Everybody wants to get in on social networking and user-generated video. Reality Digital,
a white-label YouTube that lets media sites add video-uploading and
social-networking features, raised $6.3 million in a series B
financing. OpenView Venture Partners was the sole investor in the
round. The company previously raised $2 million in a series A from
private individuals in November, 2005.
...The success of groups like Astia illustrates that women have
found ways around the boys-club environment of private equity investing. It's
still too early, though, to know what type of success these groups, and angel
investment firms like Golden Seeds, will achieve or if the groundwork they have
laid for other women will inspire more activity.
But Vosmek said a new generation of businesswomen may finally create a
strong ecosystem of female investors and entrepreneurs. "The young
generation is choosing entrepreneurship right out of school," Vosmek
said. "We're seeing a great number of women as part of founding teams."
OpenView Venture Partners Finances the Round and Joins Board
of Directors to Advance Company’s SaaS Platform for Social Media and
Video Sharing
SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Reality Digital™, a leading provider
of brand-focused social media solutions for businesses, today announced
the closing of $6.3 million in its Series B round of venture funding
from OpenView Venture Partners. OpenView Venture Partners’ Managing
Partner and Senior Managing Director Scott Maxwell and Venture Partner
Mark Barry, will join Reality Digital’s Board of Directors.
February 27, 2008
DNA Direct, a web-based provider of genetic testing services, announced today that it has closed $7 million in Series B financing, led by new investor, Lemhi Ventures, and including private investors from the firm’s Series A funding round.
Though it sounds more like a furniture polish than a nonprofit, San
Francisco-based Astia helps women-led tech startups raise capital and
gear up for growth.
Four startups, including MixerCast, ScoutLab and TrafficCast, landed
funds since participating in the group's annual venture conference in
October.
And Astia CEO Sharon Vosmek says the drooping economy hasn't
dampened VC enthusiasm for promising firms in high tech, life sciences,
clean technology and, as of this year, health and wellness.
Women have made vast strides in almost every profession. So why do they make up barely 4 percent of tech entrepreneurs?
By Carlotta Mast
Sue Kunz is used to people being surprised to find out she and her
business partner, Char Devich, are the founders of Solidware
Technologies Inc., an award-winning Boulder company that has created a
new kind of platform for evaluating the quality of software code.
Are you an entrepreneur in a high growth market looking to raises capital this spring?
Here is your opportunity to access the premier fundraising program in the nation for women-led companies.
Now on the East Coast, select companies will receive Astia’s hallmark program and coaching that has resulted in a greater than 60% funding success rate for prior participants.
The Women’s Congress Presents Astia with the “Champions for Women in Business” Award
Astia, the national leader in programs that accelerate the funding
and growth of women-led start-ups, today announced it has received the
Champions for Women in Business Award for its work with women
entrepreneurs across the globe. The Champions for Women in Business
Awards, from The Women’s Congress, recognize outstanding organizations
that support women business leaders through education, funding and
outreach. Each year, Astia works with more than 75 women-led companies.
Since 2003, Astia has helped its entrepreneurs raise more than $365
million in funding.
The Champion s for Women in Business Awards salute outstanding
women, men, companies and organizations that support and improve
opportunities for up-and-coming women business leaders, and business
owners. Entrepreneurs from the presenting companies at Astia’s 2007
Venture Conference led Astia’s nomination for the award. Astia was
nominated for the outstanding quality of its programs, the access it
provides to investment capital, and the unparalleled caliber of its
resources and advisors. All award nominees were evaluated on their
leadership, mentoring, outreach, education and funding of enterprises
and corporate initiatives in support of women during 2007. Astia was
presented with the award at The Women’s Congress event in Miami, Fl, on
January 24-25, 2008.
“We’re honored to receive this recognition from our clients and
share the award with the sponsors of our 2007 Venture Conference for
their role in the transformational success of women business leaders,"
said Sharon Vosmek, CEO, Astia. "Moving forward, our growing community
will help even greater numbers of women-led companies around the world
make the real connections needed to succeed in business.”
The 2007 Astia Conference was sponsored by leading VCs and LPs:
Advanced Venture Partners, Alloy Ventures, Apex Venture Partners,
Applied Ventures, LLC, Asset Management, CalPERS, Cargill Ventures,
Garage Technology Ventures Hamilton Lane, Hummer Winblad Venture
Partners, Intel Capital, Levensohn Venture Partners, Milk Street
Ventures, Opus Capital, Palomar Ventures Prolog Ventures, Voyager
Capital.
Astia’s Sixth Annual Venture Conference Delivers Exceptional Results for Women-Led High-Growth Startups:
MixerCast and Scout Labs Secure Millions As A Result of Leading Fundraising Program
San Francisco, CA
Astia, the national leader in programs that accelerate the funding and growth of women-led start-ups, today announced the funding of two presenting companies from its October Venture Conference. MixerCast and Scout Labs join the more than 57 Venture Conference companies that have raised capital or were acquired. This makes for a greater than 50% success rate for the conference since it started in 2003 - making it one of the nation’s most effective fundraising conferences of its kind.
Invariably, someone at each DEMO conference comments on the number
(and usually the lack of numbers) of women on stage. It’s true that as
a population at DEMO, or any technology entrepreneur-laden event,
female founders are in the minority. I meet hundreds of entrepreneurs
each year, and it is the very rare meeting that includes a woman who is
not in the capacity of PR or marketing consultant.
Since the first of the year, for example, I can call to mind exactly
two women among the legion of male entrepreneurs to come through my
office. The numbers naturally lead you to wonder why more women aren’t
starting businesses. Then again, maybe that’s not exactly the right
question.
Women start businesses, lots and lots of businesses, just,
apparently, not technology businesses. Or at least not venture-based
technology businesses, typically the profile of a company that presents
itself for selection at DEMO conferences.
Since I began paying attention to the statistics more than a decade
ago, the numbers on a percentage basis have changed very little. Fewer
than 10 percent of venture-based technology companies have a woman on
the founding team. This startling statistic has led some to assert that
venture is a male-dominated business dismissive, if not outright
hostile, toward women.
I won’t defend the venture business; I’ve heard enough anecdotes to
give at least some credence to that perspective. But I think there is,
at root, something different happening. Women build different kinds of
businesses from men. They have different aspirations and quite often
they fund them differently - usually through organic growth rather than
venture capital infusion. There are exceptions of course. Diane Green
at VMWare, Kim Polese at SpikeSource, and more recently Gina Bianchini
at Ning provide a few examples.
But women-founded startups are often, in my experience, a different
breed and a different funding need. In fact, many young women benefit
more from mentor capital than venture capital, at least in the earliest
days of their young companies’ lives. So an event like Women 2.0’s
Business Plan Competition is extremely useful, giving young women
entrepreneurs a chance to pitch their ideas to a panel of investors and
industry experts (among them, me)
Conceived as the “napkin challenge,” teams with at least 50% female
ownership are invited to submit business ideas on a 7×7 inch paper
napkin, accompanied by a standard business plan document. A panel of
judges vets the plans and invites women with the top ideas to present
at the May 10, 2008 conference. Rather than a promise of funding or a
monetary prize, winning teams will have the opportunity to meet
one-on-one with experienced mentors and investors, including veteran
technology writer and start-up investor Esther Dyson, arguably among
the best advisors a young company could hope for.
This isn’t the sort of thing I normally write about in this column,
but I do want to encourage young women to entrepreneurship of any type.
Information about the competition is available at
http://www.women2.org/?page_id=44#submission_process. The submission
deadline is April 1.
And maybe, just maybe, a tide of smart ideas from smart women
founders will find momentum and that perennial question about women at
DEMO won’t need to be asked in the future.
SAN FRANCISCO (September 10, 2007) – Companies from across the US, Canada, the UK and Australia submitted applications to present at Astia’s (formerly the Women’s Technology Cluster’s) annual Venture Conference to be held October 18 in Mountain View, California. More than 60 investors prescreened the finalists to select the 29 that will present at the conference. Presenting companies at last year’s Venture Conference achieved a 60% rate of funding success. Since 2003, Astia’s Venture Conference companies have raised over $246 million in financing, and there have been 6 exits to date. This year for the first time, health and wellness companies will be presenting to investors as well as high tech and life science companies.
AxcessPoints Inc., today announced the availability of a secure, online information repository to store and retrieve critical personal, medical, financial and family information to minimize the impact of an emergency or rebuild quickly after a natural catastrophe.
Founded by a senior insurance company executive, AxcessPoints provides individuals and families with a personalized storage repository where key information can be easily input, modified and accessed via a standard web browser. AxcessPoints centralizes and organizes data to enable individuals and families to quickly file insurance claims, access bank or investment account information, check on medical histories and find key contacts. While the information is secure, users can choose to share sections from their plan with other family members or trusted advisors.
AxcessPoints is available directly to consumers at www.axcesspoints.com. For insurance companies and financial institutions, AxcessPoints is available as a turnkey solution for a company’s website. For corporations, AxcessPoints is offered as a plug-and-play Intranet solution to support business continuity plans required under Sarbanes-Oxley and as an employee benefit.
Using AxcessPoints’ Member Center, users have the discretion to provide limited or complete access to their information to family members who may be called on to help in an emergency. AxcessPoints also offers comprehensive planning and disaster preparedness resources, including tools to help individuals create a detailed disaster plan.
In addition, AxcessPoints’ provides a first-of-its kind Emergency Toolkit, an interactive calculator that helps families create a comprehensive emergency preparedness kit. The tool calculates the right level of supplies and other necessary items by factoring in age, gender, disabilities and animals, including livestock.
On a recent Sunday, I was listening to my husband and brother-in-law talk incessantly about World of Warcraft.
I was just starting to get frustrated by the conversation when between the “there’s dozens of gankers outside Karazhan�? and “the DURID just ninja’ed another blue�? I heard something that I not only understood, but that made a lot of sense to me.
You see, they had just started talking about a newbie to their guild who apparently had broken social etiquette within the game. It was in that moment that I learned that online game communities have ecosystems much like the ecosystems that I work with every day. These ecosystems can be your greatest strength as an entrepreneur (or as a rogue in WoW) – but they require conformity to a basic set of rules.
Three rules for building and maintaining an ecosystem – real or virtual
1. Cry more, noob (or “less QQ, more PEWPEW�?)
This was my favorite rule especially as it applies to start-ups. It was translated to me as, “don’t start by complaining about game mechanics before you know how the game works. Ask questions and get guidance before you assume the game is broken. Most likely the problem is that you do not know how to play the game. If you are inexperienced, show some humility – be willing to learn.�?
Wow. This was a perfect fit for my entrepreneurs. We screen for coachability. We have built an entire community of mentors and coaches for our entrepreneurs to help them navigate the world of starting a company. They are been-there, done-that people who have generously offered to lend their expertise to my companies – for no other reason than to see them succeed. And the Valley is filled with these people who just love to see a strong team with a morsel of a good idea succeed.
The unfortunate part is that all too often entrepreneurs forget to collect mentors and ask questions. They undervalue the experience that has gone before them. They think they can – and therefore should – do it on their own. No one has ever done it on his or her own. Ever. So why start now just when you have decided to do the most difficult task of starting a company?
2. Pay it Forward
“Don’t ask until you have helped others. People are more inclined to help you once they know you and see you as part of their ecosystem.�?
Simple and beautifully said.
There are many opportunities for entrepreneurs to build out their own ecosystem, and the key here is to start long before starting a company. Contribute some code to an open source project, offer your expertise to an organization that could use your knowledge. Get out there and share what you have.
3. There are no good secrets
Oh, man, this one was great – and so counter-intuitive. These two were chatting away about all of the game secrets. They shared their learning from within WoW and from the many postings outside of Wow (yes, these two are real game geeks). They were actively tapping in to each other’s genius – in order to help themselves and to solve the problem set of the day.
In the past I have heard them share technical challenges they are facing at their work. Both companies have trade secrets, but they aren’t interested in stealing what the other company is doing, they are interested in solving engineering and technical problems.
For many entrepreneurs, the initial instinct is to cling to NDAs and secrets, believing these are their only competitive advantage. From my experience, entrepreneurs, brilliant engineers, and Gankers, are better for this sharing.
AgentArts Inc,, a venture-backed provider of personalization and recommendation technology, has been acquired by Fast Search & Transfer ASA, a Norwegian provider of search technologies.
Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
**AgentArts** was founded in January 1999 in Melbourne, Australia, and joined the Women's Technology Cluster Incubator in San Francisco in 2000. In March 2000, the company received its initial round of financing, $1.25 million from Tinshed. In September 2001, the company received its second round of financing from Amtabity, Amphion Capital, Tinshed, and Aegis Partners. In 2003 the company received an undisclosed investment from Nokia Ventures.
**AgentArts** offers a range of recommendation, personalization, datamining and community recommendation products for music, video, games and mobile entertainment.
Based in Norway, Fast Search & Transfer provides enterprise search technologies to 2,600 global customers.
Norway’s Fast Search & Transfer said it has acquired San Francisco “personalization and recommendation�? technology company AgentArts for an undisclosed amount.
Here’s a brief story about the deal.
AgentArts is just one of many companies offering such technology.
“Recommendation�? technologies are used by companies to offer up to their readers or users information that is relevant to them based on their previous choices. If a person tends to like the same songs as another member in the network, then a recommendation engine will continue to recommend songs to them that the other member discovers and likes.
Founded in 1999, AgentArts received financing from Innovent, a unit of Nokia Ventures, Tinshed, Amtabity, Amphion Capital and Aegis Partners (we don’t know the total, but it is more than $1.25 million, which was the size of its initial round in 2000).
Other such engines include those offered by Amazon.com, Aggregate Knowledge and in music, Last.
The company said its clients include Infospace Mobile and Telstra Big Pond.
Astia Appoints Sharon Vosmek as Chief Executive Officer
San Francisco CA: June 5th, 2007 - Astia, which provides programs that accelerate funding and growth for women-led start-ups across all areas of technology, is pleased to announce the appointment of Sharon Vosmek as Chief Executive Officer. Sharon has 17 years of management experience including five years of experience with Astia, initially working with the company’s founder, Cate Muther, and most recently serving as its COO. Sharon’s leadership contributed to the expansion of Astia’s revenue base and its expert community. She also led the development of Astia’s renowned Venture Conference Funding Series program.
“Sharon’s management skills and track record in fundraising, operations and board development will enable Astia to continue its rapid growth and help to achieve our plans to become a national organization. We are very fortunate that Sharon has agreed to take on the CEO position,�? said Jennifer McFarlane, Astia’s outgoing CEO.
Sharon has served on numerous non-profit boards, and is currently on the board of the YMCA of San Francisco. Prior to joining Astia, Sharon was a management consultant specializing in large-scale organizational changes. She has also worked at American Express and for a United States Senator. Ms. Vosmek has MA in Public Policy from the University of Wisconsin and a BS in Political Science.
Sharon succeeds Jennifer McFarlane who is leaving to join a solar power company, CleanSource Power, as its CFO. “Jennifer joined Astia in 2004 and spearheaded Astia’s 5 year growth plan to achieve national leadership and provide the best programs. Jennifer doubled the number of companies served; launched two national events; expanded Astia's leadership; and renamed and rebranded the organization,�? said Dr. Cori Gorman, Vice Chair, Astia’s Board of Trustees.
Ms. Vosmek also announced two new appointments at Astia – Gwen Edwards, as part time Executive-in-Residence, and Jennifer Shelby as Managing Director, Portfolio Services. Ms. Edwards is a former communications industry CEO who has led early stage companies and has had extensive corporate experience at SBC, now AT&T, and Nortel. Ms. Shelby has seventeen years experience in marketing and business development, and currently provides leadership training to high-tech executives.
**About Astia**
Astia’s mission is to increase the number of successful women-led companies in technology, life sciences and clean tech. Astia annually serves over 55, seed stage through to Series D, companies from the Bay Area as well as across the country.
Astia’s programs combine extensive executive services including advice on successful fundraising, leadership skills development, free legal advice, in-depth technology and marketing analyses, and access to extensive networks of investors and potential customers. Astia’s companies have access to over 220 members of Astia’s Mentor Network that includes more than 70 former and current CEOs and 25 investors.
Since 2003, Astia has worked with over 110 companies that have raised more than $313 million. Each year, Astia produces a Venture Conference program for early stage, women-led companies that produces results – achieving funding success rates greater than 60%.
Peregrine Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: PPHM), a clinical stage
biopharmaceutical company developing monoclonal antibodies for the
treatment of cancer and hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection, announced today
that it has entered into a development collaboration with Dios Therapeutics,
Inc., an emerging biotechnology company founded in 2006. Under the terms
of the agreement, Peregrine will provide process development and
manufacturing services and know-how to support early clinical development
for Dios' proprietary humanized monoclonal antibody for the treatment of
thyroid associated ophthalmopathy (TAO) using existing development and
manufacturing capacity once Dios provides Peregrine with its lead humanized
antibody product candidate. In exchange for these development efforts,
Peregrine has the option to convert its development fees into either cash or
equity in Dios at a preferential conversion rate after Phase I trials. Peregrine
also could receive a royalty on net product sales or Dios has the option to buy
out the royalty obligation for a one-time fee which could total up to $50
million dollars. The buy-out option is exercisable anytime for a period up to
two years after first commercial sale. Under the terms of the agreement, Dios
is responsible for all third party expenses related to manufacturing process
development as well as all pre-clinical and clinical trial costs.
Jeff Karras interviews CalPERS board member Priya Mathur and Astia CEO Jennifer McFarlane about opportunities for women entrepreneurs. They discuss the value of supporting women entrepreneurs and provide perspective on why this is good business and good for California as a whole. Jennifer and Priya also discuss the CalPERS California Initiative and Astia (formerly the Women's Technology Cluster), providing insight valuable to both Venture Capitalists and Entrepreneurs
[Listen to the interview here](http://www.chimehosting.com/vcio/podcast/entrepreneur/episode5.mp3)
Astia, formerly The Women’s Technology Cluster, Honors Cardinal Partners, Prolog Ventures, and Venrock Associates
Arlington, VA** – Three member firms of the National Venture Capital Association (NVCA) will be honored at Astia’s Third Annual National Awards, celebrating women-led companies funded by venture capital. NVCA members Prolog Ventures and Venrock Associates are being recognized for making the largest number of investments in companies with a woman CEO. Cardinal Partners will receive an award for the greatest percentage of investments in companies with a woman CEO.
The Third National Astia Venture Capital Awards, hosted by Astia and their sustaining platinum sponsor, Fenwick & West LLP, will be held on April 12th at the Computer History Museum in Mountain View, California. The event will also honor Bill Campbell, chairman of Intuit, for his mentorship of female CEOs.
“Entrepreneurship is a key element driving the U.S. economy,�? said Mark Heesen, president of the National Venture Capital Association president. “The venture capital industry is a critical ingredient to this ecosystem and we are proud of our member firms who continue to invest in the best and the brightest women-led companies. It is a great time to be an entrepreneur as the opportunity to innovate is abundant across a diverse set of industries. The venture capital community is committed to supporting women risk takers who strive to improve the status quo.�?
Tony Sun, managing general partner at Venrock Associates, said, "Of the many companies Venrock funded last year, six were led by women. We are honored to be recognized for our investment in women-led companies, although it was their keen business sense and innovation that drove our investment. We applaud Astia for its efforts to inspire more women to become entrepreneurs."
“We take pride in nurturing the most innovative technology companies, which often enhance the way we work or live. It is especially gratifying to be honored for our support of women-led companies, which account for a growing percentage of U.S. businesses," said Lisa Skeete Tatum, general partner, Cardinal Partners.
Astia is a San Francisco-based non-profit that provides programs that are designed to accelerate funding and growth of early-stage women-led businesses in life science, high technology and clean technology. Since 2003, Astia has worked with over 100 women-led companies which have raised over $260 million. Seventy-two percent of the companies that participated in Astia’s 2005 Venture Conference received funding.
“We are delighted to honor these VCs for their leadership in identifying opportunities presented by women entrepreneurs,�? said Jennifer McFarlane, CEO of Astia. “Since we started awarding VCs in 2003, Venrock has funded the largest number of women-led companies of any VC firm in a single year.�?
For more information about the awards ceremony please visit www.astia.org.
###
The National Venture Capital Association (NVCA) represents approximately 480 venture capital and private equity organizations. NVCA’s mission is to foster the understanding of the importance of venture capital to the vitality of the U.S. and global economies, to stimulate the flow of equity capital to emerging growth companies by representing the public policy interests of the venture capital and private equity communities at all levels of government, to maintain high professional standards, facilitate networking opportunities and to provide research data and professional development for its members. More information about the NVCA can be found at www.nvca.org.
About Astia, Where Women Innovators Succeed
The mission of Astia is to increase the number of successful women-led companies in the life science, high technology and clean technology sectors. Astia provides comprehensive advisory services, coaching and introductions to investors through an extensive mentor community of more than 220 proven CEOs, investors, and industry experts.
Astia is supported primarily by corporate sponsorships and individuals. Sponsorships range from $5,000 to $100,000.
