What’s Next for Car Connectivity? Notes From the Future of GM’s OnStar

The only time I’ve visited General Motors’ OnStar operation, its bustling command center was out in Troy, MI, a long way from its current site at GM headquarters in downtown Detroit’s Renaissance Center. That was nine years and about four million subscribers ago (OnStar now has 5.7 million subscribers, compared to 1.7 million in 2001 … Continue reading “What’s Next for Car Connectivity? Notes From the Future of GM’s OnStar”

Second to Market isn’t Always Second Best

About a year ago, I had the opportunity to hear Paul English, the CTO and Co-Founder of Kayak.com, speak. In his chat, Paul focused a great deal on ruthless efficiency and excellent customer experience. He wowed the crowd with stories of answering his own customer service calls, getting feedback on Kayak’s new iPhone application from … Continue reading “Second to Market isn’t Always Second Best”

Startup Ligon Discovery Lands Bayer Schering for First Deal with Major Pharma

Ligon Discovery has its first large pharmaceutical partner, a big deal for any biotech but especially for a company that spun out of an academic lab just 16 months ago. Cambridge, MA-based Ligon is announcing today it has inked a deal with Germany-based drugmaker Bayer Schering Pharma. The deal calls for Ligon to use drug-screening … Continue reading “Startup Ligon Discovery Lands Bayer Schering for First Deal with Major Pharma”

PVT Solar Receives $13,700,000 Series B Funding

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=eaddbe60-5535-4cb5-a56a-3c26b27768ab&Preview=1 Date 9/29/2010 Company Name PVT Solar Mailing Address Undisclosed Berkeley, CA 94701 Company Description PVT Solar Inc. designs, manufactures, and markets the Echo solar system. Echo supplements conventional solar electric PV panels with a unique solar thermal technology that captures the heat from the PV panels. Website http://www.pvtsolar.com Transaction Type Venture … Continue reading “PVT Solar Receives $13,700,000 Series B Funding”

Redux Secures $1,000,000 New Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=887abaa5-d67a-4cc6-b056-575b5aa3b5a3&Preview=1 Date 9/29/2010 Company Name Redux Mailing Address 2030 Addison St Berkeley, CA 94704 Company Description Through our Relevance Index Engine, a curious set of features, and an experience that embraces the realities of the lifecycle of how people get to know each other, Redux provides a space where people can connect … Continue reading “Redux Secures $1,000,000 New Round”

Ongo Lands $12,000,000 Series A Funding

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=8ec9c05b-92b6-4df3-bad9-8e3d5260e8e7&Preview=1 Date 9/29/2010 Company Name Ongo Mailing Address Undisclosed Undisclosed, CA 94301 Company Description Ongo is developing a consumer focused news sharing service. Website Undisclosed Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount $12,000,000 Transaction Round Series A Proceeds Purposes Proceeds purposes were not disclosed. M&A Terms Venture Investor Gannett Co., Inc. Venture Investor … Continue reading “Ongo Lands $12,000,000 Series A Funding”

Continuity Engine Lands $750,000 New Funding

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=ee761f6d-2370-414b-b2c7-3b467c5d5dd2&Preview=1 Date 9/29/2010 Company Name Continuity Engine Mailing Address 150 Munson Street 25 Science Park at Yale New Haven, CT 06511 Company Description Software applications exist to help businesses with their big problems; like financial management, sales force automation and inventory. But in most businesses there are those other processes, the information … Continue reading “Continuity Engine Lands $750,000 New Funding”

Oggifinogi Secures $2,263,598 New Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=54cc708b-4ac7-478e-8c39-e37bc62f34cc&Preview=1 Date 9/29/2010 Company Name Oggifinogi Mailing Address 13256 NE 20th Street Bellevue, WA 98005 Company Description OggiFinogi delivers an incredibly interactive, highly engaging ad experience better and faster than any other company. OggiFinogi has re-defined rich media as we know it. This next generation technology delivers higher responses, customer interaction and … Continue reading “Oggifinogi Secures $2,263,598 New Round”

ADstruc Garners $1,100,000 Series A Financing Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=234cb8d2-8cb1-4360-bba1-0680bcc3072a&Preview=1 Date 9/29/2010 Company Name ADstruc Mailing Address P.O. Box 3486 New York, NY 10008 Company Description ADstruc is an online marketplace for outdoor advertising. We are an auction and listing-based platform that makes the process of buying and selling faster and more profitable. ADstruc encourages interaction on a much wider scale … Continue reading “ADstruc Garners $1,100,000 Series A Financing Round”

Pingpin Receives $775,000 New Funding Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=4415dc00-8d44-40d2-bf88-5e435ab1adf1&Preview=1 Date 9/29/2010 Company Name Pingpin Mailing Address 416 W. 13th Street New York, NY 10014 Company Description The company is an early-stage project headed by Jyri Engestrom, founder of Jaiku. Website Undisclosed Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount $775,000 Transaction Round Undisclosed Proceeds Purposes Proceeds purposes were not disclosed. SEC regulatory … Continue reading “Pingpin Receives $775,000 New Funding Round”

Puget Sound Venture Club 25th Anniversary Dinner

The Puget Sound Venture Club is celebrating its 25th anniversary with a dinner on October 6 at the Bellevue Club. Mark Anderson, the CEO of Strategic News Service, and David Giuliani, the CEO of Pacific Bioscience Labs, will be the featured guest speakers. For more information, click here.

Yes, You Can Build a Profitable Company in Today’s Environment: MIT Enterprise Forum of the Northwest

Jonathan Roberts, a partner and founder at Ignition Partners, and Stan Shull, the vice president of strategic alliances at Apptio (which recently closed a $16.5M funding round), will be the featured speakers at this MIT Enterprise Forum event on building profitable companies in today’s environment. For more information on how to register, click here.

Sanford-Burnham Gets $21M Grant

The Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute said today it has received a five-year grant renewal, worth more than $21 million through 2015, from the National Cancer Institute. The renewal represents a 21 percent budget increase over the prior grant, the institute said. “The significant budget increase we received is a tremendous honor and a reflection of … Continue reading “Sanford-Burnham Gets $21M Grant”

Calistoga Hires Public Company CFO

Seattle-based Calistoga Pharmaceuticals said today it has hired Andrew Guggenhime as its new chief financial officer. Guggenhime has an extensive network on Wall Street, after spending a decade as the chief financial officer of public biotech companies, including Facet Biotech (NASDAQ: [[ticker:FACT]]) and PDL Biopharma (NASDAQ: [[ticker:PDLI]]). Hiring a CFO with public company experience shouldn’t … Continue reading “Calistoga Hires Public Company CFO”

Zappos CEO Tony Hsieh on Selling to Amazon Vs. Microsoft, Fixing His Biggest Mistakes, and Why Harvard Entrepreneurs Go West

What do Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg, and Tony Hsieh have in common? That’s right, they all went to Harvard. And they have all run billion-dollar companies. Unlike Bill G. and Zuck, though, Hsieh actually graduated, in 1995. The CEO of Zappos, the Las Vegas-based online shoe retailer now owned by Amazon.com, was in Boston yesterday … Continue reading “Zappos CEO Tony Hsieh on Selling to Amazon Vs. Microsoft, Fixing His Biggest Mistakes, and Why Harvard Entrepreneurs Go West”

Cypress Bio Rejects Buyout Again, Calls Offer Opportunistic, Undervalued

[Updated 9/28/10 2:05 pm. See below.] There’s little surprise in the announcement today by San Diego’s Cypress Bioscience (NASDAQ: [[ticker:CYPB]]), which says its board of directors has “unanimously rejected” the slightly higher buyout offer that Ramius Value and Opportunity Advisors made two weeks ago. But Cypress is doing a far better job in explaining itself, … Continue reading “Cypress Bio Rejects Buyout Again, Calls Offer Opportunistic, Undervalued”

AEB Adds Ex-Evergreen CEO

Wilmington, MA-based startup Advanced Electron Beams announced today that it has hired as its new CEO Richard Feldt, who left his position as chief executive of Marlboro, MA-based Evergreen Solar late last week. Advanced Electron Beams is working on technology that uses high-speed electrons in industrial functions that traditionally require water, heat, or chemicals. Feldt … Continue reading “AEB Adds Ex-Evergreen CEO”

Permuto Mutates into Buysight

Palo Alto, CA-based Permuto, which runs an “intent-driven” advertising network that attempts to match online shoppers with appropriate ads, said today that it has changed its name to Buysight. The company also announced that it has raised $10 million in Series A financing from Onset Ventures, Rembrandt Venture Partners, and LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman. “We … Continue reading “Permuto Mutates into Buysight”

MIT Cancer Research Star Tyler Jacks Takes Closing Keynote Role at Xconomy Forum

We like to sweeten the pot around here, adding world-class speakers to our Xconomy Forums every chance we get. And today I’m psyched to announce that Tyler Jacks, a world-renowned scientist and director of the David H. Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research at MIT, will be joining us as the closing keynote speaker at … Continue reading “MIT Cancer Research Star Tyler Jacks Takes Closing Keynote Role at Xconomy Forum”

Andera Gets $9M from Edison

Providence, RI-based Andera, a provider of Internet software for banks and other financial groups to offer online account opening and funding to customers, has closed a $9 million financing led by Lawrenceville, VA-based Edison Venture Fund, according to the company. Andera, which now serves more than 425 financial institutions, said it plans to use the … Continue reading “Andera Gets $9M from Edison”

San Diego Report on Innovation Economy Still Shows Mixed Picture of Economic Recovery

The Connect Innovation Report is not exactly timely—the report on San Diego’s innovation economy for the second quarter that ended June 30th was released just yesterday. But the almost 40-page report offers a more comprehensive overview than the more immediate picture we get from venture capital investments in San Diego startups during the quarter. The … Continue reading “San Diego Report on Innovation Economy Still Shows Mixed Picture of Economic Recovery”

NextBio Finds Profit at Intersection Between Public and Private Genomic Data

Bioinformatics was a buzzword at the beginning of the genomic era about a decade ago, but it has become a dirty word today. It’s sort of like shorthand for a highly fragmented cottage industry that seeks to analyze biological data, in which no one seems to make money. But whatever you want to call it, … Continue reading “NextBio Finds Profit at Intersection Between Public and Private Genomic Data”

Episend, Almost A Year Old, Enables Interactive File Sharing In The Cloud

While managing the websites for the retail giant TJX, Richard DiBona encountered the pain of missing important files because they were too big to be sent through e-mail. “With email and attachments, there’s no way of knowing that it failed most of the time,” he says. “It goes into oblivion and you hope for the … Continue reading “Episend, Almost A Year Old, Enables Interactive File Sharing In The Cloud”

Verve Wireless Gets $7M in Round Led by BlueRun Ventures

Encinitas, CA-based Verve Wireless, whose technology lets newspapers and other media companies publish their content and serve ads across a variety of mobile devices, says today it has raised $7 million in venture funding led by BlueRun Ventures of Menlo Park, CA. The Associated Press news service, a previous investor in Verve, joined in the … Continue reading “Verve Wireless Gets $7M in Round Led by BlueRun Ventures”

ProNAi Therapeutics Advances Gene-Silencing Cancer Drug, Marina Biotech Provides Delivery Package

A quiet competitor in the gene-silencing game has surfaced with good news. Kalamazoo, MI-based ProNAi Therapeutics says that it’s started to treat cancer patients with its first experimental DNA interference drug, which is essentially made to specifically silence disease at the fundamental level of DNA. And the firm is relying on molecules from Bothell, WA-based … Continue reading “ProNAi Therapeutics Advances Gene-Silencing Cancer Drug, Marina Biotech Provides Delivery Package”

Box.net Creates “News Feed” for Business Documents in the Cloud, Takes On Microsoft in Collaborative Software

If you live or work in Silicon Valley, you’ve probably driven past the Box.net billboard on U.S. 101, near the Ralston Avenue exit (aka the Oracle exit). It says “No Hardware. No Software. No SharePoint.” A brazen dig at Microsoft, the billboard makes the point that Box.net’s system for sharing business documents works in the … Continue reading “Box.net Creates “News Feed” for Business Documents in the Cloud, Takes On Microsoft in Collaborative Software”

Bonanzle Changes Name to Bonanza, Verizon Wireless Partners with Ground Truth and Urban Airship, Brammo Nabs $12.5 M, and More Seattle-Area Deals News

Though there were only a handful of actual financing deals and partnerships for Northwest companies over the last week, the technology sector definitely made some strides toward laying the groundwork for future investment. Take a look at the highlights: —Seattle-based online marketplace for rare and out of the ordinary items, Bonanzle, changed its name to … Continue reading “Bonanzle Changes Name to Bonanza, Verizon Wireless Partners with Ground Truth and Urban Airship, Brammo Nabs $12.5 M, and More Seattle-Area Deals News”

Entropic Plans Stock Offering

San Diego’s Entropic Communications (NASDAQ [[ticker:ENTR]]), a fabless semiconductor design company focused on the market for home networking and entertainment, announced after the market closed Monday that it plans to offer 10 million shares of its stock in a public offering. The company says it intends to grant the underwriters a 30-day option to purchase … Continue reading “Entropic Plans Stock Offering”

Acceleron Weans Itself Off VC, Continues its Roll with Pharma Partner Dollars

Acceleron Pharma is in an enviable position among its biotech peers. Instead of relying on venture capital in a time when the VC well has been running dry, the Cambridge, MA-based firm has been supporting its operations primarily with cash from its pharmaceutical company partners. And now Acceleron has found prospects for additional deals with … Continue reading “Acceleron Weans Itself Off VC, Continues its Roll with Pharma Partner Dollars”

Andera Secures $9,000,000 New Financing Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=e4130390-4096-4795-bc4f-4287302c76d8&Preview=1 Date 9/28/2010 Company Name Andera Mailing Address 204 Westminster Street Providence, RI 02903 Company Description Andera is the #1 provider of online account opening and funding solutions in the U.S., serving more financial institution clients than any other vendor. Website http://www.andera.com Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount $9,000,000 Transaction Round Undisclosed … Continue reading “Andera Secures $9,000,000 New Financing Round”

PointCare Technologies Receives $1,765,594 New Funding Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=e2ed64cb-e960-443e-a8f4-5b4173bb3354&Preview=1 Date 9/28/2010 Company Name PointCare Technologies Mailing Address 181 Cedar Hill Street Marlborough, MA 01752 Company Description PointCare is a fully integrated company that invents, develops, manufactures and markets medical diagnostic products. Website http://www.pointcare.net Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount $1,765,594 Transaction Round Undisclosed Proceeds Purposes Proceeds purposes were not disclosed. … Continue reading “PointCare Technologies Receives $1,765,594 New Funding Round”

Revolution Prep Lands $15,000,000 New Funding

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=aff0be2b-5e6d-4358-8d86-2a12bf81bed8&Preview=1 Date 9/28/2010 Company Name Revolution Prep Mailing Address 710 Wilshire Blvd. Santa Monica, CA 90401 Company Description The company sells test preparation software. Website http://www.revolutionprep.com Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount $15,000,000 Transaction Round Undisclosed Proceeds Purposes Proceeds purposes were not disclosed. M&A Terms Venture Investor Kennet Partners Venture Investor Undisclosed

TigerText Receives $1,900,000 New Funding

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=a05a1e00-b3b0-410c-9eb9-4aa9154640dc&Preview=1 Date 9/28/2010 Company Name TigerText Mailing Address Undisclosed Los Angeles, CA 90040 Company Description TigerText’s patent-pending technology allows users to send text messages that delete off of both the sender’s and receiver’s phone after a set period of time. Website http://www.Tigertext.com Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount $1,900,000 Transaction Round Undisclosed … Continue reading “TigerText Receives $1,900,000 New Funding”

Verve Wireless Secures $7,000,000 New Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=f918698f-3a8c-44f4-a027-c05170b89e06&Preview=1 Date 9/28/2010 Company Name Verve Wireless Mailing Address 1010 S. Coast Highway 101 Encinitas, CA 92024 Company Description Verve is a wireless technology developer providing applications and services to publishers and media companies. Using the proprietary Verve Publishing Platform™, content partners are able to extend their readership onto mobile phones – … Continue reading “Verve Wireless Secures $7,000,000 New Round”

GEO Semiconductor Obtains $2,000,000 New Financing Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=3b85f7b5-6805-4f6f-bd5e-2d7294075229&Preview=1 Date 9/28/2010 Company Name GEO Semiconductor Mailing Address 2350 Mission College Blvd Santa Clara, CA 95054 Company Description Geo Semiconductor Inc. has acquired the assets related to two unique pixel processing platform technologies and the associated IC businesses from Silicon Optix. Both the Realta and GEO IC’s are in production. The … Continue reading “GEO Semiconductor Obtains $2,000,000 New Financing Round”

Retail Solutions Obtains $15,200,000 Series C Funding

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=3e7d3dbd-b684-4f90-ba30-5bd408b6e060&Preview=1 Date 9/28/2010 Company Name Retail Solutions Mailing Address 2440 W. El Camino Real Mountain View, CA 94040 Company Description The company has developed software that assists consumer packaged goods companies create value from operational downstream data. Website http://www.retailsolutions.com Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount $15,200,000 Transaction Round Series C Proceeds Purposes … Continue reading “Retail Solutions Obtains $15,200,000 Series C Funding”

Group Price Secures $305,000 New Funding Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=2b969064-5e28-45f5-b31c-61a30608f054&Preview=1 Date 9/28/2010 Company Name Group Price Mailing Address 1733 Woodside Road Redwood City, CA 94061 Company Description Group Price is a FREE, easy to use, Web-based, group buying service that quickly helps businesses like yours to find qualified business products and services at up to 60% discounts. Website http://www.groupprice.com Transaction Type … Continue reading “Group Price Secures $305,000 New Funding Round”

NetShelter Technology Media Receives $15,000,000 Series B Funding Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=b4236797-00c7-4611-8ee4-e53f423420cf&Preview=1 Date 9/28/2010 Company Name NetShelter Technology Media Mailing Address 128 King Street San Francisco, CA 94107 Company Description NetShelter Technology Media brings together a publisher network of over 150 tech content sites alongside owned-and-operated programs to offer marketers a highly integrated, customizable platform. Website http://www.netshelter.net Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount … Continue reading “NetShelter Technology Media Receives $15,000,000 Series B Funding Round”

Mechanology Garners $5,762,390 New Funding

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=b8059524-dc6c-4c72-83d6-4cf59a8965bb&Preview=1 Date 9/28/2010 Company Name Mechanology Mailing Address 64 Water Street Attleboro, MA 02703 Company Description Mechanology, Inc., is a recognized innovator in the field of compressors and expanders. Our positive displacement technology has been described as the first major innovation in compressors in over 30 years, and Mechanology’s technological developments have … Continue reading “Mechanology Garners $5,762,390 New Funding”

SenSage Receives $6,250,000 New Funding

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=d8660884-a5f3-4648-8dfb-73e9cc847970&Preview=1 Date 9/28/2010 Company Name SenSage Mailing Address 55 Hawthorne Street San Francisco, CA 94105 Company Description SenSage, Inc. offers the only patented solution for enterprise event management for log management, compliance auditing and security information management applications. Website http://www.sensage.com Transaction Type Debt, Venture Equity Transaction Amount $6,250,000 Transaction Round Undisclosed Proceeds … Continue reading “SenSage Receives $6,250,000 New Funding”

AOL Acquires Thing Labs for Undisclosed Sum

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=c7d2d029-a42b-4b19-8280-5bf2ff05d834&Preview=1 Date 9/28/2010 Company Name Thing Labs Mailing Address 10 Mint Plaza Floor 6 San Francisco, CA 94103 Company Description Thing Labs builds web-based software that makes it easy to create, share, explore and enjoy content. We make things that we like to use. We hope that you like them, too. Website … Continue reading “AOL Acquires Thing Labs for Undisclosed Sum”

AOL Acquires TechCrunch for Undisclosed Sum

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=888a7327-9859-49df-a2ed-f5c0d07b05c1&Preview=1 Date 9/28/2010 Company Name TechCrunch Mailing Address 410 Townsend St. San Francisco, CA 94107 Company Description TechCrunch, founded on June 11, 2005, is a weblog dedicated to obsessively profiling and reviewing new Internet products and companies. In addition to new companies, we will profile existing companies that are making an impact … Continue reading “AOL Acquires TechCrunch for Undisclosed Sum”

Phreesia Obtains $4,000,000 Series D Funding

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=2a209619-5941-40ae-a78b-73bf01307127&Preview=1 Date 9/28/2010 Company Name Phreesia Mailing Address 110 East 23rd Street New York, NY 10010 Company Description The company markets a patient education system for use in physician waiting rooms. Website http://www.phreesia.com Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount $4,000,000 Transaction Round Series D Proceeds Purposes This investment will enable Phreesia to … Continue reading “Phreesia Obtains $4,000,000 Series D Funding”

Milabra Garners $1,912,500 New Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=4d13559a-c814-4f5e-8b16-f276f5a195c8&Preview=1 Date 9/28/2010 Company Name Milabra Mailing Address 447 Broadway, 2nd Floor New York, NY 10013 Company Description Milabra is a pioneer in real-time online visual intelligence, with proprietary technology developed by leading MIT scientists in the pattern recognition field. Website http://www.milabra.com Transaction Type Debt Transaction Amount $1,912,500 Transaction Round Undisclosed Proceeds … Continue reading “Milabra Garners $1,912,500 New Round”

AOL Acquires 5min for Undisclosed Sum

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=df4d9b6d-0b3b-4dd1-a82a-86ee374bfd0f&Preview=1 Date 9/28/2010 Company Name 5min Mailing Address 10West 18th Street New York, NY 10013 Company Description 5min is a place to find short video solutions for practical questions and a place for people to share their knowledge. The idea behind 5min is very simple: any solution can be visually explained in … Continue reading “AOL Acquires 5min for Undisclosed Sum”