“Synthetic biology” has always been a puzzling term to me. Prosthetic limbs are synthetic. Knee replacements are synthetic. Splicing the gene from one organism into another, a practice that began in the 1970s and gave rise to the biotechnology industry, is also a synthetic act. But those things are not “synthetic biology” in the way … Continue reading “Synthetic Biology Primer: In Conversation With Richard Kitney, Part 1”
Category: Texas
Surprises in Tech from 2015, and What to Do If A Downturn Hits
Two tech trends gained surprising momentum this year, which positions them to be key drivers in 2016. Both take aim at the heart of the economy. Recently the SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission) gave crowd finance a shot in the arm. First it passed Regulation A which provides an exemption to the registration requirements mandated … Continue reading “Surprises in Tech from 2015, and What to Do If A Downturn Hits”
LifeSize Lands $17,500,000 New Financing Round
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=d45b0c4b-6fb6-4b80-ac3c-bb0488ebba01 Date 12/31/2015 Company Name LifeSize Mailing Address 1601 S. Mopac Expy. Austin, TX 78746 USA Company Description LifeSize is the high definition video communications company. Founded in 2003 by industry veterans, LifeSize is changing the way people around the world are conducting business with a fully encompassing product offering that combines … Continue reading “LifeSize Lands $17,500,000 New Financing Round”
In 2016, Will We Finally Enter the Age of Imagination?
The biggest advance or most surprising development of 2015 was the private sector’s rapidly advancing and serious pursuit of commercial spacecraft development. This, coupled with the success of various missions like the Pluto fly-by; the dream of landing a craft on Jupiter’s moon Europa; the discussion of an outpost on the moon; the colonization of … Continue reading “In 2016, Will We Finally Enter the Age of Imagination?”
Thong Le: Biotech Thoughts On Pitches, Prices, Diversity, And Stress
Thong Le is the CEO of Accelerator, a Seattle biotech venture fund and incubator more than a decade old. Le took over in early 2014 and is overseeing a cross-country expansion. A second Accelerator facility opened with fanfare in New York City a year and a half ago. Le said at the time that Accelerator … Continue reading “Thong Le: Biotech Thoughts On Pitches, Prices, Diversity, And Stress”
Virtual Reality’s Turning Points In 2015
Among the most significant developments in VR this year have been the rate of change and improvement in mobile VR. Until recently, compelling VR experiences required a high-powered PC, considerable technical know-how, and were enjoyed only by enthusiasts and early adopters. Now there are mobile solutions that deliver a comparable level of quality, but are … Continue reading “Virtual Reality’s Turning Points In 2015”
Smart Power: Houston’s Innowatts Connects Utilities & Clients
Houston’s Innowatts says it can help electric utilities find that perfect client. The startup’s software is deployed through smart meters installed by utilities. Data analytics helps those utilities figure out which clients use how much energy and when, enabling them to tailor the energy efficiency programs they offer customers. “We do predictive analysis on which … Continue reading “Smart Power: Houston’s Innowatts Connects Utilities & Clients”
Time to Bring Our Education System in Line with the 21st Century
The most pressing issue facing the innovation community is the lack of a robust tech talent pipeline to support emerging new enterprises and to help legacy industries adapt. While other countries are developing workers with skills to compete in the 21th century, our country’s education system remains stuck in the 20th. Not only do public education programs lack … Continue reading “Time to Bring Our Education System in Line with the 21st Century”
In the Face of Genomic Data Challenges, the Cloud Keeps Us Afloat
The data intensity of genomics is so intense that it’s difficult for most people to comprehend. According to estimates published in the journal PLOS Biology in July, as many as 2 billion human genomes could be sequenced by 2025, which would far exceed the data output expected of other “big data domains,” such as astronomy, … Continue reading “In the Face of Genomic Data Challenges, the Cloud Keeps Us Afloat”
Organizing Made Easier: VolunteerSpot CEO on Plans to Expand
It’s easy to ignore the effort that volunteers and coordinators put in to make events go off seamlessly. It’s an often thankless job filled with spreadsheets, clipboards, and seemingly endless e-mail chains. One Austin, TX, company has developed an online and mobile tool to try to make the work a little easier. VolunteerSpot, a six-year-old … Continue reading “Organizing Made Easier: VolunteerSpot CEO on Plans to Expand”
Infrastructure Investments Are Key to U.S. Future
The issue that makes me most angry is the lack of investment in the infrastructure of the United States. From roads to mass transit to science to education, we are falling behind (or further behind) other regions. It’s a false economy, as lack of investment now means less capability to generate returns in the future. … Continue reading “Infrastructure Investments Are Key to U.S. Future”
Innovation vs. Healthcare Spending: Biotech’s Biggest Looming Challenge
Let’s start with the good news. We are at the beginning of a transformation in human health, treating diseases in ways that we could only speculate about in the recent past. While biology isn’t quite engineering (yet), biotech has become a technology-based, high-growth, high-wage space, all while working to cure cancer. Doing well by doing … Continue reading “Innovation vs. Healthcare Spending: Biotech’s Biggest Looming Challenge”
Five Cybersecurity Trends to Watch in 2016
To no one’s surprise, cybersecurity continued to be a key area of concern and struggle among organizations of all sizes in 2015. However, buried amongst the constant news cycle of new attacks and sophisticated breaches is the fact that more business leaders are understanding the importance of cybersecurity and its potential impact on the organization. … Continue reading “Five Cybersecurity Trends to Watch in 2016”
Austin’s Trunkist Uses the Web to Offer Prêt-à-Porter On Demand
Dustin Hindman wants to bring the made-to-order manufacturing system Dell Computer pioneered in technology to fashion. “I learned firsthand the build-to-order model,” says Hindman, who worked at the Austin, TX-area computer company for eight years. “You produce exactly what the consumer wanted. There’s no waste. I thought, why doesn’t fashion do that?” To answer that … Continue reading “Austin’s Trunkist Uses the Web to Offer Prêt-à-Porter On Demand”
Pharmabros, Designer Babies, And Other Final Words For 2015
Every three months, Oxford Dictionaries releases its new entries, and modern language mavens everywhere have a field day. A few of my favorites from the summer update: weak sauce, microaggression, cupcakery, and at the risk of perpetuating wholly unfair stereotypes about journalists, beer o’clock. With that, I kick off my final column of 2015, a … Continue reading “Pharmabros, Designer Babies, And Other Final Words For 2015”
Finding Gratification in the Lessons Learned Along the Journey
During the downturn in 2000, when the dot com became dot bomb, I had to take a job that was a few levels below my expectations, but right in line with my actual life experiences. My boss and mentor at the time told me about his experiences in war and asked me to watch “Band … Continue reading “Finding Gratification in the Lessons Learned Along the Journey”
The Scientist and the Student: Thoughts on Lessons Learned From a Mentor
What is a key relationship or turning point that helped you get to where you are today? This is a great question. I suspect because it comes up so often in interviews, we tend to underplay the importance of the topic. We get familiar with the answer and over time, lose the tacit feel for … Continue reading “The Scientist and the Student: Thoughts on Lessons Learned From a Mentor”
Location Everywhere: What We’ll See in 2016
2016 is going to be a pivotal year for location- and proximity-based technology solutions. Companies across industries are testing the deployment of location aware infrastructures, opening up a world of possibilities. Location technology adoption will likely mirror that of social networks over the past 10 years. On balance, and with good direction, location-enabled experiences are … Continue reading “Location Everywhere: What We’ll See in 2016”
Texas Roundup: Sketch City, Everfest, Neosensory, & Holiday Poetry
(With apologies to Clement Clarke Moore.) ‘Twas three days before Christmas, and all through Xconomy Texas, The developers were coding, dreams filled with exits. Through software and apps, innovation is born, All towards the goal of that billion-dollar unicorn. And with that, let’s catch up on the latest news from Xconomy Texas: —Houston has a … Continue reading “Texas Roundup: Sketch City, Everfest, Neosensory, & Holiday Poetry”
Targeting Experience Spenders, Everfest Co-CEO Talks Festival App
People are spending more money on experiences than things nowadays. Over the last few years, it’s been one of the more popular trends to cover—and is particularly relevant now given the holiday season. That experiential spending is at the core of Everfest, an Austin, TX, startup that aims to be the online center of festivals … Continue reading “Targeting Experience Spenders, Everfest Co-CEO Talks Festival App”
Five Trends Ready to Disrupt In-Store Retail in 2016
With 2015 coming to a close, retailers are looking ahead for the next wave of technology that will impact in-store innovation. While we’re still waiting for some popular 2015 predictions to take off, including the merging of online recommendation engines with in-store visits, other trends such as e-commerce sites opening more brick and mortar locations … Continue reading “Five Trends Ready to Disrupt In-Store Retail in 2016”
The Big Value Creation Trend of 2015: Q&A with Jonathan Medved
When OurCrowd founder and CEO Jonathan Medved gives a talk about crowdfunding, as he did at the recent Stocktoberfest conference in San Diego, there is one particular slide in his deck that is something of a show stopper. Medved says it is the one slide that tells the whole story—explaining in one bar chart why … Continue reading “The Big Value Creation Trend of 2015: Q&A with Jonathan Medved”
Oracle Acquires StackEngine for Undisclosed Sum
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=84e1bb9c-3a04-4fe6-912b-14b976715489 Date 12/22/2015 Company Name StackEngine Mailing Address 206 E. 9th St. 18th Floor Austin, TX 78701 USA Company Description StackEngine builds software to manage and automate Docker applications, giving organizations the power to simply and massively deploy, manage, and scale resilient applications. Our goal is to bring modern management to modern, … Continue reading “Oracle Acquires StackEngine for Undisclosed Sum”
Patient Investors, Impatient Researchers Essential for Clean Energy Future
Maybe it’s something in the Seattle air that we share, but over the last few weeks, I’ve learned that Bill Gates and I worry about similar things. In interviews with The Atlantic and The Washington Post Gates said: “Historically, it takes more than 50 years before you have a substantial shift in energy generation, but … Continue reading “Patient Investors, Impatient Researchers Essential for Clean Energy Future”
The Best Podcasts of 2015: A Guide for New Listeners
The percentage of Americans who say they’ve never listened to a podcast is steadily shrinking, but it’s still pretty large — 67 percent, according to a 2015 survey by Edison Research and Triton Digital. I’m going to assume for a minute that you’re in this uninitiated group. You know what podcasts are, and you’re vaguely … Continue reading “The Best Podcasts of 2015: A Guide for New Listeners”
Digital Business, Data-Driven Consumers, and the Dark Web
It’s that time of year again, where we look ahead to determine what tech trends will make the most significant impact in 2016. From my view, data analytics and our digital way of life will increasingly transform the world and the nature of business. Here are a few ways I see that playing out in … Continue reading “Digital Business, Data-Driven Consumers, and the Dark Web”
Factom Garners $1,496,000 New Financing Round
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=36c840bd-9994-4248-98c5-d5dc223836fd Date 12/21/2015 Company Name Factom Mailing Address 7329 N. MOPAC Expwy. Austin, TX 94107 USA Company Description Factom is using the technology behind bitcoin to change how businesses manage data and keep records. Website http://www.factom.org Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount $1,496,000 Transaction Round Undisclosed Proceeds Purposes Proceeds purposes were not … Continue reading “Factom Garners $1,496,000 New Financing Round”
The Day After His Arrest, Martin Shkreli Is Out At Turing Pharma
Martin Shkreli was arrested for securities fraud yesterday, and today he has one fewer business to run. Turing Pharmaceuticals announced this morning Shkreli has resigned his post as CEO. His departure from Turing marks the second time he has built a company, only to leave under no small amount of controversy. The federal government is … Continue reading “The Day After His Arrest, Martin Shkreli Is Out At Turing Pharma”
Sketch City: New Home for Houston’s Civic-Minded Tech Entrepreneurs
Houston has a new hub dedicated to fostering civic innovation. Called Sketch City, it’s the latest organization to pop up on the city’s startup scene, and its goal is to connect techies with civil servants interested in using software to make Houston and Harris County run better. “It’s more important than ever that our government … Continue reading “Sketch City: New Home for Houston’s Civic-Minded Tech Entrepreneurs”
Contact Management Software Maker FullContact Buys Dallas’s nGame
FullContact, a Denver-based software company, announced Thursday it has bought nGame, a Dallas-area marketing tech startup. FullContact makes software that takes data from address books and contact lists people keep in apps like Gmail, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter. Its selling point is that it handles the work of consolidating and cleaning up messy address books … Continue reading “Contact Management Software Maker FullContact Buys Dallas’s nGame”
Digital Publisher Purch Buys Mobile Shopping App ShopSavvy
Digital publisher Purch has made good on its promise to make acquisitions, announcing today that it bought mobile shopping app ShopSavvy for an undisclosed price. That’s the fourth acquisition the company has made in the last 12 months, putting to work a $135 million Series C funding it received in June led by Canso Investment … Continue reading “Digital Publisher Purch Buys Mobile Shopping App ShopSavvy”
Health Startups That Could Make My Job Easier
It’s remarkable how just six months of 80-hour weeks has changed me. Before I started my first year of residency last July, I was optimistic and excited about all sorts of healthcare startups. But now I can’t remember the last time I did my laundry and I’m just hoping to make it home from the … Continue reading “Health Startups That Could Make My Job Easier”
Fonality Lands $3,162,488 New Financing
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=4886626e-6601-48be-b845-344f82ab527d Date 12/17/2015 Company Name Fonality Mailing Address 6900 Dallas Parkway Plano, TX 75024 USA Company Description Fonality believes that a sea change is upon us in these transitory telecom waters. As customers migrate toward IP Telephony, the business phone system is becoming another extension of the business computer system. Website http://www.fonality.com … Continue reading “Fonality Lands $3,162,488 New Financing”
Nearing Break-Even, Continuum Analytics Takes $10M Debt Financing
After doubling the size of its staff to 145 and almost tripling its customer base this year, Austin, TX-based data insights provider Continuum Analytics is preparing itself for the possibility of making enough revenue to break even in 2016, according to co-founder and CEO Travis Oliphant. The four-year-old company announced this week that it has … Continue reading “Nearing Break-Even, Continuum Analytics Takes $10M Debt Financing”
Pickup Garners New Financing Round
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=42ca8bd8-552f-476d-a40e-5650168e425f Date 12/16/2015 Company Name Pickup Mailing Address 14681 Midway Road Addison, TX 75001 USA Company Description PICKUP provides consumers and businesses with the capability to get what they want, when they want it. Our network of owner-operated pickup trucks that leverage mobile technology literally puts, “a pickup in your pocket!” Website … Continue reading “Pickup Garners New Financing Round”
Vroom Obtains $95,000,000 Series C Financing Round
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=2ed7b7ef-5e93-483b-9b81-d6a50dabed40 Date 12/16/2015 Company Name Vroom Mailing Address 2615 W. Interstate 20 Grand Prairie, TX 75052 USA Company Description Vroom empowers you to buy a quality pre-owned car online and get it delivered right to your doorsteps with a 7 day in-home test drive. Website http://www.vroom.com Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount … Continue reading “Vroom Obtains $95,000,000 Series C Financing Round”
Start Houston, Gigster Partner to Match Developers With Startups
Start Houston co-founder and tech entrepreneur Apurva Sanghavi found himself in a predicament familiar to many entrepreneurs: an incomplete project was stalled because of a lack of developers. Almost on a whim, he turned to Gigster, a San Francisco-based startup that connects freelance developers to entrepreneurs like Sanghavi. Hiring Gigster gave him the developer talent … Continue reading “Start Houston, Gigster Partner to Match Developers With Startups”
London Notebook: Conversations Inside The Biomedical Golden Triangle
Xconomy had reporters in eight locales when I joined in the spring of 2014. Since then, we have expanded into Texas and North Carolina, adding two more locales where we cover the life sciences and much more. We’re always looking for the next place to put down roots. One big place on our radar is … Continue reading “London Notebook: Conversations Inside The Biomedical Golden Triangle”
Continuum Analytics Garners $10,000,000 New Financing
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=53244b2b-bc4d-4781-a088-ef009bd39d5f Date 12/15/2015 Company Name Continuum Analytics Mailing Address 221 W. 6th Street Austin, TX 78701 USA Company Description We will revolutionize how the world’s data is stored, computed, and visualized. We will provide domain experts with flexible tools that allow them to explore their data and maximize the impact of their … Continue reading “Continuum Analytics Garners $10,000,000 New Financing”
Neosensory Translates Sounds Into Vibrations to Aid Hearing-Impaired
David Eagleman, noted for his work at his eponymous lab at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston and the face of a popular public television series on the brain, figured out something rather unexpected about himself this year: He likes being an entrepreneur. “Maybe it’s not surprising but somehow I’m surprised by it,” he says. “What … Continue reading “Neosensory Translates Sounds Into Vibrations to Aid Hearing-Impaired”
Pure Vino Looks to Find Personalized Deals for Wine Aficionados
Jim Roberts likes New World wines, especially Carmenere from Chile or Malbecs from Argentina. His business partner, Mike Boyd, with whom he owns Setcom in Austin, TX, a supplier of communications devices for fire, police, and military needs, prefers storied vintages from Europe. Between the two of them, the pair were receiving a deluge of … Continue reading “Pure Vino Looks to Find Personalized Deals for Wine Aficionados”
Austin, Denver Score High in U.S. List of Software Engineer Pay
If you are a software engineer, you are in demand. This you know. What you may not know is how your salary stacks up to that of your peers around the country. For that, I present to you the State of U.S. Salaries Report, courtesy of a San Francisco company called Hired. To no one’s … Continue reading “Austin, Denver Score High in U.S. List of Software Engineer Pay”
TabbedOut Secures $2,000,000 Series C Financing Round
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=84c9032d-917d-41b3-9e78-ca50be7f8330 Date 12/11/2015 Company Name TabbedOut Mailing Address 1135 W. 6th St. Austin, TX 78703 USA Company Description Welcome to TabbedOut, the all-in-one dining partner that keeps your credit card safe and lets you feel like a VIP wherever you go. Forget about waiting for the bill, calculating a split check or … Continue reading “TabbedOut Secures $2,000,000 Series C Financing Round”
CBANC Garners $4,000,000 Series B Funding
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=4c886797-b052-496f-aee2-145b4ffa2387 Date 12/10/2015 Company Name CBANC Mailing Address 4200 N Lamar Blvd. Austin, TX 78756 USA Company Description CBANC is the professional network for bank and credit union professionals, empowering them to collaborate, share information and lead the evolution of community banking. Website http://www.cbancnetwork.com Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount $4,000,000 Transaction … Continue reading “CBANC Garners $4,000,000 Series B Funding”
Texas Roundup: Houston’s Biotech Ecosystem, RealSavvy, Q2, Stellarray
Let’s catch up with the latest innovation news in Texas. —Austin, TX app company RealSavvy wants to help real estate agents leverage technology rather than being replaced by it. The company’s mobile app uses a Pinterest-like approach, letting buyers search home websites and “pin” those selections to a personalized board. —In the last year, Houston’s … Continue reading “Texas Roundup: Houston’s Biotech Ecosystem, RealSavvy, Q2, Stellarray”
Your Startup Should Try a Switchback Strategy
When it comes to startup strategies, many entrepreneurs assume there is one optimal path. They may need to experiment or “pivot” initially among alternatives, but once they fix on an ideal strategy they simply need to execute. For example, a startup attempting to commercialize a new technology faces the strategic choice of whether to “go … Continue reading “Your Startup Should Try a Switchback Strategy”
SignaCert Secures $1,055,000 New Financing Round
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=9e59afec-47f1-4ba6-af09-176c64d3ab28 Date 12/9/2015 Company Name SignaCert Mailing Address 6300 Bridge Point Parkway Austin, TX 78730 USA Company Description The company focus is the development and delivery of software and services to provide enhanced trust management and enforcement of Information Technology (IT) systems used in commercial and government enterprises. Website http://www.signacert.com Transaction Type … Continue reading “SignaCert Secures $1,055,000 New Financing Round”
At Hematological Meeting, More Than Just Biotech Data Runs Blood Red
[Editor’s note: Deputy Biotechnology Editor Ben Fidler co-wrote this story.] The annual American Society for Hematology meeting, held this year in Orlando, FL, ends today. The meeting is a showcase for new data, drugs, and approaches to treat cancers like leukemia, rare genetic diseases, and other maladies that originate in or otherwise affect blood. But … Continue reading “At Hematological Meeting, More Than Just Biotech Data Runs Blood Red”
With Pinterest as Model, RealSavvy Builds Real Estate App For Agents
Apps and web tools for the real estate market abound, from basic ones like Trulia or Zillow mortgage calculators to tools that help buyers find more details about the home they may purchase. An Austin, TX-based company called RealSavvy is building a mobile tool that targets real estate agents rather than buyers, attempting to help … Continue reading “With Pinterest as Model, RealSavvy Builds Real Estate App For Agents”
Key for Houston’s Biotech Ecosystem? Building a Bench of Executives
Life sciences leaders have lamented that one part missing from the biotech ecosystem in Texas is a robust community of executives who know how to turn good ideas into profitable businesses. In Houston, Fannin Innovation Studio has set out to fill that gap. “If you are in Boston, you already have a management team nearby … Continue reading “Key for Houston’s Biotech Ecosystem? Building a Bench of Executives”