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European Civil Liberties Committee Votes To Ask Snowden To Contribute To Its NSA Surveillance Inquiry
Jan 09, 12:16PM
NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden will be invited to contribute to a European Parliamentary committee's ongoing inquiry into the U.S. NSA surveillance program.E-Commerce Business Lender iwoca Raises $8.2M To Expand In The UK And Europe
Jan 09, 10:00AM
iwoca, which provides short-term loans to online retailers based in the UK, announced today that it has raised £5 million (about $8.2 million) from Global Founders Capital, a new private investment fund launched by the Samwer brothers of Rocket Internet fame, and Luxembourg-based Redline Capital Management. All of iwoca’s existing investors also returned for the current round, which brings the total iwoca has raised so far to about £7 million (about $11.5 million). The startup, which is based in London, says it will use its latest funding to scale up its UK operations and expand into Europe. In a statement, iwoca co-founder and CEO Christoph Reich said that the new investment will allow his company to provide short-term financing to 5,000 more small businesses in the UK in 2014. The investment will also give iwoca the opportunity to leverage the Samwer brothers’ experience in building high-growth businesses. Their investment in iwoca is interesting because Berlin-based Rocket Internet has focused lately on pouring funds into e-commerce startups in emerging markets like Southeast Asia, the Middle East and Africa. But although retail sales in Europe have slowed since the 2008 global financial crisis, there are signs that consumers in the U.K. are now more willing to open their pocketbooks as the economy gradually recovers. E-commerce businesses in the U.K. were expected to reach a total sales value of £87 billion in 2013, representing 12% year-over-year growth, according to research firms IMRG and Capgemini. Rieche said that the new investment will allow iwoca to tap into a market of more than 4.6 million businesses in the UK: “This latest round of funding will allow us to leverage our existing operations and drive growth. Our highly innovative approach to data-analysis and credit scoring coupled with Oliver Samwer’s experience in franchise building puts us in an incredibly strong position to take advantage of the structural change within the business lending industry.” The funding may also help iwoca compete against Ezbob, which was launched in September 2012 and has raised a total of $5 million in funding so far. Both companies cater to eBay and Amazon sellers, as well as vendors on other online platforms, and use data- and credit-scoring tools to provide loan applicants with quick decisions. The €150 million Global Founders Capital fund will invest in Internet businesses throughout the world at different stages of funding and is run by Marc and Oliver Samwer, alongSwiftKey Takes Its Predictive Android Keyboard Software Into Cars With Clarion Car Stereo Tie-Up
Jan 09, 9:35AM
U.K. phone software maker SwiftKey has partnered with in-car entertainment manufacturer Clarion for their AX1 Android-powered touchscreen car stereo system, expanding its predictive keyboard software from phones and tablets to the automobile dash.Announcing The Finalists For Hardware Battlefield: Atlas Wearables, Blaze, CubeSensors, And Owlet Baby Care
Jan 09, 7:00AM
After two days of presentations, hours of judging, and 14 demos, we’re excited to announce the finalists for the inaugural Hardware Battlefield: Atlas Wearables, Blaze, CubeSensors, and Owlet Baby Care. The winner will be decided tomorrow afternoon and awarded a $50,000 check and a robot-topped trophy. Fourteen companies participated in our first Hardware Battlefield representing eleven countries. From medical devices to quantitative self gear to drones to bike lights, these companies launched for the first time on our stage at CES 2014 and were judged by panels of all-star judges. Tomorrow, at 3:00pm PDT, the four finalists will present their product yet again to four more judges including Yves Behar, Bre Petis, Jen McCabe, and Matt Turck. The winner will take home the first Hardware Battlefield cup. All of our companies were amazing. All of our entrants are already doing some amazing work in their fields and most are well on their way to successful crowdfunding. We were proud to have them on our stage. The finalists are: Atlas [CrunchBase] – Atlas is a wearable device that tracks and identifies specific activity. Where existing products can only track a single metric, steps, Atlas is smart enough to identify pushups, squats, dead lifts and everything else. Team: Peter Li, CEO Mike Kasparian, CTO Alex Hsieh, Lead Software Developer Mehdi Mirza, Data Scientist Blaze Laserlight [Presentation] – Blaze are an intelligent biking brand. Launching with the Laserlight, a radical innovation tackling the greatest cause of cyclist fatality – being caught in the ‘blind spot’ and vehicles turning across an unseen bike. Team: Emily Brooke, CEO + Founder CubeSensors [Presentation] – CubeSensors are small, stylish and connected devices that help you understand how every room in your home or office is affecting your health, comfort and productivity. The Cubes monitor everything that can be measured about indoors, like temperature, humidity, air quality, noise, light and barometric pressure. They are small enough to fit in the palm of your hand and can easily blend in any room you want to optimize for leisure, sleep or work. Team: Ales Spetic, CEO Marko Mrdjenovic, CTO Owlet [Presentation] – Owlet provides parents with peace of mind by implementing new technologies to monitor, track, and alert on changes in their infant’s health. Owlet helps parents prevent SIDS and other early infant issues. Team: Jordan Monroe, CMO Zack Bomsta, CTO Kurt Workman, CEO Tanor Hodges, CFO Jake Colvin, COOCAN Capital Raises $33M From Meritech And Accel To Loan Small Businesses Working Capital
Jan 09, 5:00AM
CAN Capital, a company that gives small businesses access to credit and working capital and helps solve this problem, has raised $33 million in funding co-led by Meritech Capital Partners and existing investor Accel Partners, with participation from Ribbit and QED Investors.
After Arriving On Android, Glooko Lands $7M From Samsung & More To Bring Predictive Diabetes Care Global
Jan 09, 1:34AM
The proliferation of connected devices, coupled with rapid advances in data analytics and sensor technology, has fundamentally changed the way people interact with and manage their health. Thanks to smartphones and a new generation of smart, wearable gadgets, it’s now easier than ever before to monitor and and analyze a dizzying array of inputs and physiological signals and inputs — from your heart rate and calorie intake to your biorhythms and stress levels. The promise of today’s health apps is that, by leveraging mobility and realtime analytics, they can help Average Joes like you and me transform biometric data into something more substantial Information, knowledge and changes in behavior. While the market continues to brim with all manners of behavioral change and health management apps, only a tiny fraction of startups are addressing an area in which health management and tracking technology could (arguably) have the greatest impact: Chronic diseases and conditions. Glooko launched in late 2011 to bring mobility and data tracking to people living with Diabetes, a population underserved by advances in mobile technology. After all, Diabetes, like any chronic condition, by nature requires constant monitoring from patients — across a number of devices. So, the company set out on a mission to address the lack of interoperability and standardized methods for data transfer among devices (and glucose meters) to finally create a unified diabetes management solution. The effort has begun to pay off, as Glooko now supports data transfer between 26 glucose meters and 28 different mobile devices. For some perspective, compatibility with 26 meters means that it covers roughly 85 percent of existing meters in the U.S., says Glooko’s Vikram Singh. In November, on the heels of approval from the FDA, Glooko took another big step toward device agnosticism, expanding its support from iOS to Android devices — a move which the company says makes it the the “only FDA-cleared mobile diabetes management system to support the transfer of glucose data from dozens of meters to Android devices.” With its coverage increasing, the company is ready to take the next big step, says CEO Rick Altinger, thanks to the help of a few familiar names in the world of mobile technology. Today, the company announcement that it has raised $7 million in a Series A-1 financing round from investors that include Samsung Venture Investment Company and Lifeforce Ventures, with participation from existing investors, The Social +Faraday's Stylish New Bicycle Will Change How You Think About E-Bikes
Jan 09, 1:00AM
Faraday Bicycles has created an electronic bike that was built to be stylish, functional, and a lot of fun to ride. We got a preview of the company's first bike, which will be shipping soon to customers who pre-ordered it. With a motor on its front wheel and batteries actually stored inside the frame, the Faraday bicycle is built to look just like a regular city commuter bike.Android's Rise To Platform Dominance In One Graph
Jan 09, 12:12AM
With Android landing on all-in-one computers and Windows extending its reach deeper into the mobile world, the platform world is tightening into three key teams: iOS and OS X, Windows, and Android.Get Reminders To Brush Your Teeth And Water The Plants With The Digital "Mother"
Jan 09, 12:04AM
Need a helpful reminder to brush your teeth, take your morning pills, or water the plants? The newly announced device, called “Mother”, imbues everyday objects with the gentle nagging power of our awesome moms. Conspicuous peanut-sized trackers (“Cookies”) attach to toothbrushes, medication bottles, backpacks, water glasses and other household items to track if they’re being used correctly. Our own dear mothers could be the next to be replaced by a computer–except, of course, telling us to give them grandchildren (oh, and that unconditional love thing). Inside the Cookie, a tiny accelerometer knows whether, for instance, a medicine bottle has been lifted up and turned upside down–indicating that you’ve dumped our your morning pills. Cookies are placed on all sorts of household objects and wirelessly synced with the base station, which broods from a distance in the shape of a loving Russian doll. Beginning with mostly household objects, the possible applications for Mother are endless. Imagine any object around the house, car, or office that you’re supposed to use on a regular basis and it, could, in theory, work with Mother’s digital ecosystem. Mother also tracks temperature (for, say, pets) and geolocation (for tracking a child on the way from school). Sen.se’s Mother device is supposed to launch in the spring with a base station and 4 Cookies for $222. Check out more on their site.AirDroids Wants To Democratize The Skies With Its Pint-Sized Pocket Drone
Jan 08, 11:45PM
The buzz around drones is undeniable these days -- as it turns out, even Martha Stewart uses one to survey her farm -- but there still hasn't been a runaway drone hit that has captured that imaginations of the masses. That's exactly what a hardware startup called AirDroids is trying to accomplish with the Pocket Drone, a (relatively) inexpensive flying machine that's meant to give people of all stripes a different perspective.Medypal Raises $400K In Seed Round To Help Patients Buy Affordable Healthcare In India
Jan 08, 11:41PM
Commerzpoint Networks, an Indian startup that owns healthcare marketplace Medypal, has raised around $400,000 in seed funding from Unitus Seed Fund. With this funding, Medypal will help patients find trustworthy service providers who will bid against each other for their spend on medical procedures. Medypal will use a “reverse auction” method to ensure that the services are competitively priced and patients are able to pick the service provider they want. Healthcare is a booming industry in India and is expected to reach $100 billion by 2016. The challenge, though, is to provide affordable services to millions, many of whom are not even covered under any medical insurance. Moreover, a majority of healthcare consumers in India rely on friends and family to select a service provider. By offering information on-the-go, and getting online quotes from service providers in real time, Medypal wants to change that. Commerzpoint founders P Rammohan and Brahmesh Jain are no strangers to finding opportunities in India’s healthcare sector. They founded the country’s first and the largest health insurance exchange, Healthsprint, in 2006. With more than half of India’s 160 million users accessing Internet on their mobiles, there is an opportunity to be tapped in delivering healthcare services. Medypal will be offering a free mobile app to healthcare consumers. The Medypal service will go live February 1. “Using the app, patients can search for healthcare procedures, go through the list of hospitals offering those procedures, browse through the profiles of the doctors, and check the facilities offered by hospitals before finally shortlisting the hospitals,” said Rammohan. ”The app will also allow patients to ask for proposals from the hospitals and book appointments while on the move.” The startup plans to make money on leads generated and passed on to healthcare service providers. “We are in the final process of signing up with 300 health care providers in Bangalore ranging from large hospitals, diagnostic centre chains to dental clinics and cosmetic surgical centres,” said Rammohan. “There is no easy way to get objective information on service provider availability, quality and pricing,” Commerzpoint said in a statement announcing the funding. ”This is especially challenging for low-income families who have even less information, education, connections and financial reserves.” As we reported last month, Unitus raised its second fund of $3.3 million to help people at the bottom of the economic pyramid access basic necessities in India. The new fund invests in for-profit startups in India. ”We are investing in a team,Tech Angels Cross The $1 Billion Mark In 2013
Jan 08, 11:38PM
Buoyed by a stronger economy, angel investors companies worldwide poured a record amount of cash into early-stage technology and life-sciences companies, according to data from CrunchBase. Angel investments have been climbing steadily since 2008, CrunchBase data shows, but 2013 represents a new high, with investors crossing the billion-dollar threshold, committing $1.1 billion to entrepreneurs launching new tech companies, up from $929 million in 2012. In the first half of 2013, angel investors invested $461 million in a total of 379 deals, according to the Halo Report, a survey of angel investments published by Silicon Valley Bank, Angel Resource Institute and CB Insights. Angels committed more capital in each quarter of 2013 than in the previous year, according to CrunchBase data. And U.S.-based startups raised the bulk of that cash, attracting $687.9 million in 2013, up from $646.9 million in 2012, the CrunchBase data shows. “I think it’s about the economy and the economy continued to improve,” said Marianne Hudson, Executive Director of the Angel Capital Association, a trade group for early-stage investors. “The economy felt better from all stages in 2013 than in 2012 and that also meant that angels had more money to spend and invest.“ Meanwhile, Michael Cain, a member-manager of the Wilmington Investor Network, an angel investment group based in Wilmington, N.C., said collaboration and the continuing professionalization of the industry were also factors in the growth, and growing clout, of angels. “You get more minds around the table, [and] you get better due diligence because you have more people who know the space.” Angels are also seeing their investments pay out, which encourages more activity, investors said. “We strive to do two rounds of angel [financing] and get out,” Mr. Cain said. “[We’re] looking at pre-monies of under $3 million and exits in the $20 million to $40 million range.” Acquirers snatched up 48 companies that had raised just one round of capital in 2013, including home improvement site, BrightNest, which was bought by Angie’s List only two years after raising its seed funding. Among the biggest winners were the backers of Medafor, a Minneapolis-based life sciences company which raised $15,000 in angel funding in 2012 and was acquired by the medical technology company C.R. Bard for $200 million. “There were a lot of companies that may not be that recognizable across the country that did deliver between 3x and 15x returns,” Hudson said. Image via Flickr userThe Fin Is A Bluetooth Ring That Turns Your Hand Into An Interface
Jan 08, 11:27PM
Smart glasses! Smart watches! Smart… rings? While many in the tech world would agree that wearable devices are the natural next stage of computing, no one has really cracked the code. As much as we geeks love to chat about Google Glass and Pebble watches, no wearable has breached the mainstream and achieved any degree of ubiquity just yet. RHL Vision, a competitor in the TechCrunch CES Hardware Battlefield today, thinks they have the answer: Bluetooth rings that turn your fingers into buttons. Here’s how it works: by tucking an optical sensor into a small ring placed around your thumb, the Fin is able to detect swipes and taps across your hand. When it detects a gesture, it sends that command off to your connected device — be it a smartphone, TV, or another wearable device. Swiping your thumb down your index finger, for example, could turn your phone’s volume down. Want to turn it back up? Just swipe back up across the same finger. Want to skip the current track? Swipe your thumb across the palm of the opposite hand. In future iterations, they hope to use biometrics to distinguish each segment of each finger. This would allow them to assign each segment a different behavior, essentially turning each section of your hand into a different button. While the team has renders (shown below) showing the ring as they hope it will look once they reach the early stages of actual production, the current prototype shown on stage (and pictured above) is a bit more… extensive. Whereas they plan to use flexible circuitry (think Jawbone Up) to shrink the design and allow it to wrap around your thumb, the current prototype relies on more traditional PCBs and off-the-shelf sensors to get the job done. It’s not as small and not as pretty, but it does do a good job of proving the concept. The team plans to launch an indiegogo campaign later this evening. Update: Here’s the teams Indiegogo campaign!Modbot Wants To Make Robotics Easier, More Modular And More Democratic
Jan 08, 11:16PM
The DIY revolution means that people can now print their own 3D models, build their own websites and apps, and even build their own mobile devices and custom computers using things like Raspberry Pi. The Modbot team taking part in this year's TechCrunch Battlefield at CES 2014 wants to do the same for robotics – not hobby robotics, but serious, full-fledged industrial and commercial robot building.Apigee Discloses $20.5M Stock Transaction To Pay For Predictive Analytics Company InsightsOne
Jan 08, 10:51PM
Apigee has disclosed a $20.5 million stock transaction as part of its previously announced acquisition of InsightsOne, according to a filing with the SEC. Terms of the deal were not previously disclosed. In its Registration D filing today, the company acknowledged the $20.5 million equity transaction was made in connection with the acquisition. In a statement, Apigee stated it did not close a new round of financing for this SEC filing. Instead, the registration is related to the acquisition of InsightsOne, but it does not represent the purchase price. The filing was required as part of the stock transaction between the two companies. Since 2005, Apigee has raised $107.5 million, not including the $20.5 million equity transaction. Originally Sonoa Systems, the company had developed a cloud gateway that it leveraged to become an API management company. In July, the company raised $35 million from a fund managed by BlackRock, Inc. and Accenture, the global consulting company. With InsightsOne, Apigee will have a platform that helps companies find patterns in multiple data sources to, for instance, tell healthcare providers in advance about an unsatisfied customer. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Founded three years ago, InsightsOne, has $4.3 million in funding it received in 2012 from NorWest Venture Partners and several angel investors. For Apigee, it’s a sign that the next year will be pivotal for the company. It’s either get acquired and collect a big check, or pursue an IPO. The bet on analytics seems right, but it’s a matter of market adoption more than anything else. (Feature image via Flickr)With An Eight-Figure Runrate, Oscar Doubles Down on Health Insurance Through $30M In New Funding
Jan 08, 10:37PM
Oscar, the New York-based startup in the decidedly unsexy world of health insurance, has just picked up an additional $30 million in funding. Why? Promising numbers in the product’s first 90 days since launch. The company debuted last October just as the federal government and states unveiled new health insurance exchanges where consumers can pick and choose plans in compliance with the Affordable Care Act. Oscar has since enrolled “thousands” of customers and has “tens of millions” of dollars in annualized revenue. While the federal government’s exchange had an embarrassingly messy launch, state programs in places like New York and California rolled out more smoothly. That’s where Oscar has picked most of its new clientele. Apparently, the numbers were good enough that Founders Fund, which had been a minority investor in the company, decided to increase its stake at a $340 million valuation. Other firms including Khosla Ventures, General Catalyst Partners and Kushner’s firm, Thrive Capital, also participated. Founders Fund put in $25 million, while the other firms added the remaining $5 million. Oscar tries to marry many of the design and user experience lessons from the consumer web and mobile world with health care. They have a clean and clear sign-up flow and they offer amenities like telemedicine or the ability to talk to a doctor within one hour of making a request. Generic drugs and primary care visits are also free. The company has a notable team behind with it Thrive Capital’s Josh Kushner, Vostu co-founder Mario Schlosser, Kevin Nazemi and Fredrik Nylander, who ran engineering and operations and Tumblr. That’s just on the tech side. They also picked up executives with about 1,000 years of health insurance career experience behind them. On the company’s board is Charlie Baker, who ran insurer Harvard Pilgrim out of Massachusetts, the only state with an insurance exchange before the Affordable Care Act was passed. Oscar’s timing was incredibly lucky. The team looked at the healthcare space before they really understood what the full impact of the Affordable Care Act (or Obamacare) would be. But the act fortuitously offered them a window to pick up customers just as the U.S. government enacted an individual mandate, or a requirement that people buy insurance or face penalties. That has meant a host of previously uninsured customers have come online the last several months. In total, Oscar has raised $75 million, about $29 million ofMedium Considering Raising $20 Million
Jan 08, 9:55PM
Medium, Evan Williams' clean and beautiful attempt at revamping the way people write and read online, is considering raising a venture round according to the rumor mill. We're hearing that the company, which has been subsisting on angel money apparently, is thinking about finally taking money from VCs.Yahoo News Digest Reviews Get A Boost From Yahoo Employees, Cheerleaders
Jan 08, 9:46PM
Some folks out there really, really, really like any app that Yahoo puts out. At least, that’s the picture we get from looking at the recent reviews of its Yahoo News Digest app, introduced yesterday. The app is currently flying high in the charts, and features a 4.5 star rating with 282 massively positive reviews. Taking a closer look at the review listings, many of the people leaving positive notes about the app appear to make a very strong habit of reviewing Yahoo apps, and only Yahoo apps. Some of them have only ever reviewed Yahoo News Digest, and others have only reviewed the catalog of internal products and recent acquisitions like Tumblr. Some of the Yahoo employees leaving reviews on the app appear to (from simple user name identification) include Jonathan Raspaud, a Mobility Architect at Yahoo and Yahoo India employee Rahul Aneja. There are most likely others. John Hermann and Charlie Warzel at Buzzfeed also note that new Yahoo Tech runner David Pogue and Summly acquisition Nick D’Alosio were certainly aware of the very positive reviews. And that awareness raises questions about how easy it was for them to skip over mentioning the origins of many of those reviews in their ‘interview’ today. Is this a crime? No, not really. If I was part of a two-man company I’m sure that both my co-founder and I would be calling everyone we know to rate our app. But Yahoo is a big firm, with over 12,000 employees. And, as Hermann notes, a flood of positive ratings from a large company like this could certainly tip the scales in favor of one product over another. And, in fact, this is not the first time we’ve seen this kind of behavior from Yahoo employees on apps. In May of 2012 it released its Axis browsing tool, which met with a fairly poor reception in the press. But the reviews were surprisingly positive. When a deeper look was taken, sure enough, Yahoo employees were weighing in enthusiastically. We’ve reached out to Yahoo for comment, but it has already issued a statement to Buzzfeed saying that its employees ‘were not instructed to write reviews’. Yahoo-er Raspaud’s review of the Yahoo News Digest app? “Perfect.” Update: A Yahoo spokesperson has also told TechCrunch that it does not ask its employees to write reviews, and chalked it up to ‘a case of enthusiasm’. Image Credit: EricAre You There, TechCrunch? It's Me, Jon
Jan 08, 8:59PM
If you’re reading this, then you either have very little to do right now, or you care about the inner workings and staffing decisions here at TechCrunch. (I’m sure there could be other reasons, but let’s stick with those two). I’m hoping it’s the latter – that you care about this site and the goings-on around it. In fact, I’m sure you do. The community of authors, commenters, contributors and readers that is the beating heart of TechCrunch is a passionate, committed, and engaged bunch… and I’m happy to join you. My name, if you didn’t read the byline, is Jon Shieber. I spent the last several years writing about venture capital, private equity, energy and technology from New York and Shanghai for Dow Jones & Co. and the Wall Street Journal. And now I’ll be doing it for y’all. Here at TechCrunch, and over at CrunchBase, I’ve been tasked with helping everyone find the signals on where venture capital investment – and technology development – are heading through the noise of daily funding announcements, new product launches, new product updates, add-on acquisitions, new hires, etc. etc. etc. There’s a massive amount of useful data that we have on CrunchBase and we’re going to try and use it to provide more context for you around the day’s news. Hopefully you, the TechCrunch community, will lend a helping hand (I’m lazy and y’all are way smarter than I am). Anyway, it’s nice to be here. I hope I get to stick around for a while. Feel free to reach out and follow me on Twitter at @jshieber , or shoot me an email shieber@techcrunch.com or shieber@crunchbase.com. I’m looking forward to hearing… and learning… from all of you.Twitter CEO Says He Has No Idea How Many Users Opt Out Of Ads
Jan 08, 8:46PM
Dick Costolo, the CEO of Twitter, says that it's easy enough for consumers to opt out of tailored ads on Twitter, but he does not know how many actually go through the process of doing so. "You can opt out of tailored ads and content," he told an audience today. But asked how many percentage-wise have done so, he would not say: "I do not know how many people have opted out of tailored ads."If at any time you'd like to stop receiving these messages, just send an email to feeds_feedburner_com_techcrunch+unsubscribe-hmdtechnology=gmail.com@mail.feed2email.net.
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