technology

What does crowdfunding replace or displace?

"Look at the sum of these trends. If a startup has a successful crowdfunder, its bargaining power with the VCs increases in two ways. First, it’s going to be less desperate for capital than a company that can’t run out and do another crowdfunder for the next product. Second, the VC’s uncertainty about its ability to build and sell will be reduced. These changes will both increase the startup’s ability to bargain for doing things its way and reduce the VC’s pressure for an early IPO. At the extreme, we might end up with a new normal in which VCs compete with each other to court startups that have done successful crowdfunders, neatly inverting the present situation." Continue reading →

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CNBC: Bitcoin Bonanza

"They won't make a sound no matter how many of them you try to toss in a bucket, and you can't pitch them in a fountain and wish for good luck. But make no mistake, bitcoins are getting big. The online alternative currency, previously little more than a curiosity in financial markets since its 2009 inception, has zoomed in trading value since the Cyprus banking crisis erupted two weeks ago. With fears spreading that even insured deposits might not be safe in similar nations hit by banking crises, those looking for a haven to store their wealth have fled to the complicated world of digital cash." Continue reading →

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An Investment that Thrives, Even in a Weak Economy

"New mechanisms for productivity help drive existing businesses to be more efficient, and that is always in demand – especially during tough economic times. And, yes, the last 20 or 30 years of R&D is really just starting to peek its head into the markets. Everything from robotics to genetics to artificial intelligence are just now making their way to true commercial viability. The last five years of economic fear have created an innovation vacuum at the top of the tech stratosphere. This has opened opportunities for startup companies to seize upon the reticence of their much larger competitors." Continue reading →

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Think Twice Before Accepting Bank Transfers For Online Payment

If you're a seller on Ebay or any number of other peer-to-peer commerce sites, chances are you've run into a buyer who either maliciously charges-back the transaction despite having received the product, or a buyer who is operating using someone else's stolen credit card or other financial account. The accepted wisdom is that a bank transfer is the safest payment option to accept, on the basis that it cannot be reversed once it is credited to the recipient's account. Unfortunately, that is not true in the case of ever-increasing online fraud. Continue reading →

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Wuala: Secure Cloud Storage – Backup. Sync. Share. Access Everywhere.

"Wuala is a secure cloud storage, made in Switzerland. As the Swiss knife of cloud storage, it covers all the essential needs for professional and personal use: with Wuala, you can store your files securely online, share them with select others, access them from anywhere, setup automatic backups of your local data, or synchronize whole folders to the cloud. Wuala employs client-side-encryption to achieve a unique level of security. All data is encrypted locally, before it is uploaded. Your password never leaves your computer. Nobody - not even we as storage provider - can access your data without your authorization." Continue reading →

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Idea is floated for a start-up colony anchored in the Pacific Ocean

"Two Silicon Valley entrepreneurs, frustrated by the shortage of visas that keep some of the world's brightest science and engineering minds from building companies on dry land, have hatched a plan to build a start-up colony in the middle of the Pacific. They plan to park a cruise ship 12 nautical miles off the coast of Northern California in international waters. Foreign-born entrepreneurs would live and work on the ship, building start-ups within commuting distance of Silicon Valley. They wouldn't have to get work visas that are so hard to come by. They would just need business tourism visas that would let them ferry back and forth to Silicon Valley." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingIdea is floated for a start-up colony anchored in the Pacific Ocean

3D Printed Guns (Documentary)

"This is a story about the rapid evolution of a technology that has forced the American legal system to play catch up. Cody Wilson, a 24 year old University of Texas Law student, is an advocate for the open source production of firearms using 3D printing technology. This makes him a highly controversial figure on both sides of the gun control issue. MOTHERBOARD sat down with Cody in Austin, Texas to talk about the constitution, the legal system, and to watch him make and test-fire a 3D-printed gun." Continue reading →

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Chicago now home to nation’s largest vertical farm

"An formerly abandoned warehouse in Chicago is now home to the nation’s largest hydroponic vertical farm. FarmedHere LLC opened the 90,000-square-foot farm in Bedford Park on Friday. The facility utilizes aquaponics, a sustainable system that combines raising fish with growing soil-free plants. The vertical farm is expected to produce more than 1 million pounds of basil, arugula and mixed greens. Thanks to a partnership with Windy City Harvest, an urban agriculture training program, the unique farm is also expected to create 200 jobs for young adults in Chicago." Continue reading →

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