LA’s tech scene gets a shot in the arm from Science, the newest incubator

The hustling Los Angeles tech scene is revolving around a new center these days: an incubator called Science. It started just a couple months ago and is the work of former MySpace CEO Mike Jones and Color co-founder Peter Pham.

We took some time over the past couple of weeks to talk with Pham and Jones, as well as at least one entrepreneur who’s working with the Science team on a new startup.

As a … Continue Reading

Meet Y Combinator’s newest partner, Geoff Ralston

The newest member of Y Combinator’s team is angel investor and successful entrepreneur Geoff Ralston.

Y Combinator founder Paul Graham announced the addition of Ralston in a blog post yesterday, writing that Ralston is “a perfect match for YC because he’s smart and energetic, and yet informal and a super nice guy.”

Graham told VentureBeat via email that Ralston will be a full partner in Y Combinator, but will continue to be a partner in … Continue Reading

Former MySpace CEO creates startup incubator called Science, invests in former MySpace execs

Former MySpace chief executive Mike Jones announced a new incubator he calls Science today, which he describes as a technology studio for startups looking to grow in Los Angeles. But is Jones giving past MySpace executives a first pass at the money?

“I think science speaks to the theory we’re going after,” said Jones (pictured right) in an interview with VentureBeat. “Scaling these businesses is much more a science than an art.”

Science is aiming … Continue Reading

Betaworks co-founder Andy Weissman jumps ship to Union Square Ventures

In a shakeup for New York’s startup scene, Andy Weissman, co-founder of the NYC startup incubator Betaworks, is leaving to join VC firm Union Square Ventures.

Weissman’s move, first reported by Betabeat, is yet another interesting development for Union Square, which we learned yesterday was raising a fourth investment fund worth between $150 million and $200 million.

Weissman was previously in charge of Betaworks’ investment portfolio. Now the company plans to shift its focus, as … Continue Reading

SGN’s Shervin Pishevar joins Menlo Ventures, plans incubator

Shervin Pishevar, the entrepreneur and investor who founded the Social Gaming Network, has joined Menlo Ventures as a managing partner.

The move was first reported in The New York Times and was then confirmed on Twitter by Pishevar himself.

He’s is a much-liked and much-respected figure on the startup scene. In addition to starting SGN (which was acquired in April by MySpace co-founder Chris DeWolfe’s social gaming company MindJolt), Pishevar also founded publishing startup Webs, … Continue Reading

Y Combinator’s latest partners are also alums

Silicon Valley incubator Y Combinator is bringing some of its most notable alumni back into the fold — as partners.

In a blog post today, partner Paul Graham announced that Loopt founder Sam Altman (pictured), Justin.tv founders Emmett Shear and Justin Kan, and Posterous founder Garry Tan are all joining as “part-time partners” who will “do the same sort of work regular YC partners do advising startups, but only 1/5 of their time.” Three of … Continue Reading

The coolest companies from Dave McClure's 500 Startups

Twelve companies fostered by the hybrid incubator-seed fund 500 Startups presented their products today in Mountain View, Calif.

500 Startups was founded by “super angel” Dave McClure, who previously ran the fBFund incubator for Facebook startups. The company makes normal seed investments, but also combines those investments with hosting and mentorship through its 500 Startups Accelerator.

We’ve seen a bunch of incubators emerge in the last few years, but McClure’s incubator stands out with its … Continue Reading

Y Combinator's best startups ever? Here are my favorites

Was the most recent class of startups incubated by Y Combinator the best group ever? That’s what Garry Tan told me, and he should know — he was a YC alumnus through his simple blogging startup Posterous, and now he’s back at the famous incubator as designer-in-residence.

It’s hard for me to fully endorse Tan’s claim, since I’m judging most of these companies on the barely-more-than-two-minute presentations they gave this afternoon at YC’s Demo Day. … Continue Reading

Venturegeeks will incubate startups in Israel

Geekmedia, the company that operates Israeli technology blog newsgeek.co.il, is getting into the startup incubation business with a new program called Venturegeeks.

Based in Tel Aviv, Venturegeeks sounds like it will be structured similarly to well-known US incubator programs like Y Combinator. Startups accepted into the program will receive $20,000, as well as three months of mentorship and office space, in return for a 10 percent stake in the company.

Mentors include investors Eden Shochat … Continue Reading

Gmail creator Paul Buchheit leaves Facebook for Y Combinator

Y Combinator, the increasingly famous Silicon Valley incubator, announced two new general partners today — Gmail creator/FriendFeed co-founder Paul Buchheit and Harj Taggar, who was already working at YC as a startup advisor.

Buchheit (who has been making angel investments on his own) joined Facebook in August 2009 when the social network acquired his previous company FriendFeed. The YC blog post announcing the new partners implies but doesn’t explicitly say that Buchheit is joining the … Continue Reading

IO Ventures launches startups from a San Francisco coffee shop

Six startups are graduating from IO Ventures, a San Francisco-based incubator. Five out of the six companies had already launched, but now they’ve also wrapped-up the four-month training period and presented tonight to an audience of investors and journalists.

Befitting its location in the Mission District, where (according to the stereotype) most companies spring up in coffee shops, IO Ventures is itself located in a coffee shop. There are really three sections to the office … Continue Reading

Dave McClure dials up $250K for Twilio startups

When you think about hot technology platforms, Twilio might not be the first one that comes to mind. But it looks like there’s a big opportunity here — at least according to 500 Startups, the new seed investment firm led by bombastic investor Dave McClure.

The firm announced today that it has created a $250,000 micro-fund for companies using Twilio’s technology, which allows developers to add calls and text messages to their Web applications. Even … Continue Reading

Incubator BoomStartup unleashes its first class of Utah startups

Startup incubators continue to spread across the country, and one of the latest is BoomStartup, a Utah-based organization that’s graduating its first class of entrepreneurs next week.

If you’re a San Francisco/Silicon Valley snob like me, Utah might not seem like a great place for an incubator. Sure, you can find companies in that area, but are there enough for an annual batch of startups? Cofounder Robb Kunz said there are — in fact, BoomStartup … Continue Reading

Accelerator teaches Silicon Valley culture to international entrepreneurs

On Tuesday, the Plug and Play Tech Center, a Sunnyvale, Calif.-based startup incubator, inked a deal with the government of Belgium to help connect entrepreneurs from that European country with Silicon Valley.

Often, the international competition for jobs is framed as a zero-sum game. But the Plug and Play Tech Center has figured out a way to spread the region’s risk-embracing culture to overseas entrepreneurs. And that can lead to jobs in both the U.S. … Continue Reading

In Russia, startups need angels, not bodyguards — and now they may get them

Several proven Russian entrepreneurs have formed what looks to be the first promising seed-stage venture capital firm in Russia, called Runa Capital.

This is a significant development for the country, even if the sums involved are relatively small: The firm announced this week it has already raised $30 million and plans to raise more. The news is encouraging because the fund will provide the advice traditional angel investors in Silicon Valley have provided over the … Continue Reading

NYC Seed Start Demo Day shows New York knows how to build startups

At today’s NYC Seed Start Demo Day, companies pitched a crowd of over a hundred of New York City’s early-stage investors. Five fledgling startups presented to a packed house, hoping to catch the attention of investors willing to write them a big check.

NYC Seed Start is an incubator program in the mold of Y-Combinator and Techstars funded by a syndicate of venture firms including RRE Ventures, Polaris Ventures, Contour Ventures, and IA Ventures.

In … Continue Reading