.

Month: November 2021

OTBC Westside Startup Challenge 2022 announces selected startups

Out of 49 applicants, five startups have been selected to engage with OTBC as part of its 2022 Westside Startup Challenge. Each of the winners receives a $25,000 investment in addition to the resources provided by OTBC.

Read More

Portland Hololens agency Object Theory acquired by ARound

It’s another exit via acquisition for serial founder Raven Zachary. His latest company — the Microsoft Hololens agency he helped cofound, Object Theory — has been acquired by ARound. Small Society, the iOS development shop Raven cofounded prior to Object Theory — a preeminent player in the then burgeoning Portland mobile scene — was acquired by Walmart Labs in 2012.

Read More

Community kudos: Steve Morris, OTBC

In 2005 Steve Morris assumed the role of Executive Director of Beaverton’s Oregon Technology Business Center (OTBC). He assumed it would be a temporary role, but last month, after leading the organization for 16 years, he stepped down to become OTBC’s part-time Entrepreneur In Residence.

Over those 16 years Steve grew OTBC into a statewide highly respected entrepreneurial support organization. He also led OTBC’s investment efforts with the Westside Startup Challenge which after six years has invested over $700,000 in 30 startup’s that have gone on to raise over $60 million in additional funding.

Well done Steve!

— Jim McCreight, Executive Director OTBC

Connect with Steve on LinkedIn.

Have someone you’d like to recognize? Give them the kudos they deserve.

Meet Skittish, a new online event platform that takes a quirky approach

Any number of online event platforms try varying degrees of approximating an event environment, virtually. But most, at best, create an uncanny valley of “almost but not quite.” So what if you took a completely different approach? Like, I don’t know… riffing on the incredibly popular Animal Crossing as an event environment? That’s about the most accurate description of Skittish.

Read More

Oregon Community Foundation launches $580,000 Thriving Entrepreneurs Fund

Oregon Community Foundation focuses on improving the lives of all Oregonians through philanthropic efforts. But today, they focused on a very particular group of Oregonians: entrepreneurs. And they did so by donating $580,000 to a variety fo entrepreneur support groups.

Read More

Vancouver startup Suggestion Ox selected for TinySeed Accelerator

Over the history of startup accelerators, any number of models for accelerators and the startups they support have emerged. Among them, the TinySeed Accelerator stands out as a leader in the accelerating bootstrapped startups. And now, another local startup — Suggestion Ox — is taking advantage of that program.

Read More

Woman founded Portland startup GoCamp acquired by Storyteller Overland

If you’ve ever seen those rentable custom Sprinter vans in your forays into the outdoors, you’ve like encountered GoCamp, the Portland startup that’s like “Airbnb for camper vans.” Well it was a Portland startup at least. Until it got acquired by Storyteller Overland, last week.

Read More

I’m not dead yet! I’m feeling better: Koan finds a new home for its product

Earlier in the week, we got news that Koan, the startup founded by former Jive Software cofounder Matt Tucker, was preparing to wind down. But in the world of startups, apparently it ain’t over til it’s over. Because we just learned today that the Koan product has a new lease on life. Thanks to Gtmhub.

Read More