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	<title>GigaOM &#187; Startups</title>
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		<title>GigaOM &#187; Startups</title>
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		<title>Welcome to the post-normal age of work</title>
		<link>http://gigaom.com/2013/05/14/welcome-to-the-post-normal-age-of-work/</link>
		<comments>http://gigaom.com/2013/05/14/welcome-to-the-post-normal-age-of-work/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 14 May 2013 17:00:07 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator><a href="https://pro.gigaom.com/members/stowe/" rel="author">Stowe Boyd</a></dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[bmw]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Business process]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Collaboration]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[social networks]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[social tools]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[social-enterprise]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Startups]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[toyota]]></category>

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		<description><![CDATA[In today's world of work, companies that want to thrive need to shift from a business-process defined culture towards a more social network-shaped, cooperative one. <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=gigaom.com&#038;blog=14960843&#038;post=644307&#038;subd=gigaom2&#038;ref=&#038;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
				<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>It’s a now-prevalent notion that companies can advance by simply adding a social layer on top of existing business processes, integrating social tools with existing functional tools such as ERP, CRM, and HR solutions. The idea goes that this will make companies more social and therefore more productive.</p>
<p>That idea isn’t going to work.</p>
<p>Why? In a nutshell, social network-based communication is primarily organized around the concept of a “pull” medium — that is, a medium where individuals subscribe to whichever information sources they prefer and find useful. Traditional business processes, on the other hand, use “push” communications, where whoever created the information gets to decide whom it’s most important to. Simply put, the two parties don’t gibe.</p>
<p>Perhaps more importantly, the nature of work in our era has changed. Most people now have jobs based on non-routine work, where the predefined and fixed roles of business process do not reach.</p>
<p>I recently wrote a report as part of my activities in GigaOM Research, entitled “<a href="http://pro.gigaom.com/report/social-networks-will-displace-business-processes-not-socialize-them/?utm_source=tech&amp;utm_medium=editorial&amp;utm_campaign=intext&amp;utm_term=644307+welcome-to-the-post-normal-age-of-work&amp;utm_content=jennmarston">Social networks will displace business processes, not socialize them</a>” (subscription required). In the report, I argue that we are drifting away from a business-process defined culture and towards a social network-shaped, cooperative one.</p>
<p><a href="http://gigaom2.files.wordpress.com/2013/05/cooperation.jpg"><img alt="Cooperation" src="http://gigaom2.files.wordpress.com/2013/05/cooperation.jpg?w=708"   class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-644312"></a></p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><em>Source: Stowe Boyd/GigaOM Research</em></p>
<p>Above we see the variance between process-oriented organizational cultures and network-oriented ones. I consider this part of the transition from post-modern (1970-2005) to what I’ll call post-normal (2005-present and beyond) economic eras. These cultures also differ in the nature of social affiliation, with a loosening of the bonds that tie people together in cooperative cultures contrasted with collaborative ones. People in cooperative organizations will have a higher number on connections, but the proportion of those that are strong ties decreases relative to collaborative cultures.</p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><a href="http://pro.gigaom.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/figure21.jpg?utm_source=tech&amp;utm_medium=editorial&amp;utm_campaign=intext&amp;utm_term=644307+welcome-to-the-post-normal-age-of-work&amp;utm_content=jennmarston"><img alt="figure2" src="http://pro.gigaom.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/figure21.jpg" width="550" height="400" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-175696"></a><br><em>Source: Stowe Boyd/GigaOM Research</em></p>
<p>Some corporate cultures are stuck even farther back in time because they are based on competition. I don’t mean competing with others in the marketplace, like Toyota competing with BMW. I am talking about a corporate culture based on zero-sum competition among workers, where one person’s advancement is someone else’s demotion. These are cultures strongly based on authority-based decision-making, and really are a holdover from the late modern era: the late industrial era.</p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><a href="http://pro.gigaom.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/figure31.jpg?utm_source=tech&amp;utm_medium=editorial&amp;utm_campaign=intext&amp;utm_term=644307+welcome-to-the-post-normal-age-of-work&amp;utm_content=jennmarston"><img alt="figure3" src="http://pro.gigaom.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/figure31.jpg" width="550" height="391" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-175705"></a><br><em>Source: Stowe Boyd/GigaOM Research</em></p>
<p>In the report, I discuss the “fit” of different psychological profiles, or archetypes, in these cultures. For example, the Entrepreneur archetype (see above) fits well in collaborative and competitive cultures, and fits the entrepreneurial culture perfectly. But Entrepreneurs won’t like working in a purely traditional, “cooperative” culture, because they like to lead collectives that are managed through consensus. A cooperative organization is too loose for them: It’s a connective, and is based on laissez-faire decision making.</p>
<p style="text-align:center;"><a href="http://gigaom2.files.wordpress.com/2013/05/3cmodel.jpg"><img alt="3CModel" src="http://gigaom2.files.wordpress.com/2013/05/3cmodel.jpg?w=708"   class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-644314"></a>Source: Stowe Boyd/GigaOM Research</p>
<p>This is the debut of the 3C model — competitive, collaborative, and cooperative. It’s a psychosocial model of organizational culture, and I hope it helps address some key issues in organizational dynamics in organizations today as social technologies and practices are being adopted. Marshal McLuhan said, “we make our tools, and they shape us.” Keeping that in mind, we see the change that social network-based communication is causing.</p>
<p>Businesses are not making these changes on a whim or because individuals are made happier by cooperative work relationships. The fast-and-loose business is most in sync with the digital realities of today’s world, although most companies are still operating principally in a more traditional mode, and may even have a healthy dose of the “frozen-and-immobile” at the core. Nonetheless, businesses must move towards a more cooperative work environment because in doing so they will successfully compete in today’s fast-paced, digitally focused world. Older cultures that cling to traditional business processes will not.</p>
<p>To read the full report, <a href="http://pro.gigaom.com/report/social-networks-will-displace-business-processes-not-socialize-them/?utm_source=tech&amp;utm_medium=editorial&amp;utm_campaign=intext&amp;utm_term=644307+welcome-to-the-post-normal-age-of-work&amp;utm_content=jennmarston">click here</a> (subscription required).</p>
<p><em>Thumbnail image courtesy of <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/28685147@N04/7143279651/sizes/z/in/photostream/">flickr user ShellVacationsHospitality</a>.</em></p>
<br />  <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=gigaom.com&#038;blog=14960843&#038;post=644307&#038;subd=gigaom2&#038;ref=&#038;feed=1" width="1" height="1" /><p><a href="http://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?iu=/1008864/GigaOM_RSS_300x250&#038;sz=300x250&#038;c=381299"><img src="http://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/ad?iu=/1008864/GigaOM_RSS_300x250&#038;sz=300x250&#038;c=381299" /></a></p><p><strong>Related research and analysis from GigaOM Pro:</strong><br />Subscriber content. <a href="http://pro.gigaom.com/?utm_source=tech&utm_medium=editorial&utm_campaign=auto3&utm_term=644307+welcome-to-the-post-normal-age-of-work&utm_content=jennmarston">Sign up for a free trial</a>.</p><ul><li><a href="http://pro.gigaom.com/2012/01/newnet-q4-platform-mania-and-social-commerce-shakeout/?utm_source=tech&utm_medium=editorial&utm_campaign=auto3&utm_term=644307+welcome-to-the-post-normal-age-of-work&utm_content=jennmarston">NewNet Q4: Platform mania and social commerce shakeout</a></li><li><a href="http://pro.gigaom.com/2012/01/newnet-q4-platform-mania-and-social-commerce-shakeout/?utm_source=tech&utm_medium=editorial&utm_campaign=auto3&utm_term=644307+welcome-to-the-post-normal-age-of-work&utm_content=jennmarston">NewNet Q4: Platform mania and social commerce shakeout</a></li><li><a href="http://pro.gigaom.com/2012/01/12-tech-leaders-resolutions-for-2012/?utm_source=tech&utm_medium=editorial&utm_campaign=auto3&utm_term=644307+welcome-to-the-post-normal-age-of-work&utm_content=jennmarston">12 tech leaders’ resolutions for 2012</a></li></ul>]]></content:encoded>
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			<media:title type="html">jennmarston</media:title>
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			<media:title type="html">Cooperation</media:title>
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		<title>Following the money in health tech: accelerators galore nationwide</title>
		<link>http://gigaom.com/2013/05/10/following-the-money-in-health-tech-accelerators-galore-nationwide/</link>
		<comments>http://gigaom.com/2013/05/10/following-the-money-in-health-tech-accelerators-galore-nationwide/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 10 May 2013 15:39:01 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Ki Mae Heussner</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[digital health]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[health technology]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[sensor technology]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Startups]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[telehealth]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://gigaom.com/?p=643840</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[A monthly look at where health tech investors put their money.

 <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=gigaom.com&#038;blog=14960843&#038;post=643840&#038;subd=gigaom2&#038;ref=&#038;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
				<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>The tech hubs on the coasts aren’t the only places where innovation in digital health is taking root. Last month, four <a href="http://gigaom.com/2013/04/04/ge-and-startup-health-debut-first-class-of-consumer-health-transformers/">new health technology startup programs</a> made headlines, including a new <a href="http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/healthbox-opens-applications-for-florida-based-accelerator-program-202579221.html">Healthbox program in Jacksonville, Fla.</a>, the <a href="http://www.dreamitventures.com/ten-startups-selected-for-dreamit-health-philadelphias-first-health-care-accelerator/">Dreamit Health</a> accelerator in Philadelphia and the <a href="http://www.dallasnews.com/business/health-care/20130417-health-wildcatters-joins-dallas-area-ecosystem-of-startup-accelerators.ece">Health Wildcatters</a> in Dallas, Tex.  (This week, <a href="http://www.medgadget.com/2013/05/the-iron-yard-south-carolinas-brand-new-healthcare-startup-accelerator.html">The Iron Yard in Greenville, S.C.</a> also jumped on the bandwagon.)</p>
<p>For technology to make meaningful improvements in health care, it has to penetrate communities across the country &#8212; so it’s a positive sign that digital health hubs are popping up nationwide (even though it could intensify the much-discussed <a href="http://pandodaily.com/2012/11/28/the-series-a-crunch-is-hitting-now-have-we-even-noticed/">“Series A crunch</a>.”)</p>
<p>In total, April was an off-the-charts month for health technology funding, according to data from <a href="http://www.startuphealth.com">Startup Health</a>. The sector raised a total of $322.72 million, which is an increase of 404 percent over the same period last year.</p>
<p>Here’s a quick look at last month’s activity:</p>
<p><a href="http://gigaom.com/2013/05/10/following-the-money-in-health-tech-accelerators-galore-nationwide/startuphealth_april/" rel="attachment wp-att-643845"><img  alt="startuphealth_April" src="http://gigaom2.files.wordpress.com/2013/05/startuphealth_april.jpg?w=708"   class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-643845" /></a></p>
<ul>
<li>Sensors again attracted a great deal of investor interest. In addition to the funding raised by <a href="http://www.watermarkmedical.com">Watermark</a>, a company behind sleep monitoring technology, companies including <a href="http://www.mc10.com">MC10</a>, which is working with Reebok on <a href="http://www.technologyreview.com/view/429751/emtech-reebok-and-mc10-will-launch-an-impact-sensing-skullcap-for-sports/">skullcap-like head impact monitor</a>, and fetal monitoring system <a href="https://www.sense4baby.org">Sense4Baby</a> raised funding.</li>
<li>While it wasn’t among the top three sub-sectors to receive investments, telehealth also had a strong month in April, with companies like <a href="http://www.healthspot.com">HealthSpot</a>, <a href="http://www.presencelearning.com">PresenceLearning</a> and <a href="http://www.remotemedicine.com">Remote Medicin</a>e receiving healthy amounts of capital. That tracks with recent research indicating that the market is expected to <a href="http://www.fiercemobilehealthcare.com/story/worldwide-telehealth-market-grow-55-2013/2013-01-01">grow 53 percent this year</a> and <a href="http://www.informationweek.com/healthcare/mobile-wireless/telehealth-to-grow-six-fold-by-2017/240146847">six-fold by 2017</a>.</li>
</ul>
<br />  <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=gigaom.com&#038;blog=14960843&#038;post=643840&#038;subd=gigaom2&#038;ref=&#038;feed=1" width="1" height="1" /><p><a href="http://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?iu=/1008864/GigaOM_RSS_300x250&#038;sz=300x250&#038;c=878956"><img src="http://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/ad?iu=/1008864/GigaOM_RSS_300x250&#038;sz=300x250&#038;c=878956" /></a></p><p><strong>Related research and analysis from GigaOM Pro:</strong><br />Subscriber content. <a href="http://pro.gigaom.com/?utm_source=tech&utm_medium=editorial&utm_campaign=auto3&utm_term=643840+following-the-money-in-health-tech-accelerators-galore-nationwide&utm_content=kimaeheussner">Sign up for a free trial</a>.</p><ul><li><a href="http://pro.gigaom.com/2013/01/ces-2013-flash-analysis-disruptions-and-disappointments-from-consumer-techs-biggest-show/?utm_source=tech&utm_medium=editorial&utm_campaign=auto3&utm_term=643840+following-the-money-in-health-tech-accelerators-galore-nationwide&utm_content=kimaeheussner">GigaOM Research highs and lows from CES 2013</a></li><li><a href="http://pro.gigaom.com/2012/08/crowdfundings-rapid-growth-and-future-opportunities/?utm_source=tech&utm_medium=editorial&utm_campaign=auto3&utm_term=643840+following-the-money-in-health-tech-accelerators-galore-nationwide&utm_content=kimaeheussner">Crowdfunding’s rapid growth and future opportunity</a></li><li><a href="http://pro.gigaom.com/2012/07/the-wearable-computing-market-a-global-analysis/?utm_source=tech&utm_medium=editorial&utm_campaign=auto3&utm_term=643840+following-the-money-in-health-tech-accelerators-galore-nationwide&utm_content=kimaeheussner">Analyzing the wearable computing market</a></li></ul>]]></content:encoded>
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			<media:title type="html">health data visualization</media:title>
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			<media:title type="html">kimaeheussner</media:title>
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		<title>Zynga and NewSchools Venture Fund create accelerator for educational gaming startups</title>
		<link>http://gigaom.com/2013/05/01/zynga-and-newschools-venture-fund-create-accelerator-for-educational-gaming-startups/</link>
		<comments>http://gigaom.com/2013/05/01/zynga-and-newschools-venture-fund-create-accelerator-for-educational-gaming-startups/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 02 May 2013 03:07:54 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Ki Mae Heussner</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Accelerators]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[ed tech]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[education technology]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[social gaming]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Startups]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://gigaom.com/?p=641510</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Zynga is partnering with NewSchools Venture Fund to launch  an accelerator program for educational gaming startups. <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=gigaom.com&#038;blog=14960843&#038;post=641510&#038;subd=gigaom2&#038;ref=&#038;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
				<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Ed tech entrepreneurs are getting <a href="http://gigaom.com/2013/02/20/ed-tech-accelerators-go-corporate-pearson-and-kaplan-launch-startup-programs/">yet another startup accelerator</a> to choose from, but this one has a very specific focus: gaming.</p>
<p>At the <a href="http://www.newschools.org/event/summit2013">NewSchools Summit</a> on Wednesday, social gaming giant Zynga and NewSchools Venture Fund said they are <a href="http://blog.zynga.com/2013/05/01/zynga-org-partners-with-newschools-venture-fund-to-create-new-ed-tech-accelerator/">partnering up for an entrepreneurship program to support startups developing learning games and apps</a>.</p>
<p>Zynga will host the startups at its San Francisco office, where they&#8217;ll be able to <a href="http://venturebeat.com/2013/05/01/zynga-newschools-team-up-to-launch-an-accelerator-for-educational-gaming-startups/">interact with game designers and product managers</a>, and <a href="http://Zynga.org">Zynga.org</a>, the company&#8217;s nonprofit arm, has committed $1 million for the first year.</p>
<p>&#8220;Through the efforts of <a href="http://Zynga.org">Zynga.org</a>, we&#8217;ve shown that social games can impact peoples&#8217; lives for the better,&#8221; said Ken Weber, executive director of <a href="http://Zynga.org">Zynga.org</a>. &#8220;[With NewSchools], we want to help entrepreneurs create high quality, scalable learning games that will enhance learning experiences for all 21st century students.&#8221;</p>
<p>The announcement comes during something of a boom time in ed tech. Since the start of the year, a handful of <a href="http://gigaom.com/2013/04/17/qa-how-kaplans-techstars-ed-tech-accelerator-plans-to-get-to-the-head-of-the-class/">other accelerators have also launched targeting education startups</a>. And, according to CB Insights, <a href="http://gigaom.com/2013/01/21/more-fodder-for-bubble-debate-ed-tech-startups-get-1-1b-in-2012/">education technology companies raised $1.1 billion</a> in 2012.</p>
<p>The first cohort of the Zynga- and NewSchools-backed program will start this summer and include learning gaming apps Kidaptive, LocoMotiveLabs and Motion Math. Education social network Edmodo will join the cohort as a charter partner.</p>
<br />  <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=gigaom.com&#038;blog=14960843&#038;post=641510&#038;subd=gigaom2&#038;ref=&#038;feed=1" width="1" height="1" /><p><a href="http://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?iu=/1008864/GigaOM_RSS_300x250&#038;sz=300x250&#038;c=393699"><img src="http://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/ad?iu=/1008864/GigaOM_RSS_300x250&#038;sz=300x250&#038;c=393699" /></a></p><p><strong>Related research and analysis from GigaOM Pro:</strong><br />Subscriber content. <a href="http://pro.gigaom.com/?utm_source=tech&utm_medium=editorial&utm_campaign=auto3&utm_term=641510+zynga-and-newschools-venture-fund-create-accelerator-for-educational-gaming-startups&utm_content=kimaeheussner">Sign up for a free trial</a>.</p><ul><li><a href="http://pro.gigaom.com/2012/02/facebooks-ipo-filing-the-opening-shot-heard-round-the-world/?utm_source=tech&utm_medium=editorial&utm_campaign=auto3&utm_term=641510+zynga-and-newschools-venture-fund-create-accelerator-for-educational-gaming-startups&utm_content=kimaeheussner">Facebook&#8217;s IPO filing: ideas and implications</a></li><li><a href="http://pro.gigaom.com/2012/10/social-third-quarter-2012-analysis-and-outlook/?utm_source=tech&utm_medium=editorial&utm_campaign=auto3&utm_term=641510+zynga-and-newschools-venture-fund-create-accelerator-for-educational-gaming-startups&utm_content=kimaeheussner">Social third-quarter 2012: analysis and outlook</a></li><li><a href="http://pro.gigaom.com/2012/01/newnet-q4-platform-mania-and-social-commerce-shakeout/?utm_source=tech&utm_medium=editorial&utm_campaign=auto3&utm_term=641510+zynga-and-newschools-venture-fund-create-accelerator-for-educational-gaming-startups&utm_content=kimaeheussner">NewNet Q4: Platform mania and social commerce shakeout</a></li></ul>]]></content:encoded>
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		<title>Google uses Finnish data center as springboard for startup outreach</title>
		<link>http://gigaom.com/2013/04/30/google-uses-finnish-data-center-as-springboard-for-startup-outreach/</link>
		<comments>http://gigaom.com/2013/04/30/google-uses-finnish-data-center-as-springboard-for-startup-outreach/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 30 Apr 2013 11:20:25 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>David Meyer</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[data center]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Google]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Industrial]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Startups]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://gigaom.com/?p=640795</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[After doing something similar in Belgium, Google is using its seawater-cooled data center in Hamina, southeastern Finland, as a way to solidify its presence among local startups.<img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=gigaom.com&#038;blog=14960843&#038;post=640795&#038;subd=gigaom2&#038;ref=&#038;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
				<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>It seems Google has a habit of using its European data centers as keys to the local startup community. Having already used its Belgian facility as a springboard for local jobs events and <a href="http://googlepolicyeurope.blogspot.fi/2013/02/a-flower-of-computer-history-blooms-in.html">cultural tie-ins</a> in that country, the firm is now doing much the same in southeastern Finland.</p>
<p>Google bought an old paper mill in Hamina several years ago, and converted it into a <a href="http://www.google.co.uk/about/datacenters/inside/locations/hamina/">data center</a> that is, interestingly, <a href="http://gigaom.com/2011/05/24/google-to-switch-on-worlds-first-seawater-cooled-data-center-this-fall/">cooled by seawater</a>. Now, the company is extending the facility at a cost of €150 million ($196 million) &#8212; design nerds should note that this is being done by converting a machine hall originally designed by the architect Alvar Aalto. And now Google has also struck a deal with Aalto University and regional development agency Cursor.</p>
<p>According to a Google <a href="http://googlepolicyeurope.blogspot.de/2013/04/sparking-internet-revolution-in.html">blog post</a>, Google&#8217;s backing will allow Aalto University to better support local startup accelerators, and help &#8220;improve the use of the internet&#8221; by small businesses in the region. The university is already a backer of the <a href="http://startupsauna.com/">Startup Sauna</a> program and various other entrepreneurial initiatives, so we can now expect to see more in this vein.</p>
<p>Google&#8217;s push is supposed to &#8220;show the way from our industrial past to our digital future,&#8221; according to the post, and indeed both the Belgian and Finnish data centers are sited in areas left somewhat depressed after the death of older industries – mining in the case of the <a href="http://www.google.co.uk/about/datacenters/inside/locations/st-ghislain/">St Ghislain</a> facility and paper milling in the case of Hamina.</p>
<p>It&#8217;s good PR for Google, of course, but there is validity to the conceit &#8212; and it&#8217;s also quite a clever way to keep an eye on  ideas that local developers and engineers are coming up with.</p>
<br />  <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=gigaom.com&#038;blog=14960843&#038;post=640795&#038;subd=gigaom2&#038;ref=&#038;feed=1" width="1" height="1" /><p><a href="http://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?iu=/1008864/GigaOM_RSS_300x250&#038;sz=300x250&#038;c=35742"><img src="http://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/ad?iu=/1008864/GigaOM_RSS_300x250&#038;sz=300x250&#038;c=35742" /></a></p><p><strong>Related research and analysis from GigaOM Pro:</strong><br />Subscriber content. <a href="http://pro.gigaom.com/?utm_source=cloud&utm_medium=editorial&utm_campaign=auto3&utm_term=640795+google-uses-finnish-data-center-as-springboard-for-startup-outreach&utm_content=superglaze">Sign up for a free trial</a>.</p><ul><li><a href="http://pro.gigaom.com/2010/12/google-and-the-ghost-of-silicon-valley-past/?utm_source=cloud&utm_medium=editorial&utm_campaign=auto3&utm_term=640795+google-uses-finnish-data-center-as-springboard-for-startup-outreach&utm_content=superglaze">Google and the Ghost of Silicon Valley Past</a></li><li><a href="http://pro.gigaom.com/2012/12/how-the-mobile-first-world-will-transform-the-data-center/?utm_source=cloud&utm_medium=editorial&utm_campaign=auto3&utm_term=640795+google-uses-finnish-data-center-as-springboard-for-startup-outreach&utm_content=superglaze">How tomorrow&#8217;s mobile-centric data centers will look</a></li><li><a href="http://pro.gigaom.com/2012/05/locating-data-centers-in-an-energy-constrained-world/?utm_source=cloud&utm_medium=editorial&utm_campaign=auto3&utm_term=640795+google-uses-finnish-data-center-as-springboard-for-startup-outreach&utm_content=superglaze">Locating data centers in an energy-constrained world</a></li></ul>]]></content:encoded>
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			<media:title type="html">Google Hamina data center, Finland</media:title>
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		<title>Despite Foursquare&#8217;s struggles, Chicago&#8217;s Evzdrop isn&#8217;t scared of the check-in &#8212; or &#8220;drop&#8221;</title>
		<link>http://gigaom.com/2013/04/26/despite-foursquares-struggles-chicagos-evzdrop-isnt-scared-of-the-check-in-or-drop/</link>
		<comments>http://gigaom.com/2013/04/26/despite-foursquares-struggles-chicagos-evzdrop-isnt-scared-of-the-check-in-or-drop/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 26 Apr 2013 15:34:47 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Kevin Fitchard</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[check-in]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Chicago]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[David Rush]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[eric-brown]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[geo-fencing]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[geo-social network]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[LBS]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[local-based services]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[social network]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Startups]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://gigaom.com/?p=634614</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[A small startup trying to gain traction in the Windy City, Evzdrop has designed geo-social network that doesn't connect you to your friends but to strangers wherever you happen to be. <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=gigaom.com&#038;blog=14960843&#038;post=634614&#038;subd=gigaom2&#038;ref=&#038;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
				<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Foursquare has a lot of imitators, making the check-in ubiquitous &#8212; and even a little passe these days &#8212; across social networking apps. At first glance, Chicago startup Evzdrop looks like one of those clones. Instead of checking in at places, users “drop” their locations on the map and, just like Foursquare, you can take the temperature of all of bars, restaurants, clubs and other venues in your area.</p>
<p>But then you start noticing some differences. There’s no option to find your friends, and certainly no mechanism for following them. You can interact with anyone who “drops” into your location, but you’re most likely dealing with a complete stranger. If you ask a question or make a positive or critical comment, you’re just as likely to get a response from the venue’s owner as you are from one of its patrons. And once you’ve left a location, you’ll still be able to see all of the activity going on there, but you’ll find your ability to interact with the locale much more limited.</p>
<p><a href="http://gigaom.com/2013/04/26/despite-foursquares-struggles-chicagos-evzdrop-isnt-scared-of-the-check-in-or-drop/img_0072/" rel="attachment wp-att-634763"><img  alt="Evzdrop CEO David Rush" src="http://gigaom2.files.wordpress.com/2013/04/img_0072-e1366987740613.jpg?w=300&#038;h=200" width="300" height="200" class="alignleft size-medium wp-image-634763" /></a>Evzdrop CEO David Rush said he and fellow co-founder Eric Brown were inspired to start Evzdrop in 2012 because of the difficulty of sorting useful information about a bar, restaurant or event from social networks.</p>
<p>“There’s a fire hose of information coming out of Facebook and Twitter,” Rush said. “Check-ins are more about showing where you are to friends, which is what Foursquare has become today. &#8230; We wanted to create an app that allows you to share a common interest in place &#8212; one that lets you get the perspective of people who, along with you, are actually at an event.”</p>
<p>To that end, Evzdrop has created a kind of geofenced social network, allowing only people who are actually at a location to engage with one another and the business itself. Everyone else is just a voyeur. They can follow all of the drop posts going at location, but they can’t participate themselves except to comment on other people’s drops.</p>
<p><a href="http://gigaom.com/2013/01/28/soundrop-facebook-pages/exif_jpeg_picture/" rel="attachment wp-att-604862"><img  alt="Hot Chip concert picture" src="http://gigaom2.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/4391226167_c4a6785bd0_o-e1359352982339.jpg?w=300&#038;h=199" width="300" height="199" class="alignright size-medium wp-image-604862" /></a>From my experiences fiddling with the app, many of the drops aren’t terribly useful &#8212; “Dude, this band rocks!” &#8212; but as more people use the app, more useful information rises to the top through a “props” system that allows other people at vote up the most entertaining or informative posts.</p>
<p>The idea, Rush said, is to create not just a repository of immediate information &#8212; older drops disappear from the site &#8212; but a real-time dialogue between all of the people sharing the same space. That differentiates it from Yelp and other reviews sites, Rush said.</p>
<p>If Evzdrop can reach critical mass it should be able to tell if the Hamachi at the local sushi bar is particularly fresh or foul on any particular hour. Sports bar owners will be able to alert you to which games they’re showing in playoffs, or respond to requests from customers on the premise to switch to a different game. Concert attendees can demand a band play a particular song.</p>
<h2 id="do-we-really-need-another-chec">Do we really need another check-in app?</h2>
<p>Of course, to get this kind of depth out of the service, Evzdrop really needs to scale. Right now it’s still a tiny operation. It has six employees and $500,000 in angel funding, and its <a href="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.evzdrop.client&amp;hl=en">Android</a> and <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/evzdrop/id560224104?mt=8">iPhone app</a> only has a miniscule 11,000 downloads. Growing that base is going to be difficult to say the least. Not only are there numerous <a href="http://gigaom.com/2011/03/03/location-services-look-to-future-check-ins-with-friends/">competing apps promoting their own take on the check-in</a>, every major social network, review app and location-based service &#8212; from <a href="http://gigaom.com/2012/12/19/facebook-nearby-is-not-a-foursquare-killer-yet/">Facebook</a> to <a href="http://gigaom.com/2010/01/22/yelp-fights-back-against-foursquare-gowalla/">Yelp</a> to <a href="http://gigaom.com/2011/02/01/google-latitude-does-the-check-in-thing-automatically/">Google Latitude</a> &#8212; have added check-in capabilities. The last thing most consumers want to do is download and register an account with another check-in app.</p>
<p>Building a business around social-location is also proving to be a difficult even if you 3.5 billion check-ins like Foursquare. New York&#8217;s check-in pioneer just <a href="http://gigaom.com/2013/04/11/foursquare-closes-41m-debt-financing-ups-the-ante-on-a-high-risk-gamble-to-own-local-recommendations/">raised another $41 million in financing</a>, but it&#8217;s under intense pressure to prove it has viable business model.</p>
<p><a href="http://gigaom.com/2013/04/26/despite-foursquares-struggles-chicagos-evzdrop-isnt-scared-of-the-check-in-or-drop/mzl-ywyedtvq-320x480-75/" rel="attachment wp-att-634776"><img  alt="Evzdrop Screenshot" src="http://gigaom2.files.wordpress.com/2013/04/mzl-ywyedtvq-320x480-75.jpg?w=708"   class="size-full wp-image-634776 alignleft" /></a>Rush said that Evzdrop hopes to gain traction by targeting business owners and event planners, getting them to promote the app to their customers. Rush thinks the app would be particularly appealing for helping track customer sentiment and complaints at big events like concerts or benefits, where organizers can communicate with a lot of people en masse.</p>
<p>To that end Evzdrop is making venue owners a key part of the network, rather than just peripheral participants. They don’t get control their local social networks like, say, moderators on a discussion board. But they can communicate privately with their patrons, Evzdrop provides them with real-time data about the sentiment of their clientele. Rush said Evzdrop considers itself just as much a customer relations management (CRM) platform as it does a social networking app.</p>
<p>That business focus is also key to its business model. While any business owner can register their place with Evzdrop, gaining access to its customer communications tools, Evzdrop hopes to build a premium platform that would allow businesses to market promotions to their most frequent customers as well as give them more control over the interaction within the walls of their social networks.</p>
<p>Rush said one tool Evzdrop plans to implement is a means to flag negative sentiment, allowing a proprietor to intercept a critical drop before it goes live giving them a chance to address the complaint immediately. Rush said Evzdrop would never allow businesses to censor posts &#8212; every drop would still go live &#8211; just create a kind of early warning system for negative feedback.</p>
<p>It seems Evzdrop is trying to walk a fine line. It’s admirable that Evzdrop is trying to develop its business model at the get go, as opposed to Twitter and Foursquare, which built their social networks and then tried to figure out how to make money. But if patrons start perceiving Evzdrop as just a promotional pulpit for businesses, they won’t use it as a social network. And if Evzdrop can’t build up a social network, it doesn’t have a business.</p>
<p><em>Concert image <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/">courtesy of</a> Flickr user <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/martin_thomas/4391226167/in/photostream/">humbert15.</a></em></p>
<br />  <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=gigaom.com&#038;blog=14960843&#038;post=634614&#038;subd=gigaom2&#038;ref=&#038;feed=1" width="1" height="1" /><p><a href="http://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?iu=/1008864/GigaOM_RSS_300x250&#038;sz=300x250&#038;c=83937"><img src="http://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/ad?iu=/1008864/GigaOM_RSS_300x250&#038;sz=300x250&#038;c=83937" /></a></p><p><strong>Related research and analysis from GigaOM Pro:</strong><br />Subscriber content. <a href="http://pro.gigaom.com/?utm_source=mobile&utm_medium=editorial&utm_campaign=auto3&utm_term=634614+despite-foursquares-struggles-chicagos-evzdrop-isnt-scared-of-the-check-in-or-drop&utm_content=kfitchard">Sign up for a free trial</a>.</p><ul><li><a href="http://pro.gigaom.com/2012/07/the-wearable-computing-market-a-global-analysis/?utm_source=mobile&utm_medium=editorial&utm_campaign=auto3&utm_term=634614+despite-foursquares-struggles-chicagos-evzdrop-isnt-scared-of-the-check-in-or-drop&utm_content=kfitchard">Analyzing the wearable computing market</a></li><li><a href="http://pro.gigaom.com/2012/02/facebooks-ipo-filing-the-opening-shot-heard-round-the-world/?utm_source=mobile&utm_medium=editorial&utm_campaign=auto3&utm_term=634614+despite-foursquares-struggles-chicagos-evzdrop-isnt-scared-of-the-check-in-or-drop&utm_content=kfitchard">Facebook&#8217;s IPO filing: ideas and implications</a></li><li><a href="http://pro.gigaom.com/2011/09/the-future-of-mobile-a-segment-analysis-by-gigaom-pro/?utm_source=mobile&utm_medium=editorial&utm_campaign=auto3&utm_term=634614+despite-foursquares-struggles-chicagos-evzdrop-isnt-scared-of-the-check-in-or-drop&utm_content=kfitchard">The future of mobile: a segment analysis by GigaOM Pro</a></li></ul>]]></content:encoded>
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			<media:title type="html">Evzdrop Check-in</media:title>
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			<media:title type="html">kfitchard</media:title>
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			<media:title type="html">Evzdrop CEO David Rush</media:title>
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		<title>TechStars Chicago&#8217;s first class of startups: patient-monitoring, matchmaking and marketing</title>
		<link>http://gigaom.com/2013/04/25/techstars-chicagos-first-class-of-startups-patient-monitoring-matchmaking-and-marketing/</link>
		<comments>http://gigaom.com/2013/04/25/techstars-chicagos-first-class-of-startups-patient-monitoring-matchmaking-and-marketing/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 25 Apr 2013 13:18:49 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Ki Mae Heussner</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[entrepreneurs]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Startups]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[venture capital]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://gigaom.com/?p=634333</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[TechStars Chicago, formerly Excelerate Labs, has announced its inaugural class of startups. <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=gigaom.com&#038;blog=14960843&#038;post=634333&#038;subd=gigaom2&#038;ref=&#038;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
				<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>A new class of entrepreneurs is getting ready to take on the Windy City. On Thursday, <a href="http://www.techstars.com/program/locations/chicago/">TechStars Chicago</a>, which was formed earlier this year when the <a href="http://gigaom.com/2013/02/01/techstars-takes-chicago-merges-with-excelerate-labs-incubator-program/">Boulder, Colo.-based TechStars program joined forces with the local Excelerate Labs</a>, announced its first cohort of startups.</p>
<p>Troy Henikoff, the program’s managing director, said the 10 startups were selected from an applicant pool of 904, which was double the size of the applicant pool last year. The 10 companies not only reflect a range of industries, he said, the new cohort is geographically diverse, with just three startups from Chicago and a couple from outside the U.S.</p>
<p>Launched three years ago, Excelerate Labs was led by a group of entrepreneurs and venture capitalists, including Henikoff (founder of SurePayroll), OkCupid founder Sam Yagan, Sandbox Industries’ Nick Rosa and New World Ventures’ Adam Koopersmith. Its 30 companies have raised a total of $30 million, the group said. But teaming up with TechStars elevates the program and gives startups access to a national network of mentors and investors.</p>
<p>Here are the program’s 10 new startups:</p>
<p><a href="www.captureproof.com">CaptureProof</a> &#8211; Currently in beta, CaptureProof gives patients a secure site for tracking their health with photos and video and then sharing them with their doctors. Through the site, doctors can monitor patients’ health trends and progress remotely.</p>
<p><a href="www.myHIPOM.com">HIPOM</a> &#8211; For parents who want to limit their kids’ access to the internet, HIPOM provides a cloud-based solution for controlling any individual device in the home.</p>
<p><a href="www.nexercise.com">Nexercise </a>- Nexercise is an iPhone and Android app that helps people lose weight and improve their fitness through competitions with friends, alerts and rewards.</p>
<p><a href="www.pathful.com">Pathful </a> &#8211; A web analytics service, Pathful says it tracks all kinds of visitor interactions and doesn’t require tagging.</p>
<p><a href="www.peoplematics.com">Peoplematics</a> &#8211; Peoplematics is a service that enables employees to find and share information across their personal cloud.</p>
<p><a href="www.projectfixup.com">Project Fixup</a> &#8211; A matchmaking service, Project Fixup pairs up people for one-on-one dates based on their schedules and interests.</p>
<p><a href="www.simplerelevance.com">SimpleRelevance</a> &#8211; An email marketing platform, SimpleRelevance says its analytics-driven approach can improve revenue per message by 30-300 percent.</p>
<p><a href="http://about.socialcrunch.com">SocialCrunch</a> &#8211; SocialCrunch says it builds a “behavior graph” of internet users to help marketers learn about and reach a target audience.</p>
<p><a href="www.sqord.com">Sqord</a> &#8211; A “Fitbit for kids” (see disclosure), Sqord’s watch-like fitness tracking device promotes activity through friendly competition.</p>
<p><a href="www.tradingview.com)">TradingView</a> &#8211; An online community of investors and traders, TradingView aggregates web stock charts and enables investors to share their ideas.</p>
<p><em>Disclosure: Fitbit is backed by True Ventures, a venture capital firm that is an investor in the parent company of this blog, Giga Omni Media. Om Malik, founder of Giga Omni Media, is also a venture partner at True.</em></p>
<br />  <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=gigaom.com&#038;blog=14960843&#038;post=634333&#038;subd=gigaom2&#038;ref=&#038;feed=1" width="1" height="1" /><p><a href="http://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?iu=/1008864/GigaOM_RSS_300x250&#038;sz=300x250&#038;c=926524"><img src="http://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/ad?iu=/1008864/GigaOM_RSS_300x250&#038;sz=300x250&#038;c=926524" /></a></p><p><strong>Related research and analysis from GigaOM Pro:</strong><br />Subscriber content. <a href="http://pro.gigaom.com/?utm_source=tech&utm_medium=editorial&utm_campaign=auto3&utm_term=634333+techstars-chicagos-first-class-of-startups-patient-monitoring-matchmaking-and-marketing&utm_content=kimaeheussner">Sign up for a free trial</a>.</p><ul><li><a href="http://pro.gigaom.com/2012/02/facebooks-ipo-filing-the-opening-shot-heard-round-the-world/?utm_source=tech&utm_medium=editorial&utm_campaign=auto3&utm_term=634333+techstars-chicagos-first-class-of-startups-patient-monitoring-matchmaking-and-marketing&utm_content=kimaeheussner">Facebook&#8217;s IPO filing: ideas and implications</a></li><li><a href="http://pro.gigaom.com/2012/08/crowdfundings-rapid-growth-and-future-opportunities/?utm_source=tech&utm_medium=editorial&utm_campaign=auto3&utm_term=634333+techstars-chicagos-first-class-of-startups-patient-monitoring-matchmaking-and-marketing&utm_content=kimaeheussner">Crowdfunding’s rapid growth and future opportunity</a></li><li><a href="http://pro.gigaom.com/2009/10/what-the-vc-industry-upheaval-means-for-startups/?utm_source=tech&utm_medium=editorial&utm_campaign=auto3&utm_term=634333+techstars-chicagos-first-class-of-startups-patient-monitoring-matchmaking-and-marketing&utm_content=kimaeheussner">What the VC Industry Upheaval Means For Startups</a></li></ul>]]></content:encoded>
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		<title>Pioneering ed tech accelerator ImagineK12 ups startup funding to $100k each</title>
		<link>http://gigaom.com/2013/04/23/pioneering-ed-tech-accelerator-imaginek12-ups-startup-funding-to-100k-each/</link>
		<comments>http://gigaom.com/2013/04/23/pioneering-ed-tech-accelerator-imaginek12-ups-startup-funding-to-100k-each/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 23 Apr 2013 21:09:54 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Ki Mae Heussner</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[digital learning]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[ed tech]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[education technology]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Startups]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://gigaom.com/?p=633683</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Ed tech startup accelerator Imagine K-12 has created a new Start Fund, enabling it to increase the amount of funding given to each startup from $20,000 to $100,000.<img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=gigaom.com&#038;blog=14960843&#038;post=633683&#038;subd=gigaom2&#038;ref=&#038;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
				<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>As we’ve noted before, <a href="http://gigaom.com/2013/02/20/ed-tech-accelerators-go-corporate-pearson-and-kaplan-launch-startup-programs/">ed tech accelerators</a> have been <a href="http://gigaom.com/2013/02/01/east-coast-ed-tech-innovation-ramps-up-with-new-accelerators-in-new-york-and-boston/">popping up all over</a> in the past few months. But <a href="http://www.imaginek12.com">Imagine K12</a> &#8212; a two-year-old startup program often referred to as the “Y Combinator of ed tech” &#8212; just upped the ante for the competition.</p>
<p>Instead of receiving $20,000 upon acceptance into ImagineK12, startups will now receive $100,000 each, thanks to a new Start Fund, the accelerator said. The newly-created Start Fund is funded by big name Silicon Valley types, including Y Combinator founder Paul Graham, Yahoo co-founder David Filo, Angela Filo, LinkedIn CEO Jeff Weiner and Chegg CEO Dan Rosensweig, as well as the NewSchools Venture Fund and GSV Asset Management. Startups will receive up to $20,000 from ImagineK12 and a convertible note for $80,000 from the Start Fund.</p>
<p>Since launching in early 2011, the accelerator said its 39 startups have raised more than $30 million in funding and it claims that its products are used by more than 10 percent of U.S. teachers.</p>
<p>Tim Brady, a co-founder of Imagine K12, said their goal is to not only give accepted ed tech startups a longer runway for adoption, but to make education more welcoming to entrepreneurs.</p>
<p>“It has a reputation as a difficult sector,&#8221; he said. “One of our over-arching goals is to make entrepreneurship in education as attractive as it is in other sectors.&#8221;</p>
<p>While $100,000 would certainly be difficult to turn down, other ed tech accelerators offering less capital aren&#8217;t without their selling points for aspiring education entrepreneurs. For obvious reasons, Silicon Valley is a great place to build a company, but education startups could also be well-served by building networks in other parts of the country.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.socraticlabs.com">Socratic Labs</a> and<a href="http://www.kaplanedtechaccelerator.com"> Kaplan&#8217;s new TechStars-powered ed tech accelerator</a>, both of which are based in New York City, offer education entrepreneurs the chance to experiment within the country&#8217;s largest K-12 school district and in the backyard of major content companies. And Boston-based <a href="http://www.learnlaunchx.com">LearnLaunchX</a> is in close proximity to plenty of publishers, colleges and universities.</p>
<br />  <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=gigaom.com&#038;blog=14960843&#038;post=633683&#038;subd=gigaom2&#038;ref=&#038;feed=1" width="1" height="1" /><p><a href="http://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?iu=/1008864/GigaOM_RSS_300x250&#038;sz=300x250&#038;c=30573"><img src="http://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/ad?iu=/1008864/GigaOM_RSS_300x250&#038;sz=300x250&#038;c=30573" /></a></p><p><strong>Related research and analysis from GigaOM Pro:</strong><br />Subscriber content. <a href="http://pro.gigaom.com/?utm_source=tech&utm_medium=editorial&utm_campaign=auto3&utm_term=633683+pioneering-ed-tech-accelerator-imaginek12-ups-startup-funding-to-100k-each&utm_content=kimaeheussner">Sign up for a free trial</a>.</p><ul><li><a href="http://pro.gigaom.com/2012/02/facebooks-ipo-filing-the-opening-shot-heard-round-the-world/?utm_source=tech&utm_medium=editorial&utm_campaign=auto3&utm_term=633683+pioneering-ed-tech-accelerator-imaginek12-ups-startup-funding-to-100k-each&utm_content=kimaeheussner">Facebook&#8217;s IPO filing: ideas and implications</a></li><li><a href="http://pro.gigaom.com/2012/08/crowdfundings-rapid-growth-and-future-opportunities/?utm_source=tech&utm_medium=editorial&utm_campaign=auto3&utm_term=633683+pioneering-ed-tech-accelerator-imaginek12-ups-startup-funding-to-100k-each&utm_content=kimaeheussner">Crowdfunding’s rapid growth and future opportunity</a></li><li><a href="http://pro.gigaom.com/2012/03/six-security-dangers-web-startups-should-know-and-how-to-counter-them/?utm_source=tech&utm_medium=editorial&utm_campaign=auto3&utm_term=633683+pioneering-ed-tech-accelerator-imaginek12-ups-startup-funding-to-100k-each&utm_content=kimaeheussner">Web startups: How to guard against security breaches</a></li></ul>]]></content:encoded>
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		<title>Health startup Greatist buys Sportaneous to stretch from content to tech</title>
		<link>http://gigaom.com/2013/04/23/health-startup-greatist-buys-sportaneous-to-stretch-from-content-to-tech/</link>
		<comments>http://gigaom.com/2013/04/23/health-startup-greatist-buys-sportaneous-to-stretch-from-content-to-tech/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 23 Apr 2013 19:20:56 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Ki Mae Heussner</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[digital health]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[health technology]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[mobile health]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Startups]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://gigaom.com/?p=633629</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[New York-based health startup Greatist has acquired fitness class discovery app Sportaneous in a move meant to build the company's tech chops. <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=gigaom.com&#038;blog=14960843&#038;post=633629&#038;subd=gigaom2&#038;ref=&#038;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
				<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Since launching two years ago, health startup <a href="http://www.greatist.com">Greatist</a> has been all about content and its brand &#8212; every month, about 3 million unique visitors check out the site for a dose of content that&#8217;s part socially-savvy Buzzfeed, part fun fitness magazine and part highbrow science journal. But with the acquisition of startup <a href="http://www.sportaneous.com">Sportaneous</a>, announced Tuesday, Greatist is expanding its identity from a company focused on content to one that builds technology.</p>
<p>&#8220;We have not been technologists and now we can be,&#8221; said founder and CEO Derek Flanzraich. &#8220;Now we can figure out how to get people from not just reading and talking about our content to actually doing something about it &#8212; which is ultimately our whole purpose.&#8221;</p>
<p>First launched a couple of years ago, Sportaneous is a small four-person startup that offers an app for finding fitness classes nearby. But like other recently acquired health startups MassiveHealth (sold to<a href="http://gigaom.com/2013/02/04/jawbone-buys-visera-massivehealth-to-marry-data-design-with-wearable-computing/"> Jawbone</a>) and 100Plus (<a href="http://gigaom.com/2013/02/27/practice-fusion-buys-mobile-health-startup-100plus-to-power-patient-tools-with-clinical-data/">sold to Practice Fusion</a>), Flanzraich said Sportaneous was strong in design and technology, but was having trouble building traction.</p>
<p>“It’s hard to get noticed in the App Store. It’s hard to get that attention unless you’ve got some other way to drive people to that product,” Flanzraich said. “We solved that problem [by going] the other way around and building the brand first.”</p>
<p>With the Sportaneous team’s tech chops, Flanzraich said he plans to build a new product that puts a social layer around people’s fitness tracking activities. Now, Nike Fuelband users can socialize with other Fuelband users and Fitbit (see disclosure) users can communicate with other Fitbit users. But Flanzraich wants Greatist to provide a social hub that pulls in data from a range of tracking services so that people can motivate and encourage (and maybe trash talk…) friends using all kinds of devices.</p>
<p>Another health app, <a href="http://www.fitocracy.com">Fitocracy</a>, enables health enthusiasts to interact with others trying to achieve similar goals (for example, people trying to keep a paleo diet or run a marathon can encourage and get motivation from others in the same camp) and it integrates with running app Runkeeper. But Greatist, which has raised a little more than $1.1 million, wants to reach a broader audience of people and integrate with a wider range of tracking services.</p>
<p>As part of the acqui-hire, Flanzraich said Sportaneous co-founder Omar Haroun will become Greatist&#8217;s chief product officer and co-founder Reuben Doetsch will be the chief technology officer. The other members of the team will join as developers.</p>
<br />  <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=gigaom.com&#038;blog=14960843&#038;post=633629&#038;subd=gigaom2&#038;ref=&#038;feed=1" width="1" height="1" /><p><a href="http://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?iu=/1008864/GigaOM_RSS_300x250&#038;sz=300x250&#038;c=295405"><img src="http://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/ad?iu=/1008864/GigaOM_RSS_300x250&#038;sz=300x250&#038;c=295405" /></a></p><p><strong>Related research and analysis from GigaOM Pro:</strong><br />Subscriber content. <a href="http://pro.gigaom.com/?utm_source=tech&utm_medium=editorial&utm_campaign=auto3&utm_term=633629+health-startup-greatist-buys-sportaneous-to-stretch-from-content-to-tech&utm_content=kimaeheussner">Sign up for a free trial</a>.</p><ul><li><a href="http://pro.gigaom.com/2013/01/ces-2013-flash-analysis-disruptions-and-disappointments-from-consumer-techs-biggest-show/?utm_source=tech&utm_medium=editorial&utm_campaign=auto3&utm_term=633629+health-startup-greatist-buys-sportaneous-to-stretch-from-content-to-tech&utm_content=kimaeheussner">GigaOM Research highs and lows from CES 2013</a></li><li><a href="http://pro.gigaom.com/2012/07/the-wearable-computing-market-a-global-analysis/?utm_source=tech&utm_medium=editorial&utm_campaign=auto3&utm_term=633629+health-startup-greatist-buys-sportaneous-to-stretch-from-content-to-tech&utm_content=kimaeheussner">Analyzing the wearable computing market</a></li><li><a href="http://pro.gigaom.com/2012/05/the-quantified-self-hacking-the-body-for-better-health-and-performance/?utm_source=tech&utm_medium=editorial&utm_campaign=auto3&utm_term=633629+health-startup-greatist-buys-sportaneous-to-stretch-from-content-to-tech&utm_content=kimaeheussner">The quantified self: hacking the body for better health</a></li></ul>]]></content:encoded>
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		<title>Tips from the trenches: 5 lessons for health tech entrepreneurs</title>
		<link>http://gigaom.com/2013/04/18/tips-from-the-trenches-5-lessons-for-health-tech-entrepreneurs/</link>
		<comments>http://gigaom.com/2013/04/18/tips-from-the-trenches-5-lessons-for-health-tech-entrepreneurs/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 18 Apr 2013 20:42:12 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Ki Mae Heussner</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[digital health]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[health it]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[health tech]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[health technology]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Startups]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://gigaom.com/?p=632319</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Seasoned entrepreneurs and investors in health technology give emerging startups a dose of advice. <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=gigaom.com&#038;blog=14960843&#038;post=632319&#038;subd=gigaom2&#038;ref=&#038;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
				<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Entrepreneurs in any industry need to start with a big idea – and a big tolerance for risk. But in health care, startups often need to take on a unique set of regulatory hurdles, complex systems and entrenched ways of getting things done to successfully build and scale.</p>
<p>At the <a href="http://www.tedmed.com">TEDMED</a> conference Thursday, a few of the industry’s most seasoned entrepreneurs and investors gave emerging startups a dose of advice. Here are a few of their tips:</p>
<p><b>1. Let your experience inspire, but don’t just build for yourself.</b></p>
<p>Several of the most interesting startups I’ve encountered were started by people <a href="http://gigaom.com/2011/06/30/simplee-brings-mint-like-management-to-health-info/">who had their own collision with the health care system</a> or <a href="http://pro.gigaom.com/company/patientslikeme/?utm_source=tech&amp;utm_medium=editorial&amp;utm_campaign=intext&amp;utm_term=632319+tips-from-the-trenches-5-lessons-for-health-tech-entrepreneurs&amp;utm_content=kimaeheussner">were deeply affected by the experiences of people close to them</a>.  But while personal experiences can inspire powerful solutions, Nina Nashif, founder and CEO of the Chicago-based health startup accelerator <a href="http://www.healthbox.com">HealthBox,</a> advised startups to make sure that they don’t skimp on doing their homework and talk to multiple stakeholders.</p>
<p>“There are a lot of entrepreneurs that may have experienced their own situation or the situation of someone close to them. And they’re developing a solution for that without actually going out and talking to enough people to make sure they’re not solving the need for one institution… and that they’re building something that has the ability to scale,” she said. “You can’t just sit behind your computer and code in health care, you have to be out in the trenches.”</p>
<p><b>2. Nuance over need.</b></p>
<p>As with anything, the devil is in the details. Nashif also said that while healthcare has a lot of need and a lot of solutions, the startups with impact are those that figure out exactly where and how to apply their approach.</p>
<p>“It’s important for entrepreneurs to understand the complexities of the industry and that’s not always easy because entrepreneurs and industry aren’t always speaking the same language,” she said. “Entrepreneurs really need to put their solutions in context.”</p>
<p><b>3. Build to build, not to sell.</b></p>
<p>Entrepreneur Michael Weintraub has sold or taken public six startups during his career (most recently, his health IT startup <a href="http://unitedhealth.rsspump.com/?topic=unitedhealth-unit-buys-boston-health-it-firm-humedica&amp;key=20130125224258_cbe1fba13e0e4eff9115b04da16bce40">Humedica was acquired by UnitedHealth</a>). But his big piece of advice was this: “I think the key to innovation is building something because you really want to build it not because you want to build to sell it.”</p>
<p>But he also said that startups should get to know the top 10 companies that could be potential acquirers years in advance: “There are a lot of people working for you and counting on you to make the right decision. You’re not flipping the business to cash out, [you’re] putting it in a place that has greater leverage and impact potential,” he added.</p>
<p><b>4. Ask yourself the hard questions.</b></p>
<p>When it comes to figuring out the future of your company, it’s important to keep your feelings about your “baby” in check and think hard about the reality of the situation, said Castlight CEO and co-founder Giovanni Colella.</p>
<p>“There’s a point in the life of the company [when] the entrepreneur has to ask himself and the management team the hard question: ‘Can we build the company to last or are we better off as a feature of a bigger product?’ You have to be really honest with yourself,” he said. And even before that point, he added, it’s critical to find investors and a management team that will hold you accountable and force you to think.</p>
<p><b>5. Get some gray hair on your team.</b></p>
<p>The general perception may be that startups are for hoodie-wearing early twenty-somethings. But in healthcare (and other fields), you’d do well to find some people with deep experience in the industry and some battle scars to show for it.</p>
<p>“As you’re thinking about starting companies, if you’re young, put a little bit of gray hair into your team of people who have failed and people who are not afraid to say I screwed up… and these are some of the lessons learned, said Juan Enriquez, managing director at Excel Ventures and the founding director of the <a href="http://www.hbs.edu/">Harvard Business School</a> <a href="http://www.hbs.edu/research/facpubs/workingpapers/abstracts/0203/03-072.html">Life Sciences Project</a>.</p>
<br />  <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=gigaom.com&#038;blog=14960843&#038;post=632319&#038;subd=gigaom2&#038;ref=&#038;feed=1" width="1" height="1" /><p><a href="http://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?iu=/1008864/GigaOM_RSS_300x250&#038;sz=300x250&#038;c=735722"><img src="http://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/ad?iu=/1008864/GigaOM_RSS_300x250&#038;sz=300x250&#038;c=735722" /></a></p><p><strong>Related research and analysis from GigaOM Pro:</strong><br />Subscriber content. <a href="http://pro.gigaom.com/?utm_source=tech&utm_medium=editorial&utm_campaign=auto3&utm_term=632319+tips-from-the-trenches-5-lessons-for-health-tech-entrepreneurs&utm_content=kimaeheussner">Sign up for a free trial</a>.</p><ul><li><a href="http://pro.gigaom.com/2013/01/ces-2013-flash-analysis-disruptions-and-disappointments-from-consumer-techs-biggest-show/?utm_source=tech&utm_medium=editorial&utm_campaign=auto3&utm_term=632319+tips-from-the-trenches-5-lessons-for-health-tech-entrepreneurs&utm_content=kimaeheussner">GigaOM Research highs and lows from CES 2013</a></li><li><a href="http://pro.gigaom.com/2012/08/crowdfundings-rapid-growth-and-future-opportunities/?utm_source=tech&utm_medium=editorial&utm_campaign=auto3&utm_term=632319+tips-from-the-trenches-5-lessons-for-health-tech-entrepreneurs&utm_content=kimaeheussner">Crowdfunding’s rapid growth and future opportunity</a></li><li><a href="http://pro.gigaom.com/2012/03/a-near-term-outlook-for-big-data/?utm_source=tech&utm_medium=editorial&utm_campaign=auto3&utm_term=632319+tips-from-the-trenches-5-lessons-for-health-tech-entrepreneurs&utm_content=kimaeheussner">A near-term outlook for big data</a></li></ul>]]></content:encoded>
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		<title>Q&amp;A: How Kaplan&#8217;s TechStars ed tech accelerator plans to get to the head of the class</title>
		<link>http://gigaom.com/2013/04/17/qa-how-kaplans-techstars-ed-tech-accelerator-plans-to-get-to-the-head-of-the-class/</link>
		<comments>http://gigaom.com/2013/04/17/qa-how-kaplans-techstars-ed-tech-accelerator-plans-to-get-to-the-head-of-the-class/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 17 Apr 2013 21:32:00 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>Ki Mae Heussner</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Accelerators]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[ed tech]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[education technology]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[online learning]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Startups]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://gigaom.com/?p=631617</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[As Kaplan's new TechStars-powered ed tech accelerator recruits its first class, Don Burton, the program's new managing director, talks about the developing industry and opportunities ahead. <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=gigaom.com&#038;blog=14960843&#038;post=631617&#038;subd=gigaom2&#038;ref=&#038;feed=1" width="1" height="1" />]]></description>
				<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><a href="http://www.techstars.com">TechStars</a> is a leader among general tech startup incubators, but can it work its magic in ed tech?</p>
<p>Earlier this year, education giant <a href="http://www.techstars.com/introducing-kaplan-edtech-accelerator-powered-by-techstars/">Kaplan announced a new EdTech Accelerator powered by TechStars</a>. But it’s hardly the only one. In the past few months, no less than five <a href="http://gigaom.com/2013/02/20/ed-tech-accelerators-go-corporate-pearson-and-kaplan-launch-startup-programs/">accelerators have launched</a> offering <a href="http://gigaom.com/2013/02/01/east-coast-ed-tech-innovation-ramps-up-with-new-accelerators-in-new-york-and-boston/">ed tech entrepreneurs money, mentors and a faster track to growth</a>.</p>
<p><a href="http://gigaom.com/2013/04/17/qa-how-kaplans-techstars-ed-tech-accelerator-plans-to-get-to-the-head-of-the-class/don-burton/" rel="attachment wp-att-632000"><img alt="Don Burton" src="http://gigaom2.files.wordpress.com/2013/04/don-burton.jpg?w=708"   class="alignleft size-full wp-image-632000"></a>Earlier this month, the program announced that it had <a href="http://www.techstars.com/introducing-don-burton-as-the-managing-director-of-the-kaplan-edtech-accelerator/">brought on Don Burton</a>, a serial entrepreneur and investor with a deep background in for-profit education, to serve as the accelerator’s managing director. Ahead of the <a href="http://kaplanedtechaccelerator.com">program’s first acceptance deadline</a>, Burton chatted with me about opportunities and challenges for ed tech startups — and how Kaplan’s TechStars program believes it can rise above the competition.</p>
<p>Here’s a (lightly edited) transcript of our conversation:</p>
<p><b>GigaOM: Ed tech accelerators are popping up all over the place — why do you think now is an interesting time to be a part of one?</b></p>
<p>Burton: We’re at the very beginning of major change. We’ve had big success stories, in the sense of online education, like University of Phoenix or Wireless Generation, which was sold to News Corp. But if you look at those opportunities, they’re really more automating the way we currently do education [like] a lot of the education technology that’s been here to date.</p>
<p>What’s really exciting is now we’re thinking of new ways of imagining what learning can look like. Like the <a href="http://gigaom.com/2013/03/08/the-king-of-3d-printing-kicks-off-a-sxsw-focused-on-the-physical-world/">Maker Movement</a> and the <a href="http://pro.gigaom.com/2012/05/the-quantified-self-hacking-the-body-for-better-health-and-performance/?utm_source=tech&amp;utm_medium=editorial&amp;utm_campaign=intext&amp;utm_term=631617+qa-how-kaplans-techstars-ed-tech-accelerator-plans-to-get-to-the-head-of-the-class&amp;utm_content=kimaeheussner">Quantified Self</a> movement — I think those types of project-based, interest-based and passion-based experiences in the real world are what we can do with all of learning eventually.</p>
<p><b>GigaOM: TechStars is a big name in the startup world and Kaplan is well-known in education, but with so much competition, how will your program distinguish itself?</b></p>
<p>Burton: It’s becoming a very popular space so a lot of people are starting up accelerators, but if you think of it, they’re startups. TechStars has been doing this since 2006 and they have such a brand and platform, [including] the network, the mentors and the VC funders. It’s really tough to replicate that. And with Kaplan, we can get you customers [for testing products] right away – other startups won’t have such easy access.</p>
<p>Maybe a lot of startups will get into accelerators because there are so many. But, potentially, we’ll be the graduate school of accelerators, so to speak. Maybe you started at one of the smaller accelerators and, once you’ve graduated and get some traction and are really ready to catapult yourself into a Series A, that’s when you might think now I can apply to the TechStars accelerator.</p>
<p><b>GigaOM: So does that mean TechStars wants other accelerators to feed into it? Or that you’re looking for slightly more established ed tech startups?</b></p>
<p>Burton: No, we definitely would take startups that don’t have any traction if we love the idea and we love the team. But let’s say you apply to the Kaplan TechStars accelerator and couldn’t get in early. Maybe you fall back to another accelerator and once you’ve proven yourself, have developed your concept more and have a little bit of traction then you come back to the Kaplan TechStars accelerator.</p>
<p>[We’re casting] a very wide net. We’re trying to find the best ideas and the best teams but also [startups] that we think have the potential to be fundamentally disruptive. We want big impact, not another set of flash cards and exercises for kids to do math. [For example], can it engage kids in a much stronger way than traditional education has engaged kids? We’re looking for a broad spectrum – it could be cradle to grave.</p>
<p><b><a href="http://gigaom.com/2013/01/30/bill-gates-calls-for-better-teacher-feedback-systems-heres-how-tech-can-help/teacher-classroom/" rel="attachment wp-att-606136"><img alt="teacher classroom" src="http://gigaom2.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/teacher-classroom.jpg?w=300&#038;h=202" width="300" height="202" class="alignright size-medium wp-image-606136"></a>GigaOM: What are some areas of opportunity that haven’t been tapped yet?</b></p>
<p>Burton: One is the scorecard by which we’re measuring learning. Instead of just a GPA or SAT or IQ score, who is the person that we’re looking at? You look at all the work in the positive psychology movement and Martin Seligman.</p>
<p>They’re talking about the profiles of people’s character strengths [like] curiosity and love of learning and grittiness.  But we don’t really measure that that well. We don’t think about a person’s dispositions or personality but that makes a big difference for how they might want to learn. It’s the same with interest and knowledge areas [and] multiple intelligences. This is a bottleneck issue because in any system, you want to know what your kids are learning and the competencies they’re building. Having a smarter scorecard that can help us profile people in more individualistic ways is going to be really important.</p>
<p><a href="http://gigaom.com/2013/03/04/digital-portfolio-startup-pathbrite-scores-4m-more-to-help-students-showcase-learning/">Digital portfolios</a> is [another] big area. How do we represent our competencies as we move to a more competence-based system instead of just a credential or seat-time based system? We’re going to need to capture that in a more effective way.</p>
<p>The last one is smarter pathways. Everyone talks about adaptive learning and personalization and how important that is. But if you look at what’s going on out there today, [it's] just a scratch on the surface of personalization.</p>
<p><b>GigaOM: Where do you think the innovation will start?</b></p>
<p>Burton: [It] will probably come in the informal markets before it comes to the formal markets. There are some innovators in the school markets, for sure — the charter schools and other types of institution. If you look at the MIT Media Lab, that’s really innovative — [students] get to build their own robots or whatever they want to research, they get to build it and perform it, like the Maker movement. There are radical experiments in institutions, but those are almost like rogue departments. But can’t we see all of education looking much more like that?</p>
<p><strong><a href="http://gigaom.com/2012/11/09/students-get-startup-smarts-schools-get-donors-useed-crowdfunds-motivation/fundraising-education/" rel="attachment wp-att-583007"><img alt="fundraising education" src="http://gigaom2.files.wordpress.com/2012/11/fundraising-education.jpg?w=300&#038;h=232" width="300" height="232" class="alignleft size-medium wp-image-583007"></a>GigaOM: The industry is in the midst of an <a href="http://gigaom.com/2013/01/21/more-fodder-for-bubble-debate-ed-tech-startups-get-1-1b-in-2012/">investment upswing</a>, but what are the key challenges for entrepreneurs?</strong></p>
<p>Burton: One of the biggest challenges is simply creating change in the formal school systems that are not as market-driven as some other sectors. If you have the best solution, that does not guarantee you adoption in all the schools across all the systems. Even you have amazing success in some districts, how do you get that across the whole system? A lot of these districts across the country have very different ways of doing things and it’s tough to scale your opportunity. And policy — how does the government view technology and for-profit education?</p>
<p><b>GigaOM: People are already talking about an <a href="http://www.geekwire.com/2012/coming-tech-bubble-education/">ed tech bubble</a> – are all these accelerators fueling it?</b></p>
<p>Burton: It would be a bubble if no change happens, right? If none of this stuff starts to impact how we learn and how we develop. But if you think about where the education sector is [it’s] the second-largest sector in the world. If you think about the change that’s needed and the amount of change that’s needed, we haven’t even started yet. We’re not at a bubble but the very beginning of a new way of envisioning learning. Traction matters and you need to start seeing the impact and seeing tools being adopted, and I think we will see that. We need all of this attention and resources because we have a big issue with education. We need to put some great minds and some great money behind it.</p>
<br />  <img alt="" border="0" src="http://stats.wordpress.com/b.gif?host=gigaom.com&#038;blog=14960843&#038;post=631617&#038;subd=gigaom2&#038;ref=&#038;feed=1" width="1" height="1" /><p><a href="http://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?iu=/1008864/GigaOM_RSS_300x250&#038;sz=300x250&#038;c=276253"><img src="http://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/ad?iu=/1008864/GigaOM_RSS_300x250&#038;sz=300x250&#038;c=276253" /></a></p><p><strong>Related research and analysis from GigaOM Pro:</strong><br />Subscriber content. <a href="http://pro.gigaom.com/?utm_source=tech&utm_medium=editorial&utm_campaign=auto3&utm_term=631617+qa-how-kaplans-techstars-ed-tech-accelerator-plans-to-get-to-the-head-of-the-class&utm_content=kimaeheussner">Sign up for a free trial</a>.</p><ul><li><a href="http://pro.gigaom.com/2012/05/the-quantified-self-hacking-the-body-for-better-health-and-performance/?utm_source=tech&utm_medium=editorial&utm_campaign=auto3&utm_term=631617+qa-how-kaplans-techstars-ed-tech-accelerator-plans-to-get-to-the-head-of-the-class&utm_content=kimaeheussner">The quantified self: hacking the body for better health</a></li><li><a href="http://pro.gigaom.com/2012/02/facebooks-ipo-filing-the-opening-shot-heard-round-the-world/?utm_source=tech&utm_medium=editorial&utm_campaign=auto3&utm_term=631617+qa-how-kaplans-techstars-ed-tech-accelerator-plans-to-get-to-the-head-of-the-class&utm_content=kimaeheussner">Facebook&#8217;s IPO filing: ideas and implications</a></li><li><a href="http://pro.gigaom.com/2012/08/crowdfundings-rapid-growth-and-future-opportunities/?utm_source=tech&utm_medium=editorial&utm_campaign=auto3&utm_term=631617+qa-how-kaplans-techstars-ed-tech-accelerator-plans-to-get-to-the-head-of-the-class&utm_content=kimaeheussner">Crowdfunding’s rapid growth and future opportunity</a></li></ul>]]></content:encoded>
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