Thursday, May 18, 2017


Kryptos Logic Emerges From Shadows After Halting WannaCry
Los Angeles-based Kryptos Logic has emerged from the shadows this week, after one of its researchers halted the massive WannaCry virus. The company, led by Salim Neino, employed 22-year old security researcher Marcus Hutchins, who halted the spread of the virus by registering a domain name coded into the virus source code. Hutchins is based in England. Kryptos Logic provides services around managed security, penetration, security consulting, incident response, and other areas. The company is one (More info...)
posted on Thursday, May 18, 2017(Full story)

Goodbye DogVacay, Hello Rover
It looks like the days of DogVacay, the online dog sitting marketplace started in Santa Monica, are rapidly heading to an end, nearly six months after the company was acquired by competing pet marketplace Rover. In an email, sent over the last week to users of DogVacay, Rover and DogVacay said that it is migrating all of DogVacay's users over to Rover. In that email, Rover and DogVacay said that users on DogVacay will no longer be able to book on DogVacay as of June 12th. In a FAQ posted on DogV (More info...)
posted on Thursday, May 18, 2017(Full story)

Ross Levinsohn Joins SteelHouse's Board
Los Angeles-based advertising software developer SteelHouse announced on Thursday that it has named Ross Levinsohn, the former CEO of Yahoo!, to its board of directors. Levinsohn, who is a well known advisor and investor in the digital media and technology market, has previously served as CEO of Yahoo!, Fox Interactive Media, and Guggenheim Digital Media. He also served at News Corporation, where he was involved in the formation of Hulu, and also is co-founder and partner at Whisper Advisors, an (More info...)
posted on Thursday, May 18, 2017(Full story)

Social Native Raises $8M
Los Angeles-based Social Native, an online marketplace which connects brands with content creators creating social media content, has raised $8M in a funding round, the company disclosed today. The funding came from SoftBank Capital, along with angels Jeff Ragovin and Eytan Elbaz. Social Native is led by CEO David Shadpour. Ragovin and Elbaz both joined Social Native as executives in January.
posted on Thursday, May 18, 2017(Full story)

The Virtual Reality's New VR Experience, Raising a Rukus, Debuts At IMAX
Los Angeles-based The Virtual Reality Company is rolling out its first, family-focused virtual reality (VR) experience tomorrow, called "Raising a Rukus", through a partnership with IMAX. According to The Virtual Reality Company, its new family-oriented VR experience will debut at the IMAX VR Centre in Los Angeles on May 19. "Raising a Rukus" is an animated, virtual reality experience focused on two twins who have found a dog with a "magical secret". The Virtual Reality Company's prior creations (More info...)
posted on Thursday, May 18, 2017(Full story)

Wag In Major National Expansion Of Dog Walking App
Los Angeles-based dog walking marketplace app Wag! is in a national expansion, saying that it has launched into 16 new cities nationwide. Wag! said it is now available in Atlanta, Baltimore, Boston, Colorado Springs, Columbus, Dallas, Fort Worth, Houston, Indianapolis, Las Vegas, Miami, Nashville, Philadelphia, Phoenix, San Antonio, and Washington D.C., which is a major expansion beyond its initial launch markets in Los Angeles, San Francisco, and New York. Wag! lets users request dog walkers in (More info...)
posted on Thursday, May 18, 2017(Full story)

HyreCar Partners With Lyft On Ridesharing Rentals
Los Angeles-based startup HyreCar, a peer-to-peer car sharing marketplace, has partnered with Lyft Los Angeles, the two said today. The partnership will help potential Lyft drivers in Los Angeles, particularly those younger than 25, find short and long term ridesharing rentals. HyreCar said its peer-to-peer marketplace connects thousands of vehicle owners with potential Lyft drivers, offering up pre-certified cars for ridesharing under Lyft's vehicle requirements. HyreCar said is marketplace le (More info...)
posted on Thursday, May 18, 2017(Full story)

Quidel Buys Businesses From RPS Diagnostics
San Diego-based diagnostic testing products maker Quidel Corporation announced this week that it has acquired the InflammaDry and AdenoPlus diagnostic businesses from RPS Diagnostics. Quidel said it would pay approximately $14M in cash for those product lines. InflammaDry and AdenoPlus are rapid, lateral-flow based, POC products for the detection of infectious and inflammatory diseases and conditions of the eye. Quidel said it will transfer the manufacturing of those two products to its San Dieg (More info...)
posted on Thursday, May 18, 2017(Full story)