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Self-described geek and tech revolution pioneer, Mike Edelhart, has enjoyed a rich career taking him from prestigious positions including Executive Editor of PC Magazine and later Executive President at Ziff. Edelhart is now at the helm with Founder and partner, Bill Lohse, as the Managing Partner of Social Starts, a largely successful venture capital company with a data-driven approach to moment-of-inception investing. Edelhart and Lohse knew this generation of tech was going to be bigger than the first two revolutions – PC and the internet, that they had been actively a part of. So what do you do when you have two of the sharpest minds in the industry with loads of experience? You create a VC organization to benefit the masses. Social Starts is a unique VC with the goal to be the first professional investor an entrepreneur allows into their project. In order to do that they want to literally be on the ground wherever they believe solid startups are likely to pop up; meaning both physical location as well as in specific industries such as medical, technology, etc. As one of the most active first stage investors, Social Start generally starts with a list of approximately 4000 attractive startups at the beginning of any given year. Over the next few months, they may meet with half of those on the initial list and eventually boil it down to investing in approximately one new company per week; at least this has been the trend for the past five years. Social Start gives credit for this success to their unique scientific approach to early-stage investing driven by data and research. The idea is to track and make educated assessments of what, who, where and when these startups are going to boom. For more information visit www.socialstarts.com
VDC Research is an industry analyst and market research firm providing intelligence and strategy consulting services to tech companies including vendors, end users, and investors worldwide. With over 20 years in the arena, Director, Steve Hoffenberg has become an expert of Embedded Software and The Internet of Things. Hoffenberg explains that with IoT growing so quickly, hackers and other security breach efforts are going to bleed into embedded systems; specifically targeting those with poor and limited security systems and resources.This is a critical time and that's where VDC Research comes in.The firm covers four different markets including IoT & Embedded Technology, Auto-ID & Data Capture, Enterprise Mobility & Connected Devices and Industrial Automation & Sensors. Steve Hoffenberg, Director of IoT and Embedded Technology. Through targeted surveys, market estimates and forecasts, stakeholder maps and profiles, and various other tools, VDC Research gives their clients the benefit from integrating all of this into the core decision-making processes for their businesses. For more information visit: http://www.vdcresearch.com/
In 1994, Nathan Schulhof had the vision of giving people the ability to download music content to wireless devices by using their personal computers as the distribution centers. Just a few years later, he took that vision and helped turn it into a reality. Today, he is well-regarded as the inventor of the Mp3 player and is the author of Father of the Mp3 Player: Lessons in Business and Life. Currently, Schulhof works as an advisor to upcoming tech companies. He offers a wealth of advice for new entrepreneurs, and ultimately aims to utilize and develop technology in a way that improves people's lives. Most recently, Schulhof has been exploring a particular interest in solar energy innovations and implementation in developing countries. Tune in to learn more about Schulhof's journey and to locate a copy of his new book.
Propellant Media, a digital marketing and media solutions provider, is helping clients maximize lead potential with the newest wave of target marketing – geofencing technology. Geofencing technology, or location based advertising, allows users to pinpoint target audiences based on precise locations. Sounds invasive? Think again. Justin Croxton, Director of Sales at Propellant Media, explains why this is an acceptable and widely sought after marketing technique. Croxton shares how doctors, political organizations, trade associations and even non-profits are using geofencing to capture their audience. The way it works: A virtual geofence is drawn around a location where an advertiser wants to build an audience based on their visit to that particular location (think hospital, tradeshow, etc). This can be narrowed down to a set, scheduled timeframe. When people enter that place of business/certain location they are then part of an audience that can be targeted. As the "target" visits apps on his or her phone or is on the internet they will begin to see ads related to the advertiser. Geofencing is the type of innovative tool taking targeted marketing to the next level. Specializing in new media production, creative direction, and outside-the-box thinking, Propellant is a leader in niche marketing specialist. To get in contact and learn more, visit www.propellant.media.
Many people don't understand all of the parts that need to come together in order to successfully launch and grow a business, and without the right type of help, business owners can lose time, money, and the energy required to ultimately see their company reach its full potential. This is where Total-Apps comes in, a service provider that takes an individualized approach to giving companies exactly what they need in terms of customer support and payment processing solutions. "There are a lot of service providers out there, but nobody really understands what it takes to help a client," explains Rey Pasinli, the executive director of Total-Apps. When a business owner calls the team at Total-Apps, they won't have to wait on hold, deal with automated phone systems or waste time explaining their company to each new representative they talk to. Instead, their call will be directed to the manager of their specific account who will already know about the company's model, goals, and the most effective solution for a particular problem. To learn more about why Total-Apps is unique, or to try it for free and decide if it's right for you, visit www.total-apps.com.
At Venture Science, we are more calculated than some of the other venture investors out there…We try to quantify all of the attributes of these companies and understand how all of them contribute to the potential risks and rewards we would see," says Matt Oguz, who is a founding partner at the San Francisco-based venture capital firm, Venture Science. When looking to invest in a blockchain company, one of the first questions the team at Venture Science will ask is whether or not that company aims to monopolize the space they're going after. He gives Ripple-one of the strongest companies they've invested in- as an example: having started with the goal of going after the payment space and replacing the services already there, Ripple has successfully and quickly risen to the top. Oguz discusses a variety of topics, including the difference between many of the startups they were seeing a few years ago compared to the blockchain companies they're seeing today, the current and future regulation of ICOs, and the promising trend toward decentralized and distributed computing. Hit play to hear the full discussion, and reach out through Oguz's LinkedIn page.
Fluid-Screen is a powerful startup with a focus on benefiting the world by creating a product that produces faster, less costly and more accurate lab testing results in the palm of your hand. Dr. Monika Weber, CEO and founder of Fluid-Screen, recognized the fact that every year millions of people around the world are become sick or die from outbreaks caused from bacteria contamination found in water and food. Traditional methods for bacteria cultivation and testing takes day which can lead to further illness, disease, and death. Fluid-Screen has developed the technology that cuts down the time it would take to test bacteria with traditional methods, to just 30 mins. This allows us to make informed decisions about our health in a timely matter. Fluid-Screen has replaced petri-dish testing with a microchip. The palm-size device takes a sample of water, blood, urine or other fluids and runs it through the machine. The device then uses radio frequency waves, instead of chemicals, to make the bacteria "dance", so to speak, to make each easily identified based on movement, reaction, etc. The device then relays test results to a smartphone allowing the user to receive the information right there in the field. By bypassing labs, this technology is cost-effective which will also enable underdeveloped countries who can't afford traditional lab testing. For more information, visit www.fluidscreen.com/
She's an entrepreneur, an angel investor, the author of The Patient as CEO, and has held over 100 talks in over 12 countries: Robin Farmanfarmaian joins us to discuss the role of technology in medicine and the active role that patients must play in their health care in order to live better lives. Just as a CEO hires and directs a variety of experts in order to reach a certain goal, so too the patient must hire the members of their healthcare team and assume the responsibility of having their vision of personal health care carried out. "It's a mindset shift; understand that you are the one in control, you are the decision maker, and the physician is not; the physician works for you, just like everyone else on the healthcare team…but they are not in control of you," says Farmanfarmaian. Among other topics, Farmanfarmaian discusses the role of AI in radiology, pathology, and genomics, as well as the promising and increasingly prevalent role of virtual reality in the treatment of stroke and brain injuries, phantom pain, PTSD, anxiety and pain management. To learn more about Farmanfarmaian's background and upcoming talks, visit thepatientceo.com.
Sezzle is a new digital payment platform that is giving consumers the purchasing power afforded by traditional credit cards but in an interest-free and credit check-free manner. To date, nothing like it has been released in the US, and it's quickly gaining traction. Here's how it works: once a user signs up and attaches their bank account to the Sezzle platform, they can go to any merchant that has an agreement with Sezzle and make purchases by using Sezzle as the payment method. Sezzle will collect 25% of the purchase total at the time of the sale, and will automatically deduct from consumers' bank accounts 25% of the purchase total every two weeks over a total of six weeks. Since there is no credit check required, this model has been particularly popular among young people who, despite having a steady income, have little to no credit and therefore find it difficult or even impossible to obtain credit through traditional means. Merchants are benefitting too: customers purchase an average of 55% more goods when paying with Sezzle, which has increased merchant sales by about 8%. Tune in to learn more.
It's one of the fastest growing consulting companies in existence today and continues to expand on a global scale. Particularly well-known for its work in the healthcare and construction realms, Berkeley Research Group has a multitude of other service lines.Peggy Daley is the managing director of Berkeley Research Group's Global Investigations and Strategic Intelligence practice, which specializes in supporting companies with investigations and litigation. The department is comprised in part by a highly trained cyber team that responds almost immediately to cyber breaches, works on data analytics in large-scale cases involving financial accounting records, and conducts background investigations on individuals and businesses around the world. "You have to be ever-vigilant…the technology changes, the bad guys are pretty smart, and you have to protect yourself, not only from the outsiders…a substantial number of data breaches and data security problems arise because of the employees you have…the malicious insiders," says Daley. Tune in for an informative and lively conversation, and learn more at thinkbrg.com. To get in contact with Peggy directly, send her an email at pdaley@thinkbrg.com
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