Xconomy

JUNE 25, 2019

A company that makes a mapping system to help doctors see high-resolution, 3D images of irregular heart rhythms in real time has raised $100 million in venture investment and a $70 million credit facility to fund its full-scale market launch. Acutus Medical, based in the northern San Diego community of Carlsbad, was founded in 2011. The company’s flagship product, dubbed AcQMap, uses ultrasound to allow physicians to see what is causing a patient’s irregular heartbeat, also known as an arrhythmi

San Diego 80

San Diego Invest Funding Help 80

TechCrunch LA

JUNE 26, 2019

Over the past year, Songtrust has added another 55,000 artists and songwriters to its rights management service. The company, a subsidiary of Downtown Music, a publishing and rights management firm that manages rights for artists such as John Lennon, One Direction and Santigold, now has 205,000 artists on its roster and has 2 million songs it tracks.

Services 184

Services Technical Review Los Angeles Report 184

socalTECH

JUNE 25, 2019

NOWA Innovations (www.nowainnovations.com), a University of California, Irvine spinout, is designing a medical device aimed at improving asthma inhalers. For our video interview today, we spoke with Nasam Chokr, the founder and CEO of NOWA Innovations, about the startup and its technology. NOWA Innovations was one of the startups at the First Look 2019 Startup Showcase last week in Pasadena.

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Pasadena Design Startup Technology 124

L.A. Business Journal

JUNE 24, 2019

El Segundo-based information technology services firm PCM Inc. will be acquired by Tempe, Ariz.-based Insight Enterprises Inc. in a deal worth roughly $581 million.

El Segundo 162

El Segundo Services Technology 162

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

Berkonomics

JUNE 27, 2019

OK. We know that an executive’s job is not easy. Nor is there much time in a typical day for outreach of any kind. Especially in your growing company, you are drawn into daily process issues by all of your direct reports, often responding to questions and problems, leaving little time for strategic thought. That’s bad behavior! And that behavior results in leaving little time for outreach to the most critical component in your chain – your key customers.

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Customer Custom Course Email 120

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 24, 2019

When was the last time you changed how you communicate to your team and to your customers? The way you deliver your message is key to maximizing its impact, or even reaching the intended audience. Don’t count on people reading your Annual Report for breaking news. Your team needs to hear from you on a regular basis, on a channel they can relate to easily and quickly.

Social Media 108

Social Media News Tool Examples 108

L.A. Business Journal

JUNE 27, 2019

Gardena-based electric vehicle maker Faraday & Future Inc. fired several employees it had previously placed on unpaid leave in December, citing lack of funds to pay salaries.

Gardena 133

Gardena Funding 133

Xconomy

JUNE 24, 2019

Youth. Charm. Fearlessness. Ruthless focus. These can be positive attributes in an entrepreneur, but in a more rational world, technology investors wouldn’t overvalue them. Risk capital would be allocated based mostly on evidence, data, progress towards milestones—in short, on proof. In the real world, of course, proof is hard to come by. Hope, avarice, or fear of missing out often drive investors to plunge ahead.

Technical Review 107

Technical Review Course Capital Entrepreneur 107

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 23, 2019

Entrepreneurs are usually highly creative and innovative, but many innovative people are not entrepreneurs. Since it takes a team of people to build a great company, the challenge is to find that small percentage of innovative people, and then nurture the tendency, rather than stifle it. A few years ago I read a classic book “ The Rudolph Factor ,” by Cyndi Laurin and Craig Morningstar, which is all about finding the bright lights that can drive innovation in your business.

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Mentor Competition Ideas Organization 101

socalTECH

JUNE 24, 2019

Los Angeles-based Virgin Hyperloop One , which is developing futuristic transportation technology, says it has linked up with the Sam Fox School of Design & Visual Arts at Washington University in St. Louis. According to Virgin Hyperloop One, the two will create a "Master of Architecture (MArch) studio" to map out the "social, political and physical context of the state" and to and explore "elegant hyperloop infrastructure proposals" for Missouri.

Design 149

Design Technical Review Los Angeles Technology 149

L.A. Business Journal

JUNE 26, 2019

West Los Angeles-based game developer Riot Games Inc. responded today to a June 12 announcement from the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing that it was opening an investigation into the company's management practices.

Riot Games 113

Riot Games West Los Angeles Los Angeles Angel 113

Xconomy

JUNE 26, 2019

Despite the progress of gene therapy—a cutting edge medicine promising long-lasting effects from a single treatment—it remains a crude and limited tool. Startup Encoded Therapeutics has raised $104 million to join the race to expand gene therapy’s reach. The South San Francisco, CA, company has emerged from the startup accelerator of Illumina (NASDAQ: ILMN ), and it counts the DNA sequencing giant among its investors along with Arch Venture Partners, Venrock, and others.

Help 105

Help Tool Startup Funding 105

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 22, 2019

Have you noticed that more companies beg you to participate in their business today? It started with an email survey on your last stay at their hotel, but now includes requests for online product reviews, to social media input on the design of future products. They do it because engaged customers become loyal advocates and buyers. Welcome to the “Participation Age” of marketing.

Startup 98

Startup Technical Review Social Media Marketing 98

socalTECH

JUNE 28, 2019

Irvine-based Restaurant365 , a developer of cloud-based accounting software specifically aimed at the restaurant industry, has raised $88M in a Series C funding round, the company said this week. The funding was led by ICONIQ Capital, and also included Tiger Global Management and Bessemer Venture Partners. As part of the funding, ICONIQ Partner Will Griffith has joined the company's board of directors.

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Funding Platform Software Capital 138

L.A. Business Journal

JUNE 27, 2019

Wondery, the podcast network that produced Los Angeles Times’ “Man in the Window” and “Dirty John,” will use Series B funds to acquire new and original content, invest in technology.

Networking 100

Networking Capital Los Angeles Content 100

Xconomy

JUNE 27, 2019

Degreed , which helps businesses upgrade the skills of their staffers through an online gateway to learning resources, announced Thursday it has raised $75 million to grow the service and expand internationally. San Francisco-based Degreed is among the educational technology companies now classified as “learning experience platforms,’’ because they organize staff participation in skills development training and coordinate it with the goals of employers, who are their clients.

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Training Education Platform Course 82

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 28, 2019

In the popular press, it’s easy to find articles that will convince you that companies with a good culture, such as Google, do it by lavishing perks and benefits , including some combination of free meals, trips and parties, financial bonuses, gyms, and a dog-friendly environment. These things are clearly good for morale, but its not so clear that they translate into a competitive advantage.

Competition 76

Competition Coach Case Study Statistics 76

socalTECH

JUNE 26, 2019

Los Angeles-based software developer CapLinked , which is led by Eric M. Jackson, has launched a new product for helping companies in the blockchain and cryptocurrency area. According to CapLinked, the new product, TransitNet is a new software product to manage title verification, financial reporting, and corporate governance for blockchain-based securities and digital assets.

Product 133

Product Tool Software Development Los Angeles 133

L.A. Business Journal

JUNE 27, 2019

Silicon Beach Report June 27: Disney Launches Incubator; Faraday Future Fires Furloughed Workers; AEG Links with Lyft

Incubator 100

Incubator Report 100

Xconomy

JUNE 25, 2019

Pharmaceutical giant AbbVie this morning agreed to acquire Allergan in a $63 billion deal meant to provide the pharmaceutical giant with enough revenue to brace for the loss of patent protection for the world’s top-selling drug. AbbVie (NYSE: ABBV ) will pay $188.24 per share in cash and stock for Allergan (NYSE: AGN ) and its portfolio of aesthetic treatments such as Botox and eye drugs like Restasis.

Patents 82

Patents San Diego Blogging 82

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 26, 2019

A common misconception I often hear in the startup world is that non-profits are easy and safe, since they don’t have to pay taxes, and they don’t have to make a profit for their shareholders. In reality, from the feedback I get from non-profit executives, exactly the opposite is true. Technically speaking, in the United States, a non-profit corporation or association is one which has been exempted from Federal income taxes by meeting the criteria set out Section 501(c) of the Internal Revenue C

Organization 74

Organization Satisfaction Startup Class 74

socalTECH

JUNE 25, 2019

Private equity investor Lovell Minnick Partners , which has offices in Los Angeles, has made a "significant" investment in oneZero Financial Systems , the firm said on Tuesday morning. Financial details of the minority investment in oneZero Financial Systems were not announced. onZero provides software and technology to the foreign exchange (FX) trading industry.

Equity 124

Equity Los Angeles Invest Software 124

L.A. Business Journal

JUNE 25, 2019

Retina launches AI for ecommerce; Quibi plans more content; Falcon Heavy launch goes (mostly) as planned

Report 100

Report Content 100

Xconomy

JUNE 28, 2019

This week’s decision by police equipment manufacturer Axon to forego using facial recognition software in its body cameras follows a string of other actions against the use of face-matching technology by public agencies. They include a pioneering ban in San Francisco last month, and another passed Thursday by the city council of Somerville, MA. What makes Axon’s new limit to law enforcement’s access to facial recognition tools unusual is that the decision was made by a private technology company

Tool 79

Tool Software Technology Customer 79

SoCal Tech Calendar

JUNE 24, 2019

Sunday, June 30, 2019 --.

Resource 100

Resource 100

socalTECH

JUNE 25, 2019

Santa Barbara-based HG Insights , which provides analytics around technology installs, IT spend, and contracts, says it has tied with LinkedIn with a new product, HG for LinkedIn. According to the company, it has integrated with LinkedIn's Matched Audiences API, which will help marketers target prospective customers and increase response rates with more relevant advertising on the LinkedIn platform.

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Santa Barbara Advertising Pricing Platform 124

L.A. Business Journal

JUNE 28, 2019

PCM security breached; Marvel and Team Liquid partner; SpaceX starts third fundraising effort this year

SpaceX 100

SpaceX Report 100

Xconomy

JUNE 24, 2019

Conatus Pharmaceuticals said Monday that it would cut its staff by 40 percent and consider a sale or merger after a drug it was testing as a treatment for an increasingly common form of chronic liver disease failed to beat a placebo in a mid-stage clinical trial—the latest letdown in a number of trial failures. The company is one among many racing to develop a treatment for nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), a fatty liver disease whose incidence has risen along with obesity, especially i

Sales 70

Sales Company Companies Develop 70

Southern California Edison Blog

JUNE 26, 2019

Connected classrooms are part of a rapid trend to leverage technology to bring learning into a more national and global sphere. Instead of interacting only with their peers sitting next to them, connect classroom technology enables students to reach out to their peers around the country or world, broadening their access to both people and information.

Artificial Inteligence 50

Artificial Inteligence Technology Education Networking 50

socalTECH

JUNE 28, 2019

Users of social media applications such as Tinder and Snapchat are far more willing to consider cosmetic surgery--a side effect of the popularity of "filters" on those apps--according to a new report from the JAMA Facial Plastic Surgery journal. According to the study, there is an "increased consideration of cosmetic surgery" from users of social media platforms, and specifically those who had used specific applications, such as YouTube, Tinder, and Snapchat photograph filters.

Snapchat 113

Snapchat Study Social Media Journal 113

L.A. Business Journal

JUNE 24, 2019

SpaceX launches Falcon Heavy rocket; Virgin Hyperloop works with WashU in St.

SpaceX 100

SpaceX Report 100

Xconomy

JUNE 25, 2019

Even as Uber, Lyft, and other high-profile initial public offerings underperformed out of the gate, the average share price of companies that have gone public in the US this year is up by almost 33 percent. That’s according to data based on the mean returns of issuers that started trading through June 19, released by accounting firm Ernst & Young (EY) on Tuesday.

Startup 69

Startup Pricing Company Companies 69

socalTECH

JUNE 28, 2019

For our Insights and Opinions section today, where we share contributed articles from the Southern California technology community, we have Eric Eide , of the Alliance for SoCal Innovation , a nonprofit that recently has been working on trying to help support the local entrepreneurial community across the region. Eric was most recently on the Government Relations team at startup electric scooter rental company Bird.

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Southern California SoCal Activity Startup 113

socalTECH

JUNE 28, 2019

For our Friday video interview, we have Evan Brandt , the CEO of VideOMS (www.videoms.com), an early, seed stage startup offering up a videos, drone shots, photography, and more of real estate property listings nationwide, through a network of drone operators. VideOMS is based in Westlake Village, California. READ MORE>>.

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Westlake Village Networking Startup Entrepreneur 113

socalTECH

JUNE 27, 2019

According to a report, from Krebs On Security, El Segundo-based IT services provider PCM has seen a major breach , which allowed attackers to access multiple, client accounts hosted through PCM. According to the report, the intrusion--discovered in mid May of this year--gave attackers the administrative credentials to client accounts within Office 365.

El Segundo 113

El Segundo Report Services Product 113

socalTECH

JUNE 27, 2019

Hawthorne-based SpaceX has raised $314.2M in new funding, according to a report from CNBC Thursday, which said part, if not all, of that investment came from the Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan. According to CNBC, the funding came at $214 per share, and will bring the total raised by SpaceX in 2019 to $1.33 billion. Privately held SpaceX rarely announces investment details on its funding.

SpaceX 113

SpaceX Report Funding Hawthorne 113