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How To Ensure Tech Economies Are As Diverse As Their Regions? Focus On Early Talent And Local Funding

May 19, 2023

Four ecosystem builders on two big ideas for bringing more people into local tech. Social justice-minded tech stakeholders often wax poetic on the importance of diversity, equity and inclusion in the majority-white industry. But if intentional steps aren’t being taken to ensure a local tech economy’s constituents look like those in the region where it’s […]

Saved For A Rainy Day: 5 Pieces Of Advice For Founders And Investors Navigating An Economic Downturn

March 15, 2023

At Broad Street Angels’ annual meeting, Keriton’s Rich Mager and ROAR’s Yasmine Mustafa shared their experience as CEOs amid a challenging few years. Their advice was given three weeks ago, but since the demise of Silicon Valley Bank, it might have been more prescient than these startup pros realized. At its annual meeting the end […]

5 Lessons About Building A Business This Podcast Host Learned From Philly founders

February 27, 2023

“It’s a learning process”: Founding Philly host Zachary Brand shares insight from the entrepreneurs behind companies such as Nextmv, Lula and Rego. The Philly startup ecosystem has been on the rise for quite some time. In 2022, for instance, Philly was ranked 27th on Startup Genome’s Global Startup Ecosystem Report, two years after being named a lower-level […]

Tech-Enabled Real Estate Brokerage Houwzer Has Acquired Competitor Trelora

December 13, 2022

The addition of some new executives comes alongside a B2B operation for Houwzer, which will focus on a new vertical that the company calls “brokerage as a service.” Tech-forward real estate and mortgage brokerage Houwzer, which got its start in 2015 in Philly and has expanded to neighboring states, has acquired next-gen brokerage Trelora. The news comes […]

Collx, HeyKiddo and ConConnect all scored big investments at PACT’s 2022 Lion’s Den pitch competition

November 23, 2022

As the lights go down in the Philadelphia Marriott Downtown’s ballroom and a panel of top Philly investors grace the stage, a booming voice makes an announcement: It’s time for the Philadelphia Alliance for Capital and Technology (PACT) annual Lion’s Den. The dramatics are part of the signature style of the event, meant to be a live-action, localized “Shark Tank” […]

SessionGuardian Raises $3M In Seed Funding To Extend Security Controls To The Individual In A Work-from-Anywhere World

September 12, 2022

SessionGuardian, the leader in identity access control and authentication for hybrid teams working with highly sensitive data, today announced $3 million in seed funding. The round was led by Phase 2 Investments, who was part of the first investor group of financing for Securonix in 2017. Robin Hood Ventures and Ben Franklin Technology Partners also participated. The funds will be used to expand […]

These 12 Startups Made It Into LIFT Labs’ 2022 Cohort, Including Philly-Area LLUNA

August 17, 2022

This year’s accelerator is focused on connected living, inclusive experiences and smart enterprises, and will operate on a hybrid model from the Comcast Technology Center. A cohort of 12 companies — one of which is based in Greater Philadelphia — has been picked for the fifth edition of Comcast NBCUniversal’s LIFT Labs Accelerator, powered by Techstars. This cycle […]

Real Estate Tech Company Houwzer Raised a $118M Series B as it Introduces New Products

February 9, 2022

Philadelphia-based real estate company Houwzer has raised a $118 million Series B, the company announced Tuesday. The round includes $18 million in equity and a $100 million warehouse line of credit, led by Edison Partners. It brings the total equity funding for the B Corp — which operates locally and in DC, the greater Maryland […]

Excision BioTherapeutics Initiates Phase 1/2 Trial Evaluating EBT-101 as a Potential Cure for HIV

January 28, 2022

Excision BioTherapeutics Inc. a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing CRISPR-based therapies intended to cure viral infectious diseases, today announced the initiation of a first-in-human (FIH) Phase 1/2 clinical trial of EBT-101 in individuals living with human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV). The FIH study is a multicenter, open-label, single ascending dose study designed to evaluate the […]

Philly Just Ranked High on a Global List of Startup Ecosystems. These Local Leaders Aren’t Surprised

September 23, 2021

A report assessing the strengths, talent and startup resources of regions around the globe this year named Philadelphia in its top 30 ecosystems. The city moved up 15 spots in the Startup Genome’s Global Startup Ecosystem Report (GSER) after being named the top “emerging” ecosystem last year. For 2021, it’s No. 28 on the global […]