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Nervana’s $400M+ Buyout Reflects Key Tech Trend in Machine Learning

Xconomy

On the day after Intel announced its acquisition of San Diego machine learning startup Nervana Systems, investor Steve Jurvetson told me he was feeling a sense of satisfaction about a call he made three years ago, and how it has been playing out. In the 2-1/2 years since it was founded, Nervana raised roughly $25 million.

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Los Angeles-based ‘deep tech’ investment firm Riot Ventures is raising a $75M fund

TechCrunch LA

The firm has largely flown under the radar, but it has been investing in startups applying innovations in automation, artificial intelligence, computer vision, computational biology, material sciences and robotics to industrial products and processes for the past two years. Oculus, Snap, Tinder and others.

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Female Entrepreneurs, AI and Investing: A Chat With Meredith Finn, March Capital

socalTECH

The summit is now associated with March Capital Partners (www.marchcp.com). What's your role at March Capital? What's your role at March Capital? Meredith Finn: I joined March Capital at the beginning of the year. That carried through to March, where the big theme is Artificial Intelligence in the enterprise.

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The team behind Baidu’s first smart speaker is now using AI to make films

TechCrunch LA

Let AI write the script. Rct wants to take the experience to the next level by recruiting artificial intelligence for screenwriting. The startup is about to close its Series A funding round just months after banking seed money from Y Combinator and Chinese venture capital firm Skysaga , the startup told TechCrunch.

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What Did I Learn From the First VC Check I Ever Wrote?

Both Sides of the Table

Just as I was getting the swing of things the world shifted beneath my feet and the stock market went into a free fall and venture capital all but shut down for nearly a year. We not only have our Series A funds that can write $500k?—?$15 15 million first checks but we also have three growth funds. Over the past 2.5

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Microsoft Venture Fund Aims to Harness Early Stage Innovation

Xconomy

The name of the fund—which will back startups focused on cloud computing, machine learning, and security, with an emphasis on technology that complements Microsoft’s own products and services—is Microsoft Ventures. And at the other end is where you’ll typically see our larger investments and acquisitions,” Kashyap writes.

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Interview with Derek Norton, Watertower Ventures

socalTECH

Earlier this week, Derek Norton , a long time advisor to the media, Internet, and technology industry in Los Angeles, announced a brand new venture capital fund called Watertower Ventures (www.watertowerventures.com). We sat down with Derek to learn more about the new $5M fund and what it's all about. Tell us about the new fund?

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