L.A. Business Journal

JANUARY 3, 2022

A West Hollywood-based fintech announced the launch of a banking program Dec. 20 aimed at building Hispanic wealth through stakes in the crypto sector.

West Hollywood 340

West Hollywood Hollywood 340

socalTECH

JANUARY 3, 2022

San Diego-based autonomous driving company TuSimple reports that it has sent its first, fully autonomous semi--without even a safety driver in the truck--80 miles, going from Tucson, Arizona to Phoenix. According to TuSimple, its truck made its 80 mile run on December 22nd, traveling from a railyard in Tucson, navigating surface streets and a highway at night, and arrived at a high volume distribution center in Phoenix.

San Diego 203

San Diego Class Report Company 203

Tech.Co

JANUARY 3, 2022

Well, another year has come and gone, and while we're yet to leave the pandemic behind, it has led to a record number of small businesses starting up. With all these businesses forming, it's possible that some future household names are finding their footing as we speak. Many of these businesses will take a while to gain some momentum, but there are already some fresh faces on the tech scene that are worth keeping your eyes on as the next year progresses.

Startup 203

Startup Invest FAQ Geni 203

Berkonomics

JANUARY 6, 2022

First, the marginal exit event: Sometimes the end game or sale of the company is not a happy event for the early investors, including the entrepreneur or the founders. Especially when outside investors, venture capitalists or angels have put in substantial money, and the sales price is not enough to give them a reasonable return for the time and money invested, these investors can be – in a word – greedy.

Venture Capital 156

Venture Capital Sales Pricing Equity 156

Advertiser: Aggregage

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.

Company

L.A. Business Journal

JANUARY 3, 2022

As the clock was running out on 2021, L.A. County was poised to get another publicly traded company: Pasadena-based solar technology firm Heliogen Inc.

Pasadena 278

Pasadena Company Companies Technology 278

socalTECH

JANUARY 6, 2022

San Diego- and Galway, Ireland-based ONK Therapeutics announced today that it has raised $21.5M in its Series A funding. The funding was led by Acorn Bioventures and ALSHC, plus Cormorant Asset Management. The startup says it is developing optimally engineered natural killer (NK) cell therapies. ONK said the new funding will go to drive multiple, pre-clinical programs through IND-enabling studies, and also go towards GMP manufacturing capability.

San Diego 200

San Diego Study Funding Startup 200

L.A. Business Journal

JANUARY 3, 2022

There’s a new local entrant in the global decarbonization race: Culver City-based cleantech startup Mote Inc.

Culver City 317

Culver City Startup 317

L.A. Business Journal

JANUARY 3, 2022

Peter Dohm’s list of top places to build an ice curling facility in 2019 did not include Vernon.

Vernon 264

Vernon 264

socalTECH

JANUARY 7, 2022

San Diego-based Chronos Tech said this week that it has named Ali Farhang as CEO of the company. Farhang also will join the company's board of directors. Farhang was most recently Corporate Vice President at Micron Technology, and also served 26 years at Intel. Chronos Tech is developing technology for systems-on-a-chip (SoC) in the cloud computing, AI, mobile, automotive, and other areas.

Cloud Computing 200

Cloud Computing San Diego Mobile Technology 200

socalTECH

JANUARY 6, 2022

San Diego-based nonprofit fundraising software developer Classy says that more than $1.1 billion was raised by its nonprofit customers on its platform in 2021. The company--which helps nonprofits reach out to donors--said about $30.8 million of that was in recurring donations on its platform. The company has been developing tools to help nonprofits move donors to give on a recurring basis--more like a subscription--rather than just provide on-time donations.

San Diego 189

San Diego Platform Software Development Tool 189

L.A. Business Journal

JANUARY 3, 2022

Westlake-based RBB Bancorp announced its entry into the San Francisco Bay Area Dec. 28 with the purchase of Gateway Bank F.S.B. in Oakland, a deal valued at approximately $22.9 million.

147

147

socalTECH

JANUARY 7, 2022

Beverly Hills-based Launch House, which hosts month-long, live-in startup programs in Los Angeles and elsewhere, is looking to raised $10M in a new venture capital fund, according to a regulatory filing from the company. The filing said the company is raising $10M to invests in startups. The company started originally during the pandemic, when its founders rented a home in Mexico to work on startup projects and fight off social isolation.

Beverly Hills 145

Beverly Hills Invest Startup Venture Capital 145

L.A. Business Journal

JANUARY 3, 2022

Dave Inc., a West Hollywood-based fintech and banking app company aimed at “leveling the financial playing field,” will go public on the Nasdaq under the tickers DAVE and DAVEW in early 2022.

West Hollywood 130

West Hollywood Hollywood Company Companies 130

socalTECH

JANUARY 4, 2022

Enterprise healthcare company Symplr, which is owned by Santa Monica-based private equity investor Clearlake Capital Group, said this morning that it has acquired Midas Health Analytics Solutions from Conduent Incorporated.

Santa Monica 124

Santa Monica Equity Capital Company 124

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 3, 2022

Startup investors tell me they invest in a new venture with a higher caliber of people, rather than the product or service, and I agree. In my role as a business advisor, I see successful businesses most often emerging from great teams rather than great products. Yet I find the people building teams are usually product experts, often with no experience in team building.

Training 135

Training Case Study Resource Technical Review 135

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 7, 2022

It’s easy to say to people on your team that they must be accountable for their actions, but it’s not so easy to tell them how to do it. It’s even harder to give them the mindset of wanting to be accountable. In fact, many business leaders forget that they are the role model for accountability, and don’t audit their own actions to make sure that they always practice what they preach.

Examples 134

Examples Organization Customer Custom 134

socalTECH

JANUARY 7, 2022

Irvine-based Alteryx, which develops analytics software, said Thursday afternoon that it has agreed to acquire Trifacta, a developer of data management and machine learning software. Alteryx said it will pay $400M in cash for Trifacta, and also will establish a retention pool of $75 million for former employees of Trifacta. The company said it expects to close the first quarter of 2022.

Artificial Inteligence 113

Artificial Inteligence Software Develop Development 113

socalTECH

JANUARY 7, 2022

San Diego-based autonomous driving systems developer TuSimple--which is developing technology to enable autonomous trucks--said this week that it has selected NVIDIA's DRIVE Orin systems-on-a-chip (SoC) for its Level 4 autonomous trucking efforts. NVIDIA is best known for its GPUs. According to TuSimple, NVIDIA' Drive Orin SoC delivers 254 TOPS (trillion operations per second) of performance and is the central computer for intelligent vehicles-powering safe autonomous driving capabilities.

Artificial Inteligence 113

Artificial Inteligence San Diego Design Develop 113

socalTECH

JANUARY 7, 2022

Santa Barbara-based software developer LogicMonitor says it has named Christina Kosmowski as the company's new CEO, succeeding former CEO Kevin McGibben. McGibben is shifting to become Executive Chairman of the company. Kosmowski was most recently President of the firm. According to LogicMonitor, it saw more than $150M in annual, recurring revenues and 50 percent year-over-year growth in 2021.

Santa Barbara 113

Santa Barbara Software Development Software Develop 113

socalTECH

JANUARY 6, 2022

Los Angeles-based ACH payments provider VeriCheck announced this morning that it has acquired Applied Payments, LLC, which operates as ACHWorks. Financial terms of the acquisition were not announced. VCI said it will integrate the team and technology of ACHWorks to further its offerings. VeriCheck is led by CEO Don Singer, and says it has locations both in Los Angeles and Atlanta.

Los Angeles 113

Los Angeles Acquisition Angel Technology 113

socalTECH

JANUARY 6, 2022

Calabasas-based Labrador Systems, a startup developing assistive robots for the disabled, has raised $3.1M in a seed funding, the company said this week. The funding was led by Amazon's Alexa Fund and iRobot Ventures, and also included SOV and Grep VC. The company said it has launched a new type of personal robot called the "Labrador Retriever" which it says helps individuals to live more independently.

Calabasas 113

Calabasas Seed Funding Venture Capital Activity 113

socalTECH

JANUARY 6, 2022

A new, free-streaming service, SPORTS.TV, has been launched by Allen Media Group, which said today its new app-based consumer video streaming service is free, and aggregates sports, news, movies, documentaries, and entertainment networks, as well as local broadcast television stations. The company said its app runs on Apple iOS/iPhone/iPad, Android, Fire TV, and Android TV, and is also available on the worldwide web.

Services 113

Services Entertainment News Media 113

socalTECH

JANUARY 5, 2022

The Upfront Summit, the high tech and venture capital company run by Upfront Ventures, has been delayed, the latest victim of resurging COVID-19 numbers and the Omicron variant. According to conference organizers, in an email to ticket holders, the summit has been postponed for at least five weeks, to March 1st and 2nd, rather than its original event dates of January 26th and 27th.

Technical Review 113

Technical Review Conference Southern California High Tech 113

socalTECH

JANUARY 5, 2022

Los Angeles-based banking app developer Dave will start trading on the Nasdaq Global Market as DAVE, starting Thursday, January 6th, after stockholders of VPC Impact Acquisition Holdings III approved the deal to merge with Dave in a SPAC deal. The acquisition by a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) is the latest in a long line of transactions which have taken technology companies to the public markets, without the traditional initial public offering (IPO).

Acquisition 113

Acquisition Equity Los Angeles Marketing 113

socalTECH

JANUARY 5, 2022

Aypa Power, an energy storage company owned by private equity firm Blackstone, said it is acquiring a 120MW standalone battery energy storage project in downtown Los Angeles. Financial details of the deal were not announced. According to Aypa Power, the deal was with Eolus Project Holdings LLC. Aypa Power said the Cald battery energy storage system (BESS), which is currently in the development stage, will be up to 120 MW in size and located adjacent to the Calden substation.

Equity 113

Equity Los Angeles Angel Develop 113

socalTECH

JANUARY 5, 2022

Los Angeles-based software developer ServiceTitan, which develops software used by contractors and the trades to manage their businesses, says it has acquired FieldRoutes, a developer of cloud-based software for the pest control and lawn care industry. Financial details of the acquisition were not announced. FieldRoutes was previously known as PestRoutes and Lobster Marketing.

Software Development 113

Software Development Acquisition Los Angeles Tool 113

socalTECH

JANUARY 5, 2022

Los Angeles-based real estate technology investor Fifth Wall said Tuesday afternoon that it raised a total of $1.1 billion across its funds in 2021. The venture capital investor said limited partners in its funds included Aldar, APG, Arbor Realty Trust, BNP Paribas Real Estate, Bpifrance through the digital Fund of Funds, Camden Property Trust, Cosan, Gestilar, Invitation Homes, Kimco Realty Corporation, Knight Frank, Meritage Homes, affiliates of Northwood Investors, NZ Super Fund, PGIM Real Es

Funding 113

Funding Venture Capital Los Angeles Organization 113

socalTECH

JANUARY 4, 2022

Los Angeles-based MeetKai, a new virtual reality startup, says it is taking aim at the "Metaverse" with a new set of artificial intelligence-powered offerings. According to the company, it has created its own "lifestyle VR world" called the MeetKai Metaverse. The company says it offers a series of AI-powered VR experiences, including everything from museum tours and personalized meditations to private boxing lessons and safari tours.

Artificial Inteligence 113

Artificial Inteligence Los Angeles Platform Startup 113

socalTECH

JANUARY 4, 2022

Los Angeles-based Brainbase, which develops software to help licensing teams manage partnerships and contracts, said it has inked a deal with Nissan Motor Corporation. Financial details of the win were not announced. According to Brianbase, Nissan will unify its global licensing operations on Brainbase's platform. Brainbase is backed by Bessemer Venture Partners and Nosara Capital, and also included Alpha Edison, Struck Capital, Bonfire Ventures, FJ Labs, and others.

Outsource Development 113

Outsource Development Los Angeles Platform Software 113

socalTECH

JANUARY 4, 2022

Los Angeles-based canned water brand Liquid Death has raised $75M in a Series C funding round at a valuation of $525M. The funding was led by startup studio Science, and also included Live Nation, PowerPlant Partners, Access Capital, and Nomad Ventures. According to an interview with CEO Mike Cessario, the company had nearly $45M in revenues in 2021.

Los Angeles 113

Los Angeles Funding Capital Startup 113

socalTECH

JANUARY 3, 2022

Culver City-based ImmunityBio and Emeryville-based Amyris said today that the two companies are in a joint venture to commercialize a COVID-19 vaccine. Financial details of the deal were not announced. The two said they will combine their vaccine technology and manufacturing capabilities, with the target of completing human trials and delivering vaccines in 2022.".

Culver City 113

Culver City Technology Company Companies 113

socalTECH

JANUARY 3, 2022

Irvine-based CalAmp, which is best known for its LoJack line of automotive tracking products, but also has a number of other asset tracking products, said over the holidays that its SVP and Chief Revenue Officer (CRO), Arym Diamond, has left the company. The company said that Maurizio Iperti, President of EMEA for CalAmp will step into an interim role leading global sales operations, while it runs a search for a new sales head.

Sales 113

Sales Product Company Companies 113

socalTECH

JANUARY 3, 2022

Los Angeles-based EcoFlow, the developer of portable power stations, says it reached $200M in annual revenues in 2021, up 275% from the year before. The company is backed by Sequoia's China Fund, Hillhouse, and CICC, and received $100M in a Series B investment back in June of 2021. The company said it more than tripled its sales in 2021, the second consecutive year for the growth.

Sales 113

Sales Los Angeles Invest Funding 113

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 1, 2022

I tell entrepreneurs that Google was an “exception” to all the investment and startup rules, but I’ve always wondered what it takes to be an exception. Since every business is built by unique individuals, I’m totally convinced that exceptional people are the key to an exceptional company. To check out the Google founders, and because I still see so many business plans that are modeled after Google (more search engines, and more billion dollar growth models), I had to take a look at the classic b

Startup 131

Startup Google Advertising .Net 131

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 5, 2022

According to most authoritative sources , the global economy has been severely impacted by the current pandemic. Yet if you wait for an economy bubble before starting your new business, you will be making a comparable mistake to the people who thought during the dot-com bubble "all I have to do is a startup, and I'll be rich." In reality, what matters more is who you are, not when you do it.

Startup 103

Startup Advertising Social Network Ideas 103