Both Sides of the Table

NOVEMBER 10, 2021

Nearly six years ago, I was thrilled to invest in Andrew Farah and the team at Density when they had a vision for building anonymous tracking of how people use office buildings, rentals and other public spaces. And today, as the company announces their latest funding round of $125M at a $1B+ valuation , I’m still thrilled to back Density as they are growing massively with customers like Uber, Shopify, Delta, and Cisco, among many others.

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News Invest Customer Custom 249

L.A. Business Journal

NOVEMBER 8, 2021

When Roger Caneda discovered Whatnot Inc. in January, selling trading cards was just a side hustle.

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Berkonomics

NOVEMBER 11, 2021

Here’s a lesson from experience. Venture capitalists sometimes make an error in directing their portfolio company CEOs to push resources to the limit and scale the business to immense size quickly, all to seize market share. The logic in this is simple: once a company has market share, other issues can be sorted out to monetize the market, make the company profitable, scoop up wavering competitors, or even sell the company to a larger firm looking for a large customer base.

Venture Capital 156

Venture Capital Social Media Invest Marketing 156

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 8, 2021

Until the recession a decade ago, market research indicated that as many as 90 percent of the roughly 20 million American small business owners were motivated more by lifestyle than growth and money. More recently, the desire for extra income has become the key driver in new startups, according to the popular press. It seems that more people are focused on money today.

Entrepreneur 148

Entrepreneur Startup Equity Course 148

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

socalTECH

NOVEMBER 12, 2021

A new, Long Beach-based startup, MFFAIS, said this week that it has rolled out a new, free app to help people with budgeting. The company--which says its app does not require any connection to a user's bank account--is aimed at helping users establish the "groundwork for financial security". The app allows users to enter their expected income and monthly expenses as well as help streamline a user's thought process regarding finances.

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Long Beach Help Startup Company 113

L.A. Business Journal

NOVEMBER 8, 2021

Santa Monica-based PatientPop Inc. will merge with health care IT firm Kareo Inc., forming a new company called Tebra.

Santa Monica 147

Santa Monica Company Companies 147

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 10, 2021

If you are frustrated by a lack of accountability in your workplace, you are not alone. The real question is what you can do to improve it, as a manager, or even as a concerned team member. Accountability is all about taking responsibility for getting things done as expected, without excuses. Low accountability leads to mistrust, low morale, and a toxic office culture.

Startup 132

Startup Training Metrics Examples 132

socalTECH

NOVEMBER 12, 2021

Los Angeles-based Smarty, a developer of a web browser extension for automatically applying coupons to e-commerce sites, says it has launched a new, mobile app. According to the company, the app runs on both iOS and Android. The company said the apps run just like its desktop browser extensions, with users shopping on their mobile devices with the company's app automatically applying coupon codes and cashback purchases at participating merchants.

Commerce 113

Commerce Mobile Web Los Angeles 113

socalTECH

NOVEMBER 12, 2021

Costa Mesa-based wireless access point developer EnGenius Technologies said this week that it has launched two new products that offer up cloud-managed security. According to the company, its new ECW230S and ECW220S "Security Wireless Access Points" scan for security threats such as rogue access points (APs), "evil twins", attempted man-in-the-middle attacks, and radio frequency jammers.

Product 113

Product Startup Pricing Technology 113

socalTECH

NOVEMBER 12, 2021

Westlake Village-based NINJIO, a provider of cybersecurity awareness training services and content, says it has added Activision Blizzard executive Brett Wahlin to the company's board of directors. NINJIO said Wahlin is SVP and CISO for Activision Blizzard where he is responsible for all aspects of enterprise security, data and intellectual property protection.

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Activision Westlake Village Training Entertainment 113

socalTECH

NOVEMBER 12, 2021

Los Angeles-based AppliedVR, a startup that is using virtual reality to treat chronic pain, has raised $36M in a Series B funding round, the company said Thursday. The Series B funding came from F-Prime Capital, JAZZ Venture Partners, Sway Ventures and SVB Ventures. AppliedVR says it has now raised $71M in total for its virtual reality platform, which it says helps people reduce their pain and help them learn skills for managing pain in the real world.

Los Angeles 113

Los Angeles Platform Capital Funding 113

socalTECH

NOVEMBER 11, 2021

Los Angeles-based BiasSync, which provides a service to help companies assess, measure and manage unconscious bias in the work environment, says it has named Robert Jordan as its Chief Revenue Officer. Jordan was previously Founder and CEO of investment banking firm Tribeca Capital Partners. According to BiasSync, Jordan will be based in Los Angeles, and manage its business development, client services, marketing and operations teams.

Invest 113

Invest Los Angeles Platform Services 113

socalTECH

NOVEMBER 11, 2021

Pasadena-based Near, which provides marketing data about audiences to brands, has named technology veteran Gladys Kong as Chief Operating Officer (COO). Kong was previously the CEO of UberMedia, and had joined near after its acquisition of UberMedia. Near said the appointment will help it further scale its business and customers. Near's CEO is Anil Mathews.

Pasadena 113

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socalTECH

NOVEMBER 11, 2021

Chatsworth-based data storage hardware developer DDN, which develops data storage for the high performance computing market, is taking aim at the artificial intelligence (AI) area. The company said this morning that it is joining with NVIDIA to create a new AI Innovation Lab in Singapore. NVIDIA is a major developer of graphical processing units (GPUs), which are being widely used in artificial intelligence software development, as well as things like cryptocurrency mining and for accelerating v

Artificial Inteligence 113

Artificial Inteligence Chatsworth Software Development Software 113

socalTECH

NOVEMBER 11, 2021

Los Angeles-based electric vehicle company Faraday Future says it has taken another step towards production, and has received a "Certificate of Occupancy" at a new manufacturing plant in Hanford, California. The company said it is aiming at starting production of its vehicles there in Hanford in summer of 2022. The facility is targeted as the place where the company will manufacture its FF 91 EV.

Los Angeles 113

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NOVEMBER 11, 2021

Los Angeles-based XPRIZE, which runs competition to spur technology development to help solve world challenges, and the Musk Foundation--the charity organization funded by Elon Musk--says it has awarded $5M across 23 different student teams, to help them compete in the larger $100M XPRIZE for Carbon Removal. According to the two, the awards will go towards funding early stage concepts for next generation carbon removal, and remove barriers to entry for those teams interested in the main competit

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socalTECH

NOVEMBER 9, 2021

Los Angeles-based Mustard, which is developing a social, food shopping video app, said on Tuesday that it has raised $1M in a pre-seed funding round. The funding came from Operate Studio, Newfund, Great North Ventures and Fund LA. According to the startup, it is "part social media network and part ordering platform", and allows users to click on dishes they can order after viewing food videos.

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socalTECH

NOVEMBER 10, 2021

Carlsbad-based satellite communications company Viasat has acquired satellite communications provider Inmarsat, in a deal worth $7.3 billion, the companies said this week. Viasat said the deal is comprised of $850.0 million in cash, approximately 46.36 million shares of Viasat common stock valued at $3.1 billion based on the closing price on Friday November 5, 2021, and the assumption of $3.4 billion of net debt. the deal will give the combined company a fleet of 19 satellites in service with an

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.Net Pricing Services Company 113

socalTECH

NOVEMBER 10, 2021

Los Angeles-based Happiest Baby, which makes "smart" baby bassinets, is looking for a buyer, and is seeking around $1 billion for the company, according to Bloomberg. Bloomberg cited an unidentified source for the information, also saying that another source says Happiest Baby is also consider an IPO. Happiest Baby's "smart" bassinets monitor a baby's sleep, and start around $1595.

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socalTECH

NOVEMBER 10, 2021

San Diego-based high performance computing (HPC) technology developer MemComputing says it has received two, Air Force Phase I Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) contracts. Size of the contracts were not announced. According to the company, one of the contracts includes work to compute the optimal motion planning for a satellite with a robotic arm to capture a tumbling object in space, while also minimizing the energy required.

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socalTECH

NOVEMBER 10, 2021

An original, Apple I computer--hand built by Steve Wozniak and Steve Jobs--has sold for $400,000 in an auction in Monrovia, California this week. The auction of the "Chaffey College" Apple-I, originally sold to a professor at Chaffey College in Rancho Cucamonga occurred on Tuesday. The Apple-I had originally been purchased the Chaffey College professor, who later sold the computer to a student--the most recent owner--to buy an Apple II.

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socalTECH

NOVEMBER 10, 2021

Virgin Galactic, the space tourism company led by Sir Richard Branson, which originally developed its space vehicles in Mojave--but now is headquartered out of a new location in New Mexico--says it has now sold 100 tickets to space, at $450,000 a pop. The company--which recently put Branson into space--says that it has approximately 700 people who have reserved a spot on its spaceship for a trip to space, with the goal of having approximately 1,000 reservations prior to the launch of the service

Services 113

Services Develop Development Company 113

socalTECH

NOVEMBER 9, 2021

In an unusual crime, truckload of accelerated video cards (GPUs) heading from San Francisco to Southern California was stolen, according to the manufacturer, EVGA. The accelerated video cards--which are extremely hard to find now due to their popularity among Bitcoin and other cryptocurrency miners--are worth anywhere from $329.99 to $1959.99 each. In a post on the manufacturer's forum, a product manager warned that buying stolen property is a crime, as is "concealing, selling, or withholding" s

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Southern California Demand Marketing Product 113

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NOVEMBER 9, 2021

Los Angeles-based e-commerce platform developer Boosted Commerce says it has hired Steve Oliver, the former CEO of e-commerce startup Hollar as its new President. According to Boosted Commerce, Oliver will be responsible for managing the company's portfolio of acquired brands. Oliver was head of Hollar through its sale to Five Below in 2020. He previously also served as COO of Ticketfly, and also previously served at Amazon.

Commerce 113

Commerce Los Angeles Platform Sales 113

socalTECH

NOVEMBER 9, 2021

Pasadena-based PopID, a company developing payment systems which use facial recognition for payments, says it is in an effort with Japan Computer Vision (a subsidiary of SoftBank Corp) and Wendy's First Kitchen to deploy its payment systems in the country of Japan. According to the companies, Wendy's First Kitchen, a QSR chain in Japan, will accept payment using PopPay's payments systems at locations in Akasaka Mitsuke, Shibuya Center, and Jiyugaoka.

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socalTECH

NOVEMBER 9, 2021

Los Angeles-based software developer ServiceTitan, which develops software to manage the businesses of plumbers, electricians, and other home-based services, said this morning that it has appointed Anmol Bhasin as the company's Chief Technology Officer. Bhasin was most recently Senior Vice President of Engineering for Einstein AI and Search initiatives at Salesforce.

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socalTECH

NOVEMBER 9, 2021

Laguna Beach-based Edgemesh says it has upgraded its product Edgemesh Server product line to specifically help e-commerce customers before the holiday rush. The company said its product now offers up a new image optimization feature, which helps decrease image download sizes by 39%. The company says its product now provides the most efficient image format and optimal size for every device and browser, with support for PNG, JPEG, WEBP and AVIF formats.

Commerce 113

Commerce Sites Pricing Product 113

socalTECH

NOVEMBER 8, 2021

Carpinteria-based Procore Technologies, which develops construction management software, said last week that it has completed its previously announced acquisition of Levelset. Procore paid approximately $500 million, consisting of approximately $425 million in cash, subject to customary adjustments for working capital, transaction expenses, cash and indebtedness, and approximately $75 million in Procore common stock for Levelset.

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socalTECH

NOVEMBER 8, 2021

Santa Monica-based Bird, which provides micro-mobility services based on both scooters and bicycles, is now trading publicly on the NYSE, after a merger with a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) on Friday. Bird is now trading as BRDS. The company closed out its first day of trading on Friday at $8.40 per share. Bird merged with Switchback II in its SPAC effort.

Santa Monica 113

Santa Monica Acquisition Mobile Services 113

socalTECH

NOVEMBER 8, 2021

Irvine-based physical therapy device maker Hyperice, which develops a therapeutic device aimed at athletes, says it has added a slew of new celebrity athletes to its list of investors this morning. According to the company professional golfer Rory McIlroy, Formula One (F1) driver Daniel Ricciardo, NHL player Connor McDavid, NBA player Klay Thompson and NBA player Jayson Tatum have joined its slate of investors.

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socalTECH

NOVEMBER 8, 2021

Irvine-based Rivian, the electric vehicle maker which recently filed for an IPO, is now facing a gender discrimination lawsuit. The lawsuit--filed Thursday in Orange County--alleges that Rivian fired an executive at the company after she reported gender discrimination at the company. The executive has detailed a "boys club" culture at Rivian. The executive who filed the lawsuit, Laura Schwab, was previousl President at Aston Martin and was leading Rivian's sales and marketing efforts as VP of Sa

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Orange County Sales Marketing Report 113

socalTECH

NOVEMBER 8, 2021

Santa Barbara-based manufacturing and supply chain software maker QAD is now officially a private company again, after an acquisition by private equity investor Thoma Bravo. According to Thoma Bravo, the deal was worth approximately $2 billion in cash. The go-private deal was originally announced on June 28th. Thoma Bravo is paying $87.50 per share of QAD stock to shareholders, with the deal pulling QAD off the Nasdaq.

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Acquisition Santa Barbara Equity Software 100

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 6, 2021

Effective communication is an absolute requirement for successfully starting a business, but it doesn’t come naturally to many entrepreneurs. Communication is considered a social skill, and inventors and engineers, for example, are not known to be social butterflies. Founders have to communicate their ideas and products to investors, business partners, and the rest of the team.

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Startup Writing Ideas Entrepreneur 134

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 12, 2021

Blogging has come a long way in the past few years, from a social release for narcissists, to today’s required vehicle for promoting your consulting business and gaining valuable online exposure. Even with product businesses, it’s the ultimate way to build your brand credibility, bring in customer leads, and get feedback from your target market. Let me be clear – a product or consulting startup today without a blog, even with a static website, risks not being competitive in cost and time to reac

Blogging 135

Blogging Services Search Engine Optimization Web 135