Sat.May 19, 2018 - Fri.May 25, 2018

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Founder of RYSE UP, NearWoo Jason Crilly Passes Away

socalTECH

One of Southern California's promising startup entrepreneurs, Jason G. Crilly --the co-founder of RYSE UP and co-founder of NearWoo--has passed away, according to friends and families. Crilly passed away last weekend. According to posts on his now-memorialized Facebook page, Crilly took his own life, which some attributed to the stress of startup life, along with other factors.

CTO Coach 185
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Illumina Spinout Grail Gets $300M More For Cancer Detection Testing

socalTECH

Grail , the spinout of San Diego-based life sciences equipment maker Illumina , has raised $300M more in funding, the company said this week. The startup is developing blood testing technology which uses DNA analysis to help in early detection of cancer. The funding came from Ally Bridge Group, Hillhouse Capital, 6 Dimensions Capital, Blue Pool Capital, China Merchant Securities International, CRF Investment, HuangPu River Capital, ICBC International, Sequoia Capital China and WuXi NextCODE.

San Diego 127
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Silicon Beach Report May 25: Electric Bus Maker Proterra Raises $100M

L.A. Business Journal

Proterra raises $100 million for electric buses; new european data privacy regs wreak havoc on U.S. sites; L.A.

Report 100
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Why you should never have a data room — the most counter-intuitive fund-raising advice you’ll ever…

Both Sides of the Table

Why you should never have a data room?—?the most counter-intuitive fund-raising advice you’ll ever get I’m about to offer you some fund-raising advice that flies directly in the face of what most conventional wisdom will tell you. If you stick through to the end I’m guessing I can persuade most of you. Let me start out with my premise: “Data rooms are where fund-raising processes go to die.

Funding 336
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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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Shared housing startups are taking off

TechCrunch LA

W hen young adults leave the parental nest, they often follow a predictable pattern. First, move in with roommates. Then graduate to a single or couple’s pad. After that comes the big purchase of a single-family home. A lawnmower might be next. Looking at the new home construction industry, one would have good reason to presume those norms were holding steady.

Startup 272
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You are your company’s moral compass.

Berkonomics

Here’s yet another story that you may identify with – or have yet to experience in your business life. It’s one of those that define your leadership for all to see, sometimes based upon decisions made in the moment – such as this one. A story of a CEO’s snap judgment call. Years ago, when I was CEO of my record manufacturing company in Hollywood, I happened to walk around the plant into the press room just as Bobby, one of the employees’ favorite coworkers, was offering stolen merchandise to his

Press 226

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How to Improve Your Odds of Getting to Yes with a VC — “Land and Expand”

Both Sides of the Table

If you’ve read any of my ongoing series on fund raising from venture capitalist (episode 1?— ?controlling your psychology ) you no doubt have heard me say that raising capital is a sales & marketing process. You company is the product and you’re selling an equity ownership in your company but much more broadly you’re selling trust & confidence that you’re going to build something enormously valuable and that you’re going to be enjoyable to work hand-in-hand with over the coming decade of

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13 Ecosystem Builders That Are Boosting Startup Growth

Tech.Co

If you’re an early-stage entrepreneur, technology has served you well. The barriers to entry when it comes to launching a company require less tension and a lot less capital. In fact, for the most part, all you need is a laptop and Wi-Fi connection. Still though, when founders are seeking funding, “ 75 percent of the venture capital goes to three states: Massachusetts, New York, and California,” said Steve Case in an interview with Recode.

Startup 137
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Openpath Launches with $7 Million Raise

L.A. Business Journal

Culver City-based office security tech firm Openpath launched May 22, helped by a $7 million funding round and helped by local funds.

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Heal Raises $20M More For House Calls

socalTECH

Los Angeles-based Heal , which operates a service that schedules in-home house calls from doctors via an app or its website, has raised $20M in a new funding round, the company announced this morning. The funding came from Bascom Ventures, Inflection Capital, IRA Capital, RLJ Equity Partners, Trans-Pacific Technology Fund, and others, in addition to existing investors Fidelity Contrafund, Jim Breyer, Lionel Richie, and Dr.

Equity 159
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Why Confidence is So Important in Fund Raising

Both Sides of the Table

I was recently with an entrepreneur and talking with him about his fund raising process. He was in a later-stage financing round and was talking with many investors. Some started asking him for very specific analyses to be completed on his data and wanted his company to crunch the numbers. I told him he shouldn’t bother and that it was likely a junior person at the firm whose job is was to find holes in the data / narrative.

Funding 217
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Silicon Beach Networking Mixer at The Room in Santa Monica (Complimentary Drinks)

SoCal Tech Calendar

Wednesday, May 30, 2018 -- Silicon Beach Networking Mixer at The Room in Santa Monica (Complimentary Drinks). Wednesday, May 30th Starting at 6pm! Complimentary Drinks, Presentations, and Networking! Meet new people and participate in lively discussions with outstanding names in the Silicon Beach community. Make sure to bring your business cards and be ready to make awesome connections with people across all industries.

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Silicon Beach Report May 21: SpaceX Readies for Dual Payload Launch

L.A. Business Journal

SpaceX Readies Next Falcon 9 Launch; More Competition for Bird; Core Innovation Backs $8 Million Crypto Raise.

SpaceX 113
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Watch: SpaceX Attempts Launch Of Iridium-6/GRACE-FO

socalTECH

Hawthorne-based SpaceX is getting set to launch another set of satellites into space for Iridium, as well as a mission for NASA. The launch--scheduled for a little over 10 minutes, at 12:47 pm PDT--will use the same Falcon 9 as used by the Zuma mission. SpaceX said in pre-launch broadcast that it will attempt to again catch the fairing off the rocket, but will not attempt to recover the Falcon 9's first stage.

SpaceX 140
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Why Hearing “No” in a Fund-Raising Process is Actually Healthy

Both Sides of the Table

Every entrepreneur wants to hear “yes” during the fund-raising process but I would argue that being too risk averse and not pushing hard enough and be willing to hear a “no” is what holds back many people from “yes.” I believe people generally hate making decisions and especially so when they involve commitments and risks. This is true of any buying process where a customer has to make a large investment decision on your software or when an investor must decide whether to give you $5 million.

Funding 189
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Bloom Science Plans to Advance Microbial Treatment for Epilepsy

Xconomy

Bloom Science , a biotech founded to advance a new class of microbe-based therapeutics for neurological disorders, is making its debut today with the publication of research that suggests certain bacteria in the gut could be used to manage epileptic seizures. The research, published in the journal Cell , indicate that several specific strains of bacteria work together in mice to provide neuroprotective effects against epileptic seizures.

Journal 76
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Silicon Beach Report May 24: Justice Department Launches Cryptocurrency Probe

L.A. Business Journal

Justice Department investigates cryptocurrency and price manipulation; PeerStreet passes $1 billion mark in real estate loans; UCLA Magnify looks for tech and life science startups.

UCLA 100
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UCLA's Magnify Opens Accelerator To LA Tech, Life Sciences Startups

socalTECH

Magnify , the startup incubator which is part of UCLA's California NanoSystems Institute (CNSI), says it has opened up its incubator to the greater Los Angeles area, and is now inviting startups in the early stage technology and life sciences areas to join its program. According to Magnify, it is looking for companies working on technology in the life science, medtech, IT, and advanced materials area for its program, which is based at UCLA.

UCLA 133
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7 Pitching Tips to Help You Crush Your Next Investor Meeting

Tech.Co

When it comes to pitching investors, rejection is a lot more common than success. Truth be told, your only path to some serious funding is perseverance and diligence in getting meetings and being prepared. But with the right pitch tactics, you could turn those that pesky “no” into glorious “yes.” “[Founders underestimate] how difficult it is to get a deal done, and how few deals get funded out of how many deals that are pitched,” said Thomas Flake , Founder and Chief Mark

Tips 70
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Fixing the Clinical Trial Bottleneck by Making Patients a Priority

Xconomy

The world of medicine and drug development has transformed dramatically over the past 50 years. Today, we have biologic medicines, genomic sequencing technologies, and digital health tools that help patients become more engaged in their care. But one part of the equation hasn’t seen very much change at all: clinical trials. Clinical trials are a necessary component of bringing any drug to market.

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Reliam Acquires G2 Tech, Plans Rebrand

L.A. Business Journal

South Bay-based cloud computing service provider Reliam announced May 23 the acquisition of Boston-based G2 Tech Group for an undisclosed sum.

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Esri Expands In North Carolina

socalTECH

Redland-based geographical information system (GIS) provider Esri announced on Tuesday that it has opened up a new office, in Charlotte, North Carolina, where it will operate business development efforts and and East Coast call center. Esri did not say how many employees it will hire in the new location, which it says will be available to customers interested in learning about the company's products and which will also help it contribute to Charlotte's growing tech sector.

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Report: Proterra Raises $100M For Electric Bus Efforts

socalTECH

Proterra , the electric bus manufacturer which has its West Coast manufacturing operations in the City of Industry, has reportedly raised $100M in new funding, based on regulatory filings by the company. Names of the investors in the new round were not announced, however, Proterra previously has raised funding from Tao Capital Partners, Kleiner Perkins, GM Ventures, Constellation Technology Ventures, 88 Green Ventures, and Edison Energy.

Report 113
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Converge Technology Partners Buys BlueChipTek

socalTECH

Converge Technology Partners , the IT technology provider which acquired Agoura Hills-based Key Information Systems in April, said this week that it has acquired another company-- BlueChipTek , a technology solutions provider based in Silicon Valley. Financial terms of the acquisition were not announced. BlueChipTek focuses on data center infrastructure integration.

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AutoGravity Names Engineering VP

socalTECH

Irvine-based AutoGravity , which provides smartphone-driven car financing tools, has named Jason Bonifay as its new Vice President of Engineering, the company said this morning. Bonifay was previously VP of Development for Product and Engineering at CDK Global, and also served as VP of Software Engineering at Bankruptcy Management Solutions (BMS), and Chief Technology Officer at Propero Software.

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TaskUs Names New COO

socalTECH

Los Angeles-based TaskUs , which provides outsource customer support and back-end support services for many startups and other technology companies, has named Joe Buggy as its new Chief Operating Officer, the first for the company. TaskUs said that Buggy has more than 30 years of experience. Buggy previously was at Sutherland Global Services, where he most recently served as Chief Strategist; he had been at Sutherland since 2000.

Outsource 113
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GameFly Sells Cloud Streaming Tech, Team To Electronic Arts

socalTECH

Los Angeles-based game streaming provider GameFly and Electronic Arts said Tuesday that Electronic Arts has acquired GameFly's cloud-streaming technology, but that GameFly will continue to operate its games-by-mail subscription service. Financial details of the acquisition were not announced. According to the two, Electronic Arts also acquired the Israeli team which had developed GameFly's streaming service for games, which had allowed videogame users to rent videogames via the Internet, much li

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CREXi Collects $11M For Commercial Real Estate Technology

socalTECH

Marina Del Rey-based CREXi , which is developing a technology platform aimed at the commercial real estate industry, has raised $11M in a Series A funding, the company said on Monday. The funding was led by Jackson Square Ventures, and also included Manifest Investment Partners, Lerer Hippeau Ventures, Freestyle Capital, and TenOneTen Ventures. CREXi operates an online marketplace for commercial real estate, connecting buyers, sellers, and brokers.

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Bitcoin Crops Up In Election Battle In Orange County

socalTECH

An election battle in the 45th Congressional District--which encompasses much of Orange County--has erupted, with one of the candidates support for Bitcoin at the center of some election ads. Four Democrats are looking to run in the 45th district against current incumbent Republican Mimi Walters--including David Min (former SEC enforcement attorney and UC Irvine law professor); Brian Forde (former White House senior technology adviser and Bitcoin enthusiast); Kia Hamadanchy (former legislative a

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Two Bit Circus Runs STEAM Carnivals At LA Schools

socalTECH

Los Angeles-based Two Bit Circus Foundation , the nonprofit education arm of LA's Two Bit Circus , is running two of its STEAM Carnival events at Los Angeles area schools. According to Two Bit Circus Foundation, it ran one event over the weekend in Hawthorne at the Prairie Vista Middle School, and will run one in Compton at Dollarhide Community Center on Thursday.

Compton 113
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Qualcomm, Facebook Team On High Speed, 60Ghz Wireless Networking

socalTECH

San Diego-based Qualcomm and Facebook announced this morning that the two are teaming together to provide high speed Internet connectivity in urban areas, using 60Ghz technology from Qualcomm. According to the two, they are using Terragraph technology from Facebook combined with the high speed 60Ghz wireless technology from Qualcomm to develop high speed broadband service in urban areas.

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Sonos, Sound United Settle Patent Spat

socalTECH

Vista-based Sound United , the parent firm of audio brands Denon, Marantz, Polk Audio, Definitive Technology, HEOS, Boston Acoustics and ClasseAudio, says it has settled all of the patent infringement litigation between the company and Santa Barbara-based Sonos. Sound United--the audio division of DEI Holdings--said the settlement includes an upcoming case filed against Sonos by Denon.

Patents 113
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MaxLinear Gets DVR Design Win

socalTECH

Carlsbad-based radio frequency (RF), analog, and mixed signal integrated circuits maker MaxLinear as scored a design win with a manufacturer of a digital video recorder (DVR). According to MaxLinear, Nuvyyo has seleced one of its chips for a new DVR product, which streams live HDTV and records over-the-air (OTA) content. Estimated shipment volumes for the device were not announced.

Design 100
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FMT Consultants Buys Red Sky Solutions

socalTECH

Carlsbad-based FMT Consultants announced on Thursday that it has acquired an Orange County IT services provider, Red Sky Solutions. Financial details of the acquisition were not announced. Red Sky Solutions was founded in 2003 by Daryl Garcia and Dave Stone, and specifically focused on Salesforce implementation. FMT Consultants is led by CEO Eric Casazza.

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Bird, Other Scooters Companies Face Temporary Pullback In San Francisco

socalTECH

Santa Monica-based dockless scooter startup Bird , which is backed by Valor Equity Partners, Index Ventures, Craft Ventures, Goldcrest Capital, Tusk Ventures and Upfront Ventures, is facing a temporary pullback in San Francisco, after San Francisco issued new rules to obtain a permit in the city. Bird, along with competitors Lime and Spin, has already peppered San Francisco with its "last mile" transportation scooters, which users can unlock and use using their smartphone.

Companies 100
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Bird Relaunches Electric Scooter Service In Austin

socalTECH

Santa Monica-based electric scooter rental service Bird relaunched its services in Austin, Texas this week, after receiving a permit for its scooters in the city. The company had attempted to launch in Austin last month, but had to pull its scooters from operation after the Austin City Council passed an emergency ordinance prohibiting the scooters, and allowing cit workers to impound any scooters left on sidewalks.

Services 100