Category: Seattle

Gilead Drug For Cystic Fibrosis Fails to Win FDA Approval

Gilead Sciences suffered a big blow this afternoon, when it got word that its inhalable antibiotic for cystic fibrosis failed to win FDA approval. The Foster City, CA-based company, which has research and development offices in Seattle, said U.S. regulators are saying that another study must be done before aztreonam lysine can be cleared for … Continue reading “Gilead Drug For Cystic Fibrosis Fails to Win FDA Approval”

Puget Sound Business Journal Tackling Online News With Cook, Bishop

Fans of John Cook and Todd Bishop, never fear. The highly-regarded tech reporters who quit the Seattle Post-Intelligencer together yesterday will continue blogging like they have for years at the P-I, in a new role at the Puget Sound Business Journal. Today, the Business Journal said it is creating a new website featuring Cook’s coverage … Continue reading “Puget Sound Business Journal Tackling Online News With Cook, Bishop”

Cray, Microsoft Team Up to Sell $25K Windows Supercomputer—Will It Blue-Screen?

Remember when a supercomputer was an exotic, multimillion-dollar machine that took up a whole room and churned out calculations for quantum physics, molecular modeling, and other big science? Now, thanks to Moore’s Law and improvements in electronic design, your desktop PC is probably more powerful than what would have been called a “supercomputer” in 1990. … Continue reading “Cray, Microsoft Team Up to Sell $25K Windows Supercomputer—Will It Blue-Screen?”

Amgen’s Dmab Cuts Fracture Risk for Osteoporosis Patients, Just What Investors Wanted to See

Amgen finally has something emerging from its pipeline to thrill investors. The world’s largest biotech company, with research centers in Seattle and Cambridge, MA, is reporting today that its lead drug in development reduced the risk of spinal fractures for women with osteoporosis by a whopping 68 percent. On another dismal day in the markets, … Continue reading “Amgen’s Dmab Cuts Fracture Risk for Osteoporosis Patients, Just What Investors Wanted to See”

Big Fish Gets Big Funds, UIEvolution Emerges, Targeted Growth Targets Biofuels, Healionics Dogs It, & More

As fall approaches, the Northwest deals (and other news) are starting to pick up. In the past week, we’ve seen plenty of action in mobile, gaming, biotech, and biofuels—including Washington state’s biggest venture deal of 2008 so far. —Seattle-based Big Fish Games has raised a whopping $83.3 million in Washington’s largest venture deal of the … Continue reading “Big Fish Gets Big Funds, UIEvolution Emerges, Targeted Growth Targets Biofuels, Healionics Dogs It, & More”

Frazier Healthcare Hires Bob More of Domain Associates as General Partner

Frazier Healthcare Ventures, the Seattle-based venture firm, said today that Bob More has joined as a general partner in the firm’s California office. More worked the previous 12 years at Domain Associates, where he was involved with investments in ESP Pharma, Proxima Therapeutics, Onux Medical, and NovaCardia, all of which were acquired by larger companies. … Continue reading “Frazier Healthcare Hires Bob More of Domain Associates as General Partner”

Space Explorers Splash Down in Seattle, Try to Spark Childrens’ Imaginations

Space exploration doesn’t captivate the public imagination like it once did—and small wonder, considering that the Space Shuttle is limited to endless circles in low-earth orbit, a mere 250 miles up. So now the small group of people who have had the privilege of looking down on Earth are doing something about it. They are … Continue reading “Space Explorers Splash Down in Seattle, Try to Spark Childrens’ Imaginations”

Seattle P-I Tech Writers, Todd Bishop and John Cook, Bolt for Puget Sound Business Journal

The Puget Sound Business Journal got significantly stronger today. Two of Seattle’s best-known technology journalists, John Cook and Todd Bishop, have resigned from the Seattle Post-Intelligencer to take new jobs at the crosstown Business Journal. Cook, the author of the widely-read John Cook’s Venture Blog, joined the newspaper in April 1999. As he says in … Continue reading “Seattle P-I Tech Writers, Todd Bishop and John Cook, Bolt for Puget Sound Business Journal”

Seattle Versus San Francisco: Will There Be a Brain Drain to the Bay Area?

A couple weeks ago, we ran a story about the relationship between Seattle startups and San Francisco Bay Area VCs. We asked, what can Seattle entrepreneurs do to attract more attention from California investors? The responses I got from the tech-business community painted an interesting and complex picture of the local investment scene—but it was … Continue reading “Seattle Versus San Francisco: Will There Be a Brain Drain to the Bay Area?”

UIEvolution Raises $5M

Bellevue, WA-based UIEvolution, a maker of multimedia publishing software for mobile phones and other consumer electronics, announced that it has raised a Series A round led by Intel Capital, with Itochu also participating. The deal is reportedly worth some $5 million.

Gilead’s Seattle Crew Awaits FDA Clearance of Cystic Fibrosis Drug, Catalyst for Future Growth

The people at Gilead Sciences in Seattle have been working toward this moment for seven years. Tomorrow is the FDA’s deadline to decide whether to approve aztreonam lysine, an inhalable antibiotic for cystic fibrosis. The drug was developed by Seattle-based Corus Pharma and led to its acquisition two years ago by Gilead for $365 million. … Continue reading “Gilead’s Seattle Crew Awaits FDA Clearance of Cystic Fibrosis Drug, Catalyst for Future Growth”

Xconomy Rockin’ Tonight in Harvard Square

When we hired Greg Huang as our Seattle editor a few months ago, Rebecca wrote an article entitled, Introducing Greg. He Rocks. That’s because right after we hired him, he went on tour with what we described as his “fantastically quirky band,” Honest Bob and the Factory-to-Dealer Incentives. The band, which claims influences by the … Continue reading “Xconomy Rockin’ Tonight in Harvard Square”

Star Wars Inspires UW Scientist, Yoky Matsuoka, to Think Big About Making Artificial Hands

One of the scenes from The Empire Strikes Back gives you an idea of what Yoky Matsuoka is pursuing. It’s the part where Luke Skywalker tests out a prosthetic hand that he can control with all the dexterity of a natural one, well enough to wield one mean light saber. Matsuoka, a MacArthur “genius” award … Continue reading “Star Wars Inspires UW Scientist, Yoky Matsuoka, to Think Big About Making Artificial Hands”

Big Fish Lands $83.3 Million Investment Round

No sooner had Greg published his 45-company-long list of members of the Greater Seattle gaming cluster, than one of those companies—Big Fish Games—jumped out of the pool to grab the spotlight in a big (think $83.3 million) way. That was the whopping amount of new funding the Seattle company, founded in 2002 by Paul Thelen, … Continue reading “Big Fish Lands $83.3 Million Investment Round”

Arzeda, a University of Washington Spinout, Sees Future in Directed Evolution

Arzeda sees a future in which it will custom design enzymes, on a computer, to do things in the body that biologists now can only dream about. The technology, emerging from David Baker‘s lab at the University of Washington, has generated enough interest from biotechnology industry partners that three of his young apprentices have decided … Continue reading “Arzeda, a University of Washington Spinout, Sees Future in Directed Evolution”

Getting the Gist of Gist, from Entrepreneur T.A. McCann

T.A. McCann has been on my list of people to talk to for months. So when I heard the Seattle-area entrepreneur, a former Microsoftie and pro sailor, has a new website in beta trials, I had to get the scoop from him. The site, and company, is called Gist, and this is its first week … Continue reading “Getting the Gist of Gist, from Entrepreneur T.A. McCann”

ZvBox’s Unhappy Marriage of PC and HDTV

I really wish that I could write a positive review of the ZvBox—the appliance from Littleton, MA-based ZeeVee that taps into your house’s TV cables, allowing you to watch videos playing on your Windows PC from any high-definition TV in your house. When I first profiled ZeeVee back in May, I had high hopes for … Continue reading “ZvBox’s Unhappy Marriage of PC and HDTV”

UIEvolution Inc. Garners $5,000,000 Series A Financing Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=ce832caa-3613-43fa-a3c0-009077c13f45&Preview=1 Date 9/12/2008 Company Name UIEvolution Inc. Mailing Address 11245 SE 6th Street Bellevue, WA 98004 Company Description At UIEvolution® we see a future where our software technology and solutions power dynamic application experiences for any device, platform or network enabling consumers to access their content anytime, anywhere. Website http://www.uievolution.com Transaction Type … Continue reading “UIEvolution Inc. Garners $5,000,000 Series A Financing Round”

Big Fish Games Receives $83,300,000 New Financing

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=52fb4d70-5931-4a94-9a23-c90648a44e99&Preview=1 Date 9/12/2008 Company Name Big Fish Games Mailing Address 333 Elliott Avenue West Seattle, WA 98119 Company Description Big Fish Games is a global leader and innovator in the online games industry, producing and delivering the world’s best games and game experiences. The Big Fish Games portal at BigFishGames.com distributes more … Continue reading “Big Fish Games Receives $83,300,000 New Financing”

Trubion Wins Patent Dispute With Genentech, Biogen Idec

Trubion Pharmaceuticals just scored a victory in the world of patents over a couple of biotech heavyweights. The Seattle biotech company (NASDAQ: [[ticker:TRBN]]), which is developing a drug for rheumatoid arthritis, said today that the European Patent Office granted its request to revoke a patent held by Genentech and Cambridge, MA-based Biogen Idec (NASDAQ: [[ticker:BIIB]]) … Continue reading “Trubion Wins Patent Dispute With Genentech, Biogen Idec”

Biofuels: The Wild West of Today, As a New Industry Takes Shape

There was a sense of urgency in the air yesterday in Vancouver, B.C., about biofuels. It’s no surprise, with gas at $4 a gallon, that some smart people have gotten motivated to come up with alternatives. So I hopped in a rented 2008 Toyota Yaris (estimated 36 highway mpg) and joined about 450 people at … Continue reading “Biofuels: The Wild West of Today, As a New Industry Takes Shape”

Targeted Growth Sees Future in Your Breakfast Bowl

Targeted Growth has a business strategy that leads straight to your morning bowl of cereal. The Seattle-based biotech company is taking its technology to the market with a high-yield seed crop that can be turned into biodiesel, but it sees a bigger future in boosting production of what it calls “small grain cereals,” the type … Continue reading “Targeted Growth Sees Future in Your Breakfast Bowl”

Game On: The Greater Seattle Gaming Cluster

The Seattle area is known for many things. But right up there with the coffee, the weather, and the music scene would have to be the gaming community. If you’ve ever played a video game like Halo on an Xbox console, or a multiplayer online game like World of Warcraft, or an online “casual” game … Continue reading “Game On: The Greater Seattle Gaming Cluster”

Mobliss and Reaxion Merge, Realign Goals

Seattle mobile-gaming companies Mobliss and Reaxion have announced they are merging into a new company called PressOK Entertainment, which will be led by Reaxion CEO Colin Prior. Mobliss is known for its existing-brand titles like Deal or No Deal, while Reaxion makes original titles like Detective Puzzles. The deal is being viewed as a sign … Continue reading “Mobliss and Reaxion Merge, Realign Goals”

New(ish) on Xconomy: More Venture and M&A Deals Than You Can Shake a Stick At, Thanks to Our Friends at VentureDeal

Habitual visitors to our Boston and Seattle homepages might have noticed something new about a month ago—a pretty blue box perched right on top of the event-listings box and packed full of headlines about venture financings and M&A deals. Click a headline, and you get a tidy little summary of the transaction, complete with information … Continue reading “New(ish) on Xconomy: More Venture and M&A Deals Than You Can Shake a Stick At, Thanks to Our Friends at VentureDeal”

The Infinite Canvas: An Interview with Scott McCloud, the Google Chrome Comic Guy

Over the last week, I’ve had several people tell me that the most interesting thing about Google Chrome isn’t the browser itself, but the way Google chose to present it to the world: via a comic book. Indeed, for at least a day or two, Scott McCloud’s Google Chrome comic—which was accidentally leaked to journalists … Continue reading “The Infinite Canvas: An Interview with Scott McCloud, the Google Chrome Comic Guy”

AVI Biopharma Out to Reinvent Itself, Making RNA-based Drugs for Ebola and Other Nasty Things

The first five minutes of digging on Portland, OR-based AVI Biopharma turns up some jaw-dropping facts. It’s been in business since the dawn of biotechnology in 1980. Never has it developed an FDA-approved drug. Never has it become profitable. It has burned through $243 million in investor capital in its history, according to its most … Continue reading “AVI Biopharma Out to Reinvent Itself, Making RNA-based Drugs for Ebola and Other Nasty Things”

Ontela Signs Up Wireless Carriers and Websites, Wants To Send Your Camera-Phone Pictures with Nary a Click

Today marks the start of CTIA Wireless I.T. & Entertainment 2008, the world’s largest wireless-data event, in San Francisco. A host of local wireless companies are peddling their products there, and at least one of them has some interesting news. Seattle startup Ontela, which makes software to transmit digital photos from camera phones, is announcing … Continue reading “Ontela Signs Up Wireless Carriers and Websites, Wants To Send Your Camera-Phone Pictures with Nary a Click”

UIEvolution Inc. Receives $5,000,000 New Funding

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=ce832caa-3613-43fa-a3c0-009077c13f45&Preview=1 Date 9/10/2008 Company Name UIEvolution Inc. Mailing Address 11245 SE 6th Street Bellevue, WA 98004 Company Description At UIEvolution® we see a future where our software technology and solutions power dynamic application experiences for any device, platform or network enabling consumers to access their content anytime, anywhere. Website http://www.uievolution.com Transaction Type … Continue reading “UIEvolution Inc. Receives $5,000,000 New Funding”

The Sky Isn’t Falling on Venture Capital in Washington State, VCs Say

The national economy may be limping along, and IPOs seem like a distant dream, but that doesn’t mean it’s doomsday for the people who invest in startup businesses. Two prominent local venture capitalists—Chad Waite of OVP Venture Partners in Kirkland, WA, and Matt McIlwain of Madrona Venture Group in Seattle—both said their industry is getting … Continue reading “The Sky Isn’t Falling on Venture Capital in Washington State, VCs Say”

Washington Is Number One—in Slowest Internet Connections

Wade wrote today about Cambridge, MA-based Akamai’s second quarterly “State of the Internet” report, which details such trends as broadband connections by state and country, number of Internet-connected devices, and amounts of attack traffic and malware. In terms of Internet connection speeds, South Korea is tops with 64 percent of all connections (to Akamai’s content … Continue reading “Washington Is Number One—in Slowest Internet Connections”

Healionics Signs Deal To Make Components for Glaucoma Device in Dogs

First come dogs, then people—at least in the Pacific Northwest. Redmond, WA-based Healionics is announcing today that it has signed an agreement to manufacture bioengineered components for Chandler, AZ-based TR BioSurgical so it can make implants used in dogs with glaucoma. Healionics will provide TR BioSurgical with its bioengineered material, which will be incorporated into … Continue reading “Healionics Signs Deal To Make Components for Glaucoma Device in Dogs”

Seattle Entrepreneurs Call Bay Area VCs, Amazon Sells XOs, Tableau Taps $10M, ZymoGenetics Gives Up Drug Rights, & More Deals News

Everybody should be back from vacation, and the deal flow surging—but someone forgot to tell the dealmakers, as the past week was pretty light for Seattle tech and life sciences action. —In a deal worth approximately $131 million, Bellevue, WA-based Captaris (NASDAQ: [[ticker:CAPA]]), which makes business and documents management software, announced it is being acquired … Continue reading “Seattle Entrepreneurs Call Bay Area VCs, Amazon Sells XOs, Tableau Taps $10M, ZymoGenetics Gives Up Drug Rights, & More Deals News”

Zillow Launches Ad Network With Newspapers

Seattle-based Zillow, a real-estate website, announced today it is launching the country’s largest online real-estate ad network, together with 11 major newspaper companies (282 papers). The network is an extension of last fall’s newspaper partnership that allows local real-estate classified advertisers to buy ads on Zillow.com. The partners include Hearst Newspapers, publisher of the Seattle … Continue reading “Zillow Launches Ad Network With Newspapers”

Seattle Genetics’ Medical Point Man, Tom Reynolds, Aims to Capitalize on Hodgkin’s Drug

The people at Seattle Genetics think they have a blockbuster-drug-in-the-making for Hodgkin’s disease. Tom Reynolds is the guy whose job it is to prove it to the world. Few drugs ever demonstrate the kind of promise SGN-35 did in its initial clinical trial in June, says Reynolds, the company’s chief medical officer. The drug showed … Continue reading “Seattle Genetics’ Medical Point Man, Tom Reynolds, Aims to Capitalize on Hodgkin’s Drug”

Discovery: The Soul of Biotech, the Place For True Believers, and a Retro Way to Bring it Back

Not so long ago, there was a day when biotechnology companies were built to last. They were founded and directed by pioneering scientists who were courageous, true-believers in their respective technologies. Their drive, creative spirit, and dedication to discovery positioned their companies in ways that could create multiple opportunities for success in therapeutic discovery and … Continue reading “Discovery: The Soul of Biotech, the Place For True Believers, and a Retro Way to Bring it Back”

Tableau Raises $10M in Second Venture Round, Wants To Be the “Adobe of Data”

Apparently it’s a good time to be in the business of data visualization. Wade wrote in July about Visual I|O, a Newton, MA-based business-analytics startup, and Hans Rosling’s splashy Trendalyzer software, which was acquired by Google last year. Not to be outdone, Seattle-based Tableau Software is announcing today it has closed a Series B round … Continue reading “Tableau Raises $10M in Second Venture Round, Wants To Be the “Adobe of Data””

Tableau Software Secures $10,000,000 Series B Funding Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=6aa3cb3d-c473-4d4d-b07e-4d0c0f9c2107&Preview=1 Date 9/8/2008 Company Name Tableau Software Mailing Address 400 North 34th Street Seattle, WA 98103 Company Description Tableau Software, a privately held company based in Seattle, Washington, is the leading provider of visual reporting and analysis solutions. Website http://www.tableausoftware.com Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount $10,000,000 Transaction Round Series B Proceeds … Continue reading “Tableau Software Secures $10,000,000 Series B Funding Round”

Northstar Neuroscience Clinical & Regulatory Head Resigns

Northstar Neuroscience, the Seattle-based maker of a electrical brain stimulation device for depression, said today that Nawzer Mehta has resigned his job as vice president of clinical and regulatory affairs to pursue another opportunity. Mehta will be replaced by Deborah Sheffield, the company’s director of regulatory affairs. Northstar has switched its strategy to concentrate on … Continue reading “Northstar Neuroscience Clinical & Regulatory Head Resigns”

Simon and the Google Chrome Logo: Separated at Birth?

Has anyone else noticed the resemblance between Google’s logo for its new Web browser, Chrome, and the electronic game Simon, launched by Milton Bradley in 1978? Scroll down for a side-by-side comparison. Simon and its cousin Merlin were two of my favorite toys as a kid. Knowing how Googlers also love their games, I’m betting … Continue reading “Simon and the Google Chrome Logo: Separated at Birth?”

A Good Deal for Captaris and Open Text—but Impact on Seattle-Area Innovation Is Less Clear

Yesterday we reported on the $131 million acquisition of Bellevue, WA-based Captaris by Open Text, a Canadian software company, and wondered how good a deal it really is for the companies and their employees. (Captaris, a $90 million public company, eked out $220,000 in net income last year, down from nearly $4 million the year … Continue reading “A Good Deal for Captaris and Open Text—but Impact on Seattle-Area Innovation Is Less Clear”

Amazon to Manage XO Laptop Giveaway Program

The “Give One, Get One” program introduced last holiday season by the Cambridge, MA-based One Laptop Per Child Foundation—which gave consumers in the United States and Canada the opportunity to buy two of the foundation’s XO laptops for $400, and have one sent to a child in a developing nation—was a success in several respects. … Continue reading “Amazon to Manage XO Laptop Giveaway Program”

Pathway Medical, With FDA Clearance in Hand, Starts Selling Device for Wiping Out Blockages in Leg Arteries

Pathway Medical Technologies is in the marketing game for real now. The Kirkland, WA-based company has started selling its Jetstream device for clearing out fatty blockages in leg arteries, after winning FDA clearance for a modified version of the device, hiring its initial sales team, and stocking up on inventory for what it expects will … Continue reading “Pathway Medical, With FDA Clearance in Hand, Starts Selling Device for Wiping Out Blockages in Leg Arteries”

What Web Journalists Can Learn from Comics

While the tech-blog world is exhausting itself testing and writing about Google Chrome, the new open-source Web browser released by the search giant on Tuesday, I’m still just having fun paging back and forth through the 38-page Scott McCloud Web comic that Google commissioned to explain the whole project. A lot of Silicon Valley companies, … Continue reading “What Web Journalists Can Learn from Comics”

The Wild World of Wireless According to Tom Huseby, a Well-Connected Seattle VC

Tom Huseby has a fairly normal-looking BlackBerry phone. No fancy software on it, he says—not even from Ontela, SnapIn, or Zumobi, local mobile-tech companies for which he serves as chairman of the board. It rang two or three times during our meeting at his downtown Seattle office, and he dealt with the calls right then … Continue reading “The Wild World of Wireless According to Tom Huseby, a Well-Connected Seattle VC”

Gates Foundation Calls for Proposals to Solve Global Health “Grand Challenges”

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the world’s largest charitable organization, said it is accepting grant proposals for the second round of its five-year, $100 million initiative to try unconventional approaches against global health problems. The foundation will accept proposals for six topics, which include: new vaccines for HIV, malaria, and tuberculosis, new approaches to … Continue reading “Gates Foundation Calls for Proposals to Solve Global Health “Grand Challenges””

Captaris Acquired by Open Text for $131M—but How Good a Deal Is It?

Another big acquisition has come to town. Bellevue, WA-based software firm Captaris said today it is being acquired by Open Text, a business-software company based in Waterloo, Ontario. The deal is worth about $131 million, and is expected to close by the end of the year. The purchase, for $4.80 a share, represents a 31 … Continue reading “Captaris Acquired by Open Text for $131M—but How Good a Deal Is It?”

The Answer, My Friend, Is Certainly Not Blowing in the Wind—or the Corn

This is the last of my articles taking cleantech investing to task sector by sector (keep the hate mail coming, hippies!). The next few will focus on some areas I really like, including storage, solar thermal, water, and others. But first, a bit more constructive bludgeoning. This is a bit of a “two for one … Continue reading “The Answer, My Friend, Is Certainly Not Blowing in the Wind—or the Corn”