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Illumina Accelerator Backs Seven Startups

socalTECH

San Diego-based life sciences giant Illumina says it has made investments in seven startups, as part of its accelerator program, the Illumina Accelerator. The company said that the investments were made as part of two different programs, the Illumina Accelerator Cambridge, UK, and the Illumina Accelerator San Francisco Bay Area.

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Southern California needs to find its hub for it to develop its own tech ecosystem

TechCrunch LA

We’ve also seen a substantial inflow of venture capital from all over the world.”. Caltech generates more patents than any other university while UCLA boasts more startups founded by its graduate than any other school in the nation. In fact, as is well-reported, the luster of Silicon Valley is fading.

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Interview with Steve Poizner, Alliance for Southern California Innovation

socalTECH

My last company got acquired by Qualcomm, and Qualcomm wanted me to move to San Diego to run their emerging business portfolio. I then became and EIR at UC San Diego, and joined EvoNexus, the not-for-profit incubator run by the Irvine Company. As you know, Silicon Valley has a locker grip on the venture capital community.

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Okapi Ventures Gets First Portfolio Exit In Helixis

socalTECH

Laguna Beach-based venture capital firm Okapi Ventures , which is run by Sharon Stevenson and Marc Averitt , has seen its first portfolio exit, in Carlsbad-based Helixis. San Diego-based Illumina announced its acquisition of Helixis yesterday, saying it would pay $105M for the firm.

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Cisco to Pay $660M for Luxtera, Maker of Advanced Data Center Chips

Xconomy

Cisco has agreed to pay $660 million for Luxtera, a Caltech spinout that makes optical chips for data centers. The semiconductor company, founded in 2001, is based in Carlsbad, CA, a San Diego suburb.

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Initiative to Boost SoCal’s Startup Scene Teams With GV Founder

Xconomy

A Silicon Valley entrepreneur has set out to boost the startup ecosystem in San Diego and the rest of Southern California—and he already has scored a coup by partnering with Bill Maris, the founder and former CEO of Google Ventures, now known as GV. Read more » Reprints | Share: UNDERWRITERS AND PARTNERS.

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Westlake Bio Unveils $320M Fund to Put Los Angeles on the Biotech Map

Xconomy

Los Angeles has long been in San Francisco’s shadow when it comes to life sciences investment. But a new venture capital firm led by industry veterans is trying to cast the City of Angels in a new light. Westlake Village BioPartners is launching today with $350 million in committed capital.