Gary Flake names all-star cast of investors in Clipboard’s $1.4M round

Gary Flake

Back in April, we discovered Gary Flake’s stealthy Internet startup Clipboard, reporting on the company’s $1.38 million venture round. At the time, however, we didn’t know who was bankrolling the former Microsoft and Yahoo researcher. Now, we’re getting a clearer picture. And, let’s just say it is an all-star group. Backers of Clipboard — which… Read More…

Where are they now? Update on the TechStars Class of 2010

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Some have gone out of business. Several have changed course. And most are still hanging their shingle in Seattle’s South Lake Union neighborhood, looking to transform everything from the way we watch TV to how we manage airline miles. As TechStars Seattle gets ready to launch a new batch of hatchlings on Thursday (full list… Read More…

Urban Airship takes flight with purchase of SimpleGeo

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Urban Airship, a Portland startup that specializes in push notifications and in-app transactions, has acquired San Francisco’s SimpleGeo in an all stock deal. The acquisition will add location-based technologies to the Urban Airship lineup, meaning that a retailer can push coupons to a shopper in a specific aisle in a store or a sports team… Read More…

Ignition, Founder’s Co-op and Madrona join forces to back AppFog

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Three Seattle area venture capital firms are allying to back Portland’s AppFog, which has created new technologies that allow developers to quickly build Web applications. Ignition is leading the $8 million venture capital round, which also included participation from existing investors Madrona Venture Group and Founder’s Co-op. Other investors in the round include Simon Crosby,… Read More…

Zipline names ex-Microsoft gaming vet Shane Kim to board, raises $400,000

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Shane Kim has helped put some of the most recognizable gaming titles on the map, including Halo and Gears of War. Now, the former corporate vice president of Microsoft Game Studios is lending his support to Zipline Games, a fast-growing 13-person gaming startup based in Seattle’s South Lake Union neighborhood. Kim, who is joining Zipline’s board,… Read More…

Founder’s Co-op backs GlobalMojo, a browser app that pushes cash back to charities

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Affiliate commissions are a big (and frequently misunderstood) business on the Web. GlobalMojo, which has scored $550,000 from Founder’s Co-op and others, wants to insert itself in those transactions, allowing consumers to choose non-profits where they’d like to direct a portion of the commissions. “GlobalMojo is a free browser app that automatically and effortlessly generates money… Read More…

A night at the Seattle 2.0 Awards: Watch the speeches of the 10 winners

Cliff Kushler, left, and Mike McSherry of Swype at last year's Seattle 2.0 Startup Awards

Seattle’s startup community partied Thursday night at the annual Seattle 2.0 Awards, a celebration of the region’s top tinkerers, geeks, designers and investors. Team GeekWire was there in full force, recording a special podcast from the red carpet and shooting some video of geek fashion (Check out Estately CEO Galen Ward’s pink shirt, SEOMoz founder… Read More…

Rewind: Andy Sack on startups, TechStars and the promise of Seattle’s tech scene

Andy Sack in the KIRO-FM studios

Joining us for our latest GeekWire Podcast was Andy Sack of TechStars Seattle, Founders Co-op and Revenue Loan — the hard-charging startup guru whose clarion call for the Seattle tech community is to “Get F—ing Aggressive,” commonly abbreviated “GFA” in polite company (and on G-rated podcasts). We had a great discussion about what’s happening, what’s… Read More…

CPMs or CPCs? Nope, BigDoor has its eye on the CPQ: Cost Per Quest

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You may have heard of CPMs or CPCs. But Seattle startup BigDoor wants to start a movement around another online advertising acronym. It’s called the CPQ or Cost Per Quest. Say what? Keith Smith, who founded BigDoor in 2009, unveiled the program today and he thinks it will redefine how online media companies interact with… Read More…

Thinkfuse raises cash to revolutionize status reports

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Thinkfuse, a Seattle startup led by former Market Leader and iLike product manager Aydin Ghajar and former Microsoft software engineers Brandon Bloom and Steve Krenzel, has landed $500,000 in startup capital from a group of angel investors. Andy Sack, a partner at Founder’s Co-op and an investor, confirmed the $500,000 round Thursday night in a… Read More…