DemoBeat

DEMO update: Get your applications in by Feb 5., meet more investors

We’ve extended the deadline for applications to the upcoming DEMO conference to Feb. 5.

With the next DEMO coming up soon — March 21-23 at the sunny resort town of Palm Springs, Calif. — we’ve been engulfed with applications from companies wanting to launch solid products. Several promising companies have asked us for more time, so we’ve extended the deadline.

We’ve also had an open house scheduled at venture capital firm Kleiner Perkins on Feb... Continue Reading

Want to launch at DEMO? Join us at an open house at Kleiner Perkins

If you’re considering launching your company’s product at DEMO conference this year, you’re welcome to join us at an open house at one of Silicon Valley’s most respected venture capital firms, Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers.

On Feb. 3 and 4, at KPCB’s offices at 2750 Sand Hill Road, Menlo Park, we’ll be taking meetings with up to 20 companies considering launching products at DEMO. Whether you’re contemplating a launch at the upcoming March 21-23... Continue Reading

How Jajah, a little phone company, sold for $207M while everyone else got killed

Two weeks ago, the Spanish phone giant Telefonica said it had acquired Internet phone company Jajah for $207 million in cash. That’s an excellent return for Silicon Valley-based Jajah, considering its investors put in only $33 million and it launched a little more than four years before.

In interviews with several employees, former employees and other observers, I asked how the Mountain View, Calif. company managed to succeed even as a host of other VoIP... Continue Reading

DEMO, the event for launching tech products, moves to Bay Area (reminder: Jan. 18 deadline)

I’m delighted to announce that DEMO, the conference where key technology companies from Netscape to Salesforce.com have launched their products over the past two decades, is moving to the San Francisco Bay Area for its fall event.

This is a major move for DEMO, which has been hosted outside of the Bay Area for its entire history. As the new executive producer of DEMO, I’ve been seeking ways to make DEMO even more relevant and... Continue Reading

Smartphone usage continues to grow in US, according to Forrester Research

On the day of Google’s much anticipated Nexus One smartphone event and launch, Forrester Research has released results from a survey that confirm what we really all suspect: that smartphones are one of the hottest growth sectors in our economy right now. Usage continues to grow, even after significant growth over the past two years.

The report, conducted in October and November, found that 17 percent of US adults used smartphones, up from 11 percent in 2008 and... Continue Reading

Voice-to-text company Spinvox to announce sale to Nuance, source says [confirmed]

[This is confirmed: Spinvox just announced a sale to Nuance in a blog post, and in a press release. The price is $102.5 million, comprising $66 million in cash and $36.5 million in common stock..]

Spinvox, the London company that lets you translate your voice into text messages, could announce its sale today, according to a VentureBeat source close to the company who requested anonymity.

We’ve called Spinvox for official comment. We reached Simon Crowfoot,... Continue Reading

Language learning site Livemocha keeps growing — gets $8M boost

Livemocha, the fast-growing site that lets people learn other languages for free — by matching them up with other native speakers online — has raised $8 million more in a second round of funding.

The Bellevue, Washington company is shaking up what its investors say is a $83 billion market worldwide. It’s the first of a bunch of new companies that have emerged recently to teach people foreign languages online, including Myngle, Italki and Yappr.... Continue Reading

80legs sets its web crawler free

When 80legs launched its web crawling service at DEMO (a conference co-produced by VentureBeat) last fall, chief executive Shion Deysarkar told me he wanted to place tools previously exclusive to web giants within the reach of smaller companies, so that someone could, for example, build their own “mini-Google.” Now he’s taking that  philosophy a step further, by offering 80legs services for free.

Why the change? In an email announcing the free service, 80legs says it... Continue Reading

DEMO & VentureBeat head to Atlanta, a city that punches above its weight

I’m traveling to Atlanta tomorrow, in the lastest trip I’m making to major cities to meet with local start-ups and entrepreneurs.

Atlanta gets overlooked as a technology and business center. While it’s a small city — at only the 33rd largest in the nation — it has the third largest concentration of Fortune 500 companies headquartered within its borders.

And there are reasons why entrepreneurship should percolate well here going forward. There’s Georgia Tech, its... Continue Reading

Email helper Liaise now open for public use

Liaise, a startup that shared the top prize at DEMOfall 09 (the technology conference co-produced by VentureBeat), is opening to the public today after a period of private beta testing. Liaise’s plugin for Microsoft Outlook makes email more useful by extracting action items, and the Sunnyvale, Calif company is unveiling some new features today.

Liaise sounds useful to me because my email inbox is really the center of my work, but it can often feel... Continue Reading

DEMO and VentureBeat arrive in Austin for a reason — great tech companies

I’ve just arrived in Austin, Texas, and look forward to meeting local entrepreneurs.

I was here just five months ago (see pics of that event), and there’s a good reason why I’m returning. Austin may be merely the 16th-largest city in the U.S., but after Silicon Valley there are almost no other high-tech regions that rival its prowess.

Austin is just the latest in a bunch of stops we’re making to major entrepreneurial cities, on the... Continue Reading

DEMO and VentureBeat come to New York Thursday; looking for bold ideas

New York, here we come!

This is just the latest in a bunch of stops we’re making to major entrepreneurial cities, on the prowl for the most promising technology products we can find to showcase at the upcoming DEMO conference in Palm Springs, Calif.

On Thursday, we’ll be at New York’s 3 Ten Lounge. The first hundred people to show up will receive a free drink. Join me, local entrepreneurs, investors, startup professionals, and DEMO... Continue Reading

Gwabbit launches free version of automated contact manager for BlackBerry

Gwabbit is announcing today that it is launching a free version of its automatic contact manager, starting with BlackBerry phones.

The app is exclusively available through the BlackBerry App World download store. The software searches and identifies contacts embedded in emails and then adds or updates that information on your BlackBerry Contacts with a single click. The free version includes an alert feature that informs contacts via email when their contact information has been added... Continue Reading

DEMO and VentureBeat come to Seattle Thursday; see you at the bar

I’m hitting the road to visit major entrepreneur cities, on the prowl for the most promising technology products that I can find to showcase at the upcoming DEMO conference in Palm Springs, Calif.

Next up is Seattle, where I’ll be visiting Thursday evening.

Join me, local entrepreneurs, investors, startup professionals, and DEMO alumni companies for cocktails and conversation at Barca Seattle, located on Capitol Hill. The first 40 people who arrive receive a free drink.... Continue Reading

DEMO Spring: Looking for cool tech products — in 7 categories

I’m pleased to announce the latest plans by DEMO:

First, we’ve identified 7 technology sectors that will serve as the primary themes for product launches at the next DEMO in Palm Springs on March 21-23.

Second, we’ve created a brand new DEMO Mentor Program, which will connect 6 winning teams of students with business plans with members of the DEMO Alumni community.

I believe both of these changes will help make DEMO even more... Continue Reading

DEMO’s visits to London and Boston show California is great place to launch

I’ve been on the road lately, in a continued effort to find and meet with the best companies around to launch new products at the DEMO conference, and have been developing some cool ideas for DEMO’s next conference in March. I’ll share more about those ideas in future posts.

First, here are a few thoughts, after wrapping up a trip to London this week, and Boston last week.

In each of these places, there are... Continue Reading

VentureBeat-DEMO meetup in London — see you at the Sanderson Hotel

VentureBeat is coming to London!

We’re hosting cocktails on Wednesday, Oct 28., at the groovy Sanderson Hotel in London’s Soho from 6 to 8pm. I’ll be in London to moderate at the Symbian mobile conference SEE next week, but wanted to take the opportunity to meet up with local technology entrepreneurs, too. We’re meeting for casual conversation at the Hotel’s Long Bar Courtyard, where we have a private table area reserved with a hostess. Register... Continue Reading

Demo ‘10 begins in Boston — calling all awesome startups

It’s been a few weeks since Demo took San Diego by storm, and I posted a few days ago about a few of the cool things that happened to some of the demonstrating companies.

More on that in a sec. But here’s a reminder that we’re gearing up to do it all over again with DEMO ‘10, March 21st-23rd in Palm Desert, CA.

The applications are already rolling in, which means it’s time for myself... Continue Reading

DEMO rocked! Now the party starts again

It’s been two weeks since the end of DEMO. I’m awestruck by the experience, both by all of the incredibly talented people that convened there in San Diego, and by the traction 70 entrepreneurs were able to get during those short few days.

Thank you to all of the people who came and make it such a terrific event.

I’ll talk about highlights shortly, but now it’s time to to start it all over again.... Continue Reading