Category: Articles

Forty Seven Inc. Completes $75 Million Series A

PALO ALTO — Forty Seven Inc., a clinical-stage immuno-oncology company, has completed the first half of a committed $75 million Series A financing round and has licensed the rights to multiple immuno-oncology programs from Stanford University. 336601LOGO

The Series A financing was led by Lightspeed Venture Partners and Sutter Hill Ventures with participation from Clarus Ventures and GV (formerly Google Ventures). The license includes rights to over 100 issued or pending U.S. or foreign patents that cover the antibody Hu5F9-G4 and several other novel immune checkpoint inhibitors and cancer-specific antibodies.

 

Nike Founder Donates $400 Million to Stanford

STANFORD, CA– Stanford University announced the Knight-Hennessy Scholars program, a graduate-level scholarship to prepare a new generation of global leaders with the skills to address the increasingly complex challenges facing the world.

The program is named for alumnus Philip H. Knight, philanthropist, American businessman and co-founder of Nike Inc., who is contributing $400 million, and Stanford’s outgoing 10th President John L. Hennessy. The program builds on Stanford’s preeminent position in higher education, with seven globally ranked multidisciplinary graduate schools that foster service, collaboration, innovation and entrepreneurship.

Salesforce Reports Record Revenues

Salesforce reported revenues for the quarter and year ended January 31, 2016.

www.salesforce.com. “By any measure, this was a spectacular finish to the year with 27% revenue growth in constant currency for the fourth quarter, and for the full year,” said Marc Benioff, chairman and CEO, Salesforce. “We are raising our fiscal year 2017 revenue guidance to $8.12 billion at the high end of our range — unprecedented growth for a company of our size and scale.”

Full fiscal year 2016 revenue was $6.67 billion, an increase of 24% year-over-year, and 27% in constant currency.  Subscription and support revenues were $6.21 billion, an increase of 24% year-over-year.  Professional services and other revenues were $462 million, an increase of 28% year-over-year.

Google to Bring Fiber to Parts of SF

Google announced on its Fiber Blog that it plans to bring its high-speed fiber optic service to parts of San Francisco. The company will use existing fiber lines to bring service to some apartments, condos, and affordable housing properties.

Reflektion Closes $18 Million Series B Round

Reflektion, a leader in real-time, Individualized Commerce, announced the company has raised $18 million in Series B financing, putting its total amount of funding at $29.3 million. Led by Battery Ventures, the round also includes investments from Hasso Plattner Ventures and Intel Capital.

Fitbit Shares Plunge 20.8%

The Fitbit BlazeFitbit, maker of wearable fitness devices, saw its shares drop 20.8% after reporting fourth-quarter earnings. Shares fell $3.44 on Tuesday to close at $13.08 per share near an all-time low.

Fitbit sold 8.2 million connected health and fitness devices in the fourth quarter which includes the holiday season. U.S. revenue in the quarter grew 100% from the previous year and made up 75% of fourth quarter revenue. The company sold a total of 21.4 million devices for all of 2015.

AT&T and Intel to Test Drones on LTE Network

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AT&T and Intel have agreed to test how Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) or drones work on a network designed to connect devices on the ground.  Intel and AT&T will be working to solve major issues in the space, including connectivity. The announcement was made at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona.

Yahoo Explores Strategic Alternatives

Yahoo says it is examining options which may include a sale of the company.

The Board of Directors has formed a Strategic Review Committee of independent directors to lead this effort, with the assistance and support of management.

LG Debuts G5 Modular Smartphone

335498LG Electronics (LG) has unveiled the new LG G5 smartphone, a brand new design with not only a sleek, metal uni-body featuring a Slide-out Battery but a Modular Type design. The LG G5 is equipped with the powerful yet energy-efficient Snapdragon 820 processor which offers advanced features such as 64-bit performance, Adreno 530 graphics and lower-power Qualcomm Hexagon DSP.

Samsung Launches Gear 360 Camera

gear360At the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona Spain, Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. has announced the Samsung Gear 360, a 360-degree camera that lets consumers easily capture, view and share their experiences through spherical video and still images. Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg made an appearance on stage to promote the Gear 360 and Gear VR.

Samsung Unveils Galaxy S7 Phone

Samsung Mobile President DJ Koh unveils the new Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge phones in Barcelona.Samsung Chairman DJ Koh unveils the new Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge phones in Barcelona.

Samsung Electronics has announced the newest additions to the Galaxy family of products—Samsung Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 edge. AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile, U.S. Cellular and Verizon Wireless will carry the Samsung Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 edge in stores beginning March 11, with pre-orders starting at 5:00 a.m. PST on February 23.

Uber Raises $200 Million from LetterOne Fund

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LetterOne (L1), a Luxembourg-based venture capital fund, has made a strategic investment of $200 million in ride-sharing service Uber.

Mikhail Fridman, Chairman of L1, said; “I’m excited by our strategic partnership with Uber. As entrepreneurs, with experience in retail, banking, telecoms and energy sectors, and knowledge of diverse developed and emerging markets, we believe that Uber’s highly talented management team possesses the necessary vision and skills to build the company into one of the world’s preeminent technology businesses”.