Category: Seattle

Ballmer in Boston: Microsoft CEO on New England Startups, Competing with Apple, and the “New Normal” of IT

Microsoft is adjusting to a “new normal” with levels of demand for information technology that may be permanently lower than in the past—but it will still vie aggressively with competitors such as Apple for the dollars of consumers and enterprises, CEO Steve Ballmer told an audience in Boston today. In a rare visit to New … Continue reading “Ballmer in Boston: Microsoft CEO on New England Startups, Competing with Apple, and the “New Normal” of IT”

The Kauffman Foundation: Bringing Entrepreneurship Up to Date in Kansas City

Before I came to Xconomy, I didn’t know much about the Kansas City-based Kauffman Foundation beyond what I heard on the radio. If you’re an NPR listener like me, you’ve probably heard their underwriting plug that says it’s the “Foundation of Entrepreneurship.” But then I started covering stories like the foundation’s annual New Economy Index, … Continue reading “The Kauffman Foundation: Bringing Entrepreneurship Up to Date in Kansas City”

Top 10 Highlights from FiReGlobal: Michael Dell, Lee Hartwell, Irwin Jacobs, and More

I can’t do justice to a comprehensive review of yesterday’s FiReGlobal (West Coast) conference at the Four Seasons Hotel in Seattle. Instead, I’ll just give a few of my key takeaways. The all-day event, organized by Strategic News Service, focused on how to solve some of the most pressing problems in technology, business, and society—in … Continue reading “Top 10 Highlights from FiReGlobal: Michael Dell, Lee Hartwell, Irwin Jacobs, and More”

Bellevue-based AudienceScience Gets $15M Financing Deal For Targeted Digital Advertising

AudienceScience, the Bellevue, WA-based company that helps advertisers connect with targeted audiences online, has pulled in about $4 million in new equity financing as part of a total deal worth $15.1 million, according to a regulatory filing. The new cash infusion is actually only one component of the transaction, which includes $10.8 million worth of … Continue reading “Bellevue-based AudienceScience Gets $15M Financing Deal For Targeted Digital Advertising”

Cheezburger Network’s Ben Huh on Startup Strategy, Expansion, and Making It Big

It took about a year and a half before I could even begin to understand the I Can Has Cheezburger (or “LOLcats”) phenomenon online. The mundane yet bizarre cat pictures. The misspelled captions. The curious Internet-slang grammar. They were kind of funny, but mostly they were weird—and, at times, even a little annoying. Yet millions … Continue reading “Cheezburger Network’s Ben Huh on Startup Strategy, Expansion, and Making It Big”

Dendreon Recruits Aces to Board, Amgen Seeks to Raise Hit Rate, Lee Hood Startup Gets $30M, & More Seattle-Area Life Sciences News

The news has been breaking fast and furious here at Xconomy, just as we are putting the finishing touches on a terrific event on Monday that will explore the 20-year outlook for the Seattle region as a life sciences hub. —Xconomy dug up an exclusive late Friday afternoon from a couple SEC filings that showed … Continue reading “Dendreon Recruits Aces to Board, Amgen Seeks to Raise Hit Rate, Lee Hood Startup Gets $30M, & More Seattle-Area Life Sciences News”

Six Red Flags to Watch Out For in a Biotech, From Dendreon Co-Founder Chris Henney

Yesterday, we provided a rundown of the six hallmarks of a successful biotech company, according to Christopher Henney, the biotech pioneer who co-founded three of Seattle’s top biotechs—Immunex, Icos, and Dendreon. He made his remarks to an audience of about 100 investing professionals at the CFA Society meeting on Oct. 8 in Seattle. Today, we … Continue reading “Six Red Flags to Watch Out For in a Biotech, From Dendreon Co-Founder Chris Henney”

The 20-Year Future for Seattle Biotech, As Told By Industry Visionaries, Coming Monday

What is the single best thing that has happened in Seattle life sciences in the past five years? How might that make a difference over the next two decades as this region strives to become a more vibrant cluster for life sciences innovation? These are the kinds of questions you don’t see explored much in … Continue reading “The 20-Year Future for Seattle Biotech, As Told By Industry Visionaries, Coming Monday”

Clean Edge, PayScale Survey Jobs in Cleantech

Portland, OR-based research and publishing firm Clean Edge released a report today on job trends in the cleantech and energy industry. The highlights include a survey of salaries across a range of cleantech positions worldwide, performed in partnership with Seattle-based PayScale, the salary comparison firm. For example, the survey tracked median salaries for solar energy … Continue reading “Clean Edge, PayScale Survey Jobs in Cleantech”

Amazon Invests in Engine Yard, PopCap Raises $22.5M, Omeros Goes Public, & More Seattle-Area Deals News

The deals rained down on the Northwest this past week. We saw some strong activity in biotech, gaming, and software. —Integrated Diagnostics, the new biotech company founded by Lee Hood, has secured $30 million in venture funding from Menlo Park, CA-based InterWest Partners, the U.K.-based Wellcome Trust, and Germany-based dievini Hopp Biotech holding, as Luke … Continue reading “Amazon Invests in Engine Yard, PopCap Raises $22.5M, Omeros Goes Public, & More Seattle-Area Deals News”

Lee Hood’s New Company Snags $30M to Spot Cancer and Alzheimer’s in Early Days

Lee Hood, the legendary researcher and entrepreneur who invented machines that made the Human Genome Project possible, has secured $30 million in venture capital for a startup that aims to detect cancer and neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s in their earliest and most treatable stages. The new company is called Integrated Diagnostics, or InDi for short … Continue reading “Lee Hood’s New Company Snags $30M to Spot Cancer and Alzheimer’s in Early Days”

Former Zango Execs Unveil BigDoor Media to Help Web Publishers Make More Money

It’s one of the great mysteries of the modern Internet. How can Web publishers make more money from their content? For everything from blogs and journalism to games and entertainment, publishers and software companies alike have been trying to solve this problem for many years. Now BigDoor Media, a six-person startup in Bellevue, WA, thinks … Continue reading “Former Zango Execs Unveil BigDoor Media to Help Web Publishers Make More Money”

Six Tips on How to Spot a Winning Biotech, From Dendreon Co-Founder Chris Henney

Investing in biotech can be scary. Only one out of 10 new drug candidates ever makes it through the gauntlet of clinical trials to become an FDA approved product, and it usually takes hundreds of millions of dollars and a decade or more of research to separate the winners from the losers. Investors usually can’t … Continue reading “Six Tips on How to Spot a Winning Biotech, From Dendreon Co-Founder Chris Henney”

Integrated Diagnostics Receives $30,000,000 Series A Funding

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=d5674d5a-4a0b-4106-930c-217e3a0589c6&Preview=1 Date 10/14/2009 Company Name Integrated Diagnostics Mailing Address 1441 N. 34th Street Seattle, WA 98103 Company Description The mission of Integrated Diagnostics is to leverage powerful emerging technologies in the development of diagnostic products that enable physicians and patients to manage complex and important diseases such as cancer, diabetes and Alzheimer’s … Continue reading “Integrated Diagnostics Receives $30,000,000 Series A Funding”

Gist and Glympse Release iPhone Apps, Look to Capture More of the Mobile Market

Call it the iPhone “2G.” Two Seattle-area startups that start with the letter “G” are rolling out new iPhone apps today. OK, this would not normally make significant news for us, because new apps appear on a daily basis, but each of these cases provides an interesting update to the company’s mobile strategy, so here … Continue reading “Gist and Glympse Release iPhone Apps, Look to Capture More of the Mobile Market”

Q3 Venture Deals Regain Some Lost Altitude, With $6B Invested Nationwide

The storm may not have entirely passed, but the venture capital industry unbattened the hatches during the three months that ended in September. At least that’s the sense I get from a 69-page report on U.S. venture investing, which we get from New York-based ChubbyBrain, an information services firm developing tools for investors, startups, and … Continue reading “Q3 Venture Deals Regain Some Lost Altitude, With $6B Invested Nationwide”

Seattle Genetics Adds Marketing Boss

Seattle Genetics, the Bothell, WA-based developer of targeted antibody drugs for cancer, said today it has hired its first head of commercial operations to prepare for the introduction of what it hopes will be its first marketed product. The company (NASDAQ: [[ticker:SGEN]]) said it hired Bruce Seeley for the new position of executive vice president, … Continue reading “Seattle Genetics Adds Marketing Boss”

Medical Device Startups Getting Squeezed by Recession, Lawmakers, Says E&Y Report

People who make a living creating innovative medical devices—whether it’s an ultrasound diagnostic tool, a stent to prop open clogged arteries, or an MRI machine—are an unhappy bunch these days. Let us count the ways, as described in the second annual medical device industry analysis being released today by Ernst & Young. Because unemployment is … Continue reading “Medical Device Startups Getting Squeezed by Recession, Lawmakers, Says E&Y Report”

The Stimulus, UW, and Washington State

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA, or “the stimulus”) totaled approximately $787 billion. Of this, approximately $21.5 billion (2.7 percent) was for the support of R&D—$18 billion for the conduct of research and $3.5 billion for facilities and equipment. Why R&D as part of the stimulus? Because it employs people (that’s what … Continue reading “The Stimulus, UW, and Washington State”

Marchex Rolls Out Reputation Management Software for Small Businesses

Online reputation management is hot these days. Today, Seattle-based Marchex, the online advertising and search company, is announcing a new thrust in its strategy for connecting local consumers with restaurants, florists, and other businesses. The firm is releasing software that helps small, local businesses monitor and understand what people are saying about them and their … Continue reading “Marchex Rolls Out Reputation Management Software for Small Businesses”

Principle Power Combines Waves, Wind

Seattle-based Principle Power, a company focused on offshore wind energy, announced today it has received a $750,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Energy to develop water power technologies. Principle Power is working with the National Renewable Energy Lab and Marine Innovation and Technology on the project, which seeks to incorporate wave energy generation into … Continue reading “Principle Power Combines Waves, Wind”

Adobe, Omniture, and the End of the “Mad Men” Marketing Era

I’ve been predicting for a while that the marketing agencies and website developers that don’t have deep technical capabilities in search engine optimization will be left by the side of the road. Now we’re seeing it come to pass with Adobe’s $1.8 billion buyout of Omniture. [Adobe Systems announced the acquisition on Sept. 15, and … Continue reading “Adobe, Omniture, and the End of the “Mad Men” Marketing Era”

EndoGastric Solutions Lands $9,500,000 New Financing Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=e0f65c6e-3eda-4ef1-b8f9-66232f04e1d0&Preview=1 Date 10/12/2009 Company Name EndoGastric Solutions Mailing Address 8210 154th Ave NE Redmond, WA 98052 Company Description EndoGastric Solutions, Inc. (FKA Esophyx) is the pioneer in endoluminal procedures for the treatment of upper gastrointestinal diseases, including gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) and obesity. EGS’ mission is to utilize the most current wisdom … Continue reading “EndoGastric Solutions Lands $9,500,000 New Financing Round”

Global Payments Acquires Auctionpay for Undisclosed Sum

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=0b0c9871-2fe4-4961-a5a0-afb0efa10f46&Preview=1 Date 10/12/2009 Company Name Auctionpay Mailing Address 13221 S.W. 68th Parkway Portland, OR 97223 Company Description Auctionpay is dedicated to helping nonprofits automate and improve benefit event fundraising. Auctionpay’s solutions help local, regional and national nonprofit organizations and schools create better donor experiences, while saving organizations time and money. Website http://www.auctionpay.com … Continue reading “Global Payments Acquires Auctionpay for Undisclosed Sum”

Dendreon Recruits Genentech CEO, Former Lilly Manufacturing Chief to Board

Seattle-based Dendreon recruited some serious industry experience in marketing and manufacturing today to its board of directors. The company has added Ian Clark, the CEO of Roche’s Genentech unit and former head of Genentech’s commercial operations, along with Pedro Granadillo, a former senior vice president of manufacturing at Eli Lilly, according to two separate regulatory … Continue reading “Dendreon Recruits Genentech CEO, Former Lilly Manufacturing Chief to Board”

Mobile App Startups From Seattle to Washington DC Make Pitch at CTIA Fund Fest

A lot of fingers were crossed behind the scenes at the CTIA Wireless IT & Entertainment conference, which ended today at the San Diego Convention Center. Many extraneous factors can affect attendance at big industry shows, but organizers did not want a repeat of the last time the CTIA came to San Diego, when the … Continue reading “Mobile App Startups From Seattle to Washington DC Make Pitch at CTIA Fund Fest”

Evri Drives New Hearst Website, Wants to Make News Aggregators Smarter

The next step in the future of journalism could be led by a Seattle startup. Today, media giant Hearst announced it has started a new website called LMK (Let Me Know), a news aggregator that pulls in Web feeds from sources like the Associated Press and Getty Images, and automatically creates topic pages for individual … Continue reading “Evri Drives New Hearst Website, Wants to Make News Aggregators Smarter”

Marketfish Puts Out New Platform

Seattle-based Marketfish has launched a new version of its list marketing software platform. The platform, called Great White, lets marketers rent third party opt-in lists using a Web interface similar to Google AdWords. The latest version lets customers complete live transactions and includes new features like expanded payment options and more transparency on prices. Marketfish … Continue reading “Marketfish Puts Out New Platform”

Bionavitas, Blue Marble Cut Algae Deal

Redmond, WA-based Bionavitas, the developer of light technology to grow more efficient algae, said today it has formed a partnership with Seattle-based Blue Marble Energy to make “high margin biochemicals” from algae. The companies didn’t say what they plan to make under this alliance, but it’s not biofuels. Bionavitas CEO Michael Weaver explained the company’s … Continue reading “Bionavitas, Blue Marble Cut Algae Deal”

Amazon Re-ups with Engine Yard

Seattle-based Amazon (NASDAQ: [[ticker:AMZN]]) has participated in a $19 million Series C financing for Engine Yard, a cloud computing and software automation company in San Francisco. Amazon was a previous investor, along with Benchmark Capital and New Enterprise Associates, both of whom participated in the latest round, which also included new investors DAG Ventures, Bay … Continue reading “Amazon Re-ups with Engine Yard”

Microsoft’s New Head of FUSE Labs, Lili Cheng, on Strategy, Social Computing, and Bicoastal Life

Microsoft’s latest reorganization, which involves labs in both the Seattle and Boston areas, has a new face. It’s Lili Cheng, a 14-year Microsoftie with experience in both research (social computing) and products (Windows Vista user experience). Cheng now officially leads three separate groups that are being rolled into one: her Creative Systems Group within Microsoft … Continue reading “Microsoft’s New Head of FUSE Labs, Lili Cheng, on Strategy, Social Computing, and Bicoastal Life”

It’s Time for Washington to Commit to a 21st Century Education System for the 21st Century Economy

Every second year, the Technology Alliance gathers policymakers and leaders from the innovation community at a retreat designed to explore issues affecting Washington’s technology sector and to map out strategies to increase our state’s long-term competitiveness. We organize the retreat around what we call the “three drivers” of a vibrant innovation economy: excellent K-12 and … Continue reading “It’s Time for Washington to Commit to a 21st Century Education System for the 21st Century Economy”

Amgen’s Seattle and Boston Teams Seek to Boost Biotech Hit Rate 20 to 30 Percent

One of the inconvenient truths of the biotech and pharmaceutical industry is that only about one out of every 10 drug candidates good enough to enter clinical trials passes all the tests to graduate as an FDA-approved therapy. Every major drugmaker is searching for ways to boost that success rate, and yesterday I got an … Continue reading “Amgen’s Seattle and Boston Teams Seek to Boost Biotech Hit Rate 20 to 30 Percent”

Uptake Medical Corp Secures $1,200,000 New Financing

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=6648ca5c-75f0-46dd-b577-9b955c4dcf38&Preview=1 Date 10/9/2009 Company Name Uptake Medical Corp Mailing Address 1924 1st Avenue 3rd Floor Seattle, WA 98101 Company Description Uptake Medical Corporation is a Seattle-based medical device company dedicated to improving the lives of patients suffering from emphysema and other types of chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases (COPD). Website http://www.uptakemedical.com/ Transaction Type … Continue reading “Uptake Medical Corp Secures $1,200,000 New Financing”

Omeros, First U.S. Biotech IPO Since February 2008, Sees Shares Drop 13 Percent in First Day

Shares of Seattle-based Omeros, the first true U.S. biotech company to go public in more than 18 months, dropped about 13 percent in the company’s first day of trading. Omeros (NASDAQ: [[ticker:OMER]]) opened trading at $10, but tumbled $1.27, or 13 percent, to close its first day at $8.73. The company now has 21.3 million … Continue reading “Omeros, First U.S. Biotech IPO Since February 2008, Sees Shares Drop 13 Percent in First Day”

Memo from Ray Ozzie: New Lab Will Use Social Computing to Strengthen Microsoft Products

Ray Ozzie, Microsoft’s chief software architect, announced today the company is forming a new laboratory called Future Social Experience Labs, or FUSE Labs, which will focus on aspects of “social computing” beyond just communication and collaboration. The move is part of a wider restructuring of Microsoft’s labs: FUSE Labs is a merger between the Creative … Continue reading “Memo from Ray Ozzie: New Lab Will Use Social Computing to Strengthen Microsoft Products”

Fundraising Tide Remains Low for Venture Capital Firms

Fundraising by U.S. venture capital firms continues to lag. A survey released overnight by Dow Jones Private Equity Analyst shows that 26 VC funds raised about $3.5 billion during the three months that ended September 30—down about 51 percent from the same quarter last year. The findings nevertheless represented an improvement over the previous quarter, … Continue reading “Fundraising Tide Remains Low for Venture Capital Firms”

Washington Companies Raised $84.9M in September—But Mostly in One Deal

Venture financing perked up last month, at least for a handful of Seattle-area startups and young companies. VCs and corporate investors poured $76.9 million into five Washington-based companies in September, according to data provided to Xconomy by ChubbyBrain, a New York-based information services company that develops tools for investors, startups, and entrepreneurs. There were also … Continue reading “Washington Companies Raised $84.9M in September—But Mostly in One Deal”

Omeros Raises $68.2M in Washington’s First IPO in Two Years

Omeros, the Seattle biotech company developing a treatment to improve recovery from knee surgery, completed its initial public offering late last night in the state’s first IPO in more than two years. The company sold 6.82 million shares to investors at $10 apiece, for total proceeds of $68.2 million. The underwriters of the offering, led … Continue reading “Omeros Raises $68.2M in Washington’s First IPO in Two Years”

Omeros Accused on Eve of IPO, Seattle Genetics Trial Fails, How Much Biotechies Really Earn, & More Seattle-Area Life Sciences News

Omeros is attempting to become the first true biotech company to go public in more than a year, and the first in Washington state in two years, but it will have to overcome controversy to do it. —Seattle-based Omeros, the biotech company with a treatment to help patients recover from knee surgery, has been listed … Continue reading “Omeros Accused on Eve of IPO, Seattle Genetics Trial Fails, How Much Biotechies Really Earn, & More Seattle-Area Life Sciences News”

Venture Model Makeover & Diet Plan—Step Two

The venture capital model is being remade. It must happen from the ground up, via its relationship with entrepreneurs, as Daphne Zohar has previously described here. But it must also happen from the top down, via its relationship with limited partners (the investors in venture funds). Limited partners in venture capital funds aren’t very happy … Continue reading “Venture Model Makeover & Diet Plan—Step Two”

Omeros Corporation Garners $68,200,000 New Funding

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=934d0355-a89c-4e77-a6ec-ef46236cda69&Preview=1 Date 10/8/2009 Company Name Omeros Corporation Mailing Address 1420 Fifth Avenue Seattle, WA 98101 Company Description Omeros recognized that a combination of agents acting on multiple molecular targets may be required for optimal therapeutic effect. Omeros’ product candidates are designed to modulate the molecular mechanisms of pathologic conditions rather than just … Continue reading “Omeros Corporation Garners $68,200,000 New Funding”

Glympse and TravellingWave Step Out, Microsoft Does Voice Search, and More Mobile News

It’s been a very busy week for news in the mobile industry. First, Amazon (NASDAQ: [[ticker:AMZN]]) rolled out a one-click mobile payments service that promises to shake up the world of mobile-app developers and distributors. Then it seems like all hell broke loose, courtesy of the massive CTIA wireless expo going on in San Diego … Continue reading “Glympse and TravellingWave Step Out, Microsoft Does Voice Search, and More Mobile News”

OEN Names 12 Companies for Forum

The Oregon Entrepreneurs Network (OEN) has announced its lineup of 12 presenting companies for the Venture Northwest 2009 investment forum, to be held on Oct. 29 at The Nine’s Hotel in Portland, OR. The Seattle-area companies are Calidora Skin Systems, Doxo, Lucid Commerce, and MicroGreen Polymers, while the Portland-area companies are Advanced Inquiry Systems, Cularis, … Continue reading “OEN Names 12 Companies for Forum”

Daptiv Adds $2M From Management

Seattle-based Daptiv, a maker of online project management software, has received $2 million in new funding, according to a regulatory filing. The cash comes primarily from the company’s management, including new CEO Chase Franklin, chairman Kevin Hickey, and chief operating officer Mark Klebanoff, as TechFlash reports. Daptiv was founded in 1997 (as eProject), and has … Continue reading “Daptiv Adds $2M From Management”

Geospiza Wins NIH Cancer Grant

Geospiza, the Seattle-based maker of software to help researchers analyze genomic data, said today it has been awarded a $110,000 Small Business Innovation Research Grant from the National Human Genome Research Institute to improve methods for spotting rare gene mutations that may determine how a cancer cell grows, and whether it will resist treatment.