1366 Technologies launches solar cell with record efficiencies
1366 Technologies, maker of silicon-based photovoltaic cells that convert sunlight into electricity, says its new product, called the Self-Aligned Cell (SAC), has achieved disruptive rates of efficiency. The company says the cell will make using solar systems more affordable — and even cost competitive with coal.
The SACs (see image at right) have been consistently converting about 18 percent of the sunlight they absorb into useable energy. With the average efficiency for solar cells hovering around… Continue Reading
Egnyte raises $6M more to bring small businesses into the cloud
Egnyte, a startup that allows small and medium businesses to store and collaborate on their files online, has raised $6 million in new funding.
Amid the many web-based storage and collaboration options out there, Egnyte has a clear focus — it’s trying to replace the traditional file server for relatively small companies with a solution that takes advantage of the web. Features include automatically saving multiple versions of a file, a system that lets administrators control… Continue Reading
Ribbit, Sprout inject “voice” into ad campaigns
Ribbit, the company that lets people easily create phone-like applications within Web sites, has struck a partnership with the online marketing company Sprout to insert “voice” and other phone features into advertising campaigns.
Ribbit, now owned by BT, has captured the imagination of developers because of its cool technology that allows voice call technology to inserted in dynamic ways within Web sites. It is joining with Sprout, a company which has generated its own buzz with its photoshop-like interface for… Continue Reading
Sun Catalytix lands funds for “solar fuel”
Sun Catalytix, a stealthy operation formed last year to commercialize “solar fuel” research conducted at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, has raised an undisclosed amount of seed funding from Polaris Venture Partners that VentureExpert pegs at $700,000. Xconomy reported the story first.
While little is known about Sun Catalytix’s forthcoming products, its founder, MIT chemistry professor Daniel Nocera, has long been involved in research on hydrogen gas made with only sunlight and water. Basically, the company… Continue Reading
Ember lands $8M for a hefty slice of the smart grid
The Ember Corporation, a major vendor of ZigBee wireless networking technology, just brought in $8 million in capital to connect household devices and appliances to the smart grid. Like most other companies in the space, the bulk of its business comes from equipping smart meters with radio chips and software that allow utilities and homeowners to easily share energy-consumption data.
As the leading provider of ZigBee services, Ember is in prize position to take advantage of… Continue Reading
Phreesia raises $11.6M to make waiting-room clipboards obsolete
Phreesia, maker of electronic tablets to replace those pesky intake clipboards at doctors’ offices, announced today that it brought in $11.6 million in a round led by BlueCross BlueShield Venture Partners and Sandbox Industries. This brings the New York company’s total capital raised to $25 million — which it plans to use to enlist more doctors to use the product in the U.S. According to Phreesia, thousands already do.
It also says it should be greatly… Continue Reading
Compensation software co. Xactly buys rival Centive
Xactly, maker of software that measures and tracks employees’ sales performance and compensation, has bought its major competitor, human resources software provider Centive. The stock-based deal gave San Jose, Calif.-based Xactly all of the company’s assets and employees for an undisclosed sum.
Incorporated under the name Xactly, the new entity will continue to support all of the products the companies have on the market right now for the next 18 months to ensure a seamless transition… Continue Reading
Comedy site JibJab raises $7.5 million, no joke
JibJab, the site that spawned original comedy videos and customizable animated greeting cards, has raised $7.5 million in a third round of funding, according to TechCrunch.
The site is known for its parodies and original funny shorts, many of them skewering politicians and the government, like 2004’s This Land:
JibJab also offers irreverent greeting cards you can e-mail to your friends (yes, you can customize the cards with friends’ faces). Many of them are free, while the… Continue Reading
Transoma brings in $5M for heart diagnostics
Transoma, maker of cardiovascular monitoring and diagnostic products, landed $5 million in fourth-round funding from United Therapeutics, Affinity Capital Management, Canaan Partners, Cross Creek Capital and Polaris Venture Partners, reports VentureWire. The money comes after the company withdrew its filing to go public earlier this year.
Based in St. Paul, Minn., the biotech company hoped to bring in $67.2 million on 4.2 million shares, but decided against going public due to unfavorable market conditions. Before it filed in November, it had… Continue Reading
Video processor maker Silicon Optix sells assets and tech to IDT
Silicon Optix, developer of high-definition video processors, has sold out almost entirely to Integrated Device Technology (IDT) for an undisclosed amount. The sale includes the transfer of intellectual property and engineering teams in addition to its Emmy-winning products (it was awarded for producing sharp picture quality).
San Jose, Calif.-based IDT, which specializes in semiconductor solutions for the digital media industry, says the acquisitions — including two flagship brands, HQV and Reon — will complement its existing… Continue Reading
T2 Biosystems brings in $10.8M for diagnostics
T2 Biosystems, a company working to develop new diagnostic methods, received $10.8 million in second-round financing from new investors In-Q-Tel (which also helps fund the CIA, incidentally) and Partners Healthcare, and existing investors Flagship Ventures, Flybridge Capital Partners and Polaris Venture Partners.
The Cambridge, Mass.-based company plans to use the new money to develop a beta version of a device combining MRI properties and nanotechnology and to run it through a series of tests over the… Continue Reading
Roundup: Feds offering short-term loans, presidential debates live online, Silver Spring gets a big raise, and more
Feds now providing short-term debt — The Federal Reserve will provide money for companies to finance their day-to-day activities, in the government’s latest effort to staunch bleeding in the credit markets.
Live presidential debates hit the web — Hulu will stream tonight’s presidential debate live, something of a breakthrough for Internet TV.
Smart grid co. Silver Spring Networks raises $75M — Rapidly growing energy efficiency startup Silver Spring Networks, which makes communications equipment that connects utilities to electricity consumers, has… Continue Reading
Roundup: MyHeritage raises funding, news feed psychology, Bell drops “basic research,” and more
Here’s the latest action:
Genealogy site MyHeritage raises $15 million — The Israel-based company has grown from 17 million to 25 million registered users over the past year. Investors include Index Ventures and Accel.
High-imaging satellite GeoEye-1 launches — It claims to take the highest-resolution images of any commercially-available satellite — enough to “show home plate on a baseball diamond.” Google has an exclusive contract to this satellite’s images. [Image of GeoEye launch site, using GeoEye.]
The psychology of news… Continue Reading
Athenix raises $10M for biofuels and specialty chemicals
Athenix, a Research Triangle Park, North Carolina-based maker of processes and products for agricultural and bioenergy applications, has raked in $10 million from existing investors Hunt Ventures, Intersouth Partners and Polaris Venture Partners, reports PEHub.
The company sells genes and enzymes that can be used to convert biomass sources, such as corn stover, straw and various agricultural by-products into cellulosic ethanol. It has also developed a process to efficiently extract and ferment sugars from cellulose and… Continue Reading
Low cost, super-efficient solar cells? Newly funded, Wakonda Technologies says it’s possible
In the solar cell market, there are three broad categories. Thin-film manufacturers produce cells that convert little of the sun’s energy to electricity, but are dirt cheap. Opposite thin-film, companies like Spectrolab and Emcore make highly efficient, but very expensive cells. Between are the standard solar photovoltaic makers, with average efficiencies, and average prices.
The result is a pricing balance that gives each group a slice of the overall market. But what if it were possible… Continue Reading
Turbine confirms $40 million raised for online games
Online games powerhouse Turbine confirmed that it has raised $40 million, though the actual investors are different from what was previously rumored.
Time Warner and GGV Capital led the round along with existing investors Highland Capital Partners, Polaris Venture Partners, Tudor Ventures and Columbia Capital. The investment will be used to accelerate Turbine’s growth in online games. Previously, Granite Ventures was the rumored lead.
Turbine is expanding its properties, including “Lord of the Rings Online,” which is… Continue Reading
GreenFuel not giving up, with another $13.9M for algae farms
It seems like a good idea, at first: Pipe carbon dioxide emissions from power plants or industrial processes through water containing algae, and the algae will absorb the CO2 for its own growth, in turn being harvested to make biodiesel. But like most good ideas, the implementation has proven more than a little tricky.
GreenFuel Technologies is a startup we’ve covered followed as it moved from high-flying newcomer, to apparent failure, back to spotlight darling. The… Continue Reading
Easy app maker Sprout raises $5M
Sprout, the startup behind an easy-to-use tool for creating Flash applications, has been having a very good year. It launched in January at DEMO (where it snagged a “DEMO god” award), made its app builder publicly available in March, then released a bunch of new features in April. Now it has raised $5 million in a second round of venture funding.
Through Sprout, you can use a “what you see is what you get” interface reminiscent… Continue Reading
MMO game publisher Turbine raising $40M; former CEO launches Play Hard Sports
Turbine, a game publisher that makes massively-multiplayer online games but may soon be enacting a major strategic shift, is in the process of taking $40 million in new funding led by Granite Global Ventures, according to Dan Primack.
While its Lords of the Ring Online: Shadows of Angmar computer game franchise has found success, expectations are that the company will move toward the console market. Primack also speculates that it could be preparing to take a… Continue Reading
Imprivata, a secure access innovator, raises $15M
Imprivata is a Lexington, Mass. company that is working on single sign-on authentication technology, which consolidates all of a corporate user’s accounts to a single password and adds additional security measures to prevent hackers.
The company’s software works together with physical location trackers like keycards, so that an employee’s account will be unusable if, for instance, his location tracker shows him to be in a different place than the computer he’s logging in at.
SAP Ventures provided… Continue Reading