Both Sides of the Table
SEPTEMBER 15, 2022
At our mid-year offsite our partnership at Upfront Ventures was discussing what the future of venture capital and the startup ecosystem looked like. The market was down considerably with public valuations down 53–79% across the four sectors we were reviewing (it is since down even further). ==> Aside, we also have a NEW LA-based partner I’m thrilled to announce: Nick Kim.
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.
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Berkonomics
JANUARY 20, 2022
Dave’s note: This is a reprint of a 2015 insight that seems to have struck a chord with investors and entrepreneurs. None of this advice has changed… Let me tell you a few short hair–raising stories of entrepreneurs who have raised money and regretted it later. Here are some rules that entrepreneurs almost always ignore to their future peril.
TechCrunch LA
SEPTEMBER 7, 2022
America’s favorite reality star is leveling up her repertoire and levering up businesses. Kim Kardashian, who passed the “baby bar” exam in preparation to become a lawyer last year, just added another job title to her lineup — private equity investor. Kardashian is launching private equity firm SKKY Partners in conjunction with ex-Carlyle consumer head Jay Sammons to invest in business across consumer products, hospitality, luxury, digital commerce and media, the Wall Str
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.
socalTECH
NOVEMBER 7, 2022
According to the U.S. Department of Justice, $3.3 billion worth of stolen Bitcoin was recovered from "a single-board computer that was submerged under blankets in a popcorn tin stored in a bathroom closet". The stash was located by the Los Angeles office of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). The US DOJ said that the Bitcoin was stolen from Silk Road by defendant James Zhong, who pled guilty to wire fraud on November 4th.
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.
Southern California Tech Central brings together the best content for technical professionals in Southern California from the widest variety of industry thought leaders.
Both Sides of the Table
JULY 26, 2022
Photo by Scott Clark for Upfront Ventures (no, Evan is not standing on a box) Last year marked the 25th anniversary for Upfront Ventures and what a year it was. 2021 saw phenomenal returns for our industry and it topped off more than a decade of unprecedented VC growth. The industry has obviously changed enormously in 2022 but in many ways it feels like a “return to normal” that we have seen many times in our industry.
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.
Berkonomics
JULY 7, 2022
Another leadership development bit? Yup. But if you have no time or are impatient, here are the three levels: visionary, strategic and tactical. Skip or stay with me; but think about your balance in your leadership methods either way. The conundrum of competing needs. As a leader, you must worry over issues from mundane to strategic, constantly reordering your priorities to accommodate competing needs.
TechCrunch LA
JUNE 3, 2022
On Lafayette Street in SoHo, young, fashionable women lined up around the block to enter a minimalist, millennial oasis, the most perfect Instagram feed brought to life. Staff members glided around the store in pastel pink suits, each embodying the kind of girl that Glossier made us all want to be: beautiful, yet effortless. “We want to inspire, but we also want to be realistic and show beauty in real life,” Glossier founder and CEO Emily Weiss said in a 2017 interview with Inc, just as th
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.
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.
TechCrunch LA
AUGUST 30, 2022
In otherwise normal times, hospitals generate more than 5 million tons of waste each year, according to Greenhealth. Personal protective equipment (PPE) was in short supply over the past two years, and it was widely reported that some had to reuse what is typically a single-use item, like surgical gowns. MEDU , a Mexico-based startup, wants to reduce that waste and replace single-wear medical garments through the creation of a line of sustainable, virus-resistant reusable pieces, including surgi
TechCrunch LA
AUGUST 18, 2022
Aero Technologies , which describes itself as a “next-generation air travel company” which currently operates on a limited number of routes in the U.S. and Europe, today announced that it has raised $65 million, with $50 million of those as a Series B funding round co-led by Albacore Capital Group and $15 million in convertible notes. Expa and Keyframe Capital, as well as new investor Capital One Ventures also participated in this route.
TechCrunch LA
APRIL 5, 2022
We’re all guilty of it: sometimes, even when we’re not looking to move, it’s fun to look at home listings on Zillow just to see what’s out there. If that sounds weird to you… I don’t blame you, but I also recommend watching more HGTV. However, if this sounds like a fun way to procrastinate after you’re done playing the Wordle, Quordle, Globle and Heardle for the day, you’re not alone.
TechCrunch LA
APRIL 26, 2022
Many grocery delivery startups begin small, in one city, building up locations to cater to a certain neighborhood. Food Rocket has taken an unconventional route, striking a funding deal with Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc. that puts its 15-minute grocery delivery service in more than 14,000 Circle K convenience stores and Couche-Tard locations. We first met the Chicago-based company and its founder and CEO Vitaly Alexandrov last year when we reported that Food Rocket launched in the Bay Area , goi
TechCrunch LA
FEBRUARY 6, 2022
Hello friends, and welcome back to Week in Review ! Last week, we talked about about the “de-stonkifying” of the market. This week, we’re looking at a wounded Facebook/Meta that finds itself backed into a corner. If someone forwarded you this message, you can get this in your inbox from the newsletter page , and follow my tweets @lucasmtny.
L.A. Business Journal
JANUARY 24, 2022
Construction began earlier this month on a $25 million project to reconstruct a major taxiway at Long Beach Airport, according to an announcement from city of Long Beach, which runs the airport.
L.A. Business Journal
JANUARY 24, 2022
Westwood-based Concrete-AI Inc., a UCLA spinout with technology to enable more efficient use of concrete, announced January 13th that it has raised $2 million in a seed financing round led by Boston-based Grantham Foundation for the Protection of the Environment.
L.A. Business Journal
JANUARY 24, 2022
Last month, Southern California Edison, the electric utility subsidiary of Rosemead-based Edison International, announced two major moves to reduce reliance on greenhouse gases (GHG).
TechCrunch LA
MAY 15, 2022
Uber Eats is launching two autonomous delivery pilots in Los Angeles on Monday with Serve Robotics, a robotic sidewalk delivery startup, and Motional, an autonomous vehicle technology company. The new programs are a part of a range of new products Uber is launching across its ride-hail and delivery platforms, which are being announced on Monday at the company’s Global Product Event.
TechCrunch LA
JANUARY 25, 2022
Starship Technologies , one of the bigger names in the world of autonomous delivery robots — those little caboose-like, boxy delivery vehicles that self-drive around cities — has been on a roll during Covid-19, providing extra (unmanned) horsepower to distribute food and other goods between stores or restaurants and consumers, at a time when consumers were either reluctant or being ordered to stay at home to minimize the spread of the virus.
TechCrunch LA
AUGUST 30, 2022
Digital avatar startup Genies , known its for high-profile partnerships with celebrities such as Justin Bieber, Migos and Cardi B, has just released its long-anticipated NFT storefront, “The Warehouse.” Genies last earned a $1 billion valuation from heavy-hitting tech investors including Silver Lake and Mary Meeker’s Bond Capital during its most recent raise, a $150 million Series C round announced in April.
TechCrunch LA
AUGUST 2, 2022
Shein has shown the world how combining social media marketing, data analytics, and China’s well-oiled supply chain has created a $100 billion fast fashion behemoth. Its success naturally spawns imitators and challengers. Among its fastest-growing challengers is Cider, which, like Shein, relies on China’s responsive clothing manufacturers to sell affordable, trend-led pieces to customers around the world.
socalTECH
NOVEMBER 10, 2022
Santa Monica-based online car marketplace TrueCar said it has awarded a new, retrofitted vehicle to a Marine Corps Vietnam veteran, as part of its DrivenToDrive initiative. The initiative connects disabled American veterans with vehicles. According to TrueCar, the brand new, retrofitted Chevy Traverse was awarded to Marine Corps Vietnam veteran Leonard "Len" Johnson of Philadelphia.
socalTECH
JANUARY 20, 2022
Camarillo-based ImmPACT Bio, a company developing cancer therapies, said this week that it has raised $111M in a Series B financing round. The funding was led by venBio Partners, along with Foresite Capital and Decheng Capital, plus Surveyor Capital (a Citadel company), OrbiMed, Novartis Venture Fund, RM Global Partners (RMGP), and Bukwang Pharmaceutical.
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.
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.
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.
TechCrunch LA
JANUARY 26, 2022
Glossier, the popular beauty brand led by former blogger Emily Weiss, let go of 80 of its corporate employees today, according to an internal email obtained by Modern Retail. The cuts, which amount to around one-third of Glossier’s corporate workforce, will primarily impact the company’s technology team. “[W]e are shifting our technology strategy to leverage external partners for parts of our platform that we’re currently maintaining internally,” Weiss wrote in the email announcing the layoffs t
TechCrunch LA
AUGUST 9, 2022
Beauty may be in the eye of the beholder, but when it comes to getting ahold of an appointment for your hair or another treatment…that’s a different story: The bespoke nature of a lot of the work has meant that a large swathe of the professionals providing these services have stayed offline when it comes to interfacing with customers. But that is changing, and today, Boulevard — one of the wave of software companies that’s building a route to digitizing booking appointme
TechCrunch LA
JULY 19, 2022
The process for retailers and brands to liquidate excess inventory hasn’t changed very much, if at all, and while some retailers were able to build operational infrastructure to service the off-price channels, it continues to be a constant pain point. Brands overproduce more than $500 billion of goods annually, and all of that excess inventory leads to retailers needing to do markdowns, which is what we recently saw both Walmart and Target have to do.
socalTECH
FEBRUARY 3, 2022
Goleta-based property management and real estate software developer Yardi said this week that it has been selected by investor services provider IQ-EQ as its international real estate fund management platform. Financial terms of the win were not announced. Yardi said it will be used across IQ-EQ's global operations.
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.
TechCrunch LA
JULY 26, 2022
Holey Grail Donuts started selling its hand-fried, made-to-order taro donuts on Sunday mornings out of a little red burger trailer in Kauai in 2018. Four years and hundreds of long lines later, the truck is still there, but the company is taking on what co-founder Nile Dreiling calls “a stale $40 billion donut industry ” by expanding its presence into brick-and-mortar locations in Los Angeles after raising $9 million in financing.
TechCrunch LA
NOVEMBER 8, 2022
Generative AI is suddenly everywhere. Over the past year, you’ve probably seen people showcasing impressive AI-generated artworks, thanks to progress in text-to-image algorithms introduced by groups like OpenAI and Stability AI. A proliferation of startups is now trying to devise applications for this new class of language model , where the machine is capable of creating new text, images and videos based on simple human input.
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