Monday, November 11, 2013Big Data Demonstrated: Factual Picks Apart New York vs. Chicago Style PizzaNew York Style or Chicago? In a practical example of why companies are rushing to apply many of the principles of "big data" to their businesses, Los Angeles-based Factual published a quick analysis of its gigantic database in the sky, to analyze where New York style pizza and Chicago style pizza are most popular. Factual--which has been compiling an immense data store of all of the physical locations, hours, menus, and details on all kinds of stores across the country and world--said it was abl (More info...)
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Sharpening Our Focus: The Socaltech 100 Is Now The Socaltech 50
Thanks to all of our readers who submitted their nominations for the socalTECH 100, our first annual list of the up-and-comers in Southern California's technology ecosystem. The good news: We received over 700 nominations for the awards, where we'll be identifying the top new entrepreneurs, innovators, and others in the technology industry. The bad news? It's going to be a lot tougher to get onto the list this year, as we've decided to highlight a narrower list of people on the list this year- (More info...)
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Backdoor's 14-year Old Founder Gets $200,000 For Social Messaging AppLos Angeles-based Backdoor, a startup founded by 14-year old Daniel Singer, announced this morning that it has raised $200,000 towards further development of its anonymous messaging app. The company said the funding came from ArpexCapital, and will help it launch into new markets. ArpexCapital is a Brazilian investment firm. Backdoor's software currently runs on iOS, and revolves around anonymous chats with your friends, and trying to have them guess who is messaging them based on "clues" about (More info...)
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Ninja Metrics Raises $2.8M For Predictive Analytics SoftwareLos Angeles-based Ninja Metrics announced this morning that it has raised $2.8M in a funding round, to bring its social analytics engine for gaming companies to market. The startup, which came out of technology developed from a group of university researchers, said the $2.8M in funding came from the Harvard Business School Angels and Tech Coast Angels. Ninja Metrics uses social analytics and cloud computing software to calculate "social value" of users in an online gaming environment, helping co (More info...)
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Amazon Starts Sunday Delivery In Los AngelesWish you didn't have to wait after the weekend for all that stuff you bought on Amazon.com? Well, if you're in Los Angeles (or New York), you can now get delivery of your stuff on Sunday, as part of a deal the e-commerce giant announced with the U.S. Postal Service this morning. According to Amazon.com, it has started delivering packages on Sunday to Amazon Prime members in Los Angeles, as part of Prime's unlimited, free two-day shipping service. Amazon.com did not say what parts of Los Angeles (More info...)
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The Honest Company Raises $25M MoreThe Honest Company, the Los Angeles-based e-commerce company founded by Brian Lee and celebrity Jessica Alba, has raised $25M more in a funding round, the firm said this morning. Thew new funding came from Institutional Venture Partners, and also included Iconiq Capital, Lightspeed Venture Partners, and General Catalyst Partners. The Honest Company offers up a variety of eco-friendly baby- and kids- products via subscription. Lee is a serial entrepreneur who has been involved in such companies a (More info...)
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Phone Halo: Never Lose Your Glasses AgainSanta Barbara-based Phone Halo, the developer of devices which help people track such things as their wallet, remote control, or more using their smartphone, said it is developing a product which will help people keep track of their eyeglasses. The company said Friday that it has launched an Indiegogo campaign for its latest device, a sensor which attaches to a user's eyeglasses and lets then find those glasses with their smartphone. Phone Halo also brought its first product--a Bluetooth-linked (More info...)
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Building Robotics Backed By Navitas CapitalBuilding Robotics, a developer of software to manage heating and cooling in commercial buildings, has raised $1.4M in a seed funding, which included Navitas Capital, a venture firm with offices in Los Angeles. The funding came from Claremont Creek Ventures, Google Ventures, Formation 8, Navitas Capital, Red Swan Ventures, and other angels. Navitas Capital has offices in both Los Angeles, as well as Alameda, California, and specifically makes early stage investments in energy efficiency and green (More info...)
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DataDirect Networks Wins Los Alamos National LaboratoriesChatsworth-based DataDirect Networks, the developer of high performance storage arrays, reported a win with the Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) today. According to DataDirect Networks, LANL is using its storage and EXAScaler Lustre file system appliance to deliver 4.3 petabytes of storage to its research cluster. Financial impact of the win was not announced. DataDirect Networks' storage arrays are optimized for high performance, clustered environments. DDN said the new system at LANL can (More info...)
posted on Monday, November 11, 2013(Full story)