August, 2017

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Love letter to a … battery backup.

Berkonomics

Well, if you’ve had a computer long enough, it has certainly happened to you. Power surges, power outages, surges upon reinstatement of power, low or high voltage from your utility (brownouts or surges.) I’ve had all of these over the years and lost equipment from motherboards to microcells. And I’ve lost data due to sudden power loss. I have worried over every wind storm or thunderstorm.

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Panda Pop passes 100 million users as Jam City readies for an IPO

TechCrunch LA

The flagship game from Los Angeles-based mobile game developer Jam City, Panda Pop, has reached over 9.3 million monthly active users and climbed above its 100 millionth download. The tentpole game for Myspace founder Chris DeWolfe’s latest LA-based juggernaut of a company has certainly had its moment. Read More.

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What Do Boards Actually Do?

Both Sides of the Table

There’s a lot of mystique about what happens at board meetings and a lot of imagined board-room drama. I read commentary or Twitter or blogs and realize that there are also strongly held convictions that there are these evil VCs who do terrible things to mostly altruistic founders. The image of boards and of investors vs. founder conflicts has been so at odds with my experiences on dozens of boards over the past 20 years that I thought it was worth sharing what I actually see.

Startup 217
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City of Los Angeles Launches Cyberattack Warning Center

L.A. Business Journal

L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti on Tuesday announced the launch of the Los Angeles Cyber Lab, a public-private data-sharing center for alerting local businesses and residents to cyberattacks.

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Can You Ask for Office Rent Relief? How to Manage Your Lease During COVID-19

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.

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Esri Teams To Use Drones To Help Fight Wildfires

socalTECH

Redland-based GIS technology and software provider Esri is helping to power a new product, which is using military drone technology to help fight wildfires. According to FireWhat , Esri , and unmanned aerial vehicle maker Insitu , they've created a system for aerial reconnaissance of wildfires. The system taps Insitu's ScanEagle aerial vehicle, Esri's geographical information systems (GIS), and support from FireWhat's fire professionals, to help provide data collection and spatial analytics of f

Help 185
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7 Crowdfunding Rules That Can Boost Your Campaign

Tech.Co

Once a novelty act reserved for indie band albums and curious art projects, crowdfunding is starting to play a major role in the world of startups and new products. The appeal is obvious: crowdfunding lets creators and entrepreneurs raise money directly from their community and potential customers, and unlike the traditional approach of funding through VCs and investors, crowdfunding money is truly no strings attached.

Startup 93

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Panda Pop passes 100 million users as Jam City readies for an IPO

TechCrunch LA

The flagship game from Los Angeles-based mobile game developer Jam City, Panda Pop, has reached over 9.3 million monthly active users and climbed above its 100 millionth download. The tentpole game for Myspace founder Chris DeWolfe's latest LA-based juggernaut of a company has certainly had its moment.

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11 Quick Tips to Get More Value out of Your Board

Both Sides of the Table

Many board meetings are bored meetings. Management teams whisk through slides trying to get through a presentation to share how great things are going and they are eager to get through the meeting so they can get back to their real jobs. This is a shame since the value that the right board could add is immense if you select the right board members and manage them effectively.

Tips 212
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‘FabLab’ Gives Northrop’s Engineers Room to Experiment for Fun, Profit.

L.A. Business Journal

Northrop Grumman has set up a “FabLab” to help launch projects by the company’s engineers.

Help 197
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Silversheet Gets $5M For Medical Credentials

socalTECH

Los Angeles-based Silversheet , a startup which is modernizing the process of medical credentialing, said on Monday that it has raised $5M in a Series A funding round. The funding was led by Summation Health Ventures. Silversheet, which was co-founded by Dr. Miles Beckett, Dr. David Rakoff, Pat Cheung, and Steve Seigel, has now raised a total of $10.2M.

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5 Design Apps to Help You Plan Home Renovations

Tech.Co

If you are tired of the outdated look in your home, you do not need to buy a new home or move to another house. You can remodel your house and give it a modern outlook. Luckily, you use design tools on your mobile device to help you with different aspects of renovations. The apps are useful to homeowners who intend to do renovations on their own and to professional constructors and designers.

Design 24
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There’s no second chance to create first quality.

Berkonomics

Close. Let me illustrate this insight with a personal story. As my enterprise computer software company which produced innovative lodging systems for hotels and resorts grew quickly, we found ourselves straining to keep up with the hiring and training of good customer support representatives, a critical part of the equation then and still so today in the 24-hour environment of hotel front desk operations.

Training 243
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Taking Tech Ideas Global: Connecting an Innovation Ecosystem

Xconomy

The word ecosystem conjures up a rain forest in Ecuador, where sunlight, soil, water, and a multitude of species exist together in a self-sustaining environment that is constantly evolving. This image from biology translates perfectly into what many people like to call an innovation ecosystem. Think of a group of people developing a new idea, all doing what they are good at.

Ideas 100
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Silicon Beach Networking Mixer At Wurstkuche in Venice

SoCal Tech Calendar

Wednesday, August 30, 2017 -- Silicon Beach Networking Mixer At Wurstkuche in Venice. Join the fastest growing startup and tech community in Los Angeles! Meet new people and participate in lively discussions with outstanding names in the Silicon Beach community. Register immediately for an early bird ticket.

Venice 100
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New Alternative Restaurant Delivery App Launches in Los Angeles.

L.A. Business Journal

Some local restaurants are trying a new alternative to delivery to bring in customers with an app that launched in Los Angeles County Tuesday.

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UCLA Extension Creates New Innovation Lab Program

socalTECH

UCLA Extension , the extension arm of UCLA, said today that it is launching a new, membership program called the Silicon Beach Innovation Lab , where it will look to deliver networking opportunities, hackathons, webinars to entrepreneurs and professionals. According to UCLA Extension, the new membership program--part of its new "Digital Technology Department"--aims to provide access to executives and founders through webinars and special events, as well as real world projects in collaboration wi

UCLA 157
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4 Tools to Help Startups Find Quality Leads

Tech.Co

Finding potential customers continues to be a huge challenge not only for established marketing and sales teams but also for startup executives and solo entrepreneurs. A study in 2013 showed that 61 percent of marketers found it hard to generate high-quality leads. It is not that there is a lack of lead generation tools, particularly for business-to-business (B2B) firms.

Tool 72
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Haste makes waste; but to lag is to sag.

Berkonomics

Close. Let’s examine the relationship between time, quality and competitiveness. If you are getting the impression from these many insights that complex relationships cause simple problems, you are right. We have heard the “haste makes waste” ditty since childhood. There is little need to reinforce the obvious. On a larger scale, there are epoch stories of giant companies eating massive losses in a recall of product, often based upon limited testing before release.

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Dragonfly, eGenesis, Spero & More: Xconomy’s Startup Award Finalists

Xconomy

Startups play a critical role in the innovation economy that we chronicle at Xconomy—transforming new ideas that begin in a lab into the products and companies of tomorrow. No surprise, then, that the startup category in our first-ever Awards program was a particularly competitive one, loaded with private companies (no more than 5 years old) in several biotech hotspots: gene editing, microbiome research, immuno-oncology, regenerative medicine, digital health and more.

Startup 90
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8th Annual Women in Green Forum

SoCal Tech Calendar

Wednesday, August 30, 2017 -- 8th Annual Women in Green Forum. Now in its 8th year, the Women In Green Forum is the largest conference of its kind. It highlights women’s impact on the environmental industry and has attracted a global audience from a wide range of sectors including government officials, corporate executives, academic researchers, technology developers, and clean tech financiers.

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Auto Parts Maker Deals for EV Edge

L.A. Business Journal

Motorcar Parts of America steers toward the electric-vehicle market with recent acquisition.

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How Gigmor Is Looking To Connect Musicians With Gigs, with David Baird

socalTECH

Santa Monica-based Gigmor (www.gigmor.com) is an online marketplace for musicians, and recently expanded beyond connecting musicians with each other, to connecting musicians with venues, club organizers, and others. We caught up with the company's founder and CEO, David Baird , a former AOL executive, to learn more about what Gigmor is working on. What is Gigmor?

Startup 150
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Exponential vs Sustainable Growth: The Donkey Revolution

Tech.Co

There are arguments for and against the exponential growth or the slow, sustained growth of a startup. There is no doubt that Small Medium Enterprises (SMEs) currently, and will continue to play a vital role in the global economy by contributing considerably to employment and income generation. Furthermore, the number of SME startups will continue to grow exponentially.

Startup 96
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Wasted time is money lost.

Berkonomics

Close. There is a relationship between time and money that is more complex than most managers think. Fixed overhead for salaries, rent, equipment leases and more make up the majority of the “burn rate” (monthly expenses) for most companies. Since this number is budgeted and pre-authorized, managers tend to focus upon other things such as sales, marketing and product development issues.

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Opportunity Abounds as Washington Builds the Modern Electricity Grid

Xconomy

In a dry grassland set amid some of the region’s preeminent energy research, production, and training facilities, you can see the future of the electricity grid, and Washington state companies and workers are playing a major role in shaping it. The Horn Rapids Solar, Storage, and Training Project—which would be the largest solar installation in Washington , and one of a relative few anywhere with a significant amount of energy storage incorporated—embodies a long chain of publi

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Better Living Through Analytics - Strategies for Data Decisions

SoCal Tech Calendar

Tuesday, August 29, 2017 -- Better Living Through Analytics - Strategies for Data Decisions. Product School. Data is king! Get ready to understand how a successful analytics team can empower managers from product, marketing, and other areas to make effective, data-driven decisions. Louis will be sharing some case studies and successful strategies that he has used at ZipRecruiter as well as previous experiences.

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Hopscotch Signs 40 Collegiate Programs for Sports App

L.A. Business Journal

Sports app developer Hopscotch of El Segundo announced on Monday that it signed up more than 40 athletic programs as customers last month.

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March Capital Leads Funding For Satellite Imagery Analysis Startup

socalTECH

Los Angeles-based March Capital appears to be having a busy investment week this week, and has led an $30M, Series B funding in Santa Fe, New Mexico-based Descartes Labs , a developer of software used for satellite imagery analysis. Descartes Labs said the Series B funding was led by March Capital, and also included prior investors Crosslink Capital and Cultivian Sandbox.

Capital 150
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Tech Has an Anxiety Problem. This CEO Is Working to Combat It.

Tech.Co

Entrepreneurs need to make rapid decisions and act quickly in order to thrive. But those suffering from anxiety — which affects around 40 million Americans a year — actually make decisions with less clarity. And since running a startup often leads to problems like depression and anxiety , entrepreneurs should all prioritize their mental health a little more than they currently do.

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Greatly exceed early customer expectations.

Berkonomics

First customers are critical. Greatly exceed expectations at all costs. There is so much history behind this insight, and so many stories that illustrate this point. Your first customers for any product or service form your reference base, the important group of allies that your marketing and sales people rely upon when attempting to create buzz and make a mass market for a new product.

Customer 243
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Bill Maris Takes Stage for 2nd Act, Says New Fund Mostly Committed

Xconomy

In his first public appearance since leaving Google Ventures, Bill Maris said Wednesday his new venture fund, Section 32, is nearly fully invested—less than four months after he officially unveiled its existence in the San Diego area. In a keynote talk at a venture summit in San Diego, Maris said Section 32 already is looking to raise a second fund.

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XMAS In August

SoCal Tech Calendar

Thursday, August 24, 2017 -- XMAS In August/ Get in front of LA media in one amazing night of demo's at XMAS in August. Early bird registration ends on July 13th.

Media 100
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Pay Gap Widens Between Women and Men in Los Angeles Tech Industry

L.A. Business Journal

The pay gap between women and men in tech jobs in Los Angeles widened 15.5 percent on average for the time period of 2011 to 2015 compared with the previous five years, according to an estimate by the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey.

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Triple Taps Augmented Reality To Sell Furniture

socalTECH

Los Angeles-based Triple , a startup developing augmented reality applications, said today that it has launched a new app to let users shop for furniture--and see how that furniture looks like in their home or office. The venture backed company's app-- currently only available for iOS --let users search for different furniture from such stores as Design Within Reach, Article, CB2, Crate & Barrel, West Elm and Restoration Hardware, and "drag and drop" that furniture into real life augmented r

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Elon Musk Unveils First Photo of SpaceX Spacesuit

Tech.Co

Elon Musk and his SpaceX team have done it again. Today Musk unveiled the first photo of the SpaceX spacesuit on his personal Instagram account. All we’ve got is the one photo to go by right now, but his message implies SpaceX will reveal more details soon on the spacesuit. In a post to Instagram Elon Musk said: “First picture of SpaceX spacesuit.

SpaceX 45
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Patrick Soon-Shiong’s NantHealth to Lay Off 300 Employees, Sell Health Care Software

L.A. Business Journal

NantHealth Inc. announced plans Thursday to lay off about 300 of its staff and sell its provider and patient messaging platform to Allscripts in a move that it expects to save the company more than $70 million annually, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Software 165