2019 stands out as a rather interesting year. With drastic ups and downs for various companies and startups and unicorns. It also stands out as a historic year as more female-founded unicorns came to being.

Back in 2018, there were about 12 unicorns born that had at least one female founder. When compared to early 2019, the number increased with 10 female-founded unicorns born. 

This makes for an interesting scenario. These companies managed to raise a post-money valuation of $1 billion before the year ended. 

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Jan. 13, 2020  – Biomedical engineering Associate Professor Elliot Hui has won a four-year $1.1 million grant from the National Institutes of Health to develop a system that can perform extreme high-throughput screening for drug development. By utilizing parallel nanoliter droplet dispenser arrays, the approach can vastly increase the number of compounds that can be tested simultaneously and will cost significantly less than current screening systems.

The grant is funded through the NIH’s National Institute of General Medical Sciences.

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Santa Barbara-based InTouch Health, which provides telehealth services and robotic, healthcare products, has been acquired by Teladoc Health, for $600M in a combination of cash and stock, the companies said over the weekend. According to the two, the deal is includes approximately $150M in cash and $450M of Teladoc Health common stock. InTouch Health was backed by Beringea, Galen Partners, InvestCare Partners, InvestMichigan, Acacia Venture Partners, Twenty One East Victoria, and iRobot, among others.

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Venice, California-based venture investor Fifth Wall Ventures, which invests in real estate technology, has raised nearly $3.5M in a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV)–like as part of an investment in another company–according to a regulatory filing from the firm this morning. Fifth Wall Ventures SPV XIX, L.P., is one of a large set of SPVs the firm has created for various investments. Accoridng to the filing, the firm raised $3,459,250 from 8 inestors in the SPV.

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Motorcycle riding is a combination of exhilaration, fear, relaxation, and pleasure that changes you forever.  It’s physical & emotional pleasure, with a layer of anxiety & adrenaline. 

The sense of freedom feels complete on two wheels, and riding doesn’t transport you to a destination; it is the destination.

Motorcyclists often feel like they belong to a big community, and that sensation gives them something in common; a shared bond that sets them apart from the rest of the motoring world.

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The number of self-employed Americans is projected to hit 42 million in 2020 with freelance and contract workers making up 43% of the U.S. workforce, according to FreshBooks.

The Toronto-based accounting and software firm’s 2018 Self-Employment Report found 27 million U.S. workers were potentially poised to leave traditional work in favor of self-employment by next year.

With so many people jumping into the gig economy, how can a self-employed worker stand out from the competition and land a job in the New Year?

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San Diego-based Element Biosciences, which is developing DNA sequencing technology, says it has raised $80M in a Series B funding round. The new funding came from Fidelity Management & Research Company and JS Capital LLC, along with Foresite Capital and Venrock. According to Element Biosciences, the new funds will go towards accelerating the development of its genomic sequencing products. The company has now raised more than $100M in total. Molly He, PhD is CEO and co-founder of Element.

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Los Angeles-based Quibi, the previously stealth-mode mobile video startup founded by Jeffrey Katzenberg and Meg Whitman, said at CES that it has raised $400M in a funding round. The company–which unveiled a website and announced its plans to roll out 175 short form video series specificaly created for smartphones, tablets, and other mobile devices–was previously known as NewTV. Quibi renamed itself in October of 2018, but has been mum about its plans in the content world.

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The only thing more difficult than being an entrepreneur is being an entrepreneur with final exams. Student and alumni-led startups make up a large portion of the UCI Beall Applied Innovation ecosystem. Here, CEOs – both current UC Irvine students and alumni – offer advice and insights to anyone starting a business … and a term paper.

1. Waterborne Skateboards

Patrick Dumas, CEO, senior in business information management, Paul Merage School of Business:

Consult with experts before you make any big decision or spend any big sum of money.

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Culver City-based Dub Frequency Media (DFM), a marketing, public relations, and creative firm which focuses on millennials, has raised $9.0M in a funding round, part of an ongoing $10.97M funding effort, according to a regulatory filing by the company this week. The company, led by Jesse Lee, counts such major clients as Nike, Calvin Klein, Nordstrom, Tesla, Live Nation, Red Bull, and many others. According to the filing, 8 investors participated in the funding round for the company.

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