December, 2021

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SpaceX Acts to Launch Mars-Bound Rockets From Florida

L.A. Business Journal

Space Exploration Technologies Corp. commenced construction in Florida on a launchpad to send its Starship Mars rocket to the red planet.

SpaceX 246
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Papaya raises $50M to give you a way to pay bills via its mobile app

TechCrunch LA

Paying bills is hardly a fun thing. So I think it’s safe to say that any technology that can make the process easier is welcome by all. Papaya is a Los Angeles-based startup with a mission to do just that. It has developed technology to give people a way to pay bills outside of traditional methods, such as through the mail, over the phone or via a Web portal.

Mobile 208
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Transphorm Gets $12.9M In PIPE, Hopes For Uplisting On Nasdaq

socalTECH

Goleta-based gallium nitride (GaN) power conversion semiconductor developer Transphorm says it has received $12.9M in a private placement. The publicly traded company (OTC) said the funding came from MCM Investment Partners, as well as Boardman Bay Capital Management. The company said the investments come as a part of a plan to uplist its shares of common stock on the Nasdaq.

Invest 196
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My hard-earned lessons from negative exits.

Berkonomics

In my life as an early-stage investor, I’ve been closely involved with so many businesses, there were bound to be numerous stories of actual and near failures, hopefully from which to learn lessons for all of us as we go forward. The emotions we feel when “turning out the lights.”. Several times in my investing life, as the final board member making the arrangements to dispose of remaining assets, I have literally been the one to turn out the lights, carry out the documents, books and records t

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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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5 Practices For Developing A World-Class Startup Team

Startup Professionals Musings

It takes an effective team to attract and serve a community in business these days. With real-time online reviews and feedback via the Internet, and instant relationships via social media, a voice from the top that is inconsistent with what is heard from the firing line defines a dysfunctional and noncompetitive company for today’s customer. Thus team makeup is the critical success factor.

Class 155
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Addressing Tech Startup Challenges With Managed Network Services

Southern California Edison Blog

Networks play a vital role in supporting tech startup growth objectives. However, many small businesses may struggle with operational costs and scaling their networks effectively. By leveraging managed network services , startups can offload time-consuming maintenance tasks and strengthen their IT infrastructure to increase their competitiveness. . Below you will learn about how managed solutions address the largest network-related challenges facing tech startups.

More Trending

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AvantStay, a platform for kitting out — and then renting out — high-end vacation rental homes, raises $160M

TechCrunch LA

Another travel startup that found itself scrambling to pivot as the COVID-19 pandemic took off is now announcing a huge round of funding after finding its feet and proving that it can grow, even under adverse circumstances. AvantStay — which has built a platform where it decorates and then lists properties owned by others for people to rent out for vacations or other short-term stays — has raised $160 million in a Series B round of funding.

Platform 139
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GoSecure Acquires Covail

socalTECH

La Jolla-based GoSecure, a provider of managed security services, said today that it has acquired Covail, a security and risk optimization and automation company. Financial terms of the acquisition were not announced. GoSecure said it will use Covail's expertise in artificial intelligence (AI) to augment its platform. GoSecure is led by CEO Neal Creighton.

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Patent litigation can kill the small guy.

Berkonomics

Here’s the bright side to patents. When you think of patents, you think of added value to the corporation in the form of protection of its intellectual property. In fact, many corporations spend millions developing surrounding patents to form what is known as a “patent thicket,” much like Brer Rabbit jumped into to protect himself against his detractors in the briar patch.

Patents 156
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8 Mindset Principles That Lead To Success In Business

Startup Professionals Musings

As a long-time business advisor and mentor to entrepreneurs, I’ve always been impressed with the few who seem to always come out ahead, no matter what the challenge. It seems to be more a function of mindset and principles, more than education or natural ability. I’m convinced that we all have a similar potential, if we practice the right principles and persevere through thick and thin.

Education 148
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How to Strengthen Tech Startup Security Against Cyberattacks

Southern California Edison Blog

Malicious attackers perceive tech startups as vulnerable, valuable targets: startups often have fewer infrastructure protections and smaller IT teams than their more established counterparts, and multiple connections to larger companies with lucrative data. . In the past year, 42% of small businesses experienced a cyberattack. Those incidents took several forms: . 23.7% were phishing attacks. 18.6% were data breaches. 15.6% were malware attacks. 14.8% were denial of service (DOS) attacks. 11.3%

Startup 96
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Influencer Software Firm Tagger Media Raises $15 Million From Five Elms Capital

L.A. Business Journal

Tagger Media Inc. received an additional $15 million in funding from Five Elms Capital following a $8.5 million Series A investment by the firm earlier this year.

Media 130
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Is there gold in your old intellectual property?

Berkonomics

Digging through your IP closet for gold…. In past years, several times a month I’d have lunch with one of my CEOs, and each time we’d find ourselves digging into the intellectual property developed by the company over the years, just to refresh ourselves about what the intended use was back then and whether new developments or technologies might make these older ideas and patents relevant again.

Patents 156
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Budget from the top down or bottom up? A puzzle.

Berkonomics

Here’s the argument: Many people believe that bottom-up budgeting leads to waste and misdirection. The advocates of top-down budgeting are strong in their belief that if you give each person or department no guidance, they will budget to their wants or specific needs, not to those that support a corporate goal. Why some CEO’s argue to budget from the top.

Email 156
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Tastry Applies AI To Wine Recommendations

socalTECH

In a bid to make it easier for consumers to get personalized wine recommendations, San Luis Obispo-based startup Tastry said it has launched a new artificial intelligence-powered service for wine recommendations. The company said its service, Tastry Uncorked, is an artificial intelligence tool which provides personalized wine recommendations for online retailers and wineries.

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9 Keys To Group Participation, Alignment, and Results

Startup Professionals Musings

Based on my experience in business, it takes a team that works together to be successful, in conjunction with leadership from the top. You may be able to establish a startup while working alone, or managing autocratically , but long-term business growth and success requires the power of effective group relationships to achieve exceptional engagement , team alignment, and results.

Startup 143
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SkySafe Gains $30M More For Drone Defense

socalTECH

San Diego-based SkySafe, which develops drone defense and airspace security systems, has raised $30M in a Series B funding round, according to the company. The round was led by Kingfisher Investment Advisors, and also included Gaingels, Castor Ventures, plus Andreessen Horowitz. The company says it has now raised $45M in total. The company will use the funding for hiring, R&D, and expanded production.

San Diego 124
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Nanotech Energy Aims At Delivering To Battery Market By End Of 2022

socalTECH

Los Angeles-based startup, Nanotech Energy, is pitching customized, non-flammable Lithium-ion battery packs, saying it plans to deliver its products by Q4 of 2022. The company said it is developing graphene-based batteries and pouch cell battery packs, which it says can be used to power electric vehicles, bikes and scooters. The company has yet to deliver any products to market, but says it is now taking pre-orders for the yet-to-be-developed products.

Marketing 124
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6 Reasons For Your Business To Embrace Social Media

Startup Professionals Musings

An all-too-common question I get from startups and small businesses is “Which is the right social media platform for my business?” Is it Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, or one of the other 200 active platforms vying for attention these days? The right answer is that not all of these are worth your attention, but it’s probably more than one. The “Tyranny of the OR” is a concept from the old classic business best-seller “ Built to Last ,” by James C.

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I Haven’t Seen A Startup Yet Thrive Without Marketing

Startup Professionals Musings

Every time I challenge a business plan with little or no budget for marketing, I get the answer that they will be using “viral” marketing, which costs nothing. The founder explains that the product or service is so “buzz-worthy” that the merits will spread rapidly through word-of-mouth only, meaning people loving it and recommending it to their friends.

Marketing 139
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7 Concepts To Keep In Mind When Running Any Business

Startup Professionals Musings

When I started mentoring entrepreneurs and startups a few years ago, I anticipated that I would get mostly tough technical questions, but instead I more often hear things like “Where do I start?” I find that the basics are actually the hardest to answer, just like your parents found out when they first tried to fill you in on the “facts of life” a long time ago.

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Smart Entrepreneurs Seek Social Impact Versus Profits

Startup Professionals Musings

An entrepreneur lifestyle that continues to gain in popularity these days is being a “social entrepreneur.” In the simplest of terms, these are people who seek to generate “social value”, rather than profits, and use traditional business principles to provide solutions to social issues On the surface, this sounds like entrepreneurs who want to build a non-profit organization.

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10 New Realities Drive The Customer Decision Process

Startup Professionals Musings

Today’s customers are overloaded and overwhelmed by too much information, so making a decision is a challenge. You may think this is only important to your marketing and sales people, but in reality it doesn’t matter how great your product or technology might be, you won’t succeed if you don’t understand your target customer decision process. Every aspect of your business must be about sales.

Customer 136
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10 Tips For Crafting An Investment Grade Venture Plan

Startup Professionals Musings

If you want people to invest in your idea, then my best advice is first write a business plan, and keep it simple. Don't confuse your business plan with a doctoral thesis or the back of a napkin. Keep the wording and formatting straightforward, and keep the plan short. For minimum content, see my original article “ These 10 Key Elements Make a Business Plan Fundable.

Invest 135
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7 Steps To Greater Satisfaction As A New Entrepreneur

Startup Professionals Musings

In my role as mentor to many of you aspiring entrepreneurs, I often find you convinced that all you need to start is a unique innovation or idea , and now you are ready to jump in with both feet and enjoy the ride. Unfortunately, from my own experience, it’s not that simple, and not doing some preparation first can easily result in stress, lack of satisfaction, and a hard road to success.

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6 Ways To Make Your Solution Stand Out Above The Rest

Startup Professionals Musings

I’m often surprised when you as an aspiring entrepreneur, looking for investors, tell me your solution is so innovative that you don’t have to worry about differentiating it from competitors, and customers will flock to it without a real marketing campaign. Unfortunately, what I see in this Internet age is information overload, and new product differentiation is harder than ever before.

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Virgin Orbit In Partnership With Intelligence Firm

socalTECH

Long Beach-based Virgin Orbit, which is developing satellite launch systems, says it has partnered with signals intelligence provider Horizon Technologies. Financial details of the deal were not announced, however, Virgin Orbit said it will become Horizon's preferred launch partner, will take an equity stake in the company, and will appoint a Virgin Orbit representative to Horizon's board.

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Amazon, Twitter, Meta, And Others Pull Out Of CES

socalTECH

In a blow to the return to normal for the tech industry, a number of companies--including Amazon, Meta, and Twitter--announced yesterday that they will not be attending what had been expected to be the first, in-person Consumer Electronics Show since the beginning of this pandemic. CES--which had run an online event early in 2021--had announced they would be going back to in-person events for 2022.

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AWS Glitch Takes Down Slack, Hulu

socalTECH

Another glitch in Amazon Web Services this morning briefly took down a large number of services this morning, including Slack, Hulu, and others, due to what AWS reported was a power outage at a data center. According to the Amazon Web Services Dashboard a power outage at a data center affected its US-EAST-1 region, with continuing issues now with the Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud.

Hulu 113
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VRYNT Gets $1.5M In Seed Funding

socalTECH

Los Angeles-based VYRNT, a startup developing an e-commerce platform for NTFs, says it has raised $1.5M in an initial funding. The company said the funding came from Jaycen Joshua (owner of Canton House Studios), and Steve Miller, (co-founder of Anomaly Create). The company said it is working on a "next-generation e-Commerce platform for NFTs focused on the Metaverse".

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Sketchy Takes On MCATs In Partner Deal

socalTECH

Los Angeles-based Sketchy, an educational technology company known for creating visual study tools, says it is taking aim at the MCAT (Medical College Admission Test) in a deal with Blueprint, a provider of MCAT prep products. Financial details of the deal were not announced. The companies said the two have partnered to help students prepare for the MCAT.

Study 113
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Novea Raises $50M For Warranty, Service Contracts Fintech

socalTECH

Los Angeles-based fintech startup Novea, the parent company of Novea, Jacana Warranty, and Jacana Insurance, says it has raised $50M in equity funding, along with $5M in debt. The funding came from Newpoint Financial Group, a Swiss investor. According to the company, the funding will go to support its proprietary user platform, which is aimed at the consumer warranty and service contracts industry.

Services 113
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Yardi Acquires 42Floors.com

socalTECH

Santa Barbara-based Yardi announced this morning that it has acquired 42Floors.com, an online marketing platform for tenants and brokers. Financial details of the acquisition were not announced. Yardi announced that it has redsigned 42Floors to include a new, commercial property search engine featuring more than 320,000 listings nationwide across multiple verticals. 42Floors will become part of Yardi's CommercialEdge network of marketplaces.

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TeleSign To Go Public Via SPAC

socalTECH

Los Angeles-based TeleSign, which provides two factor authentication and other related services to businesses--which has been running as a unit of Belgian telecom firm Proximus--is going public via a SPAC, the companies said on Friday. The two said that TeleSign will be acquired by North Atlantic Acquisition Corporation (NAAC), in a deal worth $487M.

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Solotech Buys XR Studios For Virtual Reality

socalTECH

Los Angeles-based XR Studios, an agency specializing in augmented and virtual reality production, has been acquired by Solotech, a provider of audio, video, lighting, rigging, soft goods, control and collaboration solutions and services for the entertainment industry. Financial details of the acquisition were not annoucned. Solotech said it will use the acquisition to expand its virtual production services in LA, with a dedicated campus for "extended reality" efforts.

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Cue Health Sets CMO

socalTECH

San Diego-based health technology company Cue Health said this week that it has named Nitin Duggal as its Chief Marketing Officer. Duggal was most recently at Abbott Diabetes Care, where he had been for 10 years. He also previously had served at McKinsey & Co. The company said Duggal was most recently working at Abbott's Libre and FreeStyle Libre products as Senior Commercial Director.

San Diego 113