Bitcoin took a potentially big step toward legitimacy in the U.S. today with the launch of the nation’s first licensed exchange for the virtual currency. Now, it’s up to San Francisco startup Coinbase to convince would-be traders that its platform is a safe and preferable place to put their money. Founded in 2012, Coinbase has … Continue reading “$75M in Real Cash Helps Coinbase Launch First U.S. Bitcoin Exchange”
Category: Texas
Innovation Outlook for 2015: Tackling Big Data Variety
In 2015, look for the innovation community to be talking about Big Data Variety: the problem, how to fix it, how to make money off of it. Companies have invested roughly $3-4 trillion on enterprise software over the last 20 years, with Gartner forecasting $320 billion in 2014 alone. A lot of that investment has … Continue reading “Innovation Outlook for 2015: Tackling Big Data Variety”
Accelergy Obtains $1,050,000 New Financing Round
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=63d23515-7669-4ab1-8c40-b41d6a3f15d3 Date 1/26/2015 Company Name Accelergy Mailing Address 600 Travis St. Houston, TX 77002 USA Company Description Accelergy Corporation is a research and development company that works closely with our customers to develop comprehensive research programs to accelerate innovation and commercialization of advanced materials in the energy markets. Website http://www.accelergy.com Transaction Type … Continue reading “Accelergy Obtains $1,050,000 New Financing Round”
BioHouston to Honor Female Execs in Life Sciences, Energy, & Space
When Jacqueline Northcut began her 18-year career at a major accounting firm, at most three of the firm’s 80 partners were women, she says. By the time Northcut herself made partner at the former Arthur Andersen, the numbers in the C-suite were still far from parity. “But the good news is, by that point, we … Continue reading “BioHouston to Honor Female Execs in Life Sciences, Energy, & Space”
Innovation Hub: Who Needs Talent?
How many articles have been written about the innate business acumen of Steve Jobs, the brilliant coding abilities of Mark Zuckerberg, the extraordinary gifts of Yo Yo Ma? And what if they were all wrong? Geoff Colvin has combed through the research, and he argues that, again and again, scholars have almost completely discounted the … Continue reading “Innovation Hub: Who Needs Talent?”
Reaction Receives $3,522,496 New Round
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=66e11538-1135-47bb-8cb1-eda6bf57f731 Date 1/23/2015 Company Name Reaction Mailing Address 175 Manchester Lane Austin, TX 78737 USA Company Description We are building hardware & software to (re)meet a basic human need: shelter. Our initial product is the Exo Housing System – a smart, highly portable sheltering system that is light enough to be moved … Continue reading “Reaction Receives $3,522,496 New Round”
Escalate Capital Closes on $235 Million Fund
Escalate Capital Partners, an Austin, TX-based mezzanine investor, has closed on a $235 million fund, the firm said in a written statement today. Aptly named Escalate Capital III, the fund is the firm’s third and its largest. Escalate focuses on high-growth, later stage tech companies, from software as a service to healthcare. It typically invests … Continue reading “Escalate Capital Closes on $235 Million Fund”
XOR Data Exchange Obtains $1,800,000 New Round
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=477b9f0b-2a6f-4b54-9c70-0292ff96588c Date 1/22/2015 Company Name XOR Data Exchange Mailing Address 700 Lavaca Austin, TX 78701 USA Company Description XOR is doing something unique — something hard to imagine in the world of Big Data. We’re doing it not just because we can, but because we believe we should. Our business model, the … Continue reading “XOR Data Exchange Obtains $1,800,000 New Round”
Two Generations of Geneticists, Two “Precision Medicine” Wish Lists
In late 2012, President Obama awarded Leroy “Lee” Hood the National Medal of Science for a lifetime of achievements, including the invention of machines that made the historic Human Genome Project possible. So when Obama announced yesterday a “precision medicine initiative”—something that would surely require ever-deeper knowledge about the personal genetic differences that influence health … Continue reading “Two Generations of Geneticists, Two “Precision Medicine” Wish Lists”
Crowdfunding is Banging on Biotech’s Door. Will We Let It In?
In the summer of 2013, the medical device startup Scanadu made headlines around the world when Scout, its handheld medical diagnostic tool for consumers, raked in an astounding $1.6 million on the popular crowdfunding platform Indiegogo. That’s all well and good for a medical device, but most biotech veterans remain skeptical that crowdfunding can make … Continue reading “Crowdfunding is Banging on Biotech’s Door. Will We Let It In?”
Life On Air Receives $3,575,050 New Financing
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=cfee1e73-4e7c-4023-897f-c345a9649cf8 Date 1/21/2015 Company Name Life On Air Mailing Address Undisclosed Austin, TX 78701 USA Company Description The company operates a platform for live social video broadcasting. Website http://www.getair.co Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount $3,575,050 Transaction Round Undisclosed Proceeds Purposes Proceeds purposes were not disclosed. SEC regulatory filing. Contact technology company … Continue reading “Life On Air Receives $3,575,050 New Financing”
In the Jiu-Jitsu Match of Biotech Risk, a Reminder of Other Paths
Risk makes for great headlines. I’m guilty as charged. My first column for Xconomy questioned whether biotech venture capitalists were losing relevance, running away from risk in an inherently risky business. Heading full steam into the new year, there will be plenty of headlines and stories from us and our peers about the brave and … Continue reading “In the Jiu-Jitsu Match of Biotech Risk, a Reminder of Other Paths”
Dallas’ AveXis Gets $10M to Bring Gene Therapy to Rare Spinal Disorder
Spinal Muscular Atrophy, or SMA, is a deadly inherited disease. It affects about 1 of 10,000 babies, but it tends to be fatal—it’s the number one genetic cause of death for infants, and most of them die by age 3. There is no approved treatment for SMA, and as a result, it’s become a big … Continue reading “Dallas’ AveXis Gets $10M to Bring Gene Therapy to Rare Spinal Disorder”
J.P. Morgan 2015: Notes, Thoughts, And Conversations From the Vortex
The word “story” gets ill treatment at events like the J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference. It often means an elevator pitch from a harried CEO to a distracted investor, or a few observations a journalist strings together with a headline, or Twitter snark trying to pass for insight. But we heard a real story on Sunday … Continue reading “J.P. Morgan 2015: Notes, Thoughts, And Conversations From the Vortex”
TX Roundup: New Money, Texas Venture Labs, Aceable, & Roverpass
The new year is progressing at a rapid pace, as are Texas’s innovators. Here’s the latest on new products, a shout-out to Houston and Austin as meccas of STEM jobs, and a slew of fresh money being invested into startups. —Got a traffic ticket? Aceable in Austin, TX, says you can now take a defensive … Continue reading “TX Roundup: New Money, Texas Venture Labs, Aceable, & Roverpass”
Austin-Based Yard Care Startup LawnStarter Raises $1M Seed Round
Mowing the yard might get easier—or rather, finding the right person to mow the yard for you. At least that’s the ambition of LawnStarter, an Austin, TX-based startup that wants to become the tool homeowners turn to when they need to find a local company to take care of their lawns. LawnStarter this week raised … Continue reading “Austin-Based Yard Care Startup LawnStarter Raises $1M Seed Round”
It Had to be You: Why Roche Was The Lone Suitor For Foundation
The buzz from day one of the J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference in San Francisco earlier this week was the announcement on Sunday night by Roche that it was acquiring a majority interest in Foundation Medicine (NASDAQ: [[ticker:FMI]]) for a bit more than $1 billion in cash, which translates into $50 a share. Those were just … Continue reading “It Had to be You: Why Roche Was The Lone Suitor For Foundation”
Consero Global Solutions Secures $5,000,000 New Financing
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=8519e79e-ee28-4f4b-99e9-64cbb7fe3d37 Date 1/16/2015 Company Name Consero Global Solutions Mailing Address 106 E 6th Street Austin, TX 78701 USA Company Description Consero was founded in early 2006 with the goal of providing small and mid-market companies with a superior alternative to building and maintaining an in-house finance function. Since then, Consero has grown … Continue reading “Consero Global Solutions Secures $5,000,000 New Financing”
Austin’s Aceable Aims to Make Driver’s Ed Portable, More Fun
Driver’s ed is getting mobile. That’s the idea behind Aceable, an Austin, TX, startup that makes an app on which teens and other soon-to-be drivers can take the required coursework for a driver’s license. “Having these courses on an app is a far more interactive experience than on a browser,” says Blake Garrett, Aceable’s founder … Continue reading “Austin’s Aceable Aims to Make Driver’s Ed Portable, More Fun”
MIT MBA Students Tour Silicon Valley As Tech Campuses Expand
It’s easy to catch the technology bug. After all, tech companies are pretty much everywhere. I became hooked when I worked as an IT consultant at Accenture after college, and plan to work at a technology company after I finish my MBA. So when I had the opportunity to participate in a Technology Trek at … Continue reading “MIT MBA Students Tour Silicon Valley As Tech Campuses Expand”
Ideas for Diversity, Education, and Computer Science
On December 24 2009, Xconomy published a column in which I reflected on the preceding decade and predicted for the coming one. I still quote that column in talks, because it’s the one time I can remember when I was actually right: I said that this would be the decade in which computer scientists put … Continue reading “Ideas for Diversity, Education, and Computer Science”
Uber-Size Deals Dominate Mega Year in U.S. Venture Activity
Venture capital firms invested more than $47.3 billion in U.S. startups in 2014, marking the highest funding level of VC funding since 2001, according to data being released today by CB Insights, the New York-based venture capital database. The $47.3 billion was 62 percent more than the $29.2 billion that venture firms invested in 2013. … Continue reading “Uber-Size Deals Dominate Mega Year in U.S. Venture Activity”
Houston, Austin, Raleigh, Denver Tops in U.S. for STEM Workers
All metro areas are not created equal. If you’re looking at job markets in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM)—a major indicator of economic growth and innovation—the U.S. is a study in contrasts. That’s according to a survey by WalletHub, a financial information site based in Washington, DC. The analysis looked at metrics such as … Continue reading “Houston, Austin, Raleigh, Denver Tops in U.S. for STEM Workers”
Colleges Must Mix Entrepreneurial Skills, Traditional Liberal Arts
The great challenge facing higher education is to prepare students to navigate a world of accelerating uncertainty and faster churn. Training students to re-invent themselves every few years, as is already required in the world today, is an objective that legacy approaches to higher education is not optimized for. I’m convinced, however, that the University … Continue reading “Colleges Must Mix Entrepreneurial Skills, Traditional Liberal Arts”
In Search of a Better Approach to Breast Cancer Screening
As a venture investor in the healthcare sector, I see a lot of new medical technologies that promise improvement over the current standard of care. Opportunities that represent truly transformational change in medicine are rare, and those that address a major clinical challenge affecting tens of millions of lives are rarer still. Breast cancer screening … Continue reading “In Search of a Better Approach to Breast Cancer Screening”
SignaCert Obtains $4,000,000 New Funding
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=16aea47d-1c33-4b50-80f2-2bc08b6120ce Date 1/14/2015 Company Name SignaCert Mailing Address Undisclosed Austin, TX 78710 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 Debt Transaction Amount … Continue reading “SignaCert Obtains $4,000,000 New Funding”
RideScout CEO Leads the Bunker to Austin For Veteran Entrepreneurs
Joseph Kopser wants to bring his fellow veterans back into the bunker. This one, however, will be focused on raising capital and business plans rather than battlefield tactics. Kopser, the founder of transportation app RideScout, has launched a new outpost in Austin, TX, of the Chicago-based Bunker incubator program aimed at veteran entrepreneurs. “It was … Continue reading “RideScout CEO Leads the Bunker to Austin For Veteran Entrepreneurs”
Schools Should Nurture Kids’ Natural Knack for Entrepreneurship
I think the most important change we could make in education would be to put more emphasis on exposing kids to entrepreneurship, starting very early on. I’ve found that kids have a natural inclination towards entrepreneurship—we just need to give them the opportunity to learn and practice the skills they need to act on their … Continue reading “Schools Should Nurture Kids’ Natural Knack for Entrepreneurship”
Wireless Seismic Receives $10,498,506 New Financing Round
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=e2d555fa-0f42-428b-8e90-7924e9c77cad Date 1/13/2015 Company Name Wireless Seismic Mailing Address 13100 Southwest Freeway Sugar Land, TX 77478 USA Company Description Wireless Seismic was formed in 2006 to develop and introduce the RT 1000, a revolutionary seismic data acquisition system to the exploration and production industry, which capitalizes on emerging technologies in the seismic, … Continue reading “Wireless Seismic Receives $10,498,506 New Financing Round”
SmartVault Obtains $4,500,000 New Funding
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=4d34fab1-5b29-43bc-bb0b-beaeb88881d1 Date 1/13/2015 Company Name SmartVault Mailing Address 720 North Post Oak Road Houston, TX 77024 USA Company Description Founded in 2008, SmartVault is striving to give people a better life at work. So in your business, you can spend less time and money filing, retrieving, copying and sharing files and more … Continue reading “SmartVault Obtains $4,500,000 New Funding”
Seven Surprises About Convertible Notes That Founders Should Know
Over the past two years, there has been an explosion of the use of convertible notes for seed rounds. It used to be these debt instruments that convert to equity later at a discount to the price of the next round were only for small initial financings of, say, $250,000 for a company to get … Continue reading “Seven Surprises About Convertible Notes That Founders Should Know”
Genentech Redux? Roche Buys Majority Stake in Foundation Medicine
In a deal that shakes up the full-steam-ahead world of cancer diagnostics, the world’s top oncology drug company, Roche, said today it’s spending more than $1 billion for a majority stake in Foundation Medicine and creating a powerful drug-diagnostic collaboration. It’s a significant gamble on the as-yet-unrealized potential of tests that aim for broad genetic … Continue reading “Genentech Redux? Roche Buys Majority Stake in Foundation Medicine”
AveXis Garners $10,000,000 New Funding
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=b605af4a-a61d-40ca-9b02-6aa871b92aa5 Date 1/10/2015 Company Name AveXis Mailing Address 4925 Greenville Avenue Dallas, TX 75206 USA Company Description Based in Dallas, Texas, AveXis is a clinic-ready, synthetic biology platform company. AveXis has, at its core, a desire to establish unique industry and research alliances which will bring innovative treatments to people with unmet … Continue reading “AveXis Garners $10,000,000 New Funding”
Austin Startup RoverPass Looks to Become Kayak for Camping Industry
“We’re not doing rocket science. We’re just trying to get people to go camping.” So says Ravi Parikh, co-founder and CEO of Austin, TX-based startup RoverPass. While his comment is a little self-deprecating, it certainly explains his company well. RoverPass helps campers and RV owners find and book places in campgrounds and RV parks while … Continue reading “Austin Startup RoverPass Looks to Become Kayak for Camping Industry”
Milestones of Innovation 1: Hamilton’s 1790 Report on the Public Credit
Today is the 225th anniversary of a milestone in the history of American innovation. On January 9, 1790, the 35-year-old secretary of the Treasury of the United States sent the House of Representatives a 40,000-word blueprint for the new nation’s financial system. The report was produced just four months after Congress commissioned it. Proposing the … Continue reading “Milestones of Innovation 1: Hamilton’s 1790 Report on the Public Credit”
Welltok Raises Additional $12M, Readies for Debut With IBM’s Watson
Welltok, a Denver-based health software startup, just closed the books on a very successful 2014, announcing today it raised $12 million from two new investors. Welltok also is already setting the stage for a big 2015, with plans to unveil a new app that relies on IBM’s Watson supercomputer next week. The investors are Hearst Health … Continue reading “Welltok Raises Additional $12M, Readies for Debut With IBM’s Watson”
Alert Logic Garners $4,226,262 New Round
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=ebfc94de-815c-46b4-856c-98604f9cd69e Date 1/8/2015 Company Name Alert Logic Mailing Address 1776 Yorktown 7th Floor Houston, TX 77056 USA Company Description Alert Logic is the security industry’s leading provider of on-demand internal network security solutions designed to protect networks from threats that bypass perimeter, desktop, and server defenses. Website http://www.alertlogic.com Transaction Type Venture Equity … Continue reading “Alert Logic Garners $4,226,262 New Round”
Startup 101: Texas Venture Labs Pairs UT Students With Entrepreneurs
Dig a little deeper into the entrepreneurial gestation of a few of Austin, TX, startup successes and you’ll find they have something in common: the Texas Venture Labs. Part of the University of Texas at Austin’s McCombs School of Business, TVL is a relative newcomer to the Austin startup scene. It was founded five years … Continue reading “Startup 101: Texas Venture Labs Pairs UT Students With Entrepreneurs”
Even When Money is Easy, Rules of Biotech Finance Still Apply
Last month Juno Therapeutics closed a $250 million IPO, bringing the total raised since it was founded in Seattle in 2013 to close to $600 million. The money is earmarked to support more than ten clinical trials over the next 12 months. Last year, 133 biotech companies around the world raised $11 billion in initial … Continue reading “Even When Money is Easy, Rules of Biotech Finance Still Apply”
Appconomy Garners $9,000,000 New Funding
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=f9253e2c-f56b-4a1f-822b-25afcb661397 Date 1/7/2015 Company Name Appconomy Mailing Address 1300 Guadalupe St Austin, TX 78701 USA Company Description Appconomy designs, develops and sells mobile apps and app components, and AppCommerce capabilities that power the economies of people, businesses and enterprises. Website http://www.appconomy.com Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount $9,000,000 Transaction Round Undisclosed Proceeds … Continue reading “Appconomy Garners $9,000,000 New Funding”
ThermiAesthetics Lands $9,000,000 New Round
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=35322616-87c4-4cbf-a218-4efcd32acf90 Date 1/7/2015 Company Name ThermiAesthetics Mailing Address 401 N. Carroll Ave. Southlake, TX 76092 USA Company Description ThermiAesthetics is a leading developer and manufacturer of thermistor-regulated energy systems for plastic surgery and dermatology applications. The company is focused on the worldwide distribution of its products. Our products are based on the … Continue reading “ThermiAesthetics Lands $9,000,000 New Round”
SonarMed Secures $1,282,534 New Funding
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=a0166214-8b84-4f76-b16b-919838e591d9 Date 1/7/2015 Company Name SonarMed Mailing Address 216 W. 26th St. Bryan, TX 77803 USA Company Description SonarMed develops innovative products for critical care medicine. The company’s products will improve the clinical care of patients and reduce healthcare costs. Website http://www.sonarmed.com Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount $1,282,534 Transaction Round Undisclosed … Continue reading “SonarMed Secures $1,282,534 New Funding”
Neos Therapeutics Obtains $8,000,000 New Funding
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=55fb0fc0-86b7-4a5b-a3a0-d9038d9fbde9 Date 1/7/2015 Company Name Neos Therapeutics Mailing Address 2940 N Hwy 360 Grand Prairie, TX 75050 USA Company Description Neos Therapeutics is a specialty pharmaceutical company that focuses on time-release technologies. We have developed a broad, cutting-edge portfolio of processes that allow for tailored and independent release profiles of single and … Continue reading “Neos Therapeutics Obtains $8,000,000 New Funding”
Don’t Get Comfortable: 5 Biopharma Flashpoints to Consider in 2015
The annual J.P. Morgan healthcare conference starts this weekend in San Francisco. Pundits are predicting a much higher tally of shoulder injuries than usual. You know, from all the people patting themselves on the back. After a year filled with medical promise and cash raining down from everywhere, the self-congratulation could be thicker than the … Continue reading “Don’t Get Comfortable: 5 Biopharma Flashpoints to Consider in 2015”
First-Ever Pediatric Health Pitch Day at SXSW to Be Hosted by Mark Cuban
Mark Cuban might be bringing a little “Shark Tank” to South By Southwest this spring. Cuban, the IT entrepreneur and billionaire who owns the Dallas Mavericks basketball franchise and stars in the entrepreneurial reality TV show, will leave the judging to others. But in his role as emcee, he will likely provide entrepreneurs with his … Continue reading “First-Ever Pediatric Health Pitch Day at SXSW to Be Hosted by Mark Cuban”
Lawn Love Raises $1.9M to Provide On-Demand Gardening Services
Lawn Love, a San Diego Web startup that emerged from the Y Combinator accelerator in August, has raised $1.9 million in seed funding from Launch Capital, Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian, Binary Capital, and other investors. “We’re bringing software and tech to a traditionally low-tech space,” says Jeremy Yamaguchi, a San Diego entrepreneur who started Lawn … Continue reading “Lawn Love Raises $1.9M to Provide On-Demand Gardening Services”
Technology Upgrades: Welcome to My Nightmare (Yours Too?)
I was having coffee with a friend recently and the subject of word processing software came up. My friend related how he was happily using WordStar. WordStar? I hadn’t thought about it in years, but it was the first computer program I ever used, way back in 1984. I was surprised to find that not … Continue reading “Technology Upgrades: Welcome to My Nightmare (Yours Too?)”
FantasySalesTeam Garners $750,000 New Funding Round
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=344161dc-b1b6-4733-8955-2433905273a1 Date 1/6/2015 Company Name FantasySalesTeam Mailing Address 603 Davis Street Austin, TX 78701 USA Company Description FantasySalesTeam was developed by sales professionals for sales professionals. It was designed by a team of software industry veterans and people that have been in the trenches by phone, foot, and plane selling and managing … Continue reading “FantasySalesTeam Garners $750,000 New Funding Round”
IntegriCo Composites Lands $1,990,387 New Funding Round
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=f2633f8c-7183-431c-8976-b851c39d3e26 Date 1/6/2015 Company Name IntegriCo Composites Mailing Address 4310 Lucius McCelvey Drive Temple, TX 76504 USA Company Description IntegriCo Composites is a Texas-based manufacturer of composite plastic products made from landfill-bound plastic waste. The Company’s initial product is a composite plastic railroad tie, and the technology can be widely applied to … Continue reading “IntegriCo Composites Lands $1,990,387 New Funding Round”
Implications of the Oil Price Collapse
Instead of developing a warmed over list of “Top 10 Predictions for 2015,” over the past few months I have been most interested in the implications from the collapse of oil prices around the world. We will see the obvious and direct benefit to the U.S. consumer (November retail sales were up a surprising 0.7 … Continue reading “Implications of the Oil Price Collapse”