TechCrunch LA

OCTOBER 17, 2018

Los Angeles-based Next 10 Ventures , a $50 million fund focused on the creator economy, is launching an incubator program to support YouTubers. The EduCreator Incubator will seed 25 to 40 “emerging video creators” with $25,000 to $75,000 in seed funding, depending on their location, and will enroll them in a 12-month mentorship program. The only requirement is that they focus on educational video content targeting children and young adults.

Incubator 197

Incubator Content Education Seed Funding 197

L.A. Business Journal

OCTOBER 18, 2018

Playa Vista-based Xprize Foundation Inc. on Oct. 18 named technology entrepreneur Anousheh Ansari is its new chief executive.

Entrepreneur 202

Entrepreneur Technology 202

socalTECH

OCTOBER 18, 2018

Los Angeles-based Ticketmaster said this morning that it has acquired a blockchain startup, UPGRADED. UPGRADED develops blockchain software which aims to convert traditional tickets into digital assets, combined with dynamic, encrypted barcodes Ticketmaster says prevent fraud often associated with paper or PDF-based tickets. Financial details of the acquisition were not announced.

Ticketmaster 147

Ticketmaster Startup Acquisition Los Angeles 147

Berkonomics

OCTOBER 18, 2018

Loyalty is a hard-earned commodity. There are several times when stakeholder loyalty is tested to the limit. For employees, a late or missed payroll is the ultimate test of corporate loyalty, divorced even from an employee’s ability to make do without a paycheck. For investors, a subsequent down round at a lower valuation than the last, or an exit opportunity at a loss are all opportunities for the affected stakeholder to show a side that can sometimes shock an entrepreneur or CEO.

Layoffs 240

Layoffs Class News Email 240

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

OCTOBER 17, 2018

Lensabl , the company that has built a business putting prescription lenses into any style of glasses frame , has raised $3.7 million in a new round of funding. . Lensabl makes it easy to put new lenses in a favorite pair of shades or glasses. Based in Los Angeles, Lensabl already has an agreement inked with the city’s latest tech wunderkind, partnering with the spectacles-producing augmented reality luminaries at Snap. “We are the preferred prescription provider of Snapchat Spectacl

Snapchat 179

Snapchat Los Angeles Pricing Startup 179

L.A. Business Journal

OCTOBER 18, 2018

Manufacturing software maker FactoryFour, which recently opened a new Culver City office, received a $5 million round of funding led by Menlo Park, Calif.-based venture capital firm August Capital, with participation from Refactor Capital.

Venture Capital 150

Venture Capital Culver City Capital Funding 150

SoCal Tech Calendar

OCTOBER 19, 2018

Thursday, October 25, 2018 -- Innovate Pasadena's Connect Week 2018. Nnine full days of all things innovation! From AI to virtual reality demos to coding for both kids and adults, we have over 100 awesome events to choose from to help muster up your innovation savviness!

Pasadena 100

Pasadena Help 100

Xconomy

OCTOBER 16, 2018

The federal net neutrality regulation, which had guaranteed equal access to the Internet for data from all sources, is officially repealed. There are no longer federal rules ensuring that all Internet traffic must be treated equally, and no FCC protections to stop Internet Service Providers (ISPs) from engaging in blocking, throttling, or paid prioritization of content.

.Net 100

.Net Web Content Services 100

L.A. Business Journal

OCTOBER 15, 2018

Santa Monica e-sports organization Cloud9 Esports Inc. has raised a $53.6 million Series B round finalized Oct. 15.

Santa Monica 170

Santa Monica Organization 170

socalTECH

OCTOBER 16, 2018

Los Angeles-based j2 Global , which owns a large portfolio of Internet services, including such services as eFax, eVoice, Campaigner, Livedrive, as well as online media outlets like IGN, Mashable, PCMag, Everyday Health, and others, has acquired five more companies. According to j2 Global, the five acquisition were all made in the third quarter of 2018, and included PRIME Education , The Communicator Corporation , BestBlackFriday.com (certain assets), Downdetector , and DemandShore.

Company 138

Company Companies Southern California Education 138

SoCal Tech Calendar

OCTOBER 19, 2018

Thursday, October 25, 2018 -- AI and Society: Creating a Fair and Ethical Future. As Artificial Intelligence (AI) begins to percolate into our everyday lives, we must take a step back to think about the effects of such technologies on our lives. How does AI embody our value system? Whose interests are advanced by an AI system? Do AI systems learn humanly intuitive correlations?

Artificial Inteligence 100

Artificial Inteligence Press Technology 100

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 14, 2018

The days of leadership without engagement are gone. With interactive social media and video everywhere, everyone needs to feel they have a relationship with their leaders, and every brand needs leader personification for customers to relate. Soon you won’t be able to name a business as one of your favorites if you can’t personally visualize and relate to company leadership.

Social Media 96

Social Media Metrics Customer Custom 96

L.A. Business Journal

OCTOBER 15, 2018

Santa Monica–headquartered Universal Music Group Inc. signed a deal with British digital audio streaming firm Mixcloud on Oct. 15, ensuring that UMG artists will be compensated for the use of their music on Mixcloud’s platform.

Santa Monica 124

Santa Monica Platform 124

socalTECH

OCTOBER 19, 2018

Los Angeles-based nonprofit XPRIZE , which operates a number of sponsored "challenge" prizes aimed at solving some of humanity's greatest challenges, has named Anousheh Ansari as its new CEO. Current CEO and founder Dr. Peter H. Diamandis continues as Executive Chairman. Ansari, who is a tech entrepreneur, is best known as for her private ride to space on a Russian Soyuz, which made her the first private female to visit space as a tourist.

Artificial Inteligence 133

Artificial Inteligence IBM IBM Competition 133

SoCal Tech Calendar

OCTOBER 19, 2018

Thursday, October 25, 2018 -- Founder-Only Roundtable ft. Roger Obando. Are you the founder of a tech startup? Join Founders Network for one of our intimate roundtable discussions featuring Roger Obando, Co-Founder and CTO of Baker Technologies. These intensive sessions are founder-only, and serve as a space to share real issues and challenges with your peers.

Networking 100

Networking Startup Technology 100

Xconomy

OCTOBER 15, 2018

More days than not, Michael Colaneri’s home is a hotel room. So innovations like “geolocation” sensors that automatically unlock his room door and adjust the thermostat when he’s nearby make the constant change easier—sometimes. “My experience has been exceptionally inconsistent,” he says. “When it’s worked, it’s really great, cool, and so efficient to the point where they’ve spoiled me rotten. … When it doesn’t work, it does more damage than not having it at all.

Services 99

Services Technology San Diego Netflix 99

L.A. Business Journal

OCTOBER 15, 2018

Wavemaker names new executive in residence; Snapchat releases filters for your cat’s face; Cloud9 Esports raises $54 million

Snapchat 113

Snapchat Report 113

socalTECH

OCTOBER 19, 2018

Earlier this month, Los Angeles-based Catalog (www.catalog.cc), a startup developing artificial intelligence software to help independent visual artists scale their content production efforts, announced it raised $1.5M in a seed funding round. The funding was led by Moonshots Capital, and also included Techstars and Luma Launch. We caught up with Catalog's co-founder and CEO Patrick Ip , along with co-founder Jacobo Lumbreras , to learn more about the startup.

Help 133

Help IP Content Google 133

SoCal Tech Calendar

OCTOBER 19, 2018

Thursday, October 25, 2018 -- OC ENTREPRENEURS: Join us for another LIVE MasterMinds Workshop. Bring your startup ideas and business questions so our friendly group of local Orange County entrepreneurs and business owners can help you move your business farther, faster. Free tickets available if you have a good startup business question for discussion, or you want to practice your startup pitch!

Orange County 100

Orange County Startup Ideas Entrepreneur 100

Xconomy

OCTOBER 19, 2018

Five-year-old biotech TP Therapeutics has raised an $80 million mezzanine financing round and promoted its chief medical officer, Athena Countouriotis, to CEO. The San Diego-based biotech, which is developing targeted cancer drugs for people whose tumors resist other precision therapies, announced the changes Friday. TP Therapeutics is developing a drug called repotrectinib that targets a group of genetic alterations to the enzymes ALK, ROS1, and TRK, which are implicated in lung cancer and othe

San Diego 97

San Diego Develop Development Venture Capital 97

L.A. Business Journal

OCTOBER 18, 2018

Activision’s new game has a $500-million opening; Ticketmaster acquires blockchain startup; Bird’s new service could bypass city regulations.

Ticketmaster 100

Ticketmaster Report Services Startup 100

socalTECH

OCTOBER 18, 2018

Costa Mesa-based Veritone , a developer of artificial intelligence software, said this morning that it has added Nayaaki Nayyar as a member of its board of directors. Nayyar is the President of Digital Services Management at BMC Software, and she previously served as head of SAP's Internet of Things (IoT) division, in addition to serving at SAP, Shell, and Valero.

Artificial Inteligence 133

Artificial Inteligence Software Services Technology 133

SoCal Tech Calendar

OCTOBER 19, 2018

Thursday, October 25, 2018 -- Growth Capital Conference. Network with Investors: Angels, VCs, High Net Worths, Strategic Partners and 100 entrepreneurs seeking capital and counsel. DEAL DISPLAYtm showcases growing firms needing capital. View products, videos, online demos. Hot Networking Breakfast at 7:00am sharp! See p://www.GCC2000.org.

Conference 100

Conference Capital .Net Networking 100

Xconomy

OCTOBER 17, 2018

The inventor and developer of a drug, nusinersen (Spinraza), are among the winners of the Breakthrough Prize in Life Sciences. Adrian Krainer (pictured) of Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory and Frank Bennett, senior vice president of research at Ionis Pharmaceuticals, share the $3 million prize. The Breakthrough Prizes, now it their seventh year, tout themselves as the world’s biggest prize in science and are sponsored by Sergey Brin, Priscilla Chan and Mark Zuckerberg, Ma Huateng, Yuri and Julia Mi

Research 97

Research Marketing Develop Development 97

L.A. Business Journal

OCTOBER 17, 2018

Edlio gets investment for school communications; Riot Games accused of gender bias; Jukin Media proves old content doesn’t expire

Riot Games 100

Riot Games Report Content Media 100

socalTECH

OCTOBER 18, 2018

Los Angeles-based AppOnboard , the developer of mobile app demo technology led by Jonathan Zweig, says that it now has such app developers as FoxNext Games, Game Insight, Superheart Studios, Jam City, Huuuge Games, and Simple Habit using its tools. According to the startup, those cutomers are some of the developers who are using its tools to enable Google Play Instant apps via its "App Store Demos" product, which it launched in August.

Technical Review 133

Technical Review Mobile Technology Customer 133

SoCal Tech Calendar

OCTOBER 18, 2018

Wednesday, October 24, 2018 -- Innovate Pasadena's Connect Week 2018. Nnine full days of all things innovation! From AI to virtual reality demos to coding for both kids and adults, we have over 100 awesome events to choose from to help muster up your innovation savviness!

Pasadena 100

Pasadena Help 100

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 13, 2018

One of the things I’ve learned in working with aspiring entrepreneurs is that managing and leading a team is a scary venture into the unknown for many people, even if they have worked as a business professional for years. Having worked in my own career on both sides of the fence at various times, I recommend that everyone practice thinking like the boss in every role to prepare.

Training 87

Training Startup Entrepreneur Summary 87

L.A. Business Journal

OCTOBER 19, 2018

SpaceX prioritizes talent over cost in Port of L.A.

SpaceX 127

SpaceX Report 127

socalTECH

OCTOBER 18, 2018

Los Angeles-based ProducePay , a Los Angeles company which is developing fintech for food growers, distributors, shippers and marketers, has raised $14M in a Series B funding round, the company said this morning. The funding was led by Anterra Capital, and also included Rabo Frontier Ventures, Coventure, Social Leverage, FJ Labs, Greenhouse Capital, Moonshots Capital and Tribeca Angels.

Los Angeles 133

Los Angeles Capital Funding Help 133

SoCal Tech Calendar

OCTOBER 17, 2018

Tuesday, October 23, 2018 -- Bubblemania. Bring the whole family out to get mesmerized by the shimmering and wiggling science of bubbles while having a blast with an actual bubbleologist from Bubblemania!

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100

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 15, 2018

The biggest challenge for every entrepreneur and every startup today is to get noticed and remembered in today’s information overload. The number of entrepreneurs worldwide is huge, starting an estimated 50 million new businesses per year, or 137,000 per day. Every one of these probably has a unique story, but in my years as a startup advisor I only remember hearing a few who capitalized on their story.

Startup 84

Startup Technical Review Entrepreneur Customer 84

Xconomy

OCTOBER 16, 2018

Technology and life sciences leaders say they’ll remember Paul Allen, the Microsoft co-founder, philanthropist, and investor who passed away Monday at age 65, as an “inspiration” whose work will impact the fields he worked in for years to come. Allen died from complications of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, according to a statement from Vulcan, the Seattle-based philanthropy and investment firm he led.

Invest 85

Invest Technology Help Artificial Inteligence 85

socalTECH

OCTOBER 17, 2018

Los Angeles-based online game maker Riot Games is facing allegations of sexism and harassment at the company, according to a report this weekend from the LA Times. The allegations include that two employees who defended diversity initiatives were "targeted by online mobs and out of a job soon after." The local tech and content industry has had a string of high profile issues over sexual harassment over the past few years, including issues involving Ross Levinsohn, the former publisher and CEO of

Riot Games 133

Riot Games Los Angeles Content Pricing 133

SoCal Tech Calendar

OCTOBER 17, 2018

Sunday, October 21, 2018 -- Space Apps Challenge 2018 Kickoff. Hello makers, designers and enthusiasts! Welcome to NASA Space Apps Hackathon 2018 Pasadena, a three day event with presentations by industry professionals and 48 hours of hacking! Everyone is welcome to join and a background in coding or computers is not necessary. We will open the event on Friday with speakers from JPL, The Planetary Soceity, and Space Decentral.

Pasadena 100

Pasadena Design 100

L.A. Business Journal

OCTOBER 16, 2018

J2 Global announces five acquisitions; Snap Inc.

Netflix 113

Netflix Report Acquisition 113