Xconomy
DECEMBER 27, 2018
[ Updated 12/27/18, 9:54 am ] Manoj Saxena is bullish on artificial intelligence. As chairman of Austin, TX-based A.I. startup CognitiveScale and managing director of The Entrepreneur Fund , which makes investments in early-stage machine learning companies, Saxena believes A.I. can transform how we work and play—creating opportunities for business.
Berkonomics
DECEMBER 27, 2018
Fifty percent of all businesses formed fail within the first two years. . There are many variations of this number since there are a number of ways to measure failure. But the number is a startling reminder that creating a business is not easy, nor is it any assurance of success. How to define “success” for a startup? After speaking with many entrepreneurs over the years, each defines success in his or her. unique way.
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socalTECH
DECEMBER 26, 2018
Hawthorne-based SpaceX successfully delivered another payload into space over the Christmas weekend, delivering the GPS III SV01 Mission into space on Sunday, December 23rd at 5:51 a.m. for the U.S. Air Force. The satellite is the first GPS III satellite to be delivered into space for the USAF, and will be used to augment the current constellation of 31 satellites which are used to deliver Global Positioning System (GPS) services to the military, business, and consumer devices worldwide.
L.A. Business Journal
DECEMBER 26, 2018
Military GPS satellite launched by SpaceX; Blizzard begins player tracking; Viacom executive joins Quibi.
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.
Startup Professionals Musings
DECEMBER 26, 2018
Currently there is no professional certification, or standardized testing, as there is for accountants and lawyers, to see if you are ready to tackle the rigors of starting a new business. In fact, some pundits argue that the best entrepreneurs, including Bill Gates and Mark Zuckerberg, actually dropped out of school early to start their businesses, implying a negative relationship to training.
Berkonomics
DECEMBER 27, 2018
Fifty percent of all businesses formed fail within the first two years. . There are many variations of this number since there are a number of ways to measure failure. But the number is a startling reminder that creating a business is not easy, nor is it any assurance of success. How to define “success” for a startup? After speaking with many entrepreneurs over the years, each defines success in his or her. unique way.
Southern California Tech Central brings together the best content for technical professionals in Southern California from the widest variety of industry thought leaders.
L.A. Business Journal
DECEMBER 28, 2018
Snap cuts holiday bonuses; Disney plans NBA virtual reality experience; Netflix executives expect 2019 raises.
InfoChachkie
DECEMBER 23, 2018
A version of this article previously appeared in Forbes. My adult daughter recently visited us for a few weeks and she brought along a good friend… Alexa. My wife quickly adopted Alexa as a member of the family, relying on her for recipes, jokes, telling the time, predicting the weather and, of course, playing music. When my daughter returned to her home, my wife joked that she felt guilty because she missed Alexa nearly as much as she missed our daughter.
Startup Professionals Musings
DECEMBER 24, 2018
Most aspiring entrepreneurs are convinced that their idea and passion are so great that failure is not a possibility. They relate quickly to one of the big successes out there today, including Facebook, Airbnb, or Snap, and can give you a dozen reasons that they are in the same category. It’s a good way to get some inspiration, but not an accurate representation of reality.
socalTECH
DECEMBER 27, 2018
Editor's note: All this week, and into the start of next year, we'll be featuring reflections on 2018 from notable investors, entrepreneurs, and others from Southern California's technology community. You'll be able to browse all of those contributions here. Here, we have the thoughts of Clinton Foy , General Partner and Managing Director of Crosscut Ventures (www.crosscut.vc).
L.A. Business Journal
DECEMBER 27, 2018
SpaceX lands $29 million from the U.S. Airforce; Snap’s 2019 goals analyzed; “phishing” scam targets Netflix consumers.
Xconomy
DECEMBER 27, 2018
2018 was a year of ups and downs for the business and technology community. It was a year of big exits—both IPOs and acquisitions—for tech and life sciences companies. Venture funding remained strong, but more money went to fewer (and later-stage) companies overall. As the year winds down, we’re reflecting on the big innovation trends and developments that will carry over to next year.
Startup Professionals Musings
DECEMBER 23, 2018
People with a victim mentality should never be entrepreneurs. We all know the role of starting and running a business is unpredictable, and has a high risk of failure. For people with a victim mentality, this fear of failure alone will almost certainly make it a self-fulfilling prophecy. I’m sure you all know someone who is the perennial victim. The problem is that most of these people aren’t likely to accept your assessment, so it’s hard to help them.
socalTECH
DECEMBER 27, 2018
Editor's note: All this week, and into the start of next year, we'll be featuring reflections on 2018 from notable investors, entrepreneurs, and others from Southern California's technology community. You'll be able to browse all of those contributions here. This contribution is from Jay Goss , General Partner at Wavemaker Three-Sixty Health , based in Pasadena.
L.A. Business Journal
DECEMBER 24, 2018
Spiegel’s style analyzed by WSJ, three STEAM organizations team up, LA battery storage effort gets $100M
Xconomy
DECEMBER 26, 2018
It was an eventful year for the artificial intelligence industry. The sector saw more big venture capital deals and acquisitions , while researchers kept plugging away on technology advances. Meanwhile, A.I. developers continued to grapple with issues around transparency, trust, and ethics. As part of Xconomy’s series of year-end posts , we asked a pair of CEOs of Boston-area A.I. software startups to reflect on the trends that defined the sector in 2018—and where things might be hea
Startup Professionals Musings
DECEMBER 28, 2018
Some entrepreneurs start polling venture capitalists for that multi-million dollar investment before they even have a business plan. That’s like trying to sell part of something to a stranger for big money when you haven’t fully defined it yet. It won’t work, it costs time and money, and hurts your credibility when you need them later. Every entrepreneur needs help and support along the way, from developing the initial idea, to selling off the successful business (exit strategy).
socalTECH
DECEMBER 27, 2018
Editor's note: All this week, and into the start of next year, we'll be featuring reflections on 2018 from notable investors, entrepreneurs, and others from Southern California's technology community. You'll be able to browse all of those contributions here. Anna Barber , the Managing Director of Techstars LA (www.techstars.com), one of the startup accelerators run by Techstars in the Los Angeles area.
socalTECH
DECEMBER 27, 2018
Editor's note: All this week, and into the start of next year, we'll be featuring reflections on 2018 from notable investors, entrepreneurs, and others from Southern California's technology community. You'll be able to browse all of those contributions here. Today, we have a contribution from Michael Jones , the CEO of Science Inc. (www.science-inc.com).
socalTECH
DECEMBER 26, 2018
San Luis Obispo-based MINDBODY , the developer of spa, beauty, fitness, and other booking software and services, has been acquired by Vista Equity Partners , in a deal worth $1.9 billion, the two companies said on Christmas Eve. According to the two, Vista equity will pay $36.50 in cash per share for MINDBODY, a 68 percent premium on MINDBODY's closing price on December 21st.
socalTECH
DECEMBER 26, 2018
In a scathing report--published over the holiday weekend--the WSJ says that Venice-based Snap , the parent company of Snapchat. is "struggling after the CEO ignored warnings about a redesign that proved unpopular" saying that Spiegel's "imperious style" has caused users to flee from the service. READ MORE>>.
socalTECH
DECEMBER 26, 2018
Los Angeles-based private equity investor Ares Management Corporation has acquired three, Texas wind farms, as part of an expansion of its renewable energy holdings, the company said last week. According to Ares, a fund managed by its Infrastructure and Power arm has acquired three operating utility-scale wind facilities in Texas, from BP Wind Energy North America.
socalTECH
DECEMBER 26, 2018
Editor's note: All this week, and into the start of next year, we'll be featuring reflections on 2018 from notable investors, entrepreneurs, and others from Southern California's technology community. You'll be able to browse all of those contributions here. Our first is with Andy Wilson of the Alliance for SoCal Innovation. Happy Holidays! What was the biggest lesson you learned this year?
socalTECH
DECEMBER 26, 2018
Editor's note: All this week, and into the start of next year, we'll be featuring reflections on 2018 from notable investors, entrepreneurs, and others from Southern California's technology community. You'll be able to browse all of those contributions here. Here's Jim Andelman of Bonfire Ventures. Happy Holidays! What was the biggest lesson you learned this year?
Startup Professionals Musings
DECEMBER 22, 2018
The pervasiveness of social networking and the Internet has caused a new focus and value on “openness,” which leads to a new element of leadership, called “open leadership.” The mantra of open leadership is “Be Open, Be Transparent, and Be Authentic.” This is counter to the traditional business premise of “control,” so many companies are still pushing back.
Xconomy
DECEMBER 28, 2018
With the density of colleges and universities in the Boston area, we don’t often recognize how inaccessible higher education has become for the majority of the country. In fact, seven out of 10 college graduates today have outstanding student loans. And while many of us believe that education is a “must-have,” it’s alarming how structurally straining—in many cases prohibitive—the education system has become.
Xconomy
DECEMBER 24, 2018
Venture capital is, by nature, an optimistic industry, and venture capitalists have historically gone about their work comfortable that they were making positive societal contributions. When looking at VC activity over the past half century, one can see venture capital’s role in championing endeavors that advanced knowledge, improved health, increased worker productivity, and preserved natural resources.
Xconomy
DECEMBER 24, 2018
Gossamer Bio, headed by former Receptos executives, made its public debut in January with $100 million in financing. Seven months later, it tacked on another $230 million. Now, the San Diego-based startup is looking to Wall Street for additional funds. The company last Friday outlined plans for an initial public offering to advance its development of immunology, inflammation, and oncology drugs.
Xconomy
DECEMBER 27, 2018
In mid-2018, Tom Bogan was the leader of business planning software company Adaptive Insights as it planned its own next steps. The Palo Alto, CA-based company was on the point of raising about $115 million in a June IPO that would have set its market value at around $705 million, according to PitchBook. But like Dustin Hoffman in “The Graduate,” the big enterprise software company Workday lured Adaptive Insights away from the IPO altar with a more attractive deal—a $1.55 billion acquisiti
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