Curtis Gunn, Chairman of Desert Angels, is the first Arizona investor to be appointed to the Angel Capital Association Board, and will serve for three years. The Angel Capital Association is the leading professional and trade association supporting the success of angel investors in high-growth, early-stage ventures. “I look forward to raising the awareness of Arizona companies, … Read more
Tucson-based SynCardia Systems, a total artificial heart development, manufacturing and commercializing company, filed for IPO under the proposed symbol TAHT (total artificial heart temporary) and looking to raise $34.5 million according to NASDAQ. The company plans to issue 2.5 million shares with an over allotment option of $375,000 at $10-12 per share. The lead underwriter is Roth Capital … Read more
Co-written with Tishin Donkersley Only 1% of America’s venture capital-backed startups are led by African Americans, and only 3% are led by women. This has to change. Today, President Obama is hosting the first White House Demo Day, promoting diversity across all industries for women and minorities. The event is giving 30 entrepreneurs and startups … Read more
How often do the grocery checkout coupons and weekly circulars end up in the trash? To combat this challenge, one Tucson-based startup is helping grocers target price-conscious shoppers through their mobile devices. Recoleta Digital Media, a personalized grocery circular system, has raised an undisclosed sum of Series A-2 funding. Their platform creates digitally driven personalized circulars with … Read more
Phoenix’s sister city to the south, Tucson, has blossomed into its own thriving technology ecosystem. Tucson is home to the Tucson Tech Corridor (TTC) and also several big technology companies that employ thousands of Tucson residents such as Raytheon and IBM. Here’s a run-down of what you need to know about the Tucson tech community. Startup … Read more
The Angel Resource Institute, Silicon Valley Bank and CB Insights released the 2014 Q1 HALO Report, a national survey of angel group investment activity, and ranked Tucson-based Desert Angels (DA) again as one of the top 10 most active angel groups in the country. Curtis Gunn, chairman of Desert Angels, tells AZTB, “Desert Angels are … Read more
Contatta, the world’s first collaborative email, has completed a $1.5 million convertible round led by Kickstart Seed Fund II and Grayhawk Capital. In addition, all of Contatta’s current board members, including CEO and co-founder Pat Sullivan, and outside investors Desert Angels and Arizona Technology Investors Forum (ATIF) participated in this latest round of investment. “Desert … Read more
Tucson’s premiere entrepreneurship development organization, Startup Tucson, is proud to announce the launch of Thryve, a social impact incubator. The new incubator resides in Startup Tucson’s CoLab workspace offices at Holualoa’s historic Pioneer Building at 17 E. Pennington Street Tucson, AZ 85710. Justin Williams, chairman & founder of Startup Tucson, shared that the inspiration to … Read more
The Angel Resource Institute, Silicon Valley Bank and CB Insights released the 2013 Halo Report, a national survey of angel group investment activity, and ranked Tucson-based Desert Angels (DA) in the top 10 for most active angel groups in the United States-a first for DA. Curtis Gunn, chairman of Desert Angels tells AZTB, “Desert Angels … Read more
Desert Angels (DA) announced their final investment numbers for 2013 equaling over $5.5 million placed into 23 different companies-the majority of them in Arizona. Chairman of Desert Angels and board member on the Angel Capital Association Curtis Gunn said this milestone “…is a record for us, both record of number of companies and dollars invested.” … Read more