October, 2019

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SpaceX Receives Funding from NASA to Aid Moon, Mars Missions

L.A. Business Journal

SpaceX is one of 14 companies awarded grants from NASA to boost the agency's mission to return to the Moon and to eventually land on Mars.

SpaceX 240
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Via is launching an on-demand public transit network in the city of Cupertino

TechCrunch LA

Shuttle startup Via and the city of Cupertino are launching an on-demand public transportation network, the latest example of municipalities trying out alternatives to traditional buses. The aim is for these on-demand shuttles, which will start with six vans branded with the city of Cupertino logo, to provide more efficient connections to CalTrain and increase access to public transit across the city.

Demand 168
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Waymo Starts Mapping LA Streets

socalTECH

Self driving vehicle developer Waymo --a spinout of Alphabet, the parent company of Google--said on Monday morning that it has started to explore how autonomous vehicles "might fit into LA's dynamic transportation environment". Waymo did not say what that means for the possibility of its self driving cars hitting the Los Angeles streets. The company sayd it will initially deploy three cars in Downtown Los Angeles and the Miracle Mile.

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Nobel Prize in Medicine Goes to 3 Who Showed How Cells Sense Oxygen Levels

Xconomy

Oxygen’s importance in cellular processes has long been known. But the work to understand how cells sense and adapt to changes in oxygen levels has led to medical insights and potential treatments for anemia, cancer, and more—and today, it has turned into the 2019 Nobel Prize in Medicine. William Kaelin Jr., Sir Peter Ratcliffe, and Gregg Semenza are credited with identifying the molecular machinery that regulates the activity of genes in response to changes in oxygen levels.

Study 80
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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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EV subscription startup Canoo, co-founder sued for alleged harassment

TechCrunch LA

Just weeks after Canoo took the wraps off of its electric vehicle , the Los Angeles-based startup and co-founder Stefan Krause has been accused of gender and marital discrimination, harassment, breach of contract, and wrongful termination in a lawsuit filed Tuesday. The lawsuit, which was filed by Christina Krause, the company’s former head of communications and Stefan Krause’s wife, was first reported by The Verge.

CTO Hire 198
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Relativity, a new star in the space race, raises $140 million for its 3-D printed rockets

TechCrunch LA

With $140 million in new financing, Relativity Space is now one step closer to fulfilling its founders’ vision of making the first rockets on Mars. Tagging along for the ride are a motley assortment of millionaires and billionaires, movie stars and media moguls that are providing the money the rocket launch services provider and manufacturer of large-scale, 3-D printers needs to achieve its goals.

More Trending

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Mercedes-Benz app glitch exposed car owners’ information to other users

TechCrunch LA

Mercedes-Benz car owners have said that the app they used to remotely locate, unlock and start their cars was displaying other people’s account and vehicle information. TechCrunch spoke to two customers who said the Mercedes-Benz’ connected car app was pulling in information from other accounts and not their own, allowing them to see other car owners’ names, recent activity, phone numbers, and more.

Startup 189
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What Did I Learn From the First VC Check I Ever Wrote?

Both Sides of the Table

I became a VC 12 years ago in 2007 when the pace of deals was much slower. I had just left Salesforce.com where I was VP, Products, after they had acquired my second startup. As I was trying to figure out the role I wanted to play in the VC world I decided I wanted to focus on businesses that were building deeply technical products to solve problems for business users.

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Do you act like an Eagle Scout?

Berkonomics

You may have been a Girl Scout or a Boy Scout in your youth. Certainly, you are aware of the top rank in each – the Gold Award for girls and the Eagle badge for boys. Scouting teaches leadership and even if we were not members in our youth, there are lessons for us all. Be prepared! For example, the Boy Scouts of America motto is “Be prepared.” And from that comes training in first aid, disaster preparation, and outdoor skills, planning for events and outings, and any number of simulations or

Training 136
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Pepperdine Names Most Fundable Companies

L.A. Business Journal

Pepperdine’s Graziadio Business School announced the winners of its second annual Most Fundable Companies competition.

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FundingPost San Diego VC and Angel Investor Event

SoCal Tech Calendar

Wednesday, November 6, 2019 -- FundingPost San Diego VC and Angel Investor Event/ Interested in meeting and pitching to early-stage Angel Investors and Venture Capitalists in Southern California? Register for the FundingPost event on Wednesday, November 6th, 2019. FundingPost has hosted 400 sold-out venture events in 22 cities over the past 17 years.

San Diego 100
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Thin Line Capital Launches New Energy, Sustainability Fund

socalTECH

Pasadena-based Thin Line Capital announced this morning that it has launched a brand new, energey and sustainability fund, which will invest in cleantech investing. The new firm, led by serial entrepnd investor Aaron Fyke, said its seed stage fund has had its first close of over $5 million. Fyke previously had been CEO of multiple companies for Idealab, and also was a cleantech investor at Starfish Ventures in Australia.

Capital 213
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Arianna Huffington’s Thrive Global is buying a startup that uses neuroscience to boost app usage

TechCrunch LA

When Arianna Huffington stepped down from her role at the Huffington Post to start Thrive Global, she said the goal of her new business was to help a generation “avoid the burnout that all too often comes with success today.” In practice, that has meant creating a business that sells mindfulness and general health and wellness tips and tricks to a cohort of corporations that believe increased mental and physical health can lead to greater on-the-job productivity.

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LabFellows Looks to Become “Operating System” For Life Sciences Cos.

Xconomy

Scientists, no matter how sexy the research they’re conducting, aren’t immune from the administrative minutiae of office life. Such tasks steal time away from researchers’ main objectives. However, that wasn’t the problem San Diego startup LabFellows was looking to solve when it launched in 2014. Founders Julio de Unamuno IV (pictured) and Tim Ryan saw an opportunity to serve small research groups and nascent biotechs by offering fully outfitted lab space—think WeWork, plus Bunsen burners.

San Diego 112
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Gamify those otherwise dull work assignments

Berkonomics

Most of us are driven by the competitive spirit, the desire or need to win. It reinforces self-worth, provides closure at the end of a good effort, and energizes us during the effort to achieve. Being driven to achieve results. Many of us as managers – and our employees as workers – are driven by process, actions required to achieve a result.

Metrics 120
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Canoo Sued for Gender Discrimination

L.A. Business Journal

Electric vehicle startup Canoo and Chief Executive Stefan Krause were sued for wrongful termination by former communications lead Christina Krause.

Startup 145
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Preccelerator Workshop: Employment Law for Startups with Rachael Lavi

SoCal Tech Calendar

Tuesday, November 5, 2019 -- Preccelerator Workshop: Employment Law for Startups with Rachael Lavi. Rachael Lavi, an Attorney specializing in Labor and Employment matters in California, will be speaking on the top employment law risks for startup companies in California, including: (1) best practices for hiring employees; (2) independent contractors and misclassification issues; (3) how to utilize interns; and other significant legal risks.

Startup 100
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Pharrell Drives Latest XPRIZE Concept

socalTECH

Los Angeles-based nonprofit XPRIZE --which runs prize competitions to help advance technology and solutions to world problems--said on Tuesday that celebrity Pharrell Williams has won the top prize in its latest "Visioneering 2019" annual gathering. According to XPRIZE, the concept for a new XPRIZE--from the Charter Communities XPRIZE team--won the top prize among 50 XPRIZE designs that were proposed during the gathering.

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Combining StitchFix and Instagram, FlipFit ushers in the next phase of social retail

TechCrunch LA

Nooruldeen Agha, has been thinking about what’s next for fashion retail for years. The serial entrepreneur behind the Dubai-based online fashion retailer, Elabelz and marketing studio Elephant Nation had always wanted to redesign the shopping experience for how customers actually shopped in stores and online. “If it was 1994 and we knew what technology is today and we want to reinvent this [shopping] experience… one thought was how we bought our whole life and how we go to the mall,&

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Five Years After Y Combinator First Admits Biotechs, They’re Dug In

Xconomy

Five years ago, the big tech incubator Y Combinator started to welcome life sciences companies into its sizable startup classes, which had previously nurtured entrepreneurs in information technology almost exclusively. That opening to biotech startups in 2014 was controversial at the time. Some observers simply wondered what kind of guidance a deeply tech-focused accelerator could offer to biology lab scientists messing with live cells and tissues, and facing lengthy development times for new me

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“What’s in it for me?” A motivational lesson

Berkonomics

Ever wonder why one of your employees, shareholders, managers, suppliers, or board members sometimes behaves in a way you might consider irrational? Putting yourself in their shoes. If you want to best describe the motivation behind the action, think “What’s in it for me”? Your employees, your shareholders, your customers, and your suppliers are all driven by this question.

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AECOM Sells Unit for $2.4 Billion

L.A. Business Journal

AECOM plans to sell its management services business to private equity firms for $2.4 billion.

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Preccelerator Workshop: Employment Law for Startups with Rachael Lavi

SoCal Tech Calendar

Tuesday, November 5, 2019 -- Preccelerator Workshop: Employment Law for Startups with Rachael Lavi. Rachael Lavi, an Attorney specializing in Labor and Employment matters in California, will be speaking on the top employment law risks for startup companies in California, including: (1) best practices for hiring employees; (2) independent contractors and misclassification issues; (3) how to utilize interns; and other significant legal risks.

Startup 100
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Interview with Michele Ruiz and Dan Gould, BiasSync

socalTECH

How do you create a tool to help address unconscious bias in the workplaceand why would you create a new startup in that area? Los Angeles-based BiasSync (www.biassync.com) was founded by three, very experienced serial entrepreneurs-- Michele Ruiz (broadcast journalism), Robin Richards (CareerArc, Internships.com, NTI Group, MP3), and Dan Gould (former VP of Technology for Tinder).

Content 150
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All Raise expands to new geos, launches ‘VC Cohorts’

TechCrunch LA

Dozens of impeccably dressed women outfitted in jumpsuits and Rothy’s gathered at the Greylock offices last week for a “structured networking” session hosted by All Raise , an 18-month-old nonprofit organization that seeks to amplify the voices of and support women in tech. The organization, active in the Bay Area and New York City, is announcing new chapters in Los Angeles and Boston this week, as well as a new director of engagement, Domonique Fines, formerly of Y Combinator, and a new chief o

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10 Signals That You Can Be A Trusted Business Leader

Startup Professionals Musings

Every entrepreneur and business leader believes that he or she has the full trust of their team and their customers, and in fact most do in the beginning. In my experience, most business professionals still believe in the old proverb, “ trust but verify.” In this context, that means you trust your leaders initially, but you look for signals that your trust in them is deserved and reciprocated.

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Do people follow when you (think you) lead?

Berkonomics

Let’s get personal. Do you think you’re much better than a marginal leader? Well, here are a few tests for you to help come to an answer. And a few tips for you if you fall a bit short. Why do people follow their leader? Dictators are not great leaders in the long run. People follow such leaders by fear, rarely by devotion. Employees want to have a stake in their own destiny, and above all want to understand why actions are taken which affect them, even if the outcome is not in the employee

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Finance App Dave Inc. Raises $50 Million

L.A. Business Journal

Financial management app developer Dave Inc. raised $50 million from Palo Alto-based growth equity investors Norwest Venture Partners.

Equity 127
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FundingPost Orange County VC and Angel Investor Event

SoCal Tech Calendar

Monday, November 4, 2019 -- FundingPost Orange County VC and Angel Investor Event. Interested in meeting and pitching to early-stage Angel Investors and Venture Capitalists in Southern California? Register for the FundingPost event on Tuesday, November 5th, 2019. FundingPost has hosted 400 sold-out venture events in 22 cities over the past 17 years.

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Anduril Launches Anti-Drone Weapon, The Interceptor

socalTECH

Irvine-based Anduril , a new startup co-founded by controversial Oculus founder Palmer Luckey, announced on Thursday that it has launched a new, drone weapon--called the Interceptor--which is designed to "detect and interdict" unmanned aircraft or autonomous drone systems. The company revealed its technology, which uses another, unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) to ram and take down either rotary or fixed wing threats.

Design 149
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Newly launched pet health startup Gallant wants you to bank your dog’s stem cells for $990

TechCrunch LA

With $11 million in funding and a mission to open up the doors of regenerative therapies to dogs across the nation, the Los Angeles-based startup Gallant is now opening its doors for the first time. The company was founded by DogVacay founder and chief executive Aaron Hirschhorn after seeing his own pet’s struggle with debilitating illness and knowing firsthand that regenerative medicine and stem cell therapies could help.

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We’re Beginning to Realize the Cloud’s Full Potential at the Edge

Xconomy

Amazon Web Services (AWS), the first “public cloud” offering third-party data storage and compute services, launched in March 2006, and by 2012, there were multiple credible competitors. The hype was strong. Back then, cloud evangelists were predicting that essentially everything in the enterprise data center would migrate to one of just a few public clouds.

Web 101
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Are your projections really realizable?

Berkonomics

Here’s one for the ages. How many times have you projected income and profits only to fall short, and make excuses to those depending upon you to perform? We know the answer of course. Lots of people do or will depend upon your leadership in driving growth, stability, and profitability. There will always be times when salespersons or associates provide you with projections for future sales that reflect their inherent optimism.

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Rick Fox Exits Echo Fox, Settles Lawsuits

L.A. Business Journal

Rick Fox will leave the esports company he founded and settle lawsuits he was been trading with his co-founders.

Company 133
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FundingPost Los Angeles VC and Angel Investor Event

SoCal Tech Calendar

Monday, November 4, 2019 -- FundingPost Los Angeles VC and Angel Investor Event. Interested in meeting and pitching to early-stage Angel Investors and Venture Capitalists in Southern California? Register for the FundingPost event on Monday, November 4th, 2019. FundingPost has hosted 400 sold-out venture events in 22 cities over the past 17 years. At our next event, the panel of Investors will focus on Early-Stage Venture Investing: How to meet investors, pitch them, and what it really takes to g

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Image Metrics Rolls Out New AR Platform

socalTECH

El Segundo-based Image Metrics , a developer of computer vision and facial analysis and tracking tools, has rolled out a new platform for implementing augmented reality (AR), which it calls LUNAR. According to Image Metrics, the new tool is aimed at marketers, helping them to implement augmented reality (AR) effects for marketing initiatives. The company said the new platform helps brands avoid the "cost prohibitive" tools from existing social media platforms like Snapchat and Facebook, as well

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