Everyone wants to recapture pieces of the past these days. Facebook for example changed all profiles to the timeline format this year, and others in the social media space are pursuing ways of tracking the past. New York-based Timehop has developed its own technology to let individuals recall content from their personal histories, via once-day … Continue reading “Timehop Revives Old Memories from Facebook, Foursquare, and Twitter”
Tag: TechStars
Candid Advice for Founders as Kinect Accelerator Deadline Hits
Long hours, breakneck deadlines, high stakes, and conflicting advice—it’s all part of the package when entrepreneurs submit a few months of their life to an incubator program in hopes of creating the next big thing. Not surprisingly, some groups crumble under the pressure, says TechStars Seattle director Andy Sack. “The number one risk facing your … Continue reading “Candid Advice for Founders as Kinect Accelerator Deadline Hits”
San Diego Tech Roundup: Web Startups Heat Up, New Incubator Opens
We’re starting to see fresh signs of life among the Internet software startups in San Diego. Check out this news. —During a visit last week, TechStars CEO David Cohen talked with the leaders of San Diego’s grassroots Web startup community about the factors that help to create and sustain entrepreneurial communities. One crucial issue confronting … Continue reading “San Diego Tech Roundup: Web Startups Heat Up, New Incubator Opens”
7 Lessons from TechStars’ David Cohen on Building a Startup Culture
When it comes to tech startups—especially in Internet software and app development—San Diego has been adrift in the horse latitudes. That’s the term Spanish mariners had for the waters where the trade winds died out for days and even weeks at a time. Becalmed sailors desperate to gain some headway would heave their horses overboard … Continue reading “7 Lessons from TechStars’ David Cohen on Building a Startup Culture”
Examville, Coursekit, and Others Disrupt Learning to Get Ahead
New York is known as the home to some of the world’s biggest education publishers, such as Pearson and McGraw-Hill. Even Apple came to New York to make its big iPad textbook announcement two weeks ago. But what’s not as well known is that the city is also teeming with education technology startups—companies leveraging the Web, … Continue reading “Examville, Coursekit, and Others Disrupt Learning to Get Ahead”
Harvard Experiment Fund, Backed by NEA, Joins Crowded Investor Field
There’s a new player in the seed-stage investment game in Boston. As of this week, the Experiment Fund is open for business at Harvard University, backed by the Silicon Valley venture firm New Enterprise Associates (NEA). The startup investment fund is being hosted by Harvard’s School of Engineering and Applied Sciences in Cambridge, MA. The … Continue reading “Harvard Experiment Fund, Backed by NEA, Joins Crowded Investor Field”
San Diego Tech Roundup: Qualcomm, TechStars, Apps Challenge & More
—Peter Clarke of EE Times reported that San Diego’s Qualcomm (NASDAQ: [[ticker:QCOM]]) has acquired Andover, MA-based Pixtronix, a startup founded in 2005 to develop Microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) display technology. Qualcomm, which confirmed the deal with EE Times but provided no details or press release about the deal, reportedly spent between $175 million and $200 million … Continue reading “San Diego Tech Roundup: Qualcomm, TechStars, Apps Challenge & More”
Intrepid Labs: Boston’s Newest Co-Working Spot for Maturing Startups
Boston has no place for “serious, venture-backed startups” to grow from five employees to 25 employees, akin to San Francisco’s RocketSpace, or New York City’s General Assembly, says Mark Kasdorf. Enter Intrepid Labs, the co-working space he recently established in the former digs of another co-working space (Dogpatch Labs) at 222 Third Street near Kendall … Continue reading “Intrepid Labs: Boston’s Newest Co-Working Spot for Maturing Startups”
Meet the 13 New TechStars Boston Startups
The cool thing about TechStars is that it is often surprising. The startup accelerator and seed-stage investment firm, which runs programs in four cities around the U.S., announced its newest class of Boston entrepreneurs (the fourth so far) last night. And while I’ve heard of a couple of the startups, most of them are brand … Continue reading “Meet the 13 New TechStars Boston Startups”
Seattle Rewind: Ozzie’s Startup, Mobile Predictions, Big Questions
We’re back in the swing of things after the holidays, which means this is your first weekly rewind of the new year. Read on, especially if you were too busy catching up on e-mails and meetings to pay attention to the Seattle-area headlines the first time around: —Former Microsoft software chief Ray Ozzie resurfaced this … Continue reading “Seattle Rewind: Ozzie’s Startup, Mobile Predictions, Big Questions”
DailyWorth Gets $2M in Round Led by Joanne Wilson and Howard Lindzon
DailyWorth.com in New York, an online community and daily e-mail which offers women personal finance and career information, raised $2 million, according to a press release. Joanne Wilson and Howard Lindzon, the co-founder of StockTwits, led the round. Thus far DailyWorth has raised more than $3 million, which includes backing from angel investor group Robin Hood … Continue reading “DailyWorth Gets $2M in Round Led by Joanne Wilson and Howard Lindzon”
Seattle Deals: Ubermind, iCopyright, Vizify
—Consulting firm Deloitte has acquired Seattle mobile developer Ubermind, the companies announced Wednesday. Terms of the deal weren’t disclosed. Ubermind CEO Shehryar Khan and founder Donald Brady will join Deloitte Consulting as principals, according to Deloitte’s press release. On its blog, Ubermind says that Deloitte’s large footprint is a big opportunity for the smaller company, … Continue reading “Seattle Deals: Ubermind, iCopyright, Vizify”
TechStars NYC Alum Wantworthy Got A $860,000 Year-End Funding Boost
New York’s Wantworthy, an online fashion wish list, raised some $860,000 according to a regulatory filing. The company wants to raise about $1 million in total for the round. Wantworthy was among the graduates of the New York TechStars summer 2011 accelerator program. Wantworthy, founded in 2010, developed a platform that lets users create lists … Continue reading “TechStars NYC Alum Wantworthy Got A $860,000 Year-End Funding Boost”
Google Becomes Technology Partner with IncubateNYC Campaign in Harlem
Google has signed on as a technology partner with IncubateNYC’s campaign to establish a technology incubator in Harlem, says Marcus Mayo, co-founder of IncubateNYC. The group is competing to be chosen by the New York City Economic Development Corporation to fulfill a request for proposals for a new incubator to be established near 125th Street. … Continue reading “Google Becomes Technology Partner with IncubateNYC Campaign in Harlem”
How Not to Name a Startup: The Curse of the Camel Case
What’s in a tech startup name? More specifically, is there a correlation between the type of name a company has and its success? That’s a question every startup founder and investor should be interested in. Because if there is a correlation, then using a name-based strategy for picking winners would be, well, about as good … Continue reading “How Not to Name a Startup: The Curse of the Camel Case”
Scientists Morph Into Entrepreneurs Through NSF I-Corps Program
In a grand test of whether the Silicon Valley startup accelerator model can help university scientists get promising new technologies to market faster, 21 teams hand-picked for the National Science Foundation’s new Innovation Corps (I-Corps) program converged on the Stanford University campus last week. The goal: to review the progress they’d made during an eight-week … Continue reading “Scientists Morph Into Entrepreneurs Through NSF I-Corps Program”
Paul Allen, AT&T-Mo, Clearwire: Seattle’s Weekly Rewind
Billionaires in space! This week started out with a big announcement from Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen, who is bankrolling a new company that aims to make private spaceflight more routine by launching rockets from the belly of an airplane—the biggest one ever built. Allen said it’ll probably cost him 10 times the nearly $30 million … Continue reading “Paul Allen, AT&T-Mo, Clearwire: Seattle’s Weekly Rewind”
Mobile Startups Kinvey and Urban Airship Team Up, Share Stories
This is a tale of two CEOs whose reputations precede them. It is a short tale. The news today is that Cambridge, MA-based Kinvey and Portland, OR-based Urban Airship have formed a technology partnership involving mobile applications. Basically, Kinvey will handle the data back-end for mobile app developers whose apps reach end users through “push … Continue reading “Mobile Startups Kinvey and Urban Airship Team Up, Share Stories”
Decide, Avalara, Brad Feld: Pre-Turkey Gems from the Seattle Tech Scene
In a remarkable test of will, I’m going to avoid any Thanksgiving-related puns and just dive straight into this wrapup of the past week in Xconomy Seattle’s tech headlines, covering everything from Black Friday shopping apps to the latest rumblings of possible doom from a local wireless company. —The crew at Seattle startup Decide made … Continue reading “Decide, Avalara, Brad Feld: Pre-Turkey Gems from the Seattle Tech Scene”
PBS NewsHour Features Xconomy in Report on Startup Accelerators
In a segment featured Tuesday night on the PBS NewsHour, correspondent Hari Sreenivasan brings an outsider’s curiosity to the strange, wonderful world of startup accelerators. The eight-minute report features Sreenivasan’s interviews with entrepreneurs and mentors at TechStars, AngelPad, and Y Combinator—archetypes of the venture incubator wave (or is it a bubble?) that we’ve been chronicling … Continue reading “PBS NewsHour Features Xconomy in Report on Startup Accelerators”
Brad Feld’s Startup Advice: Your Company Is Your Product; Get People to Do the Right Thing
“You will have meltdowns on a regular basis. You will have those moments. Make sure you have people you can talk to when you have those moments.” That was Brad Feld, the tech entrepreneur-turned-venture-capitalist, on Friday afternoon, speaking to a room of Boston and New York entrepreneurs and angel investors, at an event organized by … Continue reading “Brad Feld’s Startup Advice: Your Company Is Your Product; Get People to Do the Right Thing”
TechStars Demos, Real CEO, Zillow Earnings: Wrapping Up a Week in Seattle Tech Headlines
The biggest story of the past week on the Seattle tech innovation beat was surely the Demo Day for TechStars Seattle, the second-ever class of entrepreneurs to graduate from the bootcamp program in the Emerald City. Hundreds packed the venue to see the pitches, and were treated to some really solid and exciting pitches from … Continue reading “TechStars Demos, Real CEO, Zillow Earnings: Wrapping Up a Week in Seattle Tech Headlines”
TechStars Honchos David Cohen & Andy Sack: The Post-Demo Day Download
If you want a glimpse at the leading edge of tech startups, TechStars Demo Day is a fine place to go prospecting. In just 60 minutes of total pitch time, you’ve got a damn good idea of the industries, customers, ideas, and technologies that top entrepreneurs and investors think are ripe for innovation. And the … Continue reading “TechStars Honchos David Cohen & Andy Sack: The Post-Demo Day Download”
TechStars Seattle Demos: One Room, 10 Startups, Tons of Potential
David Cohen has seen this movie before. As the founder and CEO of TechStars, he knows that the first year in any city is about building community, making impressions, and proving the model. Then things get turned up a notch. “Year one is a lot of excitement, the town really supports it,” Cohen said. “People come … Continue reading “TechStars Seattle Demos: One Room, 10 Startups, Tons of Potential”
Infographic: College or Incubator for Startup Founders?
[Updated 11/4 at 2:30 pm] Not everyone can be a Gates, Allen, Jobs, or Zuckerberg—founders who dropped out of college and went on to change the technology industry by starting landmark companies. But there are more options available for budding entrepreneurs these days, most notably the explosion of incubators, accelerators, and other startup nurseries that … Continue reading “Infographic: College or Incubator for Startup Founders?”
Top 10 Highlights From UnConference: Boston’s Big Data Cluster, Content Vs. Commerce & More
This year’s MassTLC Innovation UnConference, in Boston on Friday, was as overwhelming—and inspiring—as ever. Apart from the “secrets of scaling startups” session, which I recapped in a separate story, there was a lot going on. Far too much for any one person to take in. There were sessions on picking the right startup accelerator; building … Continue reading “Top 10 Highlights From UnConference: Boston’s Big Data Cluster, Content Vs. Commerce & More”
Bizdom U: Transforming Detroit’s Brain Economy
Bizdom U, the Detroit incubator backed by Dan Gilbert, will now be nurturing even more local entrepreneurs thanks to a change in its business model. Starting with the fall session, which began on October 17, Bizdom switched to a model similar to that of TechStars or Y Combinator: After undergoing a rigorous screening, 30 startups … Continue reading “Bizdom U: Transforming Detroit’s Brain Economy”
NYC TechStars Holds Demo Day for Startups from Its Summer Program
On a drizzly Tuesday morning in New York’s Chelsea neighborhood, the twelve graduates from the New York TechStars summer program took the stage to pitch their companies to investors and mentors. Though many of the startups hail from the city, some came from as far as Venezuela to participate in the New York branch of … Continue reading “NYC TechStars Holds Demo Day for Startups from Its Summer Program”
Ginger.io Raises $1.7M for Mobile Health IT, Rides Wave of MIT Media Lab Startups Trying to Understand People
First of all, the name is Ginger.io, not Gingerd. The latter is how the company was incorporated; but the former is its real name. And real is what Ginger.io is becoming. Since graduating with the most recent class of TechStars Boston startups, the MIT Media Lab spinoff (from professor Sandy Pentland’s research group) has been … Continue reading “Ginger.io Raises $1.7M for Mobile Health IT, Rides Wave of MIT Media Lab Startups Trying to Understand People”
Entrepreneurs Roundtable Joins Clan of NYC Tech Incubators, Graduates First Class of Startups
When Entrepreneurs Roundtable started up in New York four years ago, its mission was to offer networking opportunities and monthly pitch events, where startup execs could describe their ideas to potential financiers. A couple of years later, the tech scene exploded in New York, and entrepreneurs were hungering for more, says Jonathan Axelrod, a serial … Continue reading “Entrepreneurs Roundtable Joins Clan of NYC Tech Incubators, Graduates First Class of Startups”
Mayor Bloomberg Announces New Advisory Council on Technology at NY Tech Meetup
Tuesday night’s NY Tech Meetup took on a new spin when a special guest took the stage. Though it was interesting to spot David Tisch of TechStars in the audience, what was most notable was that Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg spoke at the monthly gathering of local technology entrepreneurs and innovators for the first time … Continue reading “Mayor Bloomberg Announces New Advisory Council on Technology at NY Tech Meetup”
Help Scout Lands $435,000 Seed Round
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=0b2a83e4-dfd6-485b-86f2-8f476e4f254a&Preview=1 Date 10/8/2011 Company Name Help Scout Mailing Address 500 Harrison Ave Boston, MA 02118 Company Description Help Scout is completely invisible to your customers. Every email looks just like a personal email thread. Even for a big company with 100 agents, your customers get a personal response from a real person … Continue reading “Help Scout Lands $435,000 Seed Round”
Blueprint Health, New Incubator in NYC, Looks to Nurture Health IT Startups
When Brad Weinberg started up his first company, ShapeUp, in 2006, incubator programs like TechStars and Y Combinator were barely off the ground. So Weinberg and his colleagues were left pretty much on their own to develop their software platform, which combines social networking, gaming, and financial incentives to promote wellness. The company has done … Continue reading “Blueprint Health, New Incubator in NYC, Looks to Nurture Health IT Startups”
TechStars Pins Down $24M, Visible Measures Gets $13M Series D, Yesware Announces Seed Funding, & More Boston-Area Deals News
The IT space accounted for most of the deal-making we tracked in New England over the last week. —Boulder, CO-based TechStars said it pulled in $24 million in new funding, which will go to giving each company in its startup incubator programs (in Boulder, Boston, Seattle, and New York) another $100,000 in the form of … Continue reading “TechStars Pins Down $24M, Visible Measures Gets $13M Series D, Yesware Announces Seed Funding, & More Boston-Area Deals News”
TechStars, Wetpaint, Intel: A 1-Minute Recap of Seattle Tech Headlines
—TechStars has upped its game in the incubator wars by adding a $24 million fund that will help it offer startups in the competitive program another $100,000 in financing, on top of the small stipends that founders get for the 12-week entrepreneurship bootcamp. The new money, which won’t take effect until next year’s classes, signals … Continue reading “TechStars, Wetpaint, Intel: A 1-Minute Recap of Seattle Tech Headlines”
This Week’s Xconomy Report for WGBH: Batteries, Incubators, Drugs & More
We’re a few weeks into our partnership with WGBH Radio to provide a weekly roundup of the week’s technology and innovation news and how it’s affecting the economy and other corners of our lives. This week’s Xconomy Report, read by WGBH’s Bob Seay, covered big cleantech and startup incubator financings, as well as deals for … Continue reading “This Week’s Xconomy Report for WGBH: Batteries, Incubators, Drugs & More”
TechStars Raises $24M More, Offers Each Startup $100K; Founder David Cohen Talks “Quality Over Quantity”
The early-stage tech accelerator business just got even more competitive. Boulder, CO-based TechStars, which runs seed-stage mentorship programs for startups in Boulder, Boston, Seattle, and New York, announced today it has raised a new $24 million fund from a long list of investors that includes Foundry Group, IA Ventures, Avalon Ventures, DFJ Mercury, SoftBank Capital, … Continue reading “TechStars Raises $24M More, Offers Each Startup $100K; Founder David Cohen Talks “Quality Over Quantity””
Jason Mendelson, the Elvis of Innovation, Offers Some Lessons for San Diego’s Tech Sector
I like you. Just maybe you’ve got a clue Meet my partners on a Monday, We’ll see if they can dig you too ‘Cuz I’m a VC, I’m a VC I drive around a Prius and meet over sushi I’m a VC. Uh-huh. Who are you? It takes more than PowerPoint slides to impress me … Continue reading “Jason Mendelson, the Elvis of Innovation, Offers Some Lessons for San Diego’s Tech Sector”
Xconomist of the Week: Reed Sturtevant of Lotus, Idealab, and Microsoft Fame Talks Tech Trends to Watch
You know the type. He’s at every tech startup event, every investor event, and every incubator and early-stage mentorship session (at least every good one). He’s talked to every entrepreneur in the area and has had a hand in the development of many of their companies. He has been a fixture of the local software … Continue reading “Xconomist of the Week: Reed Sturtevant of Lotus, Idealab, and Microsoft Fame Talks Tech Trends to Watch”
Giant Thinkwell Ditches Facebook Games, Dives into the “Live Web” with Flickmob
The Seattle startup that put hip-hop legend Sir Mix-a-Lot back in the national headlines is making a big shift. Giant Thinkwell, a member of the first Seattle TechStars class, has dropped its previous focus on making Facebook-based games for celebrities and is now digging into a new project called Flickmob. It’s still in a semi-private … Continue reading “Giant Thinkwell Ditches Facebook Games, Dives into the “Live Web” with Flickmob”
Who’s Hiring, Who’s Starting, and Who’s Dead: A Pre-Labor Day Roundup of Tech Tidbits
Here in Boston, September 1st brings about quite a bit of change: students migrating back into town, moving trucks and furniture in the streets, and street cleaners around my office (all cutting down on parking options, sorry to say). We’ve weathered Tropical Storm Irene and a roller-coaster stock market, felt the mild rumblings of an … Continue reading “Who’s Hiring, Who’s Starting, and Who’s Dead: A Pre-Labor Day Roundup of Tech Tidbits”
From Estonia to Boston: GrabCAD Looks to Play Big Role in New England’s Tech Future
There’s something about Estonia. Maybe it’s the Skype phenomenon—the Estonian-born company (now part of Microsoft) certainly helped create a strong culture of engineering there. But the Baltic nation of 1.4 million seems to have a greater concentration of engineers and technical talent than almost anyplace else. That’s probably an exaggeration, but at least one recent … Continue reading “From Estonia to Boston: GrabCAD Looks to Play Big Role in New England’s Tech Future”
MIT’s t=0 Festival to Include Hackathon, Startup Demos, Entrepreneur Speakers-Even a Bouncy House
MIT is looking to throw a party this September, but it’s not just all fun and games (more on that later). The innovation community has already been buzzing a bit about this one, called t=0. The idea for the festival is “to encourage students to start something that is big and world changing,” says Dharmishta … Continue reading “MIT’s t=0 Festival to Include Hackathon, Startup Demos, Entrepreneur Speakers-Even a Bouncy House”
There Is an Incubator Bubble—And It Will Pop
This week we published the third annual edition of the Xconomy Guide to Venture Incubators. It’s the only source we know of where U.S. entrepreneurs starting technology, life sciences, or energy companies can survey all of the early-stage mentoring and investment programs open to them in a single document. (You can buy the downloadable file … Continue reading “There Is an Incubator Bubble—And It Will Pop”
DreamIt Ventures Brings Its Startup Accelerator Program to New York
Making their debut within throwing distance of Radio City Music Hall, the first 14 startups to graduate from the New York version of the DreamIt Ventures accelerator program presented to investors on Wednesday. Demo day brought to a close three months of mentoring that helped these fledgling companies strengthen their plans. Now that they have … Continue reading “DreamIt Ventures Brings Its Startup Accelerator Program to New York”
Kinvey Closes $2M for Mobile Apps Backend
Kinvey, a mobile software startup (originally from Texas) that recently graduated from the TechStars Boston accelerator program, said today it has completed a $2 million seed financing round that was led by Atlas Venture. Avalon Ventures also participated in the round, along with Boston-area angel investors including Chris Lynch, Mike Baker, Jennifer Lum, Ty Danco, … Continue reading “Kinvey Closes $2M for Mobile Apps Backend”
Kendall Square Innovation Festival, t=0, to Feature Brad Feld, Mitch Kapor, and (Probably) Entrepreneurial Walk of Fame, September 16-18
What time is it? Time to start looking forward to September events in the Boston tech world. Xconomy has been hearing rumors about a big festival happening around Kendall Square next month. t=0, as it is being called, will kick off on the afternoon of September 16 and last through the 18th. We don’t have … Continue reading “Kendall Square Innovation Festival, t=0, to Feature Brad Feld, Mitch Kapor, and (Probably) Entrepreneurial Walk of Fame, September 16-18”
American Idol, Startup Style: TechStars Reality Show to Debut on Bloomberg TV
TechStars, the seed-stage investment and incubator program for entrepreneurs, announced today that it will be the subject of a series starting this fall on Bloomberg TV. The show, called “TechStars” (see trailer below), follows the inaugural New York program, which ran for three months earlier this year. The show will debut September 13. TechStars holds … Continue reading “American Idol, Startup Style: TechStars Reality Show to Debut on Bloomberg TV”
New York Angels Play Fast but Tough in the City’s Startup Scene
The New York Angels is a group of 61 individual investors who have invested more than $40 million in more than 70 startups ever since the group launched in 1997. The organization’s vice chairman is Brian Cohen, who himself has a long history of entrepreneurship—the lessons from which he tries to pass along to the … Continue reading “New York Angels Play Fast but Tough in the City’s Startup Scene”
XSITE 2011, TechStars Demo Day, the Bruins, and Coolio: 25 Things to Remember From Boston’s Hell Week
Ladies and gentlemen, after last week I hereby declare the end of high season for tech events in Boston. We’ve had our celebrations, drunk our grain, and talked our heads off. Now, before we start getting some things done around here, let’s reflect just a little more. The following took place during a 24-hour period … Continue reading “XSITE 2011, TechStars Demo Day, the Bruins, and Coolio: 25 Things to Remember From Boston’s Hell Week”