Dayakar Puskoor wants you to know that North Texas’s telecom scene is not dead yet. More than a decade after the region’s telecommunications industry busted, leading to company closures and layoffs numbering around 100,000, Puskoor hopes to be part of its resurrection. The software engineer turned entrepreneur and investor believes so much in the region’s … Continue reading “Dallas’s Naya Ventures Targets Investments in Telecom Startups”
Category: Texas
Austin’s Pivot3 Taps Board Chairman, Tech Vet, As New CEO
Ron Nash, the newly appointed CEO for Austin’s Pivot3, brings with him a particularly intimate familiarity with the data storage company’s operations: He has been its chairman of the board. “We’re making the transition between startup and being a small company,” he says. “This is a time when the company should have a breakout period.” … Continue reading “Austin’s Pivot3 Taps Board Chairman, Tech Vet, As New CEO”
Time to Come Clean: Why A High-Tech Guy Envies the Low-Tech World
I’m ready to confess that I’ve been basking in a particular drug-induced fantasy for a number of years. It’s a different type than we usual read about, and I suspect it’s shared by a fair number of other folks who work in biopharma. We dream of the day when a medicine we created begins to … Continue reading “Time to Come Clean: Why A High-Tech Guy Envies the Low-Tech World”
Servergy Receives $20,000,000 Series C Round
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=7263b7d1-9e03-4dc1-8848-2c637d741e53 Date 11/12/2013 Company Name Servergy Mailing Address 1700 N Redbud Blvd McKinney, TX 75069 Company Description The exciting new class of hyper-efficient and high performance Cleantech Server by Servergy is backed by our rapidly growing network of top global partners. They are engineered from the ground up to replace the very … Continue reading “Servergy Receives $20,000,000 Series C Round”
How Alkermes Survived a Brush With Death
Most every biotech company with some mileage has had at least one near-death experience. Maybe the key experiment failed, or a dangerous side effect emerged late in the game. Maybe a rich competitor decided to squash the little guy with a frivolous intellectual property lawsuit. Maybe a key partner bailed for whatever reason. Maybe the … Continue reading “How Alkermes Survived a Brush With Death”
Image Vision Labs Obtains $400,000 New Round
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=07c44a11-c09b-4ae7-89b0-6456fc96e5bc Date 11/11/2013 Company Name Image Vision Labs Mailing Address 312 N. Powell Parkway Anna, TX 75409 Company Description We are the pioneer in the automated content moderation and compliance industry. Our visual recognition and detection solutions help enterprises, web publishers, advertisers and mobile operators who deal with large quantities of video, … Continue reading “Image Vision Labs Obtains $400,000 New Round”
Techstars Austin Launches Tech Startups in First Texas Demo Day
Let’s be upfront about disclosure. I have been attending Techstars Demo Days since 2008, and have always been impressed with the accelerator’s ability to take talented teams and convert them into investment-worthy businesses. In 2011, the Mercury Fund, where I am a partner, joined with a few others to create a fund to provide $100,000 … Continue reading “Techstars Austin Launches Tech Startups in First Texas Demo Day”
Apple’s Weakness: Customer Loyalty Has Its Limits
If you’re ever forced to read a public company’s annual report, turn first to the “risk factors” section, which is always the most entertaining. This is where companies are required to disclose all of the things that could go terribly wrong with their businesses. It’s a Wall Street version of Edward Gorey’s Gashlycrumb Tinies (“A … Continue reading “Apple’s Weakness: Customer Loyalty Has Its Limits”
Choose Energy Lands $7,500,000 Series B Financing Round
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=3ef31912-08a0-4a36-bad5-9a9fdaca588b Date 11/8/2013 Company Name Choose Energy Mailing Address 6217 Chapel Hill Road Plano, TX 75093 Company Description Choose Energy is a privately funded company based in Carrollton, TX founded in 2005 with a vision to offer an unbiased shopping experience for Texas power companies. With ChooseEnergy.com, consumers can do simple comparison … Continue reading “Choose Energy Lands $7,500,000 Series B Financing Round”
DNAtriX Lands $1,543,905 New Financing Round
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=4bedbaaf-6bcc-4b23-800d-b2b6945909f7 Date 11/8/2013 Company Name DNAtriX Mailing Address One Greenway Plaza Houston, TX 77046 Company Description DNAtriX, Inc. is a Texas-based biotechnology company focused on the development of an oncoloytic virus platform initially for the treatment of malignant glioma. DNAtriX’s lead product, delta24RGD, is a next-generation adenovirus invented by company founder Dr. … Continue reading “DNAtriX Lands $1,543,905 New Financing Round”
Together Mobile Obtains $2,545,000 New Financing
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=e5b4854c-7c22-4c49-982b-f8b0d4bcd534 Date 11/8/2013 Company Name Together Mobile Mailing Address 8300 N. Lamar Blvd Austin, TX 78753 Company Description At Together, we believe that brands compete in the attention economy — that consumer attention is in short supply but powerful when harnessed Website http://www.togethermobile.com Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount $2,545,000 Transaction Round … Continue reading “Together Mobile Obtains $2,545,000 New Financing”
New Austin Fund to Focus on Early Stage Technology Startups Locally
Silverton Partners, an Austin venture capital firm, announced today it has launched a new $75 million fund. The fund, which is the firm’s fourth, will focus on making early-stage seed investments in technology companies in the Austin area. It’s a market that is especially attractive to Silverton’s group of investors, many of whom are repeat … Continue reading “New Austin Fund to Focus on Early Stage Technology Startups Locally”
Surviving Exponential Growth: Lessons from Network Solutions
At the beginning of 1995, there were only about 71,000 domain names in the entire world, and a grand total of about 16 million Internet users. This was the year that Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC), then based in San Diego, acquired Network Solutions—a small technology company in the northern Virginia suburbs of Washington, DC. … Continue reading “Surviving Exponential Growth: Lessons from Network Solutions”
Mavenir Systems Obtains $48,000,000 New Round
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=ae55ef6b-aae4-437e-a26e-dfaf0339a3fc Date 11/7/2013 Company Name Mavenir Systems Mailing Address 1700 International Parkway Richardson, TX 75081 Company Description Mavenir’s (NYSE: MVNR) solutions, located between the access and the core, provide an efficient, cost-effective method to introduce tomorrow’s multimedia services across a multitude of access technologies, in an incremental fashion, with device and context … Continue reading “Mavenir Systems Obtains $48,000,000 New Round”
Dallas Men’s E-Retailer Need Launches With “Curated” Collection
Dallas entrepreneur Matt Alexander wants to make it easier for men to shop better. So, he’s launched the e-retailer Need, which he says cuts through Web’s retail clutter and offers a “curated” selection of men’s clothing and accessories to appeal to a discerning customer. “There are hundreds of millions of dollars in the men’s wear … Continue reading “Dallas Men’s E-Retailer Need Launches With “Curated” Collection”
eRecycling Corps Finds Niche as Broker of Used Cellphones
Think of it as “Sanford and Son” 2.0. Turns out, those outdated devices you have taking up space in the junk drawer are worth a great deal, a fact that eRecycling Corps is finding lucrative. The company, which is based in the Dallas suburb of Irving, TX, raised $105 million recently on a simple premise: … Continue reading “eRecycling Corps Finds Niche as Broker of Used Cellphones”
While Healthcare.gov Scrambles, Private Exchanges Are Off to the Races
All eyes are on the hullaballoo created by the challenges at Healthcare.gov and several of the states’ public insurance exchanges. Yet all the while, like in a magic show, attention has been diverted from the real action going on elsewhere. Quietly and in a relatively drama-free way, the private health insurance exchanges are busily taking … Continue reading “While Healthcare.gov Scrambles, Private Exchanges Are Off to the Races”
EnTouch Controls Receives $8,250,000 Series B Funding Round
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=4701c2c2-549b-44d1-8f73-4557871df928 Date 11/5/2013 Company Name EnTouch Controls Mailing Address 661 N. Plano Rd Richardson, TX 75081 Company Description With simple to use features, an intuitive full color touchscreen interface, and access through a standard web browser, the EnTouch EMS provides powerful control. Website http://www.entouchcontrols.com Transaction Type Debt, Venture Equity Transaction Amount $8,250,000 … Continue reading “EnTouch Controls Receives $8,250,000 Series B Funding Round”
EnTouch Controls Receives $8,250,000 Series B Financing Round
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=4701c2c2-549b-44d1-8f73-4557871df928 Date 11/5/2013 Company Name EnTouch Controls Mailing Address 661 N. Plano Rd Richardson, TX 75081 Company Description With simple to use features, an intuitive full color touchscreen interface, and access through a standard web browser, the EnTouch EMS provides powerful control. Website http://www.entouchcontrols.com Transaction Type Debt, Venture Equity Transaction Amount $8,250,000 … Continue reading “EnTouch Controls Receives $8,250,000 Series B Financing Round”
Venture Spur’s Dallas Pitch Day Highlights North Texas Startup Scene
In the last year, entrepreneurial activities in Dallas have been going gangbusters. One illustration of this: In just a few short months, we went from having one accelerator focused on supporting startups to four of them today. Venture Spur, an Oklahoma City-based accelerator, held its first Dallas Pitch Day last week, after having opened a … Continue reading “Venture Spur’s Dallas Pitch Day Highlights North Texas Startup Scene”
Which Regions Are Churning Out the Most Biotech IPOs?
If you’ve got ambitions to start and build a biotech company that may someday go public, where is the best place to make it happen? Which regional clusters provide the most fertile places where people, scientific ideas, technology, and money come together to build NASDAQ-worthy biotech companies? This is just one more way of looking … Continue reading “Which Regions Are Churning Out the Most Biotech IPOs?”
Malauzai Software Obtains $3,000,000 New Funding Round
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=7bb35f33-3f74-4f3a-a780-2ba8758808a2 Date 11/4/2013 Company Name Malauzai Software Mailing Address 9020 Capital of Texas Highway Austin, TX 78759 Company Description Malauzai Software Inc. was formed in 2009 to participate in the mobile banking revolution. We build mobile banking SmartApps for community banks and credit unions for use by their customers and members. Website … Continue reading “Malauzai Software Obtains $3,000,000 New Funding Round”
IntegriCo Composites Lands $8,750,025 New Funding
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=f11ed3a2-cbf8-4fd0-893a-590546764d5c Date 11/3/2013 Company Name IntegriCo Composites Mailing Address 4310 Lucius McCelvey Drive Temple, TX 76504 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 a … Continue reading “IntegriCo Composites Lands $8,750,025 New Funding”
6 Secrets to Slaying the E-Mail Monster
People have been complaining about the onslaught of e-mail almost since the day it was invented. We’ve all heard the statistics: Over 100 billion business e-mails are sent every day, with the average user sending and receiving about 100 messages per day. Reading and answering e-mail takes up 28 percent of the average worker’s day—about … Continue reading “6 Secrets to Slaying the E-Mail Monster”
Austin Startup Gravitant Finds Market as “Expedia” of Cloud Services
Companies are increasingly turning to the cloud to manage IT systems, but executives don’t necessarily know which services work best for them. That’s where Gravitant comes in. Think of the Austin startup, which recently raised $10 million in venture capital, as the Expedia of IT, says its founder and CEO Mohammed Farooq. “What do you … Continue reading “Austin Startup Gravitant Finds Market as “Expedia” of Cloud Services”
Red (and Green) Flags To Look for With Biotech’s Buyside Investors
As Warren Buffett once pointed out, companies get the investors they deserve. Observations by the oracle-from-Omaha are hard to dispute, but how does that translate into practice if you’re a biotech company going through the IPO process and trying to read the signs in a whole new landscape of investors known as “the buyside”? Many … Continue reading “Red (and Green) Flags To Look for With Biotech’s Buyside Investors”
Teleflex Acquires Vidacare for $285,000,000
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=7dc07e4a-100e-4106-b1bd-b0f2c695eeeb Date 10/31/2013 Company Name Vidacare Mailing Address 4350 Lockhill Selma Rd Shavano Park, TX 78249 Company Description Vidacare products incorporate a patented power driver and needle system to access the intraosseous (inside the bone) space for a variety of medical, diagnostic and therapeutic purposes including vascular access, emergency medicine, and oncology. … Continue reading “Teleflex Acquires Vidacare for $285,000,000”
BioHouston Breakfast Forum
Over the past year, a number of new organizations have been formed to spur commercialization of research taking place in Houston’s universities. The BioHouston breakfast forum features a panel discussion with some of these leaders and what they hope to bring to the life sciences community. Register here.
San Antonio Medtech Firm Vidacare Sold for $262M
Vidacare, a San Antonio medical device company, is being acquired by Teleflex (NYSE: TFX) in a $262.5 million, all-cash deal. The Texas company produces a driver-and-needle system to access spaces inside bones for diagnostic and therapeutic treatments in vascular and emergency medicine, as well as in cancer. “I believe that this merger represents a unique opportunity … Continue reading “San Antonio Medtech Firm Vidacare Sold for $262M”
Four Red Flags for Digital Health Investors
It’s been a banner year for startups raising money to start digital and mobile health businesses—enough to spark a recent Time magazine article called “The Obamacare Start-Up Boom.” Here in San Francisco, it seems the number of job applicants my own digital heatlh company receives, as well as the number of attendees at health technology … Continue reading “Four Red Flags for Digital Health Investors”
Vedero Software Lands $455,000 New Financing Round
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=531d98fa-5113-468c-a9f6-1307384a2431 Date 10/30/2013 Company Name Vedero Software Mailing Address 2805 North Dallas Parkway Plano, TX 75093 Company Description Vedero Software provides software and services to instrument and automate commercial buildings for energy responsiveness. This enables our customers to generate cash, reduce energy costs, and generate added services to attract and retain tenants, … Continue reading “Vedero Software Lands $455,000 New Financing Round”
Austin’s Boxer Raises $3M in Quest to Better Manage E-mail
The information overload of e-mail is here to stay. Austin startup Boxer says it can help process the messages better. Boxer, which recently raised $3 million in seed funding, focuses on mobile mail, the e-mail we receive through our smartphones. It makes sense, since we are now more likely to access messages via our phones … Continue reading “Austin’s Boxer Raises $3M in Quest to Better Manage E-mail”
300 I-Corps Teams in Two Years
This is the start of the third year teaching teams of scientists (professors and their graduate students) in the National Science Foundation Innovation Corps (I-Corps). This month we’ve crossed ~300 teams in the first two years through the program. I-Corps is the accelerator that helps scientists bridge the commercialization gap between their research in their … Continue reading “300 I-Corps Teams in Two Years”
The Biggest Bargains Pharma Scooped Up in the Down Years
Most little biotech companies, until this year’s IPO boom, couldn’t seriously think about raising money from public investors. Most couldn’t raise big venture dollars from an ever-shrinking pool of VCs. The pool of potential partners and buyers in Big Pharma was shrinking, too, because mega-mergers reduced the number of potential bidders. With cash running low … Continue reading “The Biggest Bargains Pharma Scooped Up in the Down Years”
eRecyclingCorps Lands $105,000,000 Series C Funding Round
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=40abf086-5570-49a4-82a6-fbef3da4cb12 Date 10/28/2013 Company Name eRecyclingCorps Mailing Address 909 Hidden Ridge Irving, TX 75038 Company Description We help consumers realize the value remaining in their phones by giving immediate in-store rewards for trade-ins. We then redistribute those devices to new users whose lives can be improved through access to wireless technology. Website … Continue reading “eRecyclingCorps Lands $105,000,000 Series C Funding Round”
BuzzFeed, and 4 More Bad Startup Ideas that Look Like Good Ideas
Y Combinator staged its annual Startup School event last Saturday, attracting more than 1,700 young startup founders and would-be founders. Andreessen Horowitz partner (and Xconomist) Chris Dixon, the founder of Web startups SiteAdvisor (sold to McAfee) and Hunch (sold to eBay), gave one of the most interesting talks, under the title “Good Ideas That Look Like Bad … Continue reading “BuzzFeed, and 4 More Bad Startup Ideas that Look Like Good Ideas”
Pivot3 Receives $14,000,000 New Financing Round
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=1ea1307b-8d1c-42ad-be31-ac71098054ae Date 10/25/2013 Company Name Pivot3 Mailing Address 816 Congress Avenue Austin, TX 78701 Company Description Pivot3 Transforms How Customers Invest in Storage. The founding team, developers and marketers of early custom RAID controllers with credit for over 50 storage patents, shared a vision for a storage virtualization architecture that required no … Continue reading “Pivot3 Receives $14,000,000 New Financing Round”
Pivot3 Obtains $14,000,000 New Financing
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=1ea1307b-8d1c-42ad-be31-ac71098054ae Date 10/25/2013 Company Name Pivot3 Mailing Address 816 Congress Avenue Austin, TX 78701 Company Description Pivot3 Transforms How Customers Invest in Storage. The founding team, developers and marketers of early custom RAID controllers with credit for over 50 storage patents, shared a vision for a storage virtualization architecture that required no … Continue reading “Pivot3 Obtains $14,000,000 New Financing”
On Center Software Secures New Financing Round
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=2a28e337-22d3-4997-ad14-f0bc3ff20d89 Date 10/25/2013 Company Name On Center Software Mailing Address 8708 Technology Forest Place The Woodlands, TX 77381 Company Description On Center Software has been a trusted provider of construction automation management (CAM) solutions for the past 25 years. To continue on this quest and ensure we deliver on our promise, the … Continue reading “On Center Software Secures New Financing Round”
Houston’s Alert Logic Thrives Bringing Security to the Cloud
Insecurity in the cloud is big business for Alert Logic. The company, whose niche is “security-as-a-service,” had about a dozen employees and less than $2 million in annual revenue when it received its first venture funding in 2005. Today, Alert Logic dominates the U.S. cloud security market, taking in almost $50 million a year, and … Continue reading “Houston’s Alert Logic Thrives Bringing Security to the Cloud”
Gravitant Receives $10,000,000 Series B Funding
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=284c02bc-a1a7-493e-a840-b249b7cd12df Date 10/24/2013 Company Name Gravitant Mailing Address 11940 Jollyville Rd. Austin, TX 78759 Company Description Founded by innovative executives with over five decades of experience in Enterprise IT Management, operations research, and service oriented architectures (SOA), Gravitant is a leader in the cloud brokerage and management space. Website http://www.gravitant.com Transaction Type … Continue reading “Gravitant Receives $10,000,000 Series B Funding”
DotProduct Garners New Funding Round
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=c4266577-9095-468b-b0f3-bd82bb35327d Date 10/24/2013 Company Name DotProduct Mailing Address 800 Town & Country Blvd Houston, TX 77024 Company Description We are a team of professionals and entrepreneurs that understands 3D and its use in various industries. We value easy, quick and precise capture of real-world conditions as much as you do. Website http://www.dotproduct3d.com … Continue reading “DotProduct Garners New Funding Round”
Pharma Showing Interest in Open Systems for Drug Discovery
[Editor’s note: this post first appeared on the FasterCures blog.] Bringing the ideas of “open source” into the pharmaceutical process is far from simple. It requires a careful understanding both of the realities of open source as a software development process well as the realities of therapy research, development, and regulatory approval. The open source … Continue reading “Pharma Showing Interest in Open Systems for Drug Discovery”
Innovation’s Next Decade
While the world economy continues to look shaky, the technology industry has never looked stronger. Now is perhaps a good time to stop for a moment and reflect on what the next decade will be all about for the industry. My vision of what the technology industry needs to focus on is best described by … Continue reading “Innovation’s Next Decade”
21 Red Flags to Watch for in a Biotech Company
Nutty things are happening in biotech. Irrational exuberance has returned. Generalist investors with lots of money are suddenly buying these stocks first and asking questions later. Companies can fire off meaningless press releases, and be rewarded. I heard a big-time money manager talk the other day about a recent biotech IPO being one of the … Continue reading “21 Red Flags to Watch for in a Biotech Company”
Alkami Technology Secures $2,000,000 New Funding Round
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=4ceb6251-8ddb-4a29-8630-9900500b7cd4 Date 10/21/2013 Company Name Alkami Technology Mailing Address 5601 Granite Parkway Plano, TX 75024 Company Description Our Online Banking Suite and ORB Platform represent a quantum leap forward in the level of control and customization given to the FI, while revolutionizing the user experience provided to customers and members. Website http://www.alkamitech.com … Continue reading “Alkami Technology Secures $2,000,000 New Funding Round”
Boxer Lands $3,000,000 Seed Financing
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=3e353813-dd1f-4b73-b5c7-d0df4823aae7 Date 10/21/2013 Company Name Boxer Mailing Address 701 Brazos St Austin, TX 78701 Company Description Boxer is building the next generation mobile inbox. Whether you let your inbox burst at the seams or diligently file things away, you’ll love how Boxer helps you stay on top of email while on the … Continue reading “Boxer Lands $3,000,000 Seed Financing”
Please, Keep Paying $80 a Month for Cable So I Can Enjoy Cheap TV
Dear Cable TV Subscriber, I don’t think I’ve ever told you how grateful I am. I haven’t paid a cent for cable television since 2009. Yet I have on-demand access via the Internet to a growing cornucopia of great shows like Game of Thrones, Homeland, Mad Men, and Breaking Bad, at reasonable à la carte … Continue reading “Please, Keep Paying $80 a Month for Cable So I Can Enjoy Cheap TV”
VC Funding for Software Jumps in MoneyTree Report, and Top 10 Deals
Venture capital firms invested $7.8 billion in 1,005 deals throughout the United States during the three months that ended September 30, according to the MoneyTree Report being released today. It was a 12 percent increase in dollars and a 5 percent rise in deals compared to the second quarter of 2013, when VCs invested close … Continue reading “VC Funding for Software Jumps in MoneyTree Report, and Top 10 Deals”
Austin Startup Savara Wins Research Award for CF Therapy
Savara Pharmaceuticals, an Austin, TX-based startup, said today it has received a $1.7 million research award from Cystic Fibrosis Foundation Therapeutics, a subsidiary of the nonprofit Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. The award is the latest in a total of $6 million granted to Savara by the cystic fibrosis group and the National Institutes of Health in … Continue reading “Austin Startup Savara Wins Research Award for CF Therapy”