. Chad Waite, a managing director with OVP Venture Partners in Kirkland, WA, knows this all too well, even though he has a megahit on his resume with Rosetta Inpharmatics, a computational biology company … Continue reading “Big Ideas for Health IT from Hood, Smarr, Lazowska: Highlights of the OVP Tech Summit”
An OVP IPO is Brewing, Allozyne Doing Fine, VLST Finds Second Partner, & More Tidbits from the OVP Tech Summit
There was a lot of big picture talk about the future of IT, biotech, and cleantech today at the OVP Tech Summit in downtown Seattle, but I also picked up quite a few morsels of news on the portfolio companies from the venerable Kirkland, WA-based venture firm. Here are the highlights, which largely came from … Continue reading “An OVP IPO is Brewing, Allozyne Doing Fine, VLST Finds Second Partner, & More Tidbits from the OVP Tech Summit”
How to Power “Eternal” UAVs in Flight: A LaserMotive Blueprint
You want some real tech? Here’s some real tech: LaserMotive, the Kent, WA-based startup founded by physicists Jordin Kare and Tom Nugent, has published a white paper on how to beam power to unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) so they don’t have to land and refuel, or change batteries. The idea is to recharge UAVs while … Continue reading “How to Power “Eternal” UAVs in Flight: A LaserMotive Blueprint”
GameHouse Unveils Social Gaming
Seattle-based GameHouse, a division of RealNetworks (NASDAQ: [[ticker:RNWK]]), announced today a social gaming platform called GameHouse Fusion that lets gamers connect across social websites like Facebook and devices like mobile phones and PCs. The software platform, which could help drive multi-player game development and publishing, has support from partners including Comcast, MySpace, Qualcomm, Mattel, and … Continue reading “GameHouse Unveils Social Gaming”
AdReady Raises More Cash
Seattle-based AdReady, the online advertising firm, has raised $5.3 million in new equity funding, according to an SEC filing late last week. The investors were not disclosed. AdReady develops software tools that make display ads more efficient to produce and monitor, especially for small businesses. The company was co-founded by Aaron Finn in 2006 and … Continue reading “AdReady Raises More Cash”
Fool Gets Its Xconomy On—Motley Fool to Carry Xconomy Stories
I am extremely pleased to announce that Xconomy and The Motley Fool have reached an agreement that will put one Xconomy feature story a day on Fool.com, the flagship website of the Alexandria, VA-based organization. The first story, by our Seattle editor Greg Huang about how startups might learn from Clay Christensen’s “disruptive innovation” model … Continue reading “Fool Gets Its Xconomy On—Motley Fool to Carry Xconomy Stories”
Bill Gates Backs Schrödinger, Bonanzle Lands Angel-VC Deal, Qliance Scores Big-Name Cash, & More Seattle-Area Deals News
Another relatively quiet week for deals in the Northwest, with some activity in software, e-commerce, healthcare, biotech, and medical devices. Let’s see if things pick up in the next few weeks—there haven’t been many new companies getting money lately. —Bothell, WA-based SonoSite, a maker of portable ultrasound machines, formed a partnership with Redmond, WA-based Physio-Control, … Continue reading “Bill Gates Backs Schrödinger, Bonanzle Lands Angel-VC Deal, Qliance Scores Big-Name Cash, & More Seattle-Area Deals News”
AdReady Garners $5,300,000 New Funding
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=0473ca35-579c-486a-b40f-70162f0c71eb&Preview=1 Date 5/4/2010 Company Name AdReady Mailing Address 936 N 34th Street Seattle, WA 98103 Company Description AdReady is an exciting Seattle-based start-up founded by online marketing veterans with over 50 years of combined experience. We are backed by premier venture capital firm, Madrona Venture Group, and our team is well-equipped to … Continue reading “AdReady Garners $5,300,000 New Funding”
Dendreon CEO Mitch Gold Cashes Out With $26.7M Payday On FDA Approval
[Correction: 5:10 pm Pacific, 5/3/10] Dendreon made history last Thursday, and its historic achievement made CEO Mitch Gold about $26.7 million richer. Gold, 43, exercised his options to buy shares of stock in his company (NASDAQ: [[ticker:DNDN]]) last Thursday, when Dendreon got the good news that the FDA had cleared its novel prostate cancer drug … Continue reading “Dendreon CEO Mitch Gold Cashes Out With $26.7M Payday On FDA Approval”
Global Health 101: Malaria Vaccines
The Seattle Biomedical Research Institute will host an event on May 13 titled “Global Health 101: Malaria Vaccines.” This forum will include Ashley Birkett of the PATH Malaria Vaccine Initiative, Stefan Kappe of Seattle BioMed, Christian Loucq of the PATH Malaria Vaccine Initiative, Regina Rabinovich of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and Angela Talley … Continue reading “Global Health 101: Malaria Vaccines”
Dendreon Finds New Waterfront Office
Dendreon (NASDAQ: [[ticker:DNDN]]), which won FDA approval last week for a new treatment to stimulate the immune system to fight prostate cancer, has found a bigger new home. The company signed a letter of intent to lease a new four-story, 200,000 square foot building on Seattle’s waterfront, according to The Seattle Times. The building, developed … Continue reading “Dendreon Finds New Waterfront Office”
The Future of Patent Wars: More of the Same, but Less Litigation, Says John Amster of RPX
Intellectual property battles are a perennial hot-button topic in the tech world. Recently we’ve been hearing a lot about so-called “patent trolls,” companies that don’t produce goods or services but rather acquire patents and then try to extract licensing fees from firms they say are infringing on those patents. Most of these disputes involve lawsuits, … Continue reading “The Future of Patent Wars: More of the Same, but Less Litigation, Says John Amster of RPX”