Constant Contact is one of the leading email marketing companies. They provide small-and-medium sized business the tools to create compelling campaigns for their customers. 

The company was founded in 1995 by Randy Parker as Roving Software and worked out of a “cramped attic in Brookline” and Gail Goodman joined as its CEO in 1999. In 2004, they underwent a complete rebranding under their present name and went public in 2007. And then, in 2015, Endurance International Group acquired Constant Contact for approximately $1.1 billion.

What makes the success of Constant Contact remarkable is the fact that they were an early SaaS company with a focus on working with SMBs, which translated into a high volume, but low dollar business. This was at a time when VC's wouldn't typically back a company with this type of business model.  

Many of its alumni have either gone on to be a founder or are in a leadership role for a company in the Boston tech scene. Below is a slideshow with over 50 of them. Please note, we kept the list to people who are still based in the local area as some alumni are now located in NYC or other areas like Ken Surdan (CPO at Diligent Corporation), David Wachtendonk (VP Product at Signpost), Aaron Severs (Founder & CTO / Head of Product at Frederick), Steve Oriola (Executive in Residence at Bessemer Venture Partners), and Josh Todd (CMO at MINDBODY).  

Also, Constant Contact / Endurance International Group is hiring! Check out its BIZZpage for all of the company’s openings!

For the next episode of The VentureFizz Podcast, I interviewed Brian Manning, who is the VP & Head of Growth at PatientPing, a healthcare technology company in Boston.

He built out successful businesses at Zocdoc and NextJump, and he’s focused on doing the same at PatientPing, a company backed by leading VCs like First Round Capital, Andreessen Horowitz, F-Prime Capital, and others.

In our interview, you’ll hear about Brian’s background, his ability to succeed in a role usually handled by multiple people, his thoughts on creating a growth strategy, and lots more.

What does the career path and day in the life look for the Channel Operations and Strategy Lead at Formlabs?

We interviewed Okan Okutgen to find out.

Career Path

Where did you grow up?  What did you parents do for work?  What was your very first job?

I was born and brought up in Istanbul, Turkey. I moved to the USA for college and have been living abroad since then. My father studied economics, but runs his own distributor business in Istanbul and provides spare parts to car manufacturing facilities. My mother was an English lecturer at a university, and she is now retired.

My first job was my college internship at Daimler AG (parent company of Mercedes Benz) in Stuttgart, Germany. I was placed there through my university’s “Summer Work Program in Germany.” I was working in the procurement department and had to develop a strategy and plan for procurement of industrial washing machines. The coolest thing about it was that I got to improve my German, and also got to experience a foreign working culture early on.

Why did you decide to study Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at Princeton?  It looks like you were very involved in various entrepreneurial efforts on campus. Can you highlight some of the details?

I love solving complex problems and engineering education gives you a distinct way of understanding, dissecting, and solving problems. I picked mechanical engineering because I think it is a fundamental engineering branch that has many broad applications. It does not narrow you down. I studied Aerospace Engineering because I love challenging myself.  I found “being a rocket scientist” pretty fascinating; in one class we designed a microsatellite that would detect new planets and tested our design at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Funny detail – since I was a foreign national, a security guard followed me during our entire stay at NASA, including accompanying me to the bathroom!

I have always been interested in the intersection of engineering/technical solution and business.  I believe a lot of the big problems in the world such as climate change, social inequality etc. can be solved by innovative businesses that make financial sense. Unfortunately – not everyone will be an environmentalist. However, if you build profitable green businesses that are integrated into a capitalist system, you can broaden the number of people who will contribute to a more sustainable life even though they might not be as passionate about the environment.

Princeton was a great environment to explore those interests and to highlight this message. I became involved with, and then served as President of, the Princeton Entrepreneurship Club. This is one of the most active and biggest student clubs on campus. One of my goals as president was to make environmental and social entrepreneurship a more prominent part of our activities such as our annual Business Plan Competition and our ongoing speaker series.

What was your first job out of your undergraduate studies?  

I worked at RED (Recycled Energy Development), which was a small company with a mission to “profitably reduce greenhouse gas emissions.” The mission statement appealed to me since it aligned with my view that big problems can be solved by businesses. At RED we built, owned and operated combined heat and power plants and waste energy recovery plants that would produce highly efficient energy at industrial sites in the USA. In the business development department, I did the techno-financial analysis of various projects and worked on the acquisition of a major industrial park power plant. As part of my role, I had to be able to be down in the weeds of the technical, legal and financial details and marry them, but rise up to see the big picture and help craft deals that met the goals of various stakeholders. I also met one of my mentors Tom Casten, who was the chairman of the company. He has started or led multiple companies in the energy space. He is a published author who was also actively contributing to energy efficiency literature with articles. I was privileged to be part of some of his work.

Why did you decide to return back to school and earn your MBA from HBS?

I still wanted to do more in the intersection of engineering and entrepreneurship. Even in undergraduate, as I was studying engineering, I knew I wanted to go to business school and complement my technical education. Business is definitely not something that you can just learn in school. However, my two years at HBS were very defining for me as I reflected on what kind of a career I want to build and what kind of a leader I want to become. It is a unique place to do that – I was surrounded by diverse classmates who challenged me every day.

What kind of career do you want to build? What kind of leader do you want to become?

My goal is to become a leader who makes a difference in the world. I know it sounds like a cliche recruiting tagline, but it is true. Making a difference has many forms. It ranges from working in companies that have a mission that goes beyond profit, to being a coach and mentor to peers and direct reports every day. I found Clayton Christensen’s quote from his book “How will you measure your life?” very inspiring and eye-opening. He says:

“I used to think that if you cared for other people, you need to study sociology or something like it. But….I [have] concluded, if you want to help other people, be a manager. If done well, management is among the most noble of professions. You are in a position where you have eight or ten hours every day from every person who works for you. You have the opportunity to frame each person’s work so that, at the end of every day, your employees will go home feeling like Diana felt on her good day: living a life filled with motivators.”

What type of management consulting work did you do at Bain & Company?

Bain has a generalist model that focuses on strategy consulting. Given my engineering background and interest, I spent most of my time with IG&S clients (Industrial goods and services), who were more B-2-B and had technical products. I did a variety of projects such as developing a corporate strategy to drive the growth of a facilities management company, redesigning sales & operations planning for the global rental power company and streamlining the procurement efforts of a global EPC (engineering, procurement, and construction) company.

Personally one of the biggest highlights was my role in a pro-bono project as part of the Bain Green Team. We helped a sustainability data company perform more effectively by redesigning their entire operating model: including company structure, accountabilities, governance and ways of working. Our goal was to ensure that every resource and activity in the company is aligned with company strategy and mission, which is to make environmental reporting and risk management part of business decisions.

One of the key learnings from Bain is the ability to quickly ramp up about an industry or function that you are not familiar with and identify the key business levers that would bring the most value to the company whether in growth or operational efficiency. The 80/20 rule is crucial: 80% of the value comes from 20% of the work. It pushes you to do prioritization so that you only focus on the activities that will drive big change and impact, which is very important for every business where time and resources are limited.

Can you share the high-level responsibilities of your current position at Formlabs? Why did you join Formlabs?

I joined Formlabs because I was fascinated by Form 2, the most advanced desktop 3D printer ever created and the company culture. I think it is a company full of youth, drive, ambition, and willingness to set new norms in the 3D printing industry. And my time here has proven me that this was the right move for me. Every day I feel satisfied because I am building a company with my colleagues. As a fast-growing company sometimes we do things for the first time or we have to iterate fast based on new information we have. I tackle difficult problems that require trade-offs, quick thinking, flexibility, and creativity. That challenge invigorates me and grows me professionally, which I love.

My role has two hats. I am the Global Channel Operations Lead. Our channel is our network of distributors and resellers that sell Formlabs products around the world. My goal is to make sure this network works effectively and efficiently as we make more Formlabs products accessible to more end users around the globe. This involves project managing sales, marketing, customer support, and operations team globally to ensure products and services are delivered to channel partners efficiently while ensuring a good experience to end users.

I am also the lead for the North America and International Channel Sales team, where we work to grow our top-line revenue in North America, LatAm and ASEAN regions. We recruit and grow the right partners in these regions that not only allow us to hit our aggressive growth goals, but also provide the best customer experience and value to end-users. We want to make sure as many people around the world can have access to our technology and use 3D printing to create things.

Day in the Life

Coffee, tea, or nothing?

I have one cup of coffee every morning. No more, no less.

What time do you get into the office?

I get in between 8-9 am depending on when my first meeting is. I try to get in about half an hour before my first meeting to just settle in and orient myself before I start the day.

Every day is different, but can you outline what a typical day looks like for you?

Morning: I work out in the morning. Either I do HIIT (high-intensity interval training) or yoga.

Then I prepare breakfast for me and my wife: Boiled eggs and a breakfast smoothie with berries.

As I get ready, I listen to the Economist (the app has an audio version that reads you the articles).

Then as I am driving to work I talk to my family members on the phones (parents, in-laws, brother). Due to the time difference, it works best when I talk to them in the morning.

I go through my planner to orient myself for the day and prioritize my activities.

I usually have a couple of meetings especially with team members who are in European and Asian time zones.

Afternoon: I have few more meetings and usually have a couple of hours blocked for some alone working time.  

Evening: Early evening I go through my emails, to make sure nothing time-sensitive is pending.

Then I go through my planner and update it accordingly based on that day’s work.

I go home and have dinner with my wife, who is a current student at HBS.

We either go out to meet friends and attend a social school activity or stay in and watch one of our TV shows. We are obsessed with the Crown.

If she has still some school work to do, I do some reading on my own or pick up some work emails.

What time do you head out of the office?

It depends. Usually, I leave between 7-8 pm.

Do you log back in at night or do you shut it down completely?  

I do log back in as necessary, but I usually prefer powering through and leaving a bit later instead of logging back in. Either way, I make sure I have my family time with my wife. I have dinner with her every night.
 

Any productivity hacks?

I use the weekly planner (not daily!) framework from Stephen R. Covey’s “The 7 Habit of Highly Effective People.” In this planner, you divide all your tasks into 4 quadrants in a 2 by 2 matrix based on importance and urgency. You not only focus on important and urgent tasks but also focus on important and non-urgent tasks. This way you not only firefight but also spend time on what will drive long-term value. Read the book! It is not only for professional life!

What are the 3 apps that you can’t live without?

• 7 Minute Workout (by Johnson & Johnson): Great way to exercise and challenge yourself if you have limited time. I do 2-3 cycles of 7 min HIIT.
• The Economist: I listen to the audio version as I get ready in the mornings. It not only keeps me current with what is happening in the world but oddly calms me down:)
• Whatsapp: Need to stay in touch with friends and family.

What professional accomplishment are you proudest of?

Working in companies with cultures and missions that excite me such as RED and Formlabs. I am proud to have found companies and roles that appeal to my deeper values and motivate me to perform at my best. I enjoy coming to work every day and I think that is a privilege.

Who do you admire or call upon for professional advice?

So many, but first that pops to mind is Elon Musk. I admire him, as he pushes the boundaries and tries to make the world a better place with business.

I call upon my core support network that consists of my wife, close friends, family and my career coach (yes such a thing exists and provided as support by my school to alumni.). My wife is my rock and best friend. She supports and challenges me every day.  

Also, I can admit that I read a lot of professional development and self-help books.

Rudina Seseri is a founder and managing partner of Glasswing Ventures, a Boston VC firm focused on investing in artificial intelligence-driven startups.

Glasswing officially launched in May of 2016, but Seseri has a long history of investing in companies offering AI solutions. Previously, she worked as a partner at Fairhaven Capital, where she funded AI-driven companies such as CrowdTwist, SocialFlow, and Jibo.

Below, Seseri talks with Zach Winn about investing in and starting AI companies.

Zach Winn: In what industries would you like to see more AI startups?

Rudina Seseri: While certain industries will naturally gravitate to including more, or different facets of AI, whether it’s vision or speech or different learning techniques, and there are characteristics of different datasets we can talk about, but I think we’ll see AI startups across the board.

Having said that, where AI is naturally planting itself in these early days is in markets that are data intensive or lend themselves to data, so we see this taking root already in enterprise areas like sales and marketing, IT, and HR.

We’re also seeing AI play a role in cybersecurity in a very meaningful way. Traditionally, enterprises have been on the receiving end and reactionary side of cybersecurity attacks, but with machine learning, we can predict that we’re going to be attacked and take corrective action in advance of an event. That’s a paradigm shift and a huge market opportunity.

And then lastly, we’re seeing a number of emerging AI startups in the field of robotics, whether it’s industrial robotics or consumer robotics. This is also true to self-driving cars, which are sensor heavy and produce a lot of data, which has driven investment in those categories. The next generation will surely produce a data-driven system of systems.

Outside of my firm’s focus areas, I think medicine and life sciences will be another key area for AI startups when you think about drug discovery, medical records, and tracking. These are data-heavy fields and all of them, in my view, lend themselves to AI.

ZW: Do you think the AI revolution will be driven by deep learning exclusively? In general, how big of a role will data play in AI’s growth?

RS: I think learning is woven across AI, whether it’s vision, speech, motion, or emotional cognition. Deep learning is one technique, but there are many others and the right one depends on the task at hand, the performance goals and the constraints you have. Today, deep learning is particularly strong, especially when it comes to vision, which is why you’ve seen Nvidia rise and Google put a lot of muscle behind deep learning.

You can’t have any kind of learning without data, so I think you need both models and data. The challenge we have in the AI paradigm, especially for deep learning right now, is that the required training data sets are very large, difficult to come by and typically task specific. But this is an active area of research and we are seeing new methods being developed to make models more data efficient, to create training data computationally, and to better generalize across tasks.

But to your question, will data remain important? For sure. Are there also huge data dependencies that are a barrier for startups? Absolutely. But in most applications, we’re still in the early days of AI adoption and the performance requirements of the market still require focused approaches. Besides that, the startup ecosystem, researchers, and the entire AI industry are working to reduce that data dependency, and we’re coming at it from both the data side and the algorithm side.

ZW: How should startups be thinking differently about creating an AI company compared to a company using other tech?

RS: When you’re selling to Fortune 1000 companies, there’s no doubt AI is a focus topic at the C-level, but people also don’t know how to wrap their heads around it. And then it’s also true that leading in with AI as a startup can be problematic.

From the CEO on down, executives understand that AI is the future and they need to get up to speed and start to implement the technology. But then a company comes in and pitches to you, and people feel uncomfortable buying your product because they can’t fully comprehend how it works and how they need to adapt their expectations and how they work to implement a system that requires data to learn and has ever-increasing performance. So, what I tell my portfolio companies is to lead with the problems they solve.

If AI is integral to your tech, you as a CEO need to be able to articulate what it does, how it does it and why it’s differentiated. Startups need to be really thoughtful about that, and they need to be able to explain the outcomes, methodologies, what they test for, even if it’s at a high level. I don’t need the CEO to be an AI guy with a data science background, but if you’re pitching for funding or, more importantly, to a prospective customer, and you, as the CEO, can’t articulate your solution, it tells people you don’t know what you’re doing and you’re just jumping on the AI bandwagon.

ZW: What kinds of founding teams do you looking for in AI startups?

RS: The CEO can be a business person or a technical person but they need to have the capacity to build companies and not just products. Typically, someone has to have deep understanding of data science, computer science and the business problem they are tackling. And this can be all the same person or different ones. However, no two startups come in the same shape, which keeps things interesting. But company culture and people are so important. I say this over and over: People make or break you. I pay great attention to the team dynamics of these AI startups.

ZW: What are some advantages startups have over existing companies when trying to bring AI to a new space?

RS: Startups are AI natives. They get built from day one with the latest developments in a field that is changing at lightning speed. And if new companies know how to get the right data sets up front, it’s really hard for incumbents to catch up to that.

And then there are all the usual advantages a startup has over existing companies, like agility on execution and being unencumbered.

ZW: What are some disadvantages startups have when competing with existing companies?

RS: The data problem (when relevant), then the balance sheet, and the need to compete with the big players for talent.

ZW: Are there any specific spaces where you think startups have a particularly large advantage over existing companies in bringing AI solutions to market?

RS: We’re certainly seeing it in security market and in markets where there’s been some software to date but that have been traditional services businesses, typically supported by large groups of people, with a consulting element. Talla [the first Glasswing investment] is a perfect example, where it’s less about replacing workers and more about augmentation.

Then I think there are areas that have a clear need but the tools and services are hard to build and not enough companies have done it. For instance, what will be the AutoCADs of the world for specific AI tasks like vision and speech and other areas where you’ve seen green space and now companies are being created?

ZW: How does Glasswing differentiate itself from other VC firms with AI strategies?

RS: VC firms fall into two categories: One type is the generalist firm that says they do tech and part of that is AI. These firms are just coming up the learning curve. The other category is the firm that has a more focused strategy analogous to ours, and who are trying to get deeper into AI.

The way we’ve differentiated ourselves over time is we have over a decade of investing experience. So when we’re getting a pitch, as an example, and we get this comment all the time, they’ll say, “In the first 45 minutes with other VCs, we’re spending half our meeting educating them on what exactly AI is and what it means. But you guys are able to explain the rationale for why we picked approach A versus approach B.” That gives us an immediate bond with entrepreneurs based on our deep level of understanding and domain expertise.

We also have a large set of advisors - renowned entrepreneurs and technologists, AI visionaries, and world-leading executives that exclusively advise and support the firm and our portfolio companies. A large subset of those people specializes in AI and machine learning. So we’re helping our portfolio companies not only by understanding AI, not only by helping them understand the end market to invest in —  I am focused on enterprise, Rick Grinnell (Managing Partner) does cybersecurity and robotics and Sarah Fay (Managing Director) does marketing and digital — where we have end-market expertise, AI expertise, and we extend our footprint between our relationships with advisors, CxOs of other companies, entrepreneurs, so it’s a big group that works exclusively with Glasswing and our portfolio companies.

Our podcast is back and it is better than ever! We have a new title: The VentureFizz Podcast and the format has been expanded, where I will now be interviewing the most fascinating people in the tech industry. 

For today's episode, we have an amazing interview with Izzy Azeri and Dan Belcher, Co-Founders of mabl. 

Izzy and Dan are serial entrepreneurs whose last company, Stackdriver, was acquired by Google in just 21 months from their Series A financing.

Their new company, mabl, is disrupting the software testing industry using a machine intelligence approach, and they just announced their $10M Series A funding led by CRV.

As you’ll hear from our discussion, Izzy and Dan are pros in terms of identifying markets that are ripe for disruption, and if you think about it, the world of testing has not been touched in several years.

We cover their backgrounds, Stackdriver, and their newest company mabl, plus lots of other great topics like their hiring practices and why keeping a flat organization has been incredibly effective at both companies.

Our podcast is back and it is better than ever! We have a new simple title: The VentureFizz Podcast and the format has been expanded, where I will be interviewing the most fascinating people in tech. 

For today's episode, we have an amazing interview with Chad Laurans, Founder & CEO of SimpliSafe.

If you are not familiar with the company, SimpliSafe is disrupting the home security market and recently launched the 3rd generation of their products at CES in Vegas. The company employs over 500 people (click here for job openings) and raised a growth round of investment from Sequoia Capital. 
 
Chad has such an interesting story and he shares a ton of the details on how he has built the company, which was bootstrapped for a very long time. We cover a lot of ground, so there is a lot to learn from his story and success.

You can listen to the podcast in the player below. To make sure you receive future episodes, please subscribe to us on iTunes, Google Play, or Soundcloud. If you enjoyed our show, please consider writing a 5-star review - it will definitely help us get the word out there!

Keith Cline is the Founder of VentureFizz.  Follow him on Twitter: @kcline6.

I’m in Belfast, Northern Ireland this week. It’s my third work-related trip since the start of the year, and I’m admittedly growing a bit weary of being on planes. When I was new in my career, the thought of travel seemed so exciting. Being able to get out of the office and spend time in another location appeared to be a sign of adventure and career development.

However, the reality of delayed flights trips to not-so-appealing locations and not sleeping in my own bed changed my perspective on this pretty quickly. I learned business travel - especially in the post 9/11 era - is typically anything but glamorous. It appears that many of us who log miles in support of our jobs feel similarly; vacation travel it is clearly not.

So as with anything, it is up to us to find the positive in the negative; to turn business travel into a relatively good experience. I’ve collected a few tips to help make it a bit more appealing to myself. Perhaps they work for you as well.

1. Enjoy being a little social. Whether it is with colleagues, customers, or just sitting down for a bite next to a stranger at a restaurant, think of this time as an opportunity to connect and network with new people. If you are traveling alone, there is no need to be lonely; a conversation is just a meal away.  

2. Get out of the hotel.  There is something interesting to be found in every location, you just have to go look for it. Commit to trying the local food, take a bit of time to explore and get a flavor for the area. If you have a jam-packed schedule, find the time to take a quick morning run or walk so you can see a few sites. No one wants to be trapped in a hotel room, and learning a little about a new place makes business travel far more interesting.

3. Find your airline.  When possible, log miles on a favorite airline or two,  and join their frequent flyer programs. Over time, that status can build up, giving you access to Wi-Fi, airport lounges, points to use towards fun trips, and more. Being able to head to the front of the boarding line is a huge benefit too. If you really want to rack up those points, get a credit card associated with the airline for your travels as well.

4. Get yourself cleared.  Whether it’s TSA, Nexxus or Global Entry, there are a variety of different programs you can apply to that can save you some serious time waiting in lines to clear security.  It takes a bit of time and a small financial investment to participate but being able to cruise through the security lines without having to get half-undressed and empty half my bag out has been a game changer.

5.  Take care of yourself. Staying healthy can be challenging when you travel frequently. Whether you choose hand sanitizer or wipes, stay clean to avoid all the germs surrounding you on the plane. Drink lots of water to stay hydrated and feeling fresh. Dress in layers so you can control your body temperature. Finally, attempt to get in sync with the time-zone of your destination as quickly as possible (eat the meal associated with the time you are now in, go to bed as close to your regular time, etc.).

6.  Set a goal for the trip. Finally, focus on why you are traveling in the first place.  Maybe it’s to meet and close a new customer, expand your thinking by attending a conference, or even just meeting new team members. By consciously setting a goal for your overall trip and achieving it, you’ll return home feeling productive and accomplished.

Business travel is far from the exciting adventure I assumed it was when I first starting packing my suitcase.  However, with a little planning and a “Let’s make the best of this” attitude, you can make the most of a routine trip… and maybe even enjoy it.

Christina Luconi is Chief People Officer for Rapid7. Follow her on Twitter: @peopleinnovator.

To tell the complete story of autonomous driving would be nearly impossible. Where do you even start? Do you start with the “driverless,” radio-controlled American Wonder, developed and tested by Houdina Radio Control in 1925? Do you start with Marvin Minsky, the famed MIT scientist largely credited as the father of artificial intelligence? Or somewhere else altogether?

The story I’m telling starts in 2016, and discusses a small, crucial, ongoing time period in Boston’s intersection with autonomous vehicles. That said, it is by no means the complete story. A number of autonomous driving-centric companies, like nuTonomy and Optimus Ride, were founded well before 2016. Moreover, the research and thought on this subject goes back decades, and there are many more characters in Boston’s story than those listed here.

But I do think that, decades from now, when we think back on the history of autonomous driving in our city, we will point to September 14, 2016 as a critical day in our adoption of this technology. That’s the day when Boston Mayor Martin Walsh announced the city’s autonomous vehicle initiative.

The program, done in partnership with the World Economic Forum and the Boston Consulting Group, began as an effort to explore the potential of autonomous technologies in our city, and would include, “a year-long engagement focused on creating policy recommendations and supporting on-street testing of autonomous vehicles, also known as self-driving vehicles, to advance the safety, access and sustainability goals identified by the public during the Go Boston 2030 transportation planning process.”

Go Boston 2030 is another initiative, originally announced in 2015, that lays out the future of Boston’s transportation. You can see the aforementioned goals right here (as well as the rest of the Vision and Action Plan released last March), but it generally comes down to making the city more safe, reliable, and accessible.

The Benefits of Autonomous Vehicles

From the city’s perspective, there are a number of things to like about autonomous vehicles. By taking human hands out of the equation and replacing them with (theoretically) more reliable technology, there’s potential to significantly decrease fatalities. They can also speed up traffic flow, among other benefits.

“Autonomous vehicles, particularly if they’re shared, can increase reliability and reduce emissions on city streets, and frees up parking for alternative uses whether it’s additional sidewalks, sidewalk cafes, etc,” said Chris Osgood, Mayor Walsh’s Chief of the Streets.

According to this 2015 report by McKinsey & Company, self-driving cars could, by midcentury, reduce crashes by up to 90%, save billions of dollars doing so, and free up 50 minutes a day for drivers.

But why are so many companies coming to Boston as a testing ground for the future? In addition to the history, the schools, and our strong talent pool (the stuff you probably know about already), there are couple of other reasons why automotive technology companies are taking such increased interest in Boston.

“I think there's interest in being on streets like ours, given the complexity of our weather conditions,” said Kris Carter, Co-Chair of the Mayor's Office of New Urban Mechanics (Boston’s civic research and development team). “Solving that complexity allows AVs to be able to be used in a variety of different contexts.”

One cannot overstate the impressive weather variation in our city. There’s that famous Mark Twain quote: “If you don't like the weather in New England now, just wait a few minutes.”

Dr. Ryan Chin, Co-Founder and CEO of Optimus Ride, expressed something similar.

“We have some unique challenges that actually makes the testing and validation of autonomous vehicles even more robust. Our road network in Boston is the inverse of Manhattan in many ways. Our organic, non-gridded streets—combined with complex intersections like rotaries—allow us to push the limits of our driving algorithms.”

Two Executive Orders

On October 20, 2016, Mayor Walsh signed an executive order that established the framework for developing AV testing guidelines. He also appointed Boston Transportation Commissioner Gina Fiandaca to lead oversight on the technology’s presence in the city.

“I’m very excited about the transformative nature of autonomous vehicles as it relates to the transportation and mobility options for our citizens, and how it can really support economic growth for the City of Boston,” Fiandaca said. “It’s great to see Boston be at the forefront of the socialization of this technology.”

The same day, Governor Charlie Baker signed one of his own for the state, with much of the same intent to test and deploy self-driving cars. The order also created the Autonomous Vehicles Working Group, which looks to “encourage the development of autonomous vehicles and their component parts in Massachusetts.” The working group was established to discuss and examine matters like safety concerns and proposed legislation.

From these efforts, three testing partners were approved to test AV tech in 2017: Delphi (now Aptiv), nuTonomy (acquired by Aptiv in October for $450M), and Optimus Ride. nuTonomy and Optimus Ride are two MIT spin-off companies making software for self-driving vehicles, and Aptiv is an automotive supplier currently in the process of developing a turnkey autonomous driving system.

Premier Pilots, Cool Companies, and Fundraising

At the beginning of last year, the first testing was done in the Raymond L. Flynn Marine Park in South Boston (led by nuTonomy), exclusively under good weather conditions. Later in the year, the Seaport District opened up to companies for additional testing. In December, nuTonomy launched its own passenger pilot, and also partnered with Lyft to provide live passenger rides in that area. Lyft is also partnering with Aptiv, who provided over 400 rides with the ridesharing company during CES 2018.

“Lyft’s self-driving network gives the opportunity to take more cars off the road, which will reduce accidents, traffic and carbon emissions,” a Lyft spokesperson said via email. “Fewer cars means fewer parking structures and more room for green spaces. By sharing rides and utilizing these public spaces, people will engage with one another more and connect as a community. This transportation revolution has the power to reshape our communities and we are thrilled to be working towards this future.”

Optimus Ride is preparing to do passenger rides too, though of a slightly different nature. In November, the company announced a partnership with LStar Ventures for an 18-month pilot that the company claims will be the first revenue-generating AV pilot program. Its fleet will be on-site at Union Point, a 1550-acre urban development located in Weymouth, where it will start taking passengers on rides within the site in the next few months.

In addition to those three, there are a number of other companies currently involved with (or at least researching) AV technology. One of them is Perceptive Automata, a Harvard spin-out that claims to be building “the next generation of AI.” While CTO Sam Anthony was being slightly cryptic about what his company was up to, he did suggest it would involve making vehicles more human-like.

“I walk and ride my bike a lot, and pay a lot of attention to the social interactions between different kinds of vehicles in cities. I knew from my research at Harvard that these kinds of interactions were something that humans find effortless, but that computers have historically been pretty hopeless at solving. I thought that if autonomous vehicles got deployed without the ability to navigate these complex interactions, they might work in some sense, but they’d cause lots of problems and build up a terrible reputation very quickly. I realized that our machine learning methods could quickly help solve this problem.”

Agero—known for their telematics solutions, accident management services, and roadside assistance—is a founding member of the Advanced Vehicle Technology (AVT) Consortium, launched in September 2015 to research driver behavior. But while many are solely discussing the exciting future of full-on driverless cars, SVP of Strategy Jeff Blecher looks at the near future with much more intent.

“As a supplier to most auto insurance companies and automotive manufacturers in the U.S., and providing vehicle safety services to them, it’s really important to keep abreast of all of the changes that are happening in the world of autonomy,” Blecher said. “We think that the world of semi-autonomy is going to be much more impactful in the short term than full autonomy, and right now we’re spending most of our efforts leveraging our mobile telematics platform with the MIT Advanced Vehicle Technology Consortium to build an industry-leading understanding of changing risk profiles with the adoption of semi-autonomous technologies.”

And ClearMotion, whose proactive ride system attenuates vehicle movement through a combination of actuators and software (resulting in a smoother overall car ride), sees great potential in their tech being applied in self-driving cars. Though he avoided committing to specifics, Founder and CEO Shakeel Avadhany showed me a whitepaper that discussed how technology like ClearMotion’s could reduce motion sickness in autonomous vehicles.

“When you call an Uber, does it matter to you what Uber you pick, or what brand picks you up—or is it about the experience you have? I think the same can be said of autonomy. Does it matter which pod picks you up, or how much time it takes to be picked up? Or is it about the experience in that cabin, where you can take your time and not feel motion sick—where your coffee can sit on a retractable table and not fall into your lap?”

With all the companies excited to work on autonomous vehicles right now, it should come as no surprise that some companies are raising a lot of money. Optimus Ride has raised a total of $23.25M through a Series A and seed round. And before it was acquired for nearly half a billion dollars, nuTonomy raised $19.6M across its two funding rounds.

I talked to Bob Davis, General Partner at Highland Capital Partners, about nuTonomy’s Series A—an investment he spearheaded. He said that it was their leader, Co-Founder and President Karl Iagnemma, who sealed the deal, calling him an “outstanding leader” with a “magical aura surrounding him.” I also asked him about the process of betting on an autonomous vehicle company, and how that compares to investing in a more established industry.

“It’s not that different. Everything we do is about betting on what isn’t there and hoping it might be. Whether it’s a small company in an industry that might grow, or whether it’s very new and different like nuTonomy, we’re hoping that we can create value out of the dreams and visions of really smart entrepreneurs.”

Regulations

Last January, Bill H.1829, “An Act to promote the safe integration of autonomous vehicles into the transportation system of the Commonwealth,” was presented by Representative Tricia Farley-Bouvier and Senator Jason M. Lewis to establish a formalized set of AV regulations.

“There are so many benefits to autonomous vehicles, but if we don’t have the right policies in place, it could lead to worsening conditions when it comes to our transportation infrastructure,” Representative Farley-Bouvier said. “For example, without the appropriate policy in place, we could actually be increasing traffic by 20-30%. Let’s say you take your autonomous car to work. It would cost you less to just send it back home again when you’re working, rather than for you to pay to park. And then you tell your car to pick you up when it comes time to pick you up. So now your car is taking four trips a day instead of two.”

Because of these congestion concerns, Farley-Bouvier says that it’s necessary to prohibit most empty vehicles from traveling around. She also expressed concern whether these cars would be all-electric, zero-emissions vehicles. This would be ideal, she says (and the bill mandates that all self-driving cars under 8,500 pounds be zero-emissions), except for one little thing: gasoline taxes.

“Our primary source of revenue for transportation infrastructure is the gasoline tax. And we are already seeing diminishing revenues when it comes to the gasoline tax, because more and more people are using more and more efficient vehicles—and we want that. But we have to address this issue of transportation revenue. And this bill calls for a road use tax instead of a gas tax.” That road tax represents a base fee of 2.5 cents for every mile of travel.  

The bill has not yet passed, though Farley-Bouvier expects progress soon. It represents an early, formal attempt at balancing the hopes of this blossoming technology with government regulation. That said, the bill has been met with mixed reception.

“This bill allows for and encourages automated vehicles anywhere in the Commonwealth, as opposed to just saying, ‘Here’s a test area you can do it in.’ And so, we think it’s pretty progressive, and it’s encouraging innovation in the commonwealth,” she said. “What we want the industry to know is that we’re a really friendly place to test and develop your vehicles with new technology.”

Today and Tomorrow

As Osgood explained to me, 2017 was all about testing the technology. In 2018, Boston’s Chief of the Streets said that the city is going to take their work even further.

“2018 is going to be an extension of our work in 2017. We’ll be further testing the tech, and we’ll be working more and more with partners and stakeholders in the Boston area. We’ll be further supporting the evolution of autonomous vehicles.”

When it comes to the triumphs in autonomous vehicles, Boston’s got them. We have an engaged local government rooting on cool tech to win, industry innovators like nuTonomy and Optimus Ride, and one of the few opportunities in history for us to draw people into the city with our “dynamic” weather.

The challenges will likely come not just from perfecting the technology, but also the regulation—and the balancing act that comes with it.

As for the future, those I interviewed generally agreed that lower-level autonomous vehicles would likely be more widely available to consumers in the next few years. But full autonomy—the technology that nuTonomy, Optimus Ride, and many others are chasing—seems to be a ways off. Still, the future looks bright.

“If you were to look back a year ago, we were just starting testing on a small couple blocks of a city,” Osgood said. “A year later we were testing with passenger pilots. I expect that by the end of this year, we will see a continuation of that trajectory, with more companies interested in testing, and we’re going to get closer to what a commercialized autonomous vehicle will look like.”

Alexander Culafi is a Staff Writer for VentureFizz. You can follow him on Twitter @culafia. ​

Images provided by Optimus Ride (including photo used for masthead) and nuTonomy. Chris Osgood photo obtained from Boston.gov.