Nasdaq Entrepreneurial Center Milestone Makers Program

The Nasdaq Entrepreneurial Center in San Francisco — which supports entrepreneurs from diverse backgrounds with free education, resources, and mentorship — has championed the idea of helping entrepreneurs define and achieve success on their own terms for the long-term, beyond the traditional Silicon Valley measures of success. That’s the inspiration behind their Milestone Makers Program, which helps early- to mid-stage entrepreneurs set, hit, and celebrate milestones that drive their businesses forward. Each founder selected for the program gets a personal business coach, 3–4 business mentors, a customized set of classes, and access to state-of-the-art resources — all valued at approximately $250,000 with no cost to the entrepreneurs. In the pay-it-forward spirit of Silicon Valley, graduating entrepreneurs will return to teach future classes of Milestone Makers.

A number of Band members participate as mentors, including Heather Crawford and Debra Vernon (pictured on the bottom right with mentor Anna Shen). Congratulations to the entrepreneurs that completed the program. Great closing bell ceremony!

Announcing Mentor Day - May 2nd at the NASDAQ Entrepreneurial Center

Band of Angels, in partnership with the NASDAQ Entrepreneurial Center, is pleased to host a mentoring session for 50 companies interested in raising angel capital on May 2, 2017 in San Francisco. The session is open to companies in any sector or industry. Startups are invited to sign up for a 45-minute meeting with one or more Band mentors to receive no risk feedback about the readiness of their venture for angel investment. Apply here by April 21, 2017 . The Band will hold "Best of Mentor Day" followup meeting on May 10, 2017. Band member mentors can register here. For more information, please contact mentorday@bandangels.com.

Portfolio News: Automated Trucking Startup Peloton Drafts $60 Million in Funding

Peloton Technology, an automated vehicle technology company focused on trucking, is on the verge of closing a $60 million Series B funding round led by Omnitracs, a fleet services company that spun out of Qualcomm.

The round includes existing investors Intel Capital, DENSO International America, Castrol innoVentures, Lockheed Martin, Nokia Growth Partners, UPS Strategic Enterprise Fund, Volvo Group Capital, Sandhill Angels, Band of Angels and Birchmere Ventures, Peloton Technology CEO and co-founder Josh Switkes confirmed to Fortune on Wednesday.

Read the full article on Fortune.com

Portfolio News: Revcontent Acquires Rover for Better Content Recommendation Tech

Revcontent, a self-funded company powering content recommendations for publishers like Forbes and The Atlantic, has acquired Rover.

That’s not Rover the pet-sitting marketplace, but rather the content discovery app formerly known as Flipora and Infoaxe. CEO John Lemp told me that Revcontent is paying “north of $30 million” in cash and stock for the acquisition, which he described as an investment in better content recommendations.

Read the full article on TechCrunch

Portfolio News: Kiana Analytics Awarded Grant from The Department of Homeland Security Science and Technology Directorate to Enhance Traveler Experience

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) announced today a $179,800 award to Kiana Analytics, Inc. to enhance U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s (CBP) passenger screening technology. The project is awarded under the Silicon Valley Innovation Program (SVIP) Other Transaction Solicitation (OTS) aimed at non-traditional performers to offer solutions to some of the toughest threats facing DHS and the homeland security mission.

“CBP secures and manages 328 ports of entry all over the country, including in remote areas,” said CBP Acting Commissioner Kevin McAleenan. “Through the Silicon Valley Innovation Program, we are exploring technologies that can provide us with new capabilities and solutions to facilitate lawful entry at even our most remote U.S. ports of entry.”

Read the full press release here