Sat.Sep 13, 2014 - Fri.Sep 19, 2014

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Bad Notes on Venture Capital

Both Sides of the Table

'This week. On the phone … Me: So, you raised venture capital? Him: Yeah. We raised a seed round. About $1 million. Me: At what price? Him: It wasn’t priced. We raised a convertible note. Me: With a cap? Him: Yes, $8 million. Me: Ah. I see. So you did raise with a price. It’s just a maximum price. You’ll find out the minimum when the next round is raised.

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Agent Ace: Using Algorithms To Help You Find A Real Estate Agent

socalTECH

'In the age old world of real estate, it''s often referrals, friends, door to door visits, and sometimes shopping carts which help connect home buyers and sellers with local real estate agents. However, Los Angeles-based Agent Ace (www.agentace.com) thinks is has a much better way to find the best real estate agent for you: software algorithms. We spoke with Mazen Fawaz , founder and CEO of the startup, to learn why the company thinks it can do a much better job of finding you a real estate agen

Help 258
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Embrace the right to pivot!

Berkonomics

'Plans don’t often work as devised. We are not always smart about the market or the product. Great teams are not bound by their original product or marketing plan. Greatness finds one definition in management’s ability to “pivot,” or change the plan in reaction to its early response from the marketplace. Investors celebrate teams that quickly find the flaws in the original plan and reallocate resources in another direction before more wasted effort.

Class 176
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iOS 9 iPhone 7 Wish List

Eric Greenspan

'iOS 9 iPhone 7 Wish List. My iOS 8 iPhone 6 Wish List is here. I didn’t get what I wanted. Here is my iOS 9 wish list for 2015: 1. I want to be able to choose a folder when I download apps. Enough trying to find the app and dragging it over several pages to the right folder. iOS 9, it’s time! 2. I’d love it if I had the option to sync my iPhone in iOS 9 and iPad desktops and layouts.

Screening 146
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Can You Ask for Office Rent Relief? How to Manage Your Lease During COVID-19

Office leases are one of companies’ largest expenses, and if your whole team is working from home with no clear end in sight, you may be wondering what to do about your lease.

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Here’s How to Cancel a Meeting the Right Way

Both Sides of the Table

'I wrote a version of this post four years ago but given the hectic nature of today’s tech markets I thought it was worth revisiting and updating. Canceling meetings is a part of modern day life. I seem to get so over programmed that if I ever want to have a “break-out” unplanned trip somewhere I seem to have to reschedule meetings.

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Driving User Engagement With FEM's Video Recommendations

socalTECH

'Can software algorithms help drive more user engagement and video views for publishers? According to Los Angeles-based FEM (fem-inc.com), video recommendations can make a significant difference in how long a user spends on a website or app. Rachel Payne , the CEO and one of the co-founders of FEM, is a veteran of Google, and is taking her experience there and applying it into the video recommendations and engagement area.

Google 233

More Trending

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TZ Tech Crawl | Social Media Week LA Edition

Tech Zulu Event

'TZ Tech Crawl is back and teaming up with Social Media Week Los Angeles! !! Come take a tour of some of the hottest LA Tech companies located in Santa Monica. Why not stop by for a quick beer, game, snack or just say hi at one of the many Silicon Beach tech companies from 6pm to 10:30pm? Have a free beer or beverage, drop off a resume, see the office space or just kick back.

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Why We’re Looking to Fund Stuff With More Meaning

Both Sides of the Table

'Venture Capital is a tricky industry. If you’re funding the same stuff as everybody else and if you started your activities when the clues were obvious you’re much less likely to drive enormous returns. When Fred Wilson funded Twitter I guarantee you it wasn’t obvious that it was a billion dollar idea. Far from it. Many questioned whether it could survive under the fail whale, inevitable competition from Facebook, founder fighting, fights with 3rd-party developers let alone be

Funding 362
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University of California Plans $250M Venture Capital Fund

socalTECH

'Startups related to the many University of California campuses in Southern California may soon have a new source of funding: The University of California itself, via a new, $250M venture capital. According to UC President Janet Napolitano, the UC Board of Regents is voting this week on approving the $250M fund, UC Ventures , which is expected to launch in 2015.

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7 Reasons To Think Positively About Competition

Startup Professionals Musings

'Most entrepreneurs spend far too much time thinking negatively about competitors, and can’t resist making derogatory statements about them to their own team, investors and even to customers. This approach only makes these important constituents question your integrity, intelligence and your understanding of business basics. Pointing out flaws in others does not give you strength.

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Break Out From The Comfort Zone | Networking For Designers

Tech Zulu Event

'Most designers, at least the ones I know, hate to network and rarely do it. The key to networking in the tech world is you do not need to be the best in the world, you just need to be passionate, willing to learn and in a lot of cases be the best designer or developer that people know. Reach out to people you want to meet. If you looking for employment at a company or just wanting to expand your connections, don’t be afraid to email or tweet someone and see if they want to go for a coffee or a

Design 91
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The Curse of a Modest Exit

Steve Reich

'You hear about extreme outcomes all the time—the huge exit or a company shutting down. Recently, I got to observe a much more rare event: a company exiting at a modest valuation. The impact on both the team and investors was illuminating. The company in question built mobile apps for a particular sport, and had 3 million downloads with nearly 2 million active users.

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Gem Gets $2M For Bitcoin API

socalTECH

'Venice, California-based Bitcoin startup Gem has raised $2M, to make Bitcoin easier to use for developers, the company said this week. According to Gem, the seed funding came was led by First Round Capital and Tekton Ventures and also included RRE Ventures, MESA+, Amplify.LA, Birchmere Labs, Idealab, ECEG, Partners, Baroda Ventures, Wavemaker Labs, Bitcoin Shop, Inc., Crypto Currency Partners, QED Associates, and Angel investor James Joaquin.

Idealab 180
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Entrepreneurial Leadership Can Save Any Business

Startup Professionals Musings

'One of the realities of being an entrepreneur is that you have to keep learning and changing to survive. Everyone on the startup team knows there is no buffer, and no personal isolation from impact based on your job description that can save you. Thus everyone has to make sure they are focusing on what is important, and making leadership decisions to save the business.

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When VCs Play Defense

Both Sides of the Table

'Somehow the world seems to be spinning faster these days than just a few years ago. The frantic pace of technology cycles, the amount of tech news, the blogs, the conferences, the demo days, the announcements, the fundings, the IPOs. It’s exhausting. Perhaps unsustainable. It got me thinking about the advice that I often give to new VCs. For years I saw myself as the new guy in VC but then you wake up one day and realize that 50% of your peers have been doing it for less time than you and

Startup 317
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Forget Cash: What Will You Really Make At Your Startup?

InfoChachkie

'A version of this article previously appeared in the Wall Street Journal. I consistently remind my UC Santa Barbara startup students that for most people, money is not a sustaining motivator. They might start a venture with the money as a primary goal, but money alone generally isn''t an adequate catalyst. For this reason, I encourage my young entrepreneurs to fully understand what they will "make" at their venture, beyond monetary riches.

Startup 200
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Zadara Storage Gets Patent Award

socalTECH

'Irvine-based Zadara Storage , which develops technology for cloud-based storage services, reported that it has scored a U.S. Patent for its technology. The company said that it received US Patent 8,819,230 for a Virtual Private Storage Array service for cloud servers. The patent was filed on November 5, 2011, and names CEO Nelson Nahum, along with Yair Hershko, Yoav Ossia, Shyam Kaushik, Lev Vainblat, Alex Lyakas, Moshe Melnikov, and Vladamir Popovski as inventors.

Patents 174
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Dread Startup Problems Or Learn To Enjoy Challenges

Startup Professionals Musings

'If you can’t solve problems and enjoy it, you won’t make it as an entrepreneur. By definition, an entrepreneur is the first to undertake a given business, and firsts never happen without problems and people frustrations. The toughest problems are people problems, like personnel issues, but there are tough operational problems as well, such as vendor delays and quality surprises.

Startup 101
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Voice Authentication Meets Smart Homes

Tech Zulu Event

'Everything is getting “smart” these days. Basically every device you can think of out there can be connected to the web, stream music and play back videos, serve as a means of communication, etc… To that end, we’re now in a time when those same devices are being developed to become, well, smarter and take on tasks that were once only perceived to be the things of science fiction novels and movies.

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Mobolize's New App Reduces Data Plan Costs

socalTECH

'Los Angeles-based Mobolize , a startup developing software which caches data on your phone to reduce the amount of data transfer on your cell phones--reducing data plan costs--has released a new app for Android. According to the company, its app reduces mobile data usage by as much as 20 percent, helping users to avoid overage charges and data costs.

Mobile 173
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Metacloud Acquired By Cisco

socalTECH

'Pasadena-based Metacloud , the provider of Openstack-based, private cloud services, has been acquired by Cisco , Cisco announced Wednesday morning, to help bolster Cisco''s cloud infrastructure efforts. Financial terms of the buy were not disclosed. According to Cisco, Metacloud''s employees will join its Cloud Infrastructure and Managed Services organization.

Pasadena 168
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The First socalTECH 50: Where Are They Now?

socalTECH

'Last year, we compiled our first list of the socalTECH 50 : our attempt to pick fifty people here in Southern California''s technology industry who represent some of the best of what the region has to offer, and which we though people ought to keep an eye on. We''re doing that again this year, with the thought to highlight some of the people (not companies) here who are worth watching, wherever they are and whatever they are doing.

SoCalTech 166
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SpaceX To Transport Astronauts To Space

socalTECH

'Hawthorne-based SpaceX has been selected by NASA to help transport astronauts to space, the agency said Tuesday afternoon, in a move to return astronaut launches to American soil. According to NASA, both Boeing and SpaceX have been selected to deliver astronauts to the International Space Station. NASA Administrator Charles Bolden said in an announcement that the move will help end the nation''s sole reliance on Russia for delivering astronauts to space by 2017, and also help NASA focus on send

SpaceX 166
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JibJab Buys Make Believe Studios

socalTECH

'Los Angeles-based JibJab , the online greeting card company led by Evan and Gregg Spiridellis, has acquired Make Believe Studios , which runs a service called Hello Santa , which lets kids have live video calls with Santa Claus. Financial terms of the buy were not disclosed. Hello Santa''s service which runs only during the Christmas holiday--features Santa Claus talking with children via the Internet.

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Wallaby Extends To Firefox Browser

socalTECH

'Pasadena-based credit card optimization software developer Wallaby , which is led by Matthew Goldman, has extended its tools to yet another platform, saying this morning that it has launched a new extension for the Firefox web browser. Wallaby said the extension helps users figure out which credit card they ought to use when purchasing products online, using its credit card recommendation engine.

Pasadena 164
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Cornerstone OnDemand Foundation Launches New Nonprofit Site

socalTECH

'Santa Monica-based Cornerstone OnDemand Foundation , the nonprofit arm of talent management software developer Cornerstone OnDemand , said this morning that i thas launched a new online learning and social networking site for nonprofits. According to the group, its new NonprofitReady.org site provides professional development courses and training to nonprofit professionals, with a library of e-learning courses, videos, webinars, and more featuring organization and experts in the nonprofit secto

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One Step Closer To Mars For SpaceX

socalTECH

'The announcement Tuesday afternoon by NASA that Southern California private rocket and spacecraft developer SpaceX has been selected to help deliver astronauts to the International Space Station, helps move SpaceX one step closer to the ultimate goal: Mars. NASA said it selected SpaceX--along with Boeing--to help deliver astronauts to space, to end the sole reliance the nation currently has on Russia to deliver its astronauts to the International Space Station.

SpaceX 159
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Shuttlerock Raises $2.35M, Sets Up Shop In LA

socalTECH

'Shuttlerock , a New Zealand-based developer of marketing software which helps companies embed social media generated by their fans into their websites, has raised $2.35M in a Series A funding, and opened up its US headquarters in Los Angeles. ShuttleRock also said that it has named former ValueClick CEO James R. Zarley as its chairman of its board.

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Sidecar Finds $15M More To Expand Ridesharing Fight

socalTECH

'It looks like the peer-to-peer marketplace for rides in Los Angeles is about to get a lot hotter, as one of the companies competing in the market-- Sidecar said this morning that it has raised $15M more in funding. The company--which competes against such companies as Uber, Lyft, Flywheel, Taxi Magic, and others in region--said the funding came from Avalon Ventures, Union Square VEnturs, and new investor Sir Richard Branzon.

Avalon 153
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Heard Takes On Social Sharing, Networking

socalTECH

'Santa Monica-based Heard , a startup developing social sharing and networking software for iOS, Android, and the desktop said this week that it has launched a brand new "social exchange" software product aimed at letting people share and exchange content online. The company was co-founded by Dave Vronay (CEO) and Ruben Kleinman (CTO), who previously spent time at Netflix developing that company''s movie classification and matching system.

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BeLinked Mashes Up LinkedIn, Tinder For Dating

socalTECH

'What would happen if you mashed up the business centric world of LinkedIn, with the hot-dating action of Tinder? You''d get BeLinked , a new Los Angeles-based service which uses LinkedIn''s social graph to help connect you with dates. BeLinked, which is led by Max Fischer, said this week that it has launched a new iOS app which helps match people through LinkedIn, using that site''s extensive professional networking emphasis to better match potential dates.

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Docupace Gets Majority Investment

socalTECH

'Los Angeles-based Docupace Technologies , a provider of electronic processing technology aimed at the financial institutional and wealth management industry, said today that it has raised a round of funding from RCS Capital Corporation. The new investment gives RCS Capital a majority stake in Docupace. Financial details of the deal were not disclosed.

Invest 147
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BeautyCon Raises $5M

socalTECH

'Los Angeles-based BeautCon , which organizes conferences and runs a website focused on beauty and fashion as it intersects with online media, has raised $5M in a seed funding round. The funding came from Hearst Corp., Rachel Zoe Ventures, Queensbridge Venture Partners, and other angels. The company is led by Moj Mahdara. READ MORE>>.

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Unitas Global Names New CEO

socalTECH

'Los Angeles-based enterprise cloud provider Unitas Global said this morning that it has named Patrick Shutt as its new CEO. Shutt was the cofounder of Universal Access, and also co-founded 20/20 Technologies (now Global Capacity). Current CEO and founder Grant Kirkwood becomes Chief Technology and Strategy Officer. Unitas Global provides fully managed private cloud services to enterprises; the company''s backers include Azure Capital and MK Capital.

Outsource 147
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Insights and Opinions: The Curse of a Modest Exit

socalTECH

'For today''s Insights and Opinions article, we have an article from angel investor Steve Reich , who talks about the pros and cons of a modest exit in an investment. You hear about extreme outcomes all the timethe huge exit or a company shutting down. Recently, I got to observe a much more rare event: a company exiting at a modest valuation. The impact on both the team and investors was illuminating.

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NantBioScience Ties With University of Colorado

socalTECH

'Los Angeles-based NantBioScience , one of the companies out of the NantWorks family of companies founded by billionaire Dr. Patrick Soon-Shiong, said this morning that it has tied with the University of Colorado on developing a protein cancer fighting drug. According to NantBioScience, it is in a research collaboration and an exclusive worldwide licensing agreement with the University of Colorado for the development and commercialization of anti-cancer agents.

Research 147