Over the course of 2010 we have profiled over 300 New England area startups, and some have gone on to have great successes while others unfortunately have not. Starting a company is no easy feat and usually means a life-altering change, and if it were easy a lot more people would be taking the plunge. You probably have heard the statistic that 9 out of every 10 startups fail... Read more
Category: BostInno, Hangout Industries, RiotVine, Shortbord, Sponty, Startups, UserMojo, Wattzy, YouCastrFacebook isn’t the only company to be awarded game-changing broad patents. According to a press release sent to BostInno early this morning, Boston Mass based Where, Inc. was awarded a huge location based services patent. Patent No. 7,848,765, which was filed nearly five years ago ensures Where’s seat as the leader of mobile commerce and location based advertising... Read more
Category: BostInno, WhereOrganizational behavior is fascinating, especially as a startup grows quickly and evolves into a larger company. There’s a big difference in dynamics when a team moves from 5 people to 10, 50 to 100, and so forth. Take HubSpot, the second fastest growing SaaS company in history, as an example. HubSpot has a reputation here in the Hub for continuing to attract great employees... Read more
Category: BostInno, HubSpotAfter reading yesterday’s VentureBeat article on Gemvara’s rapid growth and vague sales numbers and seeing this outrageous TechCrunch graph with no labeled axis, I could not resist getting some clarification from CEO Matt Lauzon. I’m glad I did. Not only did I prod him for actual growth numbers, I learned about a recent employee promotion who Lauzon credited as being “a core driver of growth” since their launch in February... Read more
Category: BostInno, Gemvara, Matt LauzonBoston-based social shopping site Gopher Ideas just launched to the public out of private alpha today — and just in time for your holiday shopping. The site allows you to find great gifts — and fast — by leveraging crowdsourcing to bubble the best products to the top and intuitively categorize them by occasion, interest, and who they’re... Read more
Category: BostInno, Gopher IdeasAlthough the MassChallenge Startup Competition has come and gone, I’ve had the pleasure of writing about several of the prize-winning companies including: Ksplice, Relay Rides, 3PlayMedia, Osmopure, Storage by Mail, and Locately. As 2010 comes to a close, MassChallenge is already putting the wheels in motion for the next competition for 2011. With tremendous... Read more
Category: BostInno, John Harthorne, MassChallengeEarlier this week I was warmly welcomed into the UMass Venture Development Center (VDC). After a few stops on the redline and an easy shuttle ride over to the UMass campus, I walked three flights of stairs in a pretty drab building only to be completely taken back by a stunning, 18,000 foot facility for entrepreneurs. Appearances aside, the VDC founders, their... Read more
Category: BostInno, UMass Venture Development CenterSim Simeonov has helped launch and build companies in Boston, NYC, DC, on the West Coast and abroad. So when I asked him why he lives in Boston, I was surprised to hear it primarily has to do with personal choice, and less about the innovation ecosystem here. But after a great conversation with him and bumping into him later at WebInno, I’d challenge him on that... Read more
Category: BostInno, FastIgnite, General Catalyst, Sim SimeonovIf you are new to a city the initial stages of networking can be daunting. You can check sites like Meetup, LinkedIn, and even Twitter in hopes of finding valuable events to attend. But, how can you maximize your time at that event and make sure you are connecting with the right people? A new iPhone and web-based app, Parallel Cities, solves the above problem while... Read more
Category: BostInno, Parallel Cities“We are who we follow” is the phrase that sits at the top of PostPost’s About Us page. This Boston-built social search product has at its foundation that you follow people for a reason, and it is sure to be there for you as your social networks continue to grow and expand. PostPost allows you to tap into what the people you follow on Twitter and Flickr have... Read more
Category: BostInno, Brad Noble, PostPost