Steve Manning saw some of the latest consumer electronics at the 2011 International CES confab in Las Vegas this month, and the CEO of Dexter, MI-based ReCellular was reminded how it takes before Americans who buy such nifty gadgets will want to trade in for new stuff. About 15 months. “It was amazing, great neat … Continue reading “ReCellular Chief Sees Future for Yesterday’s Electronics”
Five Innovations to Look For in Algae Biofuels
Here are my top five innovations to look for in algae-based biofuels in the New Year: —The first synthetic algal genome. —The first significant scale-up of algae biofuel production. —The first clinical trial of an algae-based therapeutic. —The introduction of several new algae-based nutraceuticals. —Oil to top $120 a barrel, and with that a much … Continue reading “Five Innovations to Look For in Algae Biofuels”
Rib-X Wrappes Up $20M, Oxford Closes $66M on Sixth Fund, Ocular Adds $6M, & More Boston-Area Life Sciences News
The big Nor’easter this week didn’t get in the way of big news from New England’s life sciences firms. —Civitas Therapeutics, a startup operating out of Alkermes’ (NASDAQ: [[ticker:ALKS]]) leased facility in Chelsea, MA, is working to commercialize inhaled drug delivery from Waltham, MA-based Alkermes. The firm has about $20 million in first-round funding to … Continue reading “Rib-X Wrappes Up $20M, Oxford Closes $66M on Sixth Fund, Ocular Adds $6M, & More Boston-Area Life Sciences News”
ShareSquare Receives $150,000 New Funding Round
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=4c543ad0-d162-4aff-be6e-af43be5e5175&Preview=1 Date 1/14/2011 Company Name ShareSquare Mailing Address Undisclosed Los Angeles, CA 90049 Company Description The company operates a service that allows businesses to connect their real-world promotions, advertising and collateral to rich media content and calls to action on mobile. Website http://www.getsharesquare.com Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount $150,000 Transaction Round … Continue reading “ShareSquare Receives $150,000 New Funding Round”
Milewise Lands $1,500,000 New Financing Round
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=bb0f231a-f82a-4950-ab41-6de9d567e9f2&Preview=1 Date 1/14/2011 Company Name Milewise Mailing Address 301 Elizabeth St. New York, NY 10012 Company Description The company operates a website and service that helps people cash in on their reward program points. Website http://www.milewise.com Transaction Type Debt Transaction Amount $1,500,000 Transaction Round Undisclosed Proceeds Purposes Proceeds purposes were not disclosed. … Continue reading “Milewise Lands $1,500,000 New Financing Round”
Dendreon Seeks $500M Debt Deal
Dendreon, the Seattle-based maker of an immune-boosting therapy for prostate cancer, said today it plans to raise $500 million in a convertible debt financing. The company (NASDAQ: [[ticker:DNDN]]) said it plans to use the money to seek approval of sipuleucel-T (Provenge) in Europe, build a factory in Europe, continue investing in its U.S. manufacturing plants, … Continue reading “Dendreon Seeks $500M Debt Deal”
Travel Startup TripIt Acquired by Seattle’s Concur for As Much As $120 Million; Handsome Exit for Azure Capital
Redmond, WA-based Concur (NASDAQ: [[ticker:CNQR]]), a specialist in software that helps big companies control travel expenses, revealed today that it’s acquiring TripIt, a four-year-old San Francisco startup providing a virtual travel-assistant service for business travelers. TripIt’s free service allows travelers to create master itineraries that they can access from the Web or their mobile phones … Continue reading “Travel Startup TripIt Acquired by Seattle’s Concur for As Much As $120 Million; Handsome Exit for Azure Capital”
Mobile Madness 2011-Getting Down to Business
In our age of ubiquitous feature phones, smartphones, and tablets, the mobile revolution is now irreversible. But how are Internet entrepreneurs, application developers, and platform providers adapting to the new era? Which monetization strategies are really working? And how is it all changing the habits and expectations of consumers? Xconomy’s third annual spring mobile forum … Continue reading “Mobile Madness 2011-Getting Down to Business”
Ann Arbor Spark CFO Roundtable
This monthly event enables finance executives at area businesses to network and swap stories and advice on business challengers. Event details are here for this free morning meetup.
Commuter Conference & Tour of: Biotronik Microsystems Engineering Inc
The International Society of Pharmaceutical Engineering’s Northwest chapter is holding this event. Attendees will get a tour of the biomedical technology firm Biotronik Microsystems Engineering. Event details are here.
San Diego’s Quest to Fight the “Diabesity” Epidemic, Coming Jan. 27
California may have more than its share of fit and healthy people when you look at the public health stats, but it’s also ground zero for the fight against the closely related lifestyle epidemics that threaten to bankrupt our healthcare system—diabetes and obesity. Many of the most innovative ideas for fighting these conditions are emerging … Continue reading “San Diego’s Quest to Fight the “Diabesity” Epidemic, Coming Jan. 27″
Corensic, Concur, and Teradici: A Mini Tech Deals Roundup
Lots going on in the Northwest tech scene today (though not as much snow as in New England, let me tell you). Let’s get right to it: —Concur (NASDAQ: [[ticker:CNCR]]), the Redmond, WA-based travel and expense management software company, said today it has agreed to buy TripIt, a mobile travel firm based in San Francisco, … Continue reading “Corensic, Concur, and Teradici: A Mini Tech Deals Roundup”
Mercury Acquires LNX
Chelmsford, MA-based IT firm Mercury Computer Systems said yesterday that it bought LNX, a provider of receiver systems for intelligence technology. Mercury (NASDAQ: [[ticker:MRCY]]) paid $31 million in cash for the Salem, NH-based company, and could pay up to an additional $5 million if LNX hits certain financial targets in 2011 and 2012, according to … Continue reading “Mercury Acquires LNX”
Strava Gets $3.5M for Cycling Tool
San Francisco-based Strava said today that it has collected $3.5 million in new venture funding to continue development of its GPS tracking software for avid cyclists. Sigma Partners led the round. Strava’s software works on a variety of Garmin GPS devices, and users can also upload tracking data collected on their iPhones to Strava’s website, … Continue reading “Strava Gets $3.5M for Cycling Tool”
New Models for Investing in Innovation
In November 2010 as part of my interview about entrepreneurs and Customer Development, the Shoshin Project also asked me about my thoughts on investing in innovation. They wanted some words of wisdom for their investment bank and hedge fund customers. This falls into the “Asking someone who was handy versus knowledgeable” category. (I was an … Continue reading “New Models for Investing in Innovation”
Valero Energy Takes Key Role in Mascoma’s Michigan Ethanol Project
Lebanon, NH-based Mascoma has found a key piece of funding for a commercial-scale ethanol plant in northern Michigan. The oil firm Valero Energy has inked a non-binding agreement to invest up to $50 million to fund construction of a refinery that would use wood-based materials to make ethanol. Frontier Renewable Resources, a joint venture of … Continue reading “Valero Energy Takes Key Role in Mascoma’s Michigan Ethanol Project”
Illumina Launches Desktop Gene Sequencer, Avalon Raises $200M for Ninth Fund, Quidel Offering Raises Capital for New Strategy, & More San Diego Life Sciences News
Many life sciences executives have been making announcements timed to the annual J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference in San Francisco this week, so we have plenty of biotech news to round up. —A race among genetic device companies is dramatically lowering costs and accelerating the speed of sequencing complete human genomes. San Diego-based Illumina (NASDAQ: [[ticker:ILMN]]) … Continue reading “Illumina Launches Desktop Gene Sequencer, Avalon Raises $200M for Ninth Fund, Quidel Offering Raises Capital for New Strategy, & More San Diego Life Sciences News”
Cell Therapeutics Snags $25M
Seattle-based Cell Therapeutics (NASDAQ: [[ticker:CTIC]]) said today it has raised $25 million by granting preferred stock and warrants to a single institutional investor. The investor, whose name isn’t being disclosed, also obtained the right to buy more shares in the company for an additional $25 million at a future date. Cell Therapeutics, a cancer drug … Continue reading “Cell Therapeutics Snags $25M”
Biotech Startup Vet Daphne Zohar on PureTech, Follica, and Doing Rather Than Talking
If you’re a biotech entrepreneur, this might be the one week of the year when you hope to have the most interesting things to say about what you’re doing professionally. That’s because this is the week of the JP Morgan Health Care Conference in San Francisco, arguably the industry’s most important investor meeting. I knew … Continue reading “Biotech Startup Vet Daphne Zohar on PureTech, Follica, and Doing Rather Than Talking”
Five Predictions for Technology in 2011
Here are a few of my predictions for how 2011 will be remembered: 1. Passive television viewing starts a long slow slide to oblivion. Despite Google’s planned delay of its IPTV launch, 2011 will be the year where Internet Television hits the consumer market and a fundamental shift begins from passive to interactive TV viewing. … Continue reading “Five Predictions for Technology in 2011”
Dendreon’s European Plan, Williams Heads East, Allozyne Passes Clinical Trial, & More Seattle-Area Life Sciences News
Biotech leaders from around the country gathered this week at San Francisco’s Union Square, and it sure seemed like folks had a little more spring in their step than they did a year ago at this same get-together. We’ll just have to see whether the hope translates into good actions in the year ahead. —Seattle-based … Continue reading “Dendreon’s European Plan, Williams Heads East, Allozyne Passes Clinical Trial, & More Seattle-Area Life Sciences News”
U-M Grad Students Add Startup Company ReGenerate to School Duties
It began in 2009 as a project among University of Michigan graduate students to find alternative uses for food waste. Now it’s a company called ReGenerate Solutions, which might be one of the hottest new startups in Southeast Michigan. ReGenerate took the top prize for the student track of December’s Accelerate Michigan Innovation Competition—which was … Continue reading “U-M Grad Students Add Startup Company ReGenerate to School Duties”
December Surge of Internet Deals Carries Venture Capital to Two-Year High
A wave of Internet deals helped venture funding during the fourth quarter of 2010 reach a two-year high-water mark in both the number of deals and capital invested, according to CB Insights, a New York information and data services company tracking the innovation economy. Venture capital firms poured a total of more than $6.5 billion … Continue reading “December Surge of Internet Deals Carries Venture Capital to Two-Year High”
Root Wireless Secures $893,063 New Financing
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=af42fa4f-55c2-4377-976a-d0aeaf100281&Preview=1 Date 1/13/2011 Company Name Root Wireless Mailing Address 11000 NE 33rd Place Bellevue, WA 98004 Company Description Root Wireless provides a full spectrum of Root Coverage solutions for the wireless ecosystem to give customers the power to choose. No matter if, you are a publisher that needs industry-changing content, or a … Continue reading “Root Wireless Secures $893,063 New Financing”
CitizenGlobal Receives $4,584,990 New Funding
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=4172d0a7-b025-4d02-b723-19b02167ef89&Preview=1 Date 1/13/2011 Company Name CitizenGlobal Mailing Address 608 Hampton Dr. Venice, CA 90291 Company Description The company outrage they website and service that allows users to upload their news oriented film clips. Website http://www.Citizenglobal.com Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount $4,584,990 Transaction Round Undisclosed Proceeds Purposes Proceeds purposes were not disclosed. … Continue reading “CitizenGlobal Receives $4,584,990 New Funding”
Sococo Garners $4,211,131 New Round
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=95087fd0-c3f9-4705-a34f-3c153401165c&Preview=1 Date 1/13/2011 Company Name Sococo Mailing Address 650 Castro St. Mountain View, CA 94041 Company Description Sococo is a new mode of online communication. Sococo allows you to see where your people are and, with a simple click, connect to them with voice, chat, and multi-screen sharing. Website http://www.Sococo.com Transaction Type … Continue reading “Sococo Garners $4,211,131 New Round”
Concur Technologies Acquires TripIt for $120,000,000
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=aae519da-e671-4ff5-b2a3-11ed937e931d&Preview=1 Date 1/13/2011 Company Name TripIt Mailing Address 444 De Haro Street San Francisco, CA 94107 Company Description TripIt is an online service that helps travelers organize all their travel plans—no matter where they booked. To get started, travelers just forward their travel confirmation emails to [email protected]. TripIt processes these emails and … Continue reading “Concur Technologies Acquires TripIt for $120,000,000”
OnSwipe Secures $1,000,000 Series A Funding Round
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=5a981696-5e06-409f-81be-58a39bbee823&Preview=1 Date 1/13/2011 Company Name OnSwipe Mailing Address 841 Broadway, Eighth Floor New York, NY 10003 Company Description OnSwipe is a platform that makes it insanely easy for publishers of all sizes to make their content and advertising a beautiful experience on touch-enabled devices via Web browser. Website http://www.onswipe.com Transaction Type Venture … Continue reading “OnSwipe Secures $1,000,000 Series A Funding Round”
State Awards Global Health Grants
Washington state has awarded its two grants to support global health technologies. SIGN, a nonprofit in Richland, WA, and Israel-based CircMedTech each received grants worth $150,000 from the state’s new Global Health Technologies Competitiveness Fund. SIGN, which was profiled by Xconomy in September 2008, has developed technology to help doctors in developing countries properly fix … Continue reading “State Awards Global Health Grants”
NetApp, Novell, and Greylock Top List of Boston-San Francisco Tech Tidbits
What do Boston and the San Francisco Bay Area have in common today? Certainly not the weather. Tech news is a different story, though. We spotted a trio of headlines involving firms with a strong presence in both regions: —Sunnyvale, CA-based storage and data management firm NetApp (NASDAQ: [[ticker:NTAP]]) announced it is buying Akorri Networks of … Continue reading “NetApp, Novell, and Greylock Top List of Boston-San Francisco Tech Tidbits”
Microsoft’s Gus Weber Leaves to Become Entrepreneur In Residence at Dogpatch Labs
From one Kendall Square institution to another—that’s my take on this news, which is reverberating throughout the local startup community. Gus Weber, the business development and community relations manager at Microsoft’s New England Research & Development Center (N.E.R.D.), is leaving Microsoft this week to join Dogpatch Labs in Cambridge (run by Polaris Venture Partners) as … Continue reading “Microsoft’s Gus Weber Leaves to Become Entrepreneur In Residence at Dogpatch Labs”
Transaction Wireless Names New CEO
San Diego-based Transaction Wireless, which provides virtual and mobile gift cards, today named Doug Schneider as President and CEO. Schneider was previously the chief executive at Genea where he transformed a legacy building control system integration business into a leading, software-as-a-service (SaaS) smart building company, increasing sales by more than 42 percent. There was no … Continue reading “Transaction Wireless Names New CEO”
Ocular Therapeutix Adds $6M to C Round
Ocular Therapeutix, a Bedford, MA-based developer of therapies for the eye, has brought in an additional $6 million for its Series C round, which now totals $21 million, company co-founder and CEO Amar Sawhney confirmed via e-mail today. The SEC posted a record of the financing on its website today. The company, previously known as … Continue reading “Ocular Therapeutix Adds $6M to C Round”
BuyWithMe Hires New CEO
BuyWithMe, an online group-buying startup founded in Boston and based in New York, said today it has named Jim Crowley its new chief executive. Crowley, the former CEO of Turbine and chief operating officer of m-Qube, succeeds Cheryl Rosner, who stepped down in December. It’s a key hire for BuyWithMe as the company ramps up … Continue reading “BuyWithMe Hires New CEO”
Bump, With a Fresh $16 Million, Explores New Ways to Connect Mobile-Device Users—Q&A with David Lieb and Jake Mintz
As we reported Monday night, Mountain View, CA-based Bump Technologies got a big bump itself this week, in the form of a $16 million Series B funding round led by new investor Andreessen Horowitz. Bump is famous for building iOS and Android apps that let mobile-device users share files by literally bumping their devices against … Continue reading “Bump, With a Fresh $16 Million, Explores New Ways to Connect Mobile-Device Users—Q&A with David Lieb and Jake Mintz”
Baynote Brings in $13M
Baynote, a San Jose, CA-based maker of Web-based software for digital marketing and e-commerce applications, announced it has wrapped up a $13 million Series C financing, led by SingTel Innov8, the corporate venture arm of Asian telecommunications company SingTel Group. Previous Baynote investors Hummer Winblad, Steamboat Ventures and JK&B Capital returned for the funding round, … Continue reading “Baynote Brings in $13M”
Formspring Collects $11.5M
San Francisco-based Formspring, part of a small crop of Web-based question-and-answer services that has grown up over the past two years, said today that it has raised $11.5 million in Series A funding. Redpoint Ventures led the round, which was joined by Baseline Ventures and individual investors. The company’s service prompts users to share information … Continue reading “Formspring Collects $11.5M”
Women Health & Wellness Technology
This event will take a look at how technology both boosts wellness and opens up career opportunities for women. Event speakers come from Brigham & Women’s Hospital, Healthrageous, and Hitachi Data Systems.
Two Thermo Fisher Units on Block, Bloomberg Reports
Waltham, MA-based Thermo Fisher Scientific (NYSE:[[ticker:TMO]]), a major provider of lab instruments and services, aims to sell two of its lab test businesses in deals that could bring the firm in the neighborhood of $1 billion, Bloomberg News reported today, citing three anonymous sources. The two Thermo businesses on the block include Worcester, MA-based Athena … Continue reading “Two Thermo Fisher Units on Block, Bloomberg Reports”
615 Human Genomes? Another Cheap, Fast Sequencing Machine? Complete Genomics, Illumina Steal Show at Healthcare Meeting
Most of the major life sciences reporters in the U.S. are gathered this week in San Francisco, so you know what that means—most of us missed the big story. While pretty much everyone here at the JP Morgan Healthcare Conference—me included—was listening and learning about the latest hot new drug or device, the real news … Continue reading “615 Human Genomes? Another Cheap, Fast Sequencing Machine? Complete Genomics, Illumina Steal Show at Healthcare Meeting”
$12.7M Blows in for Wind Power Holdings, Epizyme Forges Alliance with GlaxoSmithKline, & Many More Boston-Area Deals
Dealmaking activity in New England’s tech and life sciences sectors continued at a blizzardy pace this week. Hold on to your hat… —Marlborough, MA-based biofuels developer Qteros raised $22 million from new and existing investors in the first tranche of a Series C financing. —IT services provider MindShift Technologies of Waltham, MA, acquired Alpheon, a … Continue reading “$12.7M Blows in for Wind Power Holdings, Epizyme Forges Alliance with GlaxoSmithKline, & Many More Boston-Area Deals”
Highland’s Graham Gardner Takes New Shot at Health IT Startup with Kyruus
Boston has a new health IT startup in its midst. Kyruus has quietly formed in the hub and, according to its website, brings “transparency, credibility, and efficiency to physician-industry engagements.” The startup’s co-founders include Graham Gardner, a principal at Highland Capital Partners in Lexington, MA, and Julie Yoo, an early employee of one of Gardner’s … Continue reading “Highland’s Graham Gardner Takes New Shot at Health IT Startup with Kyruus”
Venture Capital Outlook for 2011
Kate Mitchell of Scale Venture Partners, Peter Solvik of Sigma Partners, Bill Tai of Charles River Ventures, and Aaron Gershenberg of SVB Capital will discuss the venture industry and their outlook for 2011. The San Diego Venture Group has organized this breakfast meeting to learn about the market segments that are attracting the most capital, … Continue reading “Venture Capital Outlook for 2011”
Procopio’s Winning Strategies for Start-Up and Emerging Growth Companies
A full-day workshop developed by Procopio’s emerging growth and technology practice group for entrepreneurs. The session covers company formation, organizational, and founder issues; whether to hire employees or consultants; equity compensation choices; developing a board of directors and advisory board; understanding the VC perspective; executing a funding strategy; the perils of raising capital with non-licensed … Continue reading “Procopio’s Winning Strategies for Start-Up and Emerging Growth Companies”
For Arbor Photonics, a Myriad of Reasons Not to Flee to the Coasts
When Phillip Amaya, CEO of Arbor Photonics, was first brought in to head up the advanced laser processing company, he said he had every intention of locating the start up in California. But Michigan’s aggressive approach to home-growing businesses and keeping them in the state changed Amaya’s mind. “The state came through to help us … Continue reading “For Arbor Photonics, a Myriad of Reasons Not to Flee to the Coasts”
Top Things to Look for in Wireless in 2011
1) 4G. 4G services will become available on a near nationwide basis in 2011. At its best (and what is called “4G” gets murkier every day), 4G offers a true mobile broadband experience. In order to be successful, 4G operators must have a comprehensive go-to-market strategy, with compelling devices, exciting and differentiated applications, and innovative … Continue reading “Top Things to Look for in Wireless in 2011”
SeeClickFix Lands New Financing
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=bc7a68bc-31b0-44d9-9c17-46a14a067426&Preview=1 Date 1/12/2011 Company Name SeeClickFix Mailing Address 746 Chapel St. New Haven, CT 06510 Company Description The company has developed an online service that makes it easy for individuals to report issues to their city government. Website http://www.seeclickfix.com Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount Undisclosed Transaction Round Undisclosed Proceeds Purposes Proceeds … Continue reading “SeeClickFix Lands New Financing”
Wind Power Holdings Garners $12,730,242 New Financing
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=882a2b66-13e5-4495-84f1-da1c76a23ba8&Preview=1 Date 1/12/2011 Company Name Wind Power Holdings Mailing Address 29 Pitman Road Barre, VT 05630 Company Description Northern Power (owned by Wind Power Holdings) has been delivering innovative wind energy solutions in a changing landscape for over 34 years. The company’s commitment to performance, reliability and cutting-edge technology has made it … Continue reading “Wind Power Holdings Garners $12,730,242 New Financing”
Ocular Therapeutix Receives $21,000,000 New Round
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=9b9ea9d6-6d64-40d6-b71c-fa095d8e4174&Preview=1 Date 1/12/2011 Company Name Ocular Therapeutix Mailing Address 36 Crosby Dr. Bedford, MA 01730 Company Description Ocular Therapeutix, Inc. is a privately held company focused on the development and commercialization of ophthalmic therapeutic products using its proprietary hydrogel technology to address unmet or underserved needs in ophthalmology and ophthalmic surgery. Website … Continue reading “Ocular Therapeutix Receives $21,000,000 New Round”
NetApp Acquires Akorri Networks for Undisclosed Sum
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=5f0920b6-6d97-4af9-93fe-fa9e98e1f079&Preview=1 Date 1/12/2011 Company Name Akorri Networks Mailing Address 305 Foster Street Littleton, MA 01460 Company Description Akorri is the first to enable IT organizations to intelligently balance application performance and infrastructure utilization. Akorri delivers sophisticated analytics software unifying the management of siloed infrastructure components. Website http://www.akorri.com Transaction Type M&A Transaction Amount … Continue reading “NetApp Acquires Akorri Networks for Undisclosed Sum”