Category: Seattle

Stealth Mode is the New Sweet Spot for Some Biotechs

This post was co-authored by Sultan Meghji. In biotech’s early days, telling a story to a wide audience used to be part of the path to success. Founders would share a compelling early narrative to potential investors, reporters, and just about anyone else who would listen. Nature papers were the coin of the realm. But … Continue reading “Stealth Mode is the New Sweet Spot for Some Biotechs”

Industry Engagement Opportunities at the UW

University of Washington industry relations officer Todd Cleland will describe eight ways for companies to work with the university at a free event sponsored by UW Professional & Continuing Education. More information is available here.

XBRL National Conference and Data Forum

John Connors, partner at Ignition Partners and former Microsoft CFO, and Taylor Hawes, general manager for finance systems and operations at Microsoft, will give keynotes at  XBRL (eXtensible Business Reporting Language) Data Forum, being held in conjunction with a national XBRL conference in Bellevue, Sept. 15-17. The data forum costs $795. More information and registration … Continue reading “XBRL National Conference and Data Forum”

Famo.us Meet up & BBQ

Seattle developers interested in the Famo.us javascript 3d physics rendering framework plan to gather over beer, barbecue, music, and, yes, lasers. It’s the first Seattle-area Meetup dedicated to Famo.us. More information here.

Seattle Roundup: Big Numbers, UW Incubator, Trupanion, Cray, & More

This week we’re reviewing reports on Northwest funding activity and Seattle building activity, both indicators—leading or trailing?—of the tech economy’s strength. We’ve also got details on an accolade for the University of Washington’s commercialization efforts, Trupanion’s IPO plans, deals for Cray and Concur, and Flowboard’s next move: —Here are a couple of very big numbers … Continue reading “Seattle Roundup: Big Numbers, UW Incubator, Trupanion, Cray, & More”

Boston Vs. San Francisco: Two Cultures of Innovation

Let’s say you’re an ambitious, creative professional or entrepreneur working in the United States. You’re interested in technology, you have the luxury of mobility, and you want to be close to the center of things. Which city should you choose as your home? If you’re attracted to a specific sub-field, the answer may be obvious. … Continue reading “Boston Vs. San Francisco: Two Cultures of Innovation”

Peachd Obtains $2,750,000 New Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=2e3f7572-8044-4c51-8dc4-40170c1b85a6 Date 7/11/2014 Company Name Peachd Mailing Address Undisclosed Seattle, WA 98103 USA Company Description We are tired of eating at the same restaurant in our neighborhood, and we are tired of paying expensive delivery fees. All we want is to try something new every day from a good restaurant without expensive … Continue reading “Peachd Obtains $2,750,000 New Round”

West Coast Biotech Roundup: Scripps, Trounson, Versant, Gilead, & More

The big news out west this week revolves around institutional drama. In San Diego, the faculty at The Scripps Research Institute has taken issue with merger talks that the president and board have had with the University of Southern California. The Union-Tribune advanced the story late last week, and Scripps acknowledged Wednesday that the talks … Continue reading “West Coast Biotech Roundup: Scripps, Trounson, Versant, Gilead, & More”

Big Late-Stage Deals and Unicorns Drive U.S. Venture Activity Higher

Two years ago, VC firms shrugged off sluggish economic conditions to invest $8.1 billion in 812 U.S. deals in the second quarter. It was the highest total in more than a decade—and represented a high water mark for venture dollars invested that stood until the first quarter of this year. Now a surge in venture … Continue reading “Big Late-Stage Deals and Unicorns Drive U.S. Venture Activity Higher”

State Grants Position Washington as Energy Storage Player

Washington state is staking a claim in the growing utility energy storage industry, tapping state and federal research, public and private funding, and entrepreneurship to develop and test new batteries that could help transition the electricity system away from polluting power sources. Gov. Jay Inslee, a Democrat who has made combating climate change a signature … Continue reading “State Grants Position Washington as Energy Storage Player”

MicroGreen Polymers Obtains $33,742,000 New Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=1884f19e-82f2-44eb-8215-0307bb391e35 Date 7/8/2014 Company Name MicroGreen Polymers Mailing Address 7220 201st Street NE Arlington, WA 98223 USA Company Description MicroGREEN Polymers is on a mission to give the plastics industry and the world environmentally sound plastics technologies with substantial economic advantages. Website http://www.microgreeninc.com Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount $33,742,000 Transaction Round … Continue reading “MicroGreen Polymers Obtains $33,742,000 New Round”

UniEnergy Technologies Goes from Molecules to Megawatts

Vanadium, in the eyes of energy storage innovators, is a lovely, generous element, even though it’s often found in some dirty places. It is named for a Norse goddess of beauty. Its color, when dissolved in an electrolyte solution, changes from lilac to green to blue to yellow as it easily gives and takes electrons, … Continue reading “UniEnergy Technologies Goes from Molecules to Megawatts”

Trust but Verify: When Customer Feedback is Not Enough

[Editor’s Note: If you’re following the methodology laid out by startup strategy guru and Xconomist Steve Blank, you have begun with a hypothesis about a customer need or problem. Then you develop a “mininum viable product” (MVP), a prototype with the smallest possible feature set that still shows potential customers how your idea can help … Continue reading “Trust but Verify: When Customer Feedback is Not Enough”

Q2 In Review: Fire, Fundings, Floating Wind, Biotech Ups and Downs

Happy Fourth of July, everyone. Here’s a review of some notable Xconomy Seattle stories from the second quarter. Enjoy the holiday weekend! Ahead of Amazon’s smartphone announcement, Curt Woodward looked at why the company wanted to build one in the first place. And here’s Woodward’s take on the Fire phone as another way the e-commerce … Continue reading “Q2 In Review: Fire, Fundings, Floating Wind, Biotech Ups and Downs”

Innovation Hub: The American Economy Is in Better Shape Than Ever

Despite increasingly good job numbers, pessimism about the economy persists. According to Gallup, almost 60 percent of Americans think the economy is still getting worse. Last week, Clayton Christensen told Innovation Hub that America was on its way to becoming Japan—a country that has been wrestling with stagnation for a quarter century. But Joel Kurtzman, … Continue reading “Innovation Hub: The American Economy Is in Better Shape Than Ever”

West Coast Biotech Roundup: Seragon, Ambrx, Pregenen, and More

Our nominee for the just-created “Bio Man with the Midas Touch” award goes to Richard Heyman, who co-founded San Diego’s Seragon Pharmaceuticals 11 months ago. Roche’s Genentech unit agreed yesterday to pay over $1.7 billion for Seragon, which has an early-stage drug targeting metastatic breast cancer. Heyman was previously the CEO of San Diego’s Aragon … Continue reading “West Coast Biotech Roundup: Seragon, Ambrx, Pregenen, and More”

UW Breaks Last Year’s Record With 18 New Companies Formed

[Updated 7/2/14, 4:10 pm. See below.] The University of Washington spun out 18 startup companies in the fiscal year just ended, a record level that serves as a powerful counterpoint to recent criticism that its commercialization practices have over-emphasized revenue generation at the expense of other priorities. This year’s class of startups follows 17 spun … Continue reading “UW Breaks Last Year’s Record With 18 New Companies Formed”

IncWell Invests in Seattle Digital Marketing Startup Inside Social

IncWell, the Birmingham, MI-based venture capital fund led by former auto executive Tom LaSorda, said today that it has invested in Inside Social, a Seattle-based startup that has built software to help companies measure how social media engagement translates to actual business results. The terms of the deal were not disclosed. Evonna Karchon, IncWell’s director … Continue reading “IncWell Invests in Seattle Digital Marketing Startup Inside Social”

EnergySavvy Receives $1,250,000 New Funding Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=ce74f644-eaca-4c25-b0c1-4ba2cb05e280 Date 7/2/2014 Company Name EnergySavvy Mailing Address 159 Jackson St. Seattle, WA 98104 USA Company Description The company operates a one stop shop web application that helps homeowners become more energy efficient. Website http://www.energysavvy.com Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount $1,250,000 Transaction Round Undisclosed Proceeds Purposes In addition to scaling engineering … Continue reading “EnergySavvy Receives $1,250,000 New Funding Round”

Inside Social Secures New Financing

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=e340a8cf-be0b-4540-b4bb-cc8fd02c1257 Date 7/2/2014 Company Name Inside Social Mailing Address Undisclosed Seattle, WA 98102 USA Company Description Inside Social enables brands and publishers to measure and increase the direct impact that social sharing has on the metrics that really matter. Website http://www.insidesoci.al Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount Undisclosed Transaction Round Undisclosed Proceeds … Continue reading “Inside Social Secures New Financing”

Climbing the Mountain: Or, Life as a Black Founder in Tech

Please give me a minute to talk about diversity in tech, even though I know whenever anyone talks about diversity in the tech industry, there are two types of responses I typically hear: The first is tokenism or the defensive argument. People will usually point to one example of the “diverse” person they hired, funded, … Continue reading “Climbing the Mountain: Or, Life as a Black Founder in Tech”

May 10,000 Cloud Startups Bloom

The cloud services market has fueled a boom of immensely successful startups, most of which have raised millions in venture funding. Take analytics platform company Birst, which started off in the high end financial sector, raised $64 million in venture capital, and is now growing fast as a regular Silicon Valley-style pre-IPO company. Technology Business … Continue reading “May 10,000 Cloud Startups Bloom”

Saying Nothing With Style: The 2014 BioPharma Edition of BS Bingo

Several years ago, I wrote an article venting my frustrations with having to sift through the fog and jargon of poorly written analyses of the biotech/pharmaceutical industry. I recounted that, “years ago, a thoughtful co-worker passed along to me a copy of a game called ‘BS Bingo’ that was designed to keep you awake during … Continue reading “Saying Nothing With Style: The 2014 BioPharma Edition of BS Bingo”

New Partnership Will Ease Startup Accelerator Application Process

Surviving the intense months it takes to go through a startup accelerator is hard. But getting in might be harder. A new partnership between UP Global, a Seattle-based nonprofit, and the Boulder, CO-based Global Accelerator Network might make the latter a bit easier. The duo announced today they are creating new events that will give … Continue reading “New Partnership Will Ease Startup Accelerator Application Process”

Langer, Led Zeppelin, and Hookups: Three Days Behind the BIO Scenes

Don’t let the blind men groping the elephant fool you. No one can get their arms around the massive, 15,000-attendee BIO conference, the industry’s annual flagship convention, and tell you what the real zeitgeist is. It’s all selection bias: If, say, you’ve been keenly following cancer immunotherapy the past couple years, you probably went to … Continue reading “Langer, Led Zeppelin, and Hookups: Three Days Behind the BIO Scenes”

Seattle Roundup: UW Commercialization, WISErg, Element 8, & More

Big news for the state’s innovation economy this week was the change of leadership in the University of Washington’s commercialization efforts. We also saw funding for WISErg, which takes grocery food scraps and makes organic fertilizer, and heard that cleantech-focused angel investor group Element 8 is on pace for a record year. Meanwhile, Smartsheet and … Continue reading “Seattle Roundup: UW Commercialization, WISErg, Element 8, & More”

Innovation Hub: Is America Becoming the Next Japan?

For much of its history, the U.S. has been a place of innovation, where new ideas and products could flourish. But that era may be coming to an abrupt end, warns Clayton Christensen, who coined the term “disruptive innovation” and teaches at Harvard Business School. Christensen, author of “The Capitalist’s Dilemma,” believes that American business … Continue reading “Innovation Hub: Is America Becoming the Next Japan?”

Neelan Choksi on Tasktop’s VC Round and Austin “Growing Like a Weed”

Tasktop Technologies wants to help improve the operations of the brains behind technology companies: the staff that makes the software. What Tasktop does is develop tools for customers that allow their developers to make software more efficiently. With the dozens of tools now in use for each part of the software development process, organizations are … Continue reading “Neelan Choksi on Tasktop’s VC Round and Austin “Growing Like a Weed””

Five Annoying Tech Problems for the Next Hot Startup to Solve

Why is it that we can put a man on the Moon, but we can’t figure out how to screen jet passengers without making everyone take their shoes off? Well, the truth is, we can’t even put a man on the Moon—not anymore. It’s not a technical impossibility, but reconstituting the technologies that helped a … Continue reading “Five Annoying Tech Problems for the Next Hot Startup to Solve”

Q&A: Vikram Jandhyala Wants Entrepreneurship to Be Part of UW’s DNA

Vikram Jandhyala, newly charged with driving technology commercialization and a broader innovation strategy at the University of Washington, wears lots of hats already. His Twitter profile lists many of them succinctly: “Professor. Administrator. Entrepreneur. Researcher. Educator. Husband. Dad. Cat Parent. Sports and Health Enthusiast. Bookworm. Generalist.” Jandhyala, 42, will wear them all and more when … Continue reading “Q&A: Vikram Jandhyala Wants Entrepreneurship to Be Part of UW’s DNA”

West Coast Biotech Roundup: Affymax, K2, Roche/Stratos, & More

It’s BIO week, and later on we’ll post a separate roundup of news and notes from our perambulations around the biotech industry’s largest annual convention. But beyond the networking, panels, parties, and boldface names gathered in San Diego, there was plenty of other news up and down the West Coast: new San Diego biotechs with … Continue reading “West Coast Biotech Roundup: Affymax, K2, Roche/Stratos, & More”

BIO 2014: Innovations in 3-D Tissue for Disease and Drug Discovery

Editor’s Note: Sharon Presnell discussed the use of bioprinting and 3D tissue to improve predictability in preclinical drug discovery this week at the BIO 2014 convention in San Diego. —BVB The human race consists of a large population of genetically diverse organisms. This inherent diversity is compounded daily by the individualistic way we go about … Continue reading “BIO 2014: Innovations in 3-D Tissue for Disease and Drug Discovery”

MobileRQ Receives $1,300,000 New Funding Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=bd20294d-eac0-4f66-a8ae-07d9d7bfc69d Date 6/26/2014 Company Name MobileRQ Mailing Address 308 NW 11th Avenue Portland, OR 97209 USA Company Description MobileRQ helps travel suppliers and other travel ecosystem players fully leverage their digital strategies. By combining the vast data sources from third parties and suppliers’ own data sources we help suppliers and their partners … Continue reading “MobileRQ Receives $1,300,000 New Funding Round”

Finsphere Obtains $997,011 New Funding

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=f029c690-1fb9-4f53-b4a4-4deb6687b28e Date 6/26/2014 Company Name Finsphere Mailing Address 505 106th Ave NE Bellevue, WA 98004 USA Company Description Finsphere is a well-funded, high tech, venture-backed start up founded in 2007 based in Bellevue, Washington and is currently operating in stealth mode. Website http://www.finsphere.com Transaction Type Debt Transaction Amount $997,011 Transaction Round Undisclosed … Continue reading “Finsphere Obtains $997,011 New Funding”

King of BIO: The Chairwoman of Biotech’s Top Trade Org Talks Policy

Rachel King is CEO of GlycoMimetics (NASDAQ: [[ticker:GLYC]]), a Gaithersburg, MD-based drug developer, and the current chairwoman of the Biotechnology Industry Organization. As a heavily regulated industry, biopharma’s interactions with politicians and policy makers are crucial, and BIO has grown in recent years to become a Washington, DC power broker. Look no further for proof … Continue reading “King of BIO: The Chairwoman of Biotech’s Top Trade Org Talks Policy”

In Time of Change, Jandhyala to Replace Rhoads in UW Tech Transfer

The University of Washington has significantly improved its processes for transferring technology to startups and established companies, but an advisory group says changes are still needed—including to the basic structure of the commercialization effort—to achieve the “entrepreneurial ecosystem” that university and technology business leaders want. On Tuesday, the university started at the top, naming Vikram … Continue reading “In Time of Change, Jandhyala to Replace Rhoads in UW Tech Transfer”

MVPs in Health: Minimum Viable Product or Mightily Vexing Problem?

One thing the tech software industry is great at is failing fast. This concept of “failing fast” means, at least in part, rapidly bringing a “minimum viable product” to market, even if it’s a little rocky and feature-light, and then fixing it as it gets adopted by iterating with new releases. We see this all … Continue reading “MVPs in Health: Minimum Viable Product or Mightily Vexing Problem?”

BIO 2014: Two Cities, One Economy, and a Unique Innovation Ecosystem

Editor’s note: Mary Walshok will discuss how Mexican policy is using public-private partnerships to spur biotech innovation and investment in a breakout session Thursday at the BIO 2014 convention in San Diego. —BVB One of the under-appreciated features of the San Diego innovation ecosystem is the increasing significance of its proximity to one of North … Continue reading “BIO 2014: Two Cities, One Economy, and a Unique Innovation Ecosystem”

Don’t Want Google in Your House? Some Home-Tech Startups to Watch

Google’s thirst for connected-home products means that entrepreneurs in the growing sector have another deep-pocketed competitor to outfox. But they’ve also got a new sales pitch: We’re not Google. “We certainly have not been shy,” says Jason Hanna, CEO of home heating-automation startup Embue. “It’s definitely something that we talk about.” Questions about the advertising … Continue reading “Don’t Want Google in Your House? Some Home-Tech Startups to Watch”

BIO 2014: Training Bio-Entrepreneurs to Use Coffee, Yoga, and Data

Editor’s note: Court Turner was a speaker in the bootcamp for biotechnology entrepreneurship at this week’s BIO 2014 Convention in San Diego. —BVB As a venture partner at San Diego’s Avalon Ventures, I divide my work day into three distinct activities: Coffee (at the best coffee shop in San Diego); Yoga (at a studio near … Continue reading “BIO 2014: Training Bio-Entrepreneurs to Use Coffee, Yoga, and Data”

WISErg Receives $5,090,365 New Financing Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=4745d137-fd13-4b06-9efd-bb8f005b9cf5 Date 6/24/2014 Company Name WISErg Mailing Address 1775 12th Avenue NW Issaquah, WA 98027 USA Company Description WISErg Corporation is a Pacific Northwest bio resource company based in Redmond, Washington. Founded in 2010, WISErg’s primary focus is on deriving valuable renewable resources from compostable feedstock. Website http://www.wiserg.com Transaction Type Venture Equity … Continue reading “WISErg Receives $5,090,365 New Financing Round”

What Can the Northwest Do Best in Clean Energy?

The Pacific Northwest has a burgeoning clean energy industry, underpinned by strong public research institutions, active angel investors, and an environmental ethos that’s part of the culture. But leaders in the field argue that the region could do more if it united behind a few key areas where it could be the best in the … Continue reading “What Can the Northwest Do Best in Clean Energy?”

Innovation Beers: 8 Great Tasting, Low ABV Brews

Summer is (gleefully for me) upon us. As the heat rises, innovators need fuel of all types—but perhaps most especially the beer type. At least that’s the way I see it. But not all beers fit the mold, so to speak, for what I have in mind: to be innovation beers, they need to be … Continue reading “Innovation Beers: 8 Great Tasting, Low ABV Brews”

BIO 2014: Antisense and Disruptive Technologies for Drug Discovery

Editor’s note: The BIO 2014 convention begins today in San Diego. Stanley Crooke is among the speakers at a breakout session Wednesday titled Blazing New Trails in Disruptive Innovation: Stem Cells, RNA and Epigenetics-Based Therapeutics. —BVB For the past 25 years I, with my colleagues at Isis Pharmaceuticals, have persevered in the creation and validation … Continue reading “BIO 2014: Antisense and Disruptive Technologies for Drug Discovery”

Seattle Roundup: Puppet Labs, Trupanion, GatheredTable, & More

The Amazon phone grabbed the tech headlines this week, with the e-commerce giant unveiling its new 3D instant shopping device here in Seattle on Wednesday. In other news, Portland, OR-based Puppet Labs pulled down a large Series E funding round; Trupanion, the Seattle pet insurance provider, filed for an initial public offering; and GatheredTable raised … Continue reading “Seattle Roundup: Puppet Labs, Trupanion, GatheredTable, & More”

Innovation Hub: Stop Listening to the Same People

How do you break out of your old mindset, in a way that will fuel innovation? Try heading to 16th-century Florence, according to Frans Johansson, the best-selling author of The Medici Effect. Johansson notes that the wealthy Medici family corralled a truly diverse set of thinkers, put them in the same place, and watched creativity … Continue reading “Innovation Hub: Stop Listening to the Same People”