TechCrunch LA
SEPTEMBER 23, 2020
In this case, money, it really is the shoes. GOAT , the proprietor of online and physical retail locations for reselling the collectible kicks and kits that are the currency of street cred and cultural cool among the youths, is now worth a whopping $1.75 billion thanks to $100 million in new financing. It’s a big number, and a big day, for the Los Angeles-based startup.
L.A. Business Journal
SEPTEMBER 21, 2020
Facing a Sept. 20 deadline from the White House to find a buyer for its U.S. operations, TikTok parent company ByteDance Ltd. has accepted a bid from Oracle Corp.
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socalTECH
SEPTEMBER 23, 2020
In a world of Tinder, Match, and dozens of other online dating applications, is there room for another approach to dating? Constance Curtis , the Founder and CEO of The List (www.getthelistapp.com), thinks so, and tells us about her startup's efforts to bring the world of matchmaking to the modern worldand how her own frustration with online dating let to her startup.
Berkonomics
SEPTEMBER 24, 2020
My immediate family members were entrepreneurs from as far back as I can trace. Dad was a jeweler, then a furniture store owner. Mom wrote books and articles from her college days until she could no longer see the keyboard. One grandfather owned and maintained his apartment houses. The other was a grocer, then a jeweler. My entrepreneurial start.
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TechCrunch LA
SEPTEMBER 23, 2020
After operating in stealth mode for about two years, First Resonance , a company founded by former SpaceX engineers, is finally showing the world their software toolkit designed to let manufacturers make things using the processes employed by their former boss. It’s a suite of software products that can allow for more flexible manufacturing processes and one that can handle the pressures of remote monitoring for companies making hardware in the age of social distancing brought on by the CO
L.A. Business Journal
SEPTEMBER 21, 2020
Facing a Sept. 20 deadline from the White House to find a buyer for its U.S. operations, TikTok parent company ByteDance Ltd. has accepted a bid from Oracle Corp.
Southern California Tech Central brings together the best content for technical professionals in Southern California from the widest variety of industry thought leaders.
Startup Professionals Musings
SEPTEMBER 19, 2020
Traditional marketing says you have to “push” your message out to customers, over and over again, to get you remembered. A more effective approach in today’s Internet and interactive culture is to use “pull” technology to bring customers and clients to your story. You pull people in by providing new content with real value on your website at least every few days.
TechCrunch LA
SEPTEMBER 23, 2020
Leonardo DiCaprio is making a significant commitment to the Los Angeles-based investment firm, Struck Capital , as part of the actor’s commitment to building LA into a tech development powerhouse. It’s part of what Struck Capital founder Adam Struck called a vision of making Los Angeles “a leading hub for innovation to save the world.” Struck Capital, which is currently investing out of a $55 million second fund, would not disclose the size of DiCaprio’s stake, but
L.A. Business Journal
SEPTEMBER 21, 2020
TrueCar Inc., the Santa Monica-based online car-buying marketplace, has named three executives to its expanded management team and has added a member to the company’s board.
socalTECH
SEPTEMBER 21, 2020
Aliso Viejo-based artificial intelligence software developer BrainChip says it is opening up a new software development center in Hyderabad, India, which it says will provide software and firmware development for its systems-on-a-chip technology. According to BrainChip, the new software development center initially will be staffed by five software engineers and local management.
Startup Professionals Musings
SEPTEMBER 23, 2020
A continuing question I hear from young entrepreneurs is whether a university degree is important to startup success, or just a distraction in achieving their purpose in the world. They are quick to point out that many of today’s top entrepreneurs, including Evan Williams (Twitter), Bill Gates (Microsoft), and Mark Zuckerberg (Facebook), dropped out of school to get on with their dreams.
Xconomy
SEPTEMBER 23, 2020
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) has no cure and few available treatments but the past decade has revealed new knowledge about the pathology of the disease. Libra Therapeutics is turning that research into potential therapies, and it now has $29 million to advance its work. While the exact causes of many neurological disorders are unknown, Libra President and CEO Isaac Veinbergs says one common thread is toxic proteins.
SoCal Tech Calendar
SEPTEMBER 24, 2020
Thursday, September 24, 2020 --.
socalTECH
SEPTEMBER 25, 2020
Culver City-based Amazon Studios , the arm of Amazon which is focused on creating content for Amazon's streaming video service, says it is continuing a program it runs with Howard University , intended to help increase diversity in the entertainment industry. According to Amazon Studios and Howard University, the program is in its second year. The program is intended to create a pipeline for African-American students and other underrepresented populations to train and study alongside entertainme
Startup Professionals Musings
SEPTEMBER 21, 2020
I realized a while back that creating a new company for the first time is a lot like whipping up a great dinner entrée for the first time – you need a recipe, even though it may look simple. You know the basic ingredients, and you can visualize the results you want. Yet you may not be so sure where to start, and how to put it all together. In all cases, don’t skip the basic training.
Xconomy
SEPTEMBER 21, 2020
Grail is set to be acquired for $8 billion by Illumina, the gene sequencing giant that formed the cancer diagnostics developer and spun it out as a separate company four years ago. The announcement comes less than two weeks after Menlo Park, CA-based Grail revealed its plans for an IPO to support commercialization of its first test next year. The deal announced Monday is a cash and stock transaction.
TechCrunch LA
SEPTEMBER 25, 2020
TGIF, am I right? Welcome back to Human Capital, where we explore some of the latest news in labor, diversity and inclusion in tech. This week, we’re looking at the use of “master/slave” terminology in computer programming and the current state of gig workers in California. Human Capital will soon be available as a weekly newsletter.
socalTECH
SEPTEMBER 25, 2020
Los Angeles-based electric vehicle developer Fisker Inc. --the latest incarnation of Fisker--says it has opened up a new "technology center" in San Francisco, which it says will help support design and engineering of software systems for the Fisker Ocean SUV and future products. According to Fisker, the new, downtown San Francisco location is designed to be a "focal point and development center" for the company's software and vehicle electronics, and is designed for employees to work flexibly be
Startup Professionals Musings
SEPTEMBER 20, 2020
In the world of entrepreneurs and startups, high level relationships are everything. You can’t start a business alone. You need partners, team members, investors, vendors, and customers. But people don’t realize that all relationships are not the same. There are people you only recognize on the street, business friends, and then close friends whom you can always count on to help.
Xconomy
SEPTEMBER 25, 2020
In biotech, you can go home again. Four years ago, Illumina spun out cancer diagnostics startup Grail. This week, the gene sequencing giant announced it is acquiring Grail in an $8 billion cash and stock deal. Grail set out with the goal of developing a diagnostic test that detects cancer from the genetic snippets tumors shed into the blood. The idea is to diagnose cancer well before symptoms show, giving clinicians a better chance to treat the disease.
TechCrunch LA
SEPTEMBER 19, 2020
President Donald Trump said has has given his stamp of approval “in concept” on the Oracle bid for the U.S. operations of the wildly popular social media app, TikTok, according to a report from Bloomberg. According to the Bloomberg report Trump said, “I have given the deal my blessing,” as he left the White House for a campaign rally in North Carolina on Saturday. “I approved the deal in concept,” Trump reportedly said.
socalTECH
SEPTEMBER 24, 2020
Indio, California-based Helicoid Idustries , a startup developing advanced composite materials for use in the wind turbine, aerospace, sporting goods, auto parts, defense, and industrial market, has raised $2.4M--the first part of what looks like an ongoing $5M investment round. According to a regulatory filing by the firm, it raised $2,425,810 from 3 investors so far in the funding round.
Startup Professionals Musings
SEPTEMBER 25, 2020
The world keeps changing, and visible business strategies that worked well in the past, including being the premium brand or low price producer, simply don’t get the customer loyalty they once did. Today, customers are looking for real relationships, a memorable shopping experience, and satisfaction of a higher purpose. They follow leaders who live and promote these strategies.
Xconomy
SEPTEMBER 25, 2020
Had things turned out differently, scientists at Galecto might be watching their idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis drug candidate develop in the hands of a big pharmaceutical company. But Bristol Myers Squibb passed on its option to acquire Galecto leaving the biotech to forge ahead on its own. Now the company has $64 million to advance clinical development of that compound and others in its pipeline.
socalTECH
SEPTEMBER 23, 2020
San Diego-based machine learning software developer Point Predictive has raised a new, Series B growth financing round, the company announced this morning. Size of the new funding round was not announced. Point Predictive said the round was led by Napier Park Financial Partners, and also included prior investor Mosaik Partners. As part of the funding, the company has named Michael Housman as Chief Technology Officer and promoted Eric Werab to Chief Revenue Officer.
socalTECH
SEPTEMBER 23, 2020
Hawthorne, California-based rocket and spacecraft developer SpaceX has just closed a Series N funding round, according to investor Legendary Ventures, which invested in the round. Amount of the Series N funding round was not announced, and Legendary Ventures did not say how much it invested in SpaceX through the round, and whether is was a major or minor investor in the round.
socalTECH
SEPTEMBER 21, 2020
San Diego-based life sciences equipment maker Illumina announced this morning that it has acquired Menlo Park-based GRAIL , a developer of cancer early detection technology. According to Illumina, it will acquire GRAIL for cash and stock worth $8 billion. The deal also includes unspecified future earnout based on future revenues related to GRAIL. Illumina said the buy will help it add a multi-disciplinary team and capabilities for next generation sequencing (NGS), population scale clinical studi
socalTECH
SEPTEMBER 25, 2020
Venice, California-based Riot Ventures , led by Stephan Marcus and William Coffield, has launched an effort to raise $75M for its second venture capital fund, the firm disclosed this week in a regulatory filing. According to the filing, the firm has yet to record an official commitment to the fund, which is not unusual at this early of a stage. According to the firm's website, it typically invest $500,000 to $10 million in early and growth stage companies that leverage hardware as a key componen
socalTECH
SEPTEMBER 25, 2020
Palm Springs-based Eco Helicopters , which is developing all electric helicopters, says it plans to launch an air taxi service in the Los Angeles metropolitan area in the second quarter of 2021. The company--which has demonstrated very short, battery powered flights on a modified Robinson R-44 Raven II helicopter--says it initially plans to use the "helicopters existing powerplant" for the service, until it receives an FAA supplemental Type Certification for its new battery powered propulsion sy
socalTECH
SEPTEMBER 25, 2020
Los Angeles-based social, musical video app developer Triller --which competes directly with TikTok--says it has reached over 100 million install on phones manufactured by Transsion, which it says is the world's fourth largest mobile phone manufacturer. According to Triller, Transsion is a dominant mobile phone brand in Africa. Triller said the install rate for its app on those phones comes because Transsion allows its users to install apps natively, as an alternate to the traditional iOS and An
socalTECH
SEPTEMBER 25, 2020
Los Angeles-based Internet services and information provider J2 Global --which owns a large portfolio of Internet services and publishers, including IGN, Mashable, Spiceworks, Everyday Health, BabyCenter, eFax, eVoice, and iContact--says it is moving $10M of its deposits into Black-run banks and credit unions. According to J2 Global, the move is intended to help those institutions to originate additional loans that will foster economic opportunity within underserved Black communities.
socalTECH
SEPTEMBER 24, 2020
Los Angeles-based Ring announced its new, autonomous indoor drone, designed to patrol your home and record video, and which communicates with Amazon Alexa, as well as to alert the homeowner of any intrusions or other issues, on Thursday. READ MORE>>.
socalTECH
SEPTEMBER 24, 2020
Want to keep a better eye on your home while you are gone? Los Angeles-based Ring said on Thursday that it has developed an in-home security drone, which can patrol your home from room to room on a regular schedule, alerting homeowners of any intruders or other issues. Ring said the new Always Home Cam , a small drone, can't be manually controlled, but can be set on a regular patrol route through your home.
socalTECH
SEPTEMBER 24, 2020
Los Angeles-based SketchyMedical , a startup best known for presenting medical topics using graphical illustrations and art, said on Thursday that it has raised $30M in a funding round. The funding came from TCG. According to the company, the new funding will go towards scaling the company's growth, as well as for a new in-house studio for live content and animation.
socalTECH
SEPTEMBER 24, 2020
San Diego-based crowdsourced local sports information provider ScoreStream , led by technology vet Derrick Oien, says it has connected its information into Amazon Alexa. According to ScoreStream, it has extended an effort which started last year to provide high school sports scores via Alexa to all sports in all seasons; the two had originally worked together on providing real-type local prep football scores through the Alexa platform.
socalTECH
SEPTEMBER 24, 2020
Newport Beach=based private equity investor L Squared Capital said on Wednesday that it has closed a new fund, L Squared Capital Partners III , at just over $500M. The investor said limited partners include a number of large, US-based family offices. L Squared says its sectors of focus include education technology, tech-enabled services & software, and industrial technology & services.
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