4/30/13
Good morning, All,
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We personally do not own a tablet/iPad. We do consider them from time to time: they’re infinitely portable – we spend a lot of time on the move. But they do not offer the most important functions we need available on a computer, so came to the conclusion that it’s a half computer – pass, and claims of the death of the computer are wholly premature.
Last week, we had an opportunity to test an early-stage Google Glass competitor. Beautiful design. Teeny tiny screen just above your left eye’s line of vision. (Remember when your parents told you not to sit too close to the television? ) It’s too close and very distracting, and since we live in a world where most people can’t effectively walk and chew gum at the same time, the current mass market-unfriendly $1500 price tag on GGlass may be a small mercy. According to Robert Scoble, who has been testing the product for the past two weeks and shared his review, the price will come down considerable. Google is betting on fiber and cars and head mounted ‘computers,’ and just for the record, narrowly missed their earnings call last week. But are we missing the forest through the trees? Google Wallet. Google shopping. Supposedly, once browsing is enabled, GGlass will be ad-free. Considering that advertising is part of the company’s revenue model, is Google moving towards commerce, much the same way LinkedIn is moving towards becoming more of a news site, and here in lies the caveat: we personally don’t turn to linkedin for news, any more than we would to Google in the automobile space. We know that linkedin is doing well. Stock is fine and profits are up. For now. If you’re a paying customer and have undertaken a linkedin search recently, you might have noticed that features that were previously part of your basic paid service are now only available if you upgrade. Further. Specifically: formerly, you could designate if you were open to career opportunities, new venture, getting back in touch, etc., and those designations were formerly searchable as well. But they were removed a while back, so why pay more for an option that no longer exist? We’ve said it before: linkedin is ripe for disruption. They’ve lost sight of their paying customers – and their core product – to the point where we are personally about to downgrade rather than upgrade.
Privacy will be another thorny issue with any wearable computer and Google/privacy has always been something of an oxymoron. Time will tell if Google Glass will catch on, or be this tech cycle’s version of the segue. As for GGlass and us personally: we have a friend who has it and wears it everywhere. Frankly, when we see him coming, it does remind us of the Borg. Is resistance futile? Got them in our sights. Not sure if we want them in our line of vision. Onward and forward.
Deadlines:
The list of Startup Weekend Upcoming Events
Digital Catalyst Fund Summer Boot Camp, starts in June; companies are accepted on a rolling basis. Apply here. Applications are now being accepted for Digital Catalyst Fund’s 10-week Summer Boot Camp. This one-of-its-kind accelerator is seeking entrepreneurs with early stage ideas that can impact the new media/digital marketing space. Accepted entrepreneurs will be provided with up to $20,000 cash and cash equivalent services, as well as $30,000 in technical development resources – which can be accessed by living and working with our teams in Bucharest, Romania. For the informational webinar happening this week, go here. https://angel.co/digital-catalyst-fund
The Co.Labs And Target $75,000 Retail Accelerator, deadline April 30th. The winner stands to make $75,000, and gets a chance to work with one of the leading innovators in the retail space. Seven finalists will also be awarded $10,000 each to turn their proposal into a prototype. The goal: To build a mobile shopping experience that caters to customers who visit Target’s 1,778 stores. When the dust settles, the Co.Labs & Target Retail Accelerator will show the industry just what kind of magic the future of retail has in store.
Global Apps to Empower Competition Seeks Apps to Educate and Empower Women Everywhere, deadline April 30th. Applications that best satisfy the competition criteria will receive cash prizes and the opportunity to have their apps featured on Datawind’s $40 Ubislate educational tablet. That’s potentially a lot of computers – and a big win for the winning app! The UN is involved and the winning apps will be receive cash prizes, recognition (judges for the contest include Joanne Wilson, Vivek Wadhwa, Geena Davis. For more information and to apply: http://appstoempower.org/
New York Venture Summit: Apply to present/early bird registration now open. The 13th annual New York Venture Summit, presented by youngStartup Ventures, is the premier industry gathering connecting venture capitalists, corporate VCs, angel investors, technology transfer professionals, senior executives of early stage and emerging growth companies, university researchers, incubators and premier service providers. Whether you are an investor seeking access to new early stage deals, or a CEO or Founder of a new venture looking for funding, visibility and growth, New York Venture Summit is one event you won’t want to miss. To be considered for one of the Top Innovator slots, please e-mail iwant2present@youngstartup.com for an application.
The Sikorsky Entrepreneurial Challenge, deadline May 1st. The Sikorsky Entrepreneurial Challenge is a competition held by Sikorsky Innovations to identify and support emerging, revolutionary technology in the rotorcraft market. The challenge provides an opportunity for entrepreneurial companies to understand some of the toughest issues facing the vertical flight community and identify their technology as relevant to one of more of these issues. See ‘I Can Help’ for more information.
Innovate Health Tech NYC, deadline May 2nd. $50,000 in cash & prizes, coaching sessions for finalists, and the opportunity to pitch your solution to health tech investors & entrepreneurs.
Startup Institute, deadline May 5th. SI works with professionals, career changers, and dynamic individuals to equip them with the skills needed to have an immediate impact on the startup company they join. The primary objective is to align passion with profession, and usher students into a life they love. This is a full-time, immersive, eight-week experience that will catapult you into your city’s technology ecosystem in the areas of web development, product & design, technical marketing, or sales & business development. Apply here and heads up: apply now: as soon as the class is full, applications close, too.
NYC SeedStart’s 3rd accelerator class, deadline May 5th. The class starts in July and will be focused exclusively on enterprise software. They’re partnering with local VCs (RRE, Starvest, Contour, Safeguard) and large enterprise partners (SAP, CA, Deutsche Telekom, Amazon). You also get $20k in funding, free office space, mentors, etc.
NEW The Innovation By Design Awards recognize the design world’s most inspired, impactful work, deadline May 6. Brought to you by Co.Design and Fast Company, submit your most award-worthy project from the past year in one of the categories listed; judges will select the projects with the greatest business impact!
Finalists will be featured in the October 2013 issue of Fast Company. The competition spans virtually every design discipline.
Gates Foundation offers $100k for ‘next-gen condom,’ deadline May 7th. You can’t make these things up.
NEW Hack Summer Stage App Challenge (a program of City Parks Foundation), deadline May 8th. SummerStage is looking for the app which best reflects the mission outlined above and uses the SummerStage content to engage the 280,000+ attendees to SummerStage’s annual summer-long festival. Apps that creatively utilize both the SummerStage API and other provided APIs to offer a beneficial and positive experience to festival-goers, and reflect the fact that SummerStage extends to 16 parks beyond Central Park, will be judged higher. is looking for the app to engage its 280,000+ attendees at the annual summer-long festival. OK, you don’t win cash, but you do get VIP seating at the event, and more!
LaunchHouse Accelerator Accepting Applications, Cleveland, Ohio, and all are welcome to apply. Deadline unknown. Program starts in August. For more information, see below under ‘I Can Help.’ To apply, go here. Also, just for your information, they do encourage people from anywwhere to apply – and even provide housing!
HackSummerStage, deadline May 8th. SummerStage is looking for the app which best reflects the mission outlined above and uses the SummerStage content to engage the 280,000+ attendees to SummerStage’s annual summer-long festival. Apps that creatively utilize both the SummerStage API and other provided APIs to offer a beneficial and positive experience to festival-goers, and reflect the fact that SummerStage extends to 16 parks beyond Central Park, will be judged higher.
L’ORÉAL NEXT GENERATION AWARDS, deadline May 10th. The three winners will be able to execute pilots across L’Oreal brands executed by the end of 2014. The winners will have the opportunity to meet with Venture Capital firms, L’Oréal executives, partners, and the press. L’Oréal will provide airfare and accommodations to attend the event. Winners will also be provided press opportunities with major consumer and trade publications. Winners will be recognized on the , on the L’Oréal Women in Digital website and invited on an ongoing basis to attend all L’Oréal Women in Digital meet-ups in local markets and internally to provide mentorship.
Fourth BigApps Competition, deadline June 7th. $150k in prizes, and there’s a NYC BigApps 2013 Expo and Hackathon Weekend at eBay’s New York offices the weekend of April 6th. More information about the BigApps competition is on the NYCBigApps website.
Blueprint Health Accelerator, deadline June 8th. They just had their demo day, and getting ready for the next session. The foundation of the program is a community of over 150 healthcare entrepreneurs, investors and industry executives that are committed to helping you build and grow your business. It’s the largest network of mentors with healthcare expertise of any accelerator, which can provide you with warm introductions and the strategic and tactile advice you need. Plus $20,000 in cash, over $50,000 in perks, office space at our SoHo office, and a community that is dedicated to seeing you succeed.
Matchpoint | East, June 30th. This is an exclusive opportunity for selected health technology entrepreneurs and large stakeholders to meet in designated 15-20 minute meetings. Meetings are arranged based on selected criteria by industry leaders and investors, leading to high-yield discussions with innovative companies! During these meetings, innovators have the opportunity to demo their innovations with potential partners and investors. Hundreds of applications are reviewed by our team and host companies to select companies to participate in exclusive round table discussions and demos. Traditionally, over 500+ applications are reviewed to identify 10-15 innovative companies per host sponsor. Apply here.
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For you edification this week:
Variations on a theme – Don’t Listen To What Your Customers Say, Look At What They Do. House said it: everyone lies.
Google’s Schmidt says talking to glasses can be weird, inappropriate. Just saying. Wait, the Chairman of Google is saying…
10 Myths of Raising Money. Must-read slideshare.
The 5 values that drive 500 Startups. Yes, that 500Startups, as in Dave McClure.
Amazon Getting Set To Pimp Authors! The news is out, Amazon is getting ready to pimp your copyright for your book. This will affect many authors and publishers alike. They are planning, as it is reported, to sell used versions of your electronic works. How will they differentiate what is new or what is used to begin with?
How to Screen Venture Capitalists. A definitive list of things a venture investor should offer you, before you take money from them.
How to Raise Money When You’re Not in a Major VC Market. Tips from Mark Suster, if you don’t live in a major VC zone.
Michael Wolfe‘s answer to: What are some of the most ridiculous startup ideas that eventually became successful? Ask yourself, if you were a venture capitalist pitched one of these ideas, what would your reaction have been? Worth a read!
Last week, New York Mayor Bloomberg declared that the US Constitution needs reinterpreting. We do realize that coming from an elected official, such a statement borders on being considered an act of treason, but we will remind you instead of what founding father Benjamin Franklin said: “They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.” As always and thank heavens, the FF’s took the long view…and the Constitution is there and has served us well for this long, for a reason.
Elevator Pitch/Member News
Hint, hint: Feel free to tell us what you’re working on, or if you’ve been featured in the press…Share, and we will, too!
Gambita has launched! Finally petite ladies like you and me will have a friendly place to shop!
Congratulations to all of the ERA companies from the Winter 2013 session! Demo Day was last week and good job, Murat and crew! Read about it here.
That’s it from us for now, and if you’re at TechCrunch Disrupt this week – say hello! And now, as always, help is on the way…