World’s First Manned Flight with an Electric Multicopter.

November 2, 2011

I’m not sure of the practical benefits of such a device or the market, but it’s very cool.  If I could find a way to sneak it past our accounting system, we’ll order it.

 


ZetrOZ – Winner of yet2.com Step2Change Technology Competition

July 6, 2011

the great thing about working with yet2.com is that we get to see so many interesting new technologies.  Thousands of them.  A few really impress us.  One is  ZetrOZ and their revolutionary ultrasound therapy technology.  They took first place in yet2.com’s recent Step2Change Technology Competition last month.

Join us 19 July 2011, 11:00am EDT for a Webinar on ZetrOZ.

Register here for the webinar: https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/812392706

Read the rest of this entry »


yet2ventures Speaks at Forum for Consumer Product Entripeneurs

July 4, 2011

I had the pleasure of speaking at a forum for consumer product entrepreneurs 2 weeks ago in Radnor PA.  It was hosted by Connolly Bove Lodge & Hutz LLP, who did a great job connecting a rooms full of entrepreneurs with venture capitalists – tough to do in this climate.  It was great to see a law firm take such a leadership role in facilitating these kinds of connections.

A few key learnings?:

  1. There is a lot less money chasing fewer consumer product start ups.  The West Coast VC bubble has not hit Philly yet
  2. The VC’s have a high regard for sector knowledge/Rolodex, and basic ‘blocking and tackling’
  3. Entrepreneurs are still not taking advantage of the Open Innovation offices in most major companies (these are your internal evangelists)

Here is a edited summary:


yet2.com’s 11th Annual Open Innovation Conference

June 17, 2011

We hosted our 11th annual Open Innovation conference in Boston 2 weeks ago.  It was a huge success.  We talked about; trends in innovation and best practices.  A few large companies presented their learnings and plans, a few small companies presented their breakthrough technologies and we had a few case studies…..and a personal favorite – we ate lobster.

In total, we had executives from 3 Continents, with a large group from Japan.  Some of the companies  participating included; Canon, P&G, Agfa, AirProducts, Applied Materials, AveryDennison, Baxter, Bayer, Clorox, Colgate,  DuPont, Ecolab, GSK, Kimberly-Clark, J&J, Kisco, Mellon, Nissan, Panasonic, Parker Hannifin, P&G, Ricoh, Sony, DSM, Invista and NASA!   Add to this, we had 2 dozen selected small companies, with breakthrough technologies.

     I liked the robust Q&A after each presentation.  When Canon’s CTO, Dr. Ikoma-san, presented, 4 other CTOs asked questions.  You cant beat that.  Some themes that emerged

  1. Be ready for disruptive innovation from the bottom of the pyramid
  2. Regional R&D, with Global Sourcing
  3. Squash the immune response – accept ‘fuzzy data’
  4. Enable personal risk taking
  5. Engage ‘Renewal Searches’ – at the middle and the end of R&D

We spent a lot of time discussing how to optimize deals between large and small companies.  This has been a reoccurring theme are our events.  Even when there is a great technology fit, deals take more time than both parties would like. Read the rest of this entry »


Failure

May 26, 2011

I love failure.  I have to.  Been doing it all my life.  Which is why this video from Kathryn Schulz hit home.

I think she is correct, when she implies that the secret to success is a higher tolerance for failure and low tolerance for not trying again…and for not achieving ultimate success.


Delaware Corporations – LLC Filings up to 82,027

May 9, 2011

Delaware has an impressive Chancery court, that has written most modern US corporation case law.  Last year, 76% of the IPOs were incorporated in Delaware.  Which is a key reason why 63% of the Fortune 500 are registered here.

I spent some time poking around the Delaware Division of Corporations website.  What I did not expect to find is leading indicators of economic recovery in the Annual Report.  LLC filings are up to 82,000, from 70,000 in ’09 and 81,923 in ’08.  This has good to be good news for economic recovery?


SEC Considering Adopting Crowd-funding Rules

May 3, 2011

I wrote a blog about Crowdfunding back in November (http://wp.me/pxRjC-kq).This article was Taken from Venture Beat and written by Dean Takahashi

The Securities and Exchange Commission may adopt rules to let internet-age technologies be used in fund-raising.

The agency is considering whether to let fast-growing companies use social networks such as Facebook and Twitter to raise funding by tapping thousands of investors for small amounts of money, the Wall Street Journal reported. Read the rest of this entry »


Q1 Venture Capital Results

April 25, 2011

Venture investments in Q1 2011 increased by $1 billion over Q4 2010 to $7.5 billion. The increase was driven by an increase in investments in Internet and cleantech-renewable energy startups, according to CB Insights.

This was a 25% increase in the number of dollars invested over the same period last year. The money was spread of 738 deal, which is approximately the same as last year.

This represents a return to the pre-recession levels. The CB Insights “left it to others to decide whether that represents a return to normalcy or an untenable VC investment bubble.”


yet2.com Webinar – April 21st – Improve deal-making process

April 19, 2011


Join us to hear how experienced deal-makers are succeeding, at our upcoming webinar:

Conference Preview: Successful Deal-making with Small Companies April 21, 2011, 11:00am EST.

We’ll be discussing relationship building, cross-cultural appreciation, ongoing consulting, and step-wise deal structures, among other topics. We’ve gathered representatives from both the small and big company perspectives to share their thoughts — tune in to learn how you can hasten and improve your own deal process.

Webinar speakers:

Steve Baggott, Director, External Business Development, Procter & Gamble
Robert Michelson, President, Butler Home Products
Dr. Greg Williams, Director of Research and Development, Monteco Ltd.

April’s webinar is an exclusive preview of a live panel discussion to be held at yet2.com’s upcoming Open Innovation conference in May, in Boston.

Register today for the Successful Deal-making with Small Companies Preview Webinar here:

https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/311188682


Our Future – Through the Eyes of Corning

April 12, 2011

I love thought provoking renditions of what the future might be like.  This is a good example of how material science (and Corning) will likely play a role in our future – Ben


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