TechCrunch LA

DECEMBER 17, 2020

Allan Jones’s first startup was Fourth and Grand , a Trunk Club-like service backed by the venture studio and accelerator, Science, out of Santa Monica. While the business didn’t work out, it put the budding young entrepreneur (and college dropout) on a path that would lead him to launch the Los Angeles-based startup Bambee , a company that lets small businesses give their employees access to the same kinds of human resources services that large companies have.

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Services Resource Santa Monica Los Angeles 281

L.A. Business Journal

DECEMBER 14, 2020

Infrastructure consulting giant AECOM recently snagged contracts to provide environmental and engineering services for a light rail extension project in Texas and the renovation of an Air Force Academy hall in Colorado.

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Services 246

socalTECH

DECEMBER 17, 2020

In a bid to push LA into the high tech world of the Jetsons, Mayor Eric Garcetti said on Wednesday that he has kicked off an effort to make Los Angeles an "unmistakable leader on urban air mobility". According to the Mayor's office, it has launched an effort called the Urban Air Mobility Partnership , which will help visualization a "new piece of L.A.

High Tech 203

High Tech Mobile Los Angeles Ideas 203

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 18, 2020

As a long-time business executive and adviser to entrepreneurs, I see a definitive shift away from customer trust in traditional business messages, and the executives who deliver them. Today’s digitally distracted consumer is led to trust only things that they see with their own eyes, senses, so they can render their own judgement. They want the raw data versus a polished message.

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Customer Custom Social Media Technical Review 173

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

TechCrunch LA

DECEMBER 16, 2020

The budding venture studio being built inside M13 has signed PepsiCo as its first new corporate partner. Through the deal, PepsiCo has agreed to bankroll the first founder-in-residence program from the New York and Los Angeles-based firm, which poached former Techstars Los Angeles managing director Anna Barber to lead its new initiative. The initial M13 Launchpad program will leverage PepsiCo executives and advisors to take entrepreneurs-in-residence on a 12-week long program in ideating and lau

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Los Angeles Email Entrepreneur Platform 245

L.A. Business Journal

DECEMBER 18, 2020

Santa Monica-based Bambee Inc. has raised $15 million in Series B funding for its human resources platform for small businesses.

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Platform Santa Monica Resource Funding 279

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 13, 2020

Having the best solution is a good start these days, but a solution alone is no longer enough to keep customer attention and loyalty. They expect to be surprised and delighted as well by their pre-purchase experience and post-purchase interactions. The most memorable businesses, like Starbucks and Apple, no longer sell products, they sell ‘experiences’ with a product at the center.

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Customer Custom Services Startup 168

TechCrunch LA

DECEMBER 15, 2020

When it first launched nearly three years ago, Fifth Wall had a vision of leveraging capital limited partners from across the real estate development and construction business to back the technologies the industry needed most. That early vision resonated so well, that the firm has grown from managing one fund of $212 million to holding roughly $1.2 billion in assets under management.

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Funding Demand Los Angeles Invest 240

L.A. Business Journal

DECEMBER 15, 2020

Rocket Lab USA Inc. completed another mission Dec. 15, sending a satellite into space aboard one of the company’s Electron launch vehicles.

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socalTECH

DECEMBER 18, 2020

Santa Monica-based Tastemade , which produces a series of food and travel videos, as well as related content, said this week that it has acquired Chefsfeed. Financial terms of the acquisition were not announced. According to ChefsFeed, it will work together with Tastemade to expand more of the livestreamed classes, chef documentaries, recipes, and more.

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Santa Monica Class Content Acquisition 113

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 14, 2020

Creating the right company culture must be a top priority of every entrepreneur and business leader. Simply speaking, culture-driven businesses put their people first, and people make the business, rather than the other way around. Today’s business mantra must be “Take care of your people and they will take care of your customers.” Unfortunately, it’s easier said than done.

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Organization Startup Entrepreneur Satisfaction 160

Berkonomics

DECEMBER 17, 2020

Let’s take a few minutes to examine the kind of equity financing available to small or early stage businesses. In most cases, these applicants for equity funding must be rooted in technology to apply to this limited discussion. Friends and family investors. Here is a class of investor we’ve covered before, one usually focused upon you and less upon your business case.

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Equity Technical Review Class Organization 156

L.A. Business Journal

DECEMBER 14, 2020

SpaceX launched its 25th successful mission for this year on Dec. 13, deploying an audio satellite for Sirius XM Holdings Inc.

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SpaceX 246

socalTECH

DECEMBER 18, 2020

San Diego-based ClickUp , which develops productivity software for the business market, says it has tapped a veteran of the online media industry as its new Chief Creative Officer. The company said Melissa Rosenthal will serve as its first Chief Creative Officer, to shape its brand strategy, community engagement, and other efforts. Rosenthal was most recently Executive Vice President at Cheddar, and was Global Vice President of Creative at BuzzFeed.

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Buzzfeed San Diego Media Content 113

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 16, 2020

In my role as a mentor to aspiring entrepreneurs, I find that many of you have your most creative ideas for your company’s first big bang , but often get bogged down with details as the company grows. You rely on your team for the continuing creativity required to thrive in a today’s rapidly changing business landscape. Yet building and maintaining a creative team is a tough challenge.

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Company Companies Ideas Mentor 148

L.A. Business Journal

DECEMBER 14, 2020

As L.A.'s tech sector grows, a cluster of companies is taking meditation and mindfulness into a virtual space.

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Company Companies 246

L.A. Business Journal

DECEMBER 14, 2020

Since the early 20th century when health food vendors and spiritual gurus first began to descend upon the city, Los Angeles has been known as a place where people come seeking healthy living and mindfulness.

Company 130

Company Companies Los Angeles Angel 130

L.A. Business Journal

DECEMBER 16, 2020

Hawthorne-based DASH Systems Inc. will use the funding to expand aerial shipping to remote and rural areas.

Hawthorne 173

Hawthorne Technology Funding 173

L.A. Business Journal

DECEMBER 18, 2020

Santa Monica-based Bambee Inc. has raised $15 million in Series B funding for its human resources platform for small businesses.

Platform 130

Platform Santa Monica Resource Funding 130

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 12, 2020

Jeff Bezos is one of the world’s most admired entrepreneurs, primarily because of his humble style and his growth from a regular person background to a current net worth in the neighborhood of $200 billion dollars. He is the founder, CEO, and ten percent owner of Amazon, the world’s largest e-commerce retailer, with an estimated employee count now approaching one million.

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Slides Customer Custom Satisfaction 137

socalTECH

DECEMBER 18, 2020

A new, Los Angeles startup, Whatnot , which operates a online live stream shopping service and marketplace for collectors, said late Thursday that it had raised $4M in a seed funding round. The funding came from Scribble Ventures, Wonder Ventures, Operator Partners, Y Combinator, Liquid 2 Ventures, Twenty Two Ventures, and others. The company said it has built an online marketplace which addresses the issues of fraudulent activity on existing marketplaces.

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Seed Funding Funding Los Angeles Design 113

socalTECH

DECEMBER 18, 2020

Our interview this morning is with Vahid Manian , the Chief Operating Officer of Morse Micro (www.morsemicro.com), a semiconductor startup which is developing chips for the Wi-Fi HaLow market. We talked with Vahid--who is also Vice Chairman of Board of Directors for Global Semiconductor Alliance (GSA), was a Broadcom executive, and also who served at Ethertronics--about Morse Micro's technology, as well as why the Australian company has an office and is hiring in Irvine.

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Startup Resource Southern California Marketing 113

socalTECH

DECEMBER 17, 2020

Los Angeles-based Canoo has unveiled plans for a new vehicle, aimed at the electric delivery, food truck, and other industries. The company--which recently went public via a Special Purpose Acquisition Company (SPAC)--said its new Multi Purpose Delivery Vehicle is based on the same platform as its subscription-only van. The company's reveal featured LA's "Dot Com" era startup favorite food truck, Kogi BBQ.

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Acquisition Los Angeles Pricing Platform 113

socalTECH

DECEMBER 17, 2020

Elon Musk , and The Boring Company , the company he runs that is building underground transportation systems, is planning a massive expansion of its network, after the bankruptcy of the Las Vegas Monorail. According to documents and land use applications filed by The Boring Company, it now hopes to connect all of the Las Vegas Strip, the Fremont Street Experience and downtown Las Vegas, all the way to McCarran International Airport through its underground tunnels.

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Journal Networking Company Companies 113

socalTECH

DECEMBER 17, 2020

Santa Barbara-based QAD , which develops enterprise software used in the manufacturing sector, says it is in a definitive agreement to acquire a German company, Allocation Network GmbH , which provides strategic sourcing and supplier management. Financial details of the deal were not announced, and QAD said that the acquisition will "not have an immediate, material impact" on its financial results.

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Networking Santa Barbara Company Companies 113

socalTECH

DECEMBER 17, 2020

Carlsbad, California-based Leading Biosciences , a biopharmaceuticals comapny focused on restoring normal gastrointestinal function following major surgery, has merged with Maryland-based Seneca Biopharma , a publicly traded biotech company. Seneca trades ont he Nasdaq as SNCA. According to Leading Bioscience, it is acquiring Seneca to form a new company, Palisade Bio, Inc. , which will trade ont he Nasdaq Capital Market as PALI.

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Study Capital Funding Marketing 113

socalTECH

DECEMBER 17, 2020

Los Angeles-based electric car designer Fisker , the latest incarnation of the EV efforts of auto designer Henrik Fisker, says it has signed a definitive agreement with Magna International. According to Fisker, Magna will manufacture Fisker's upcoming Ocean vehicle in Europe. Fisker is hoping to show a prototype of the Ocean by the summer of 2021. Magna is a manufacturer of vehicles for a number of other automotive companies.

Design 113

Design Platform Los Angeles Marketing 113

socalTECH

DECEMBER 16, 2020

Santa Monica-based healthcare marketplace provider GoodRx said today that it has expanded the benefits for its subscription program, GoodRx Gold, to include both telehealth and mail order. The company said its subscription members now will receive exclusive discounts on online doctor visits and free mail delivery. The company's subscription program costs $5.99 per month for individuals, and $9.99 per month for family with up to six members.

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Santa Monica Company Companies Marketing 113

socalTECH

DECEMBER 16, 2020

San Diego-based Carlsmed , a biotech startup developing spine deformity correction devices, has raised $10M in a Series A funding. The funding was led by U.S. Venture Partners, and also included The Vertical Group, Cove Fund, and Wavemaker Three-Sixty Health, among others. According to the company, the funding will go to commercialize the company's family of aprevo spine deformity correction devices.

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San Diego Funding Startup Technology 113

socalTECH

DECEMBER 16, 2020

Los Angeles-based DASH Systems , a developer of technology that allows for precision airdrop of deliveries from cargo aircraft, has raised $8M in a seed funding round, the company said this morning. The funding was led by 8VC, and also included Tusk Venture Partners, Loup Ventures, Trust Ventures, Perot Jain, and MiLA Capital. The startup--which got its start through the Techstars Los Angeles program said the new funding will go to conduct pilot programs with partners and expand into commercial

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Technology Seed Funding Los Angeles Software 113

socalTECH

DECEMBER 15, 2020

Irvine-based Cosemi Technologies , a developer of plug-and-play HDMI, DisplayPort and USB active optical cables, said on Tuesday tht it has raised $8M in a strategic funding round. The funding came from Nitto Denko Corporation, a Japanese materials manufacturer. According to Cosemi, it will ues the new funding round to accelerate its growth, and also address a growing market in the area of high-speed, hybrid active optical interconnect solutions.

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Activity Funding Platform Marketing 113

socalTECH

DECEMBER 15, 2020

Los Angeles-based venture investor Fifth Wall has added a new partner to the firm, Greg Smithies , to help it with its investments in climate related technologies. Smithies formerly was at BMW iVentures. The fund--better known for its real estate investments--disclosed today that it is raising a new, climate-focused fund targeted at at least $200M. Fifth Wall has not disclosed limited partners or current commitments in that new fund.

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Los Angeles Invest Funding Help 113

socalTECH

DECEMBER 15, 2020

San Diego-based outsourced healthcare R&D marketplace Scientist.com said this morning that it will acquire HealthEcnomics.com , which operates an online community of scientists and suppliers of heatlh economics and outcomes research. Financial details of the acquisition were not announced. The companies said they expect the acquisition to be completed in January.

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Outsource Research San Diego Acquisition 113

socalTECH

DECEMBER 15, 2020

Los Angeles-based ACELYRIN , a new startup biopharma company, announced this morning that it has raised a Series A funding. Size of the funding round was not announced. The funding came from Westlake Village BioPartners. ACELYRIN said it is focused on providing patients life-changing new treatment options by identifying, acquiring, and accelerating development and commercialization of promising drug candidates.

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Westlake Village Funding Los Angeles Startup 113

socalTECH

DECEMBER 15, 2020

Westlake Village-based Eta Compute , a developer of technology for energy efficient artificial intelligence processing, has raised $12.5M in a Series C funding. The company says it has now raised $31.9M in total. The funding was led by Synaptics Incorporated, as well as existing investors. As part of the funding, Satish Ganesan, the Chief Strategy Officer at Synaptics, will join Eta's board.

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Westlake Village Artificial Inteligence Platform Funding 113

socalTECH

DECEMBER 15, 2020

Los Angeles-based life sciences investor Westlake Village BioPartners announced today that it has raised two new venture capital funds, worth a total of $500M, for its investments in biotech companies. According to the company, its two funds include Opportunity I, worth $70M, which will invest in additional Series B or later-round capital into promising companies they incubated or invested in with their original fund, Westlake BioPartners 1 (WBP1).

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Westlake Village Funding Incubator San Diego 113