Both Sides of the Table

MAY 19, 2016

I’ve spoken before about our desire at Upfront Ventures to fund really big ideas that solve hard problems, are science led and if successful will both have a positive effect on people’s lives as well as make great financial returns. We’re not Pollyannaish about this. We believe that it is incrementally harder to differentiate on simple Internet products or mobile apps and while great companies are built doing this, our goal as a fund is to try and fund things that can be 100x returns if they wor

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socalTECH

MAY 16, 2016

Is a messaging "bot" the answer to helping to improve the quality of health care? Santa Monica-based secure messaging app developer TigerText is looking to see if it is, with a new "bot" it has created for its secure messaging applications. According to TigerText, it has launched HealthBot , a new messagin application which can help healthcare organizations, insurance providers, and large pharmacy chains automated scheduling, provide information about drug interactions and side effects, provide

Help 150

Help Santa Monica Pricing Tool 150

Eric Greenspan

MAY 19, 2016

In 1995, I sat on my couch with an IBM Thinkpad 720C, Coreldraw, Microsoft Word and created Make It Work. I wrote a one page business plan and create this logo: My business idea was simple, I wanted to help people “make it work” in their business using technology and building operational software solutions. I built CRMs out of Microsoft Access and installed networks.

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IBM IBM Writing Networking 136

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 14, 2016

I’ve never understood why so many business employees still think it’s fashionable to display a negative attitude about their work and never seem to find a job they enjoy. They don’t realize that they are their own worst career enemies, since promotions and new opportunities always are offered first to people who proclaim to be productive winners, rather than sound like losers.

Satisfaction 59

Satisfaction Study Product Class 59

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

Tech Zulu Event

MAY 19, 2016

While social media can be a powerful way for businesses to interact with audiences, there are many costly mistakes that can be made in this area. Hardly a week goes by without hearing about a scandal or faux pas made by a company on Twitter, Facebook or Instagram. Many mistakes, of course, never reach the media but they can still harm the bottom line of your business.

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Social Media Media Entrepreneur Content 56

socalTECH

MAY 18, 2016

Anaheim-based Cogitai l, a new artificial intelligence (AI) software startup, said Tuesday that it has raised a strategic round of investment from Sony Corporation. Size of the investment was not announced. Cogitai said it is developing "core" artificial intelligence software technology. The new startup, led by Dr. Mark Ring, said it is developing "continual-learning" technology which allows systems to learn continually from their experience.

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Artificial Inteligence Funding Software Invest 140

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 16, 2016

Most new entrepreneurs have great ideas, and many are highly skilled in building their solutions. Unfortunately, far fewer have the focus and experience of building and maintaining a highly engaged team. They don’t realize that strong team engagement leads to even stronger customer engagement, which can more than double your startup revenue and growth, according to experts.

Software Review 57

Software Review Satisfaction Startup Training 57

Frank Addante

MAY 18, 2016

Since neanderthals created cave paintings, human beings have told stories. While storytelling may have been formerly relegated to the entertainment industry, it’s gained a special significance in the tech world. The launch of technologies like Facebook’s Oculus Rift, and Microsoft’s Hololens have provided startlingly realistic immersive experiences that are just the tip of the iceberg.

Company 40

Company Companies Advertising Startup 40

socalTECH

MAY 18, 2016

Los Angeles-based Media Temple has launched a new, WordPress hosting offering, which it says specifically provides "white glove" around the clock service and monitoring. According to Media Temple, the new offering uses Amazon Web Services (AWS) as the cloud back end for the service, and combines that with 24/7 premium technical support, performance monitoring, ability to scale traffic handling up or down, redundancy, better security, and other enhancements.

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Media Technical Support Web Los Angeles 133

Tech Zulu Event

MAY 18, 2016

It’s a hard life, being a startup founder. Overheads are high and turnovers are often low, meaning that it is absolutely crucial that important factors – such as staff retention or product adoption – remain positive. Here are a number of digital or online solutions for your startup. GoCo.io. GoCo is a neat little platform that takes the hard work out of onboarding new hires and keeping staff happy.

Startup 40

Startup Platform Screening Help 40

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 20, 2016

With the advent and growth of crowdfunding over the past few years, many entrepreneurs have predicted the demise of those demanding angel investment groups and venture capital organizations. In fact, the latest figures show that crowdfunding has already grown to over $30 billion in 2015, exceeding the amounts contributed by either angel groups or VCs alone.

Equity 54

Equity Platform Entrepreneur Demand 54

Frank Addante

MAY 18, 2016

Since neanderthals created cave paintings, human beings have told stories. While storytelling may have been formerly relegated to the entertainment industry, it’s gained a special significance in the tech world. The launch of technologies like Facebook’s Oculus Rift , and Microsoft’s Hololens have provided startlingly realistic immersive experiences that are just the tip of the iceberg.

Company 40

Company Companies Advertising Startup 40

socalTECH

MAY 18, 2016

Netflix , which has major operations in Los Angeles, said today that a new, national survey has ranked its services more popular than even live, traditional television--at least, among those who have streamed a full length show online recently. Netflix said the national survey, run by E-Poll Market Research, found that its poll asking viewers "Where do you go most frequently when you want to watch a TV show?

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Tech Zulu Event

MAY 18, 2016

If there ever was a storybook group of hackers that helped humanity by getting information from companies illegally and sharing it, they certainly did not exist in the 21st century as a dominating force. Instead, companies that work in the cloud and with data have been constantly hit with malware and cyber attacks by hackers that want money and power.

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Outsource Startup Company Companies 40

Berkonomics

MAY 19, 2016

Sometimes you need to hire a specialist already trained in a single narrow task. But for most of us, we’d do far better hiring someone who has proven from past experience to be a “jack of all trades” able to fill many positions, do many tasks, learn and perform in many situations. You’d be going against the grain of advice by many who state that trained, experienced new hires will benefit the organization, raise the level of enterprise expertise, and fit in and contribute immediately.

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Education Training Tips Email 136

Startup Professionals Musings

MAY 18, 2016

The military has long recognized that machine guns are force multipliers for rifles, but businesses have been slow to capitalize on this concept. Sometimes all the planning in the world isn’t enough for business survival, when things change as fast as they do today. Every business, especially startups, needs all guns blazing quickly on every opportunity or insight into the market.

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Startup Social Media Software Review Entrepreneur 58

socalTECH

MAY 20, 2016

San Francisco-based meal delivery startup Munchery said this week that it is adding same day, meal delivery of its pre-made meals to San Diego. The company develops ready-to-cook meals via subscription, which are aimed at feeding two people, without any time consuming prep work, and were designed by chefs. The company already has been providing same day delivery in Los Angeles and a number of other markets.

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socalTECH

MAY 19, 2016

Los Angeles-based bLife , the mobile, stress management application software developer which was founded by Paul A. Campbell and Hamet Watt, has been acquired by Canary Health , the two said this morning. Financial terms of the buy were not disclosed. Los Angeles-based Canary Health said that the acquisition will help it augment its existing suite of programs for managing such chronic conditions as diabetes, heart disease, depression and arthritis. bLife was venture backed by True Ventures, Tang

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Los Angeles Acquisition Software Development Mobile 124

socalTECH

MAY 19, 2016

Los Angeles-based online advertising marketplace and technology provider Rubicon Project is launching its mobile, video advertising platform out of beta, the company said today. According to Rubicon, its Mobile Video Platform (MVP) is now reaching more than one billion unique connected mobile devices globally. Rubicon's mobile ad platform helps mobile publishers insert a wide range of video ads into their mobile content, including pre/mid/post-roll, interstitial, native, and even vertical ads, a

Platform 124

Platform Mobile Advertising Los Angeles 124

socalTECH

MAY 19, 2016

Need to supercharge your wireless network? San Dimas-based wireless networking equipment maker TP-LINK has launched what looks to be the industry's first, 802.11ad router, which runs in the 60GHz band, and provides wireless speeds that the company says can even exceed that of Gigabit Ethernet. TP-LINK's new router also supports 5GHz and 2.4GHz Wi-Fi bands, and features an array of eight, high gain antennas.

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socalTECH

MAY 18, 2016

Irvine-based Blizzard Entertainment says it will give a free, digital copy of World of Warcraft , to anyone who purchases a ticket to the upcoming "Warcraft" movie at Regal Cinemas. The movie, which opens on June 10th, is based on World of Warcraft. Blizzard and Regal Entertainment Group said the move is aimed at allowing any moviegoers who attend the movie--and who, perhaps, have never played the videogame--to "continue the adventure".

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Entertainment Content 124

socalTECH

MAY 17, 2016

Santa Monica-based smart doorbell maker Ring had a glitch this month where some of its doorbells accidentally pulled up video from the wrong houses, causing some confusion and worry over the product. According to reports, due to a bug in the company's software, a limited number of users saw video from other people's houses, instead of their own, when they used the company's apps.

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Report Santa Monica Software Review Software 124

socalTECH

MAY 17, 2016

Santa Monica-based PatientPop has raised another $10M in its Series A funding, bringing the amount raised in its first round to $20M, the company said Monday. The funding came from Toba Capital, athenahealth, and Silicon Valley Bank. The company said the new funding will go towards product development and expanding integrations. PatientPop develops practice management software for health care providers; the company announced the first $10M in the round back in November.

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socalTECH

MAY 16, 2016

Los Angeles-based ChowNow , which develops tablet-based, online ordering and marketing software for restaurants, has inked a partnership with Google , to help its restaurants accept Android Pay. According to ChowNow, its ordering apps will be updated to include Android Pay as one of the checkout options for its app. ChowNow said the support will be a standard feature, and will not cost additional for its current restaurant customers.

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Custom Customer Google Los Angeles 124

socalTECH

MAY 20, 2016

Mis-aligned mirrors at a solar power plant in the Mojave desert caused a brief fire, resulting in lost output from the Ivanpah Solar Electric Generating System. The solar power plant--run by NRG Energy and Brightsource Energy--apparently reported a fire around 9:30 a.m. on Thursday. The plant is near Primm, Nevada. San Bernardino County Fire said misaligned mirrors apparently caused electrical cables to catch fire at the plant, although the fire was out in less than 20 minutes, before firefighte

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Report Technology 113

socalTECH

MAY 20, 2016

TCL , a Chinese television manufacturer which has its U.S. headquarters in Corona, says it is planning to build a massive, LCD panel fabrication plant in Shenzhen, China. TCL said that the new plant will be built by its subsidiary, China Star Optoeletronics Technology Co., Ltd., and will cost and estimated $7.8 billion. The new plant will produce high resolutions, flat panel displays for use in 65-inch and larger LCD TVs.

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Hollywood Demand Help Technology 113

socalTECH

MAY 20, 2016

El Segundo-based iRise , which develops application prototyping software used for developing enterprise applications, says it has rolled out a new, user requirements management feature for its product. The company said its new Requirements Management capability allows its customers to review and validate user stories, business requirements, and interactive prototypes.

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socalTECH

MAY 20, 2016

Pasadena-based Green Dot has issued a highly unusual defense of CEO Steve Streit, as a proxy fight over the company's management heats up. In a statement to the company's stockholders, the company said it was a "pivotal moment for Green Dot" and urged support for its slate of directors. The company also said that it is "confident that it has the right leadership in place" and "specifically the right CEO, Steve Streit".

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socalTECH

MAY 20, 2016

San Diego-based Avalon Ventures , and COI Pharmaceuticals , the company established by Avalon to help form new biotech companies, said today that the first two companies that it has formed with GlaxoSmithKline have met their first milestones, and that it has spun up a new company with GSK as part of their collaboration. Financial details of the milestone payments were not announced.

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socalTECH

MAY 20, 2016

One of the major issues for businesses, is handling and processing payments from credit and debit cards. In particular, there are many platforms who enable taking ticket payments for sporting events, donation payments for non profits and rent payments for property managers, who don't fit into the current legacy way payments are handled. Enter Santa Monica's Digitzs (www.digitzs.com), , which has an all star set of advisors and investors, including Kevin Harrington (the original "Shark" on Shark

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Platform Startup Ticketmaster Writing 113

socalTECH

MAY 19, 2016

Los Angeles-based March Capital Partners is the lead investor in Berlin-based Dojo Madness , a developer of e-sports content and coaching tools, as part of a $4.5M funding round, Dojo Madness revealed today. The funding round also included Investment Bank of Berlin, DN Capital, and London Venture Partners. The company's founders include Jens Hilgers, founder and chairman of Turtle Entertainment/ESL.

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socalTECH

MAY 19, 2016

Redland-based geographical information systems (GIS) and mapping technology developer Esri says its mapping software is being used in an effort to map the Zika virus. According to Esri, the Pacific Disaster Center (PDC) is using the company's platform to track Zika on a global scale, mapping out reported and suspected cases of the disease. The PDC apparently is gathering updates and bullets from around the world to populate its online map.

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Platform Report Software Technology 113

socalTECH

MAY 18, 2016

Accruent , the developer of real estate, facilities, and asset management software which was founded by Mark Friendman, has been acquired by private equity investor Genstar Capital. Financial terms of the acquisition were not disclosed. Accruent was venture backed by Constellation Ventures, FirstMark Capital, GGV Capital, Innocal, Marcus & Millichap, Peninsula Equity Partners, Red Rock Ventures, Sierra Ventures, and Stanford University.

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socalTECH

MAY 18, 2016

Santa Monica-based SPACES , a new virtual reality startup, said today that it has raised $3M in a funding round from Comcast Ventures, Boost VC, Canyon Creek Capital, Colopl VR Fund, GREE Inc., Kai Huang, The Venture Reality Fund, the Sinovation Fund, Youku Global Media Fund and CRCM VC. The new startup, led by CEO Shiraz Akmal and CTO Brad Herman, said they have already been developing a wide range of projects for such clients as Microsoft, NBCUniversal, Big Blue Bubble and The Hettema Group.

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socalTECH

MAY 18, 2016

San Diego-based driver safety equipment and monitoring equipment maker Lytx says that Omaha, Nebraska based TransWood Carriers, a provider of dry and liquid bulk transportation services, is using its DriveCam products as part of a fleet safety effort. Financial details of the win were not announced. Lytx said that a 90-vehicle trial, conducted in January 2015, helped TransWood figure out that its drivers were using cell phones while driving--despite a company policy against using cell phones--an

Company 113

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socalTECH

MAY 17, 2016

Goleta-based Resonant , which develops technology used for radio frequency (RF) filters, reported that it has signed a second licensing agreement for its technology. The company said the agreement is with an un-named, existing customer. According to Resonant, the agreement covers three three Surface Acoustic Wave (SAW) duplexer designs, and includes acceptance milestone payments and royalties.

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