Vheda Health, a digital health company that seeks to help people with chronic conditions, is one of a handful of healthcare startups that have received backing from a commercialization fund from Maryland’s Technology Development Corp. They were part of a list of 15 companies that received $1.5 million. It follows a funding allocation from earlier this year.

Just how effective tax breaks and other incentives are at boosting economic development is a crucial question states and localities should answer when they look to expand or renew programs.

Yet the extent to which local governments actually scrutinize economic development programs varies greatly, and many remain without basic accountability measures.

Image: The John A. Wilson Building, which houses the offices and chambers of the mayor and council of the District of Columbia. Earlier this year, the D.C. council approved a measure to require its chief financial officer to review tax expenditures. Wikimedia Commons/ Awiseman

Korean Prime Minister Chung Hung-won’ s statement echoes the increasing recognition by corporate and government leaders that IP monetisation and management is a core influencer of business and economic performance as well as national security. This was the umbrella theme which was embraced at the 2nd Annual Korea IP Conference, which brought together 100 of Korea’s topnotch IP experts under the support of Yulchon LLC, the Licensing Executives Society Korea, the Internet address Dispute Resolution Committee and the Korea In-House Counsel Association.

Image: Free Digital Photos

The entrepreneur and investor recently was quoted in the Financial Times giving a fairly harsh assessment of European startups and entrepreneurs, saying the continent’s culture lacked the necessary optimism for a strong tech ecosystem.

“If you’re a slacker with low expectations, those low expectations are likely to be met,” Thiel was quoted as saying.

Those remarks caused a stir in Europe. And yet, it didn’t stop Thiel from traveling to the Web Summit in Dublin this week, Europe’s largest startup conference. Thiel is scheduled to speak on stage later today. But in a press conference earlier in the day, he was asked about the “slacker” comment.

Research universities across the country regularly turn out science and technology that could be kernels for jobs-creating businesses. But many of those ideas have trouble finding bankers or venture investors willing to finance the slow, expensive development of a new company based on science.

Inspired by Ben Horowitz’ excellent “Good product managers, bad product managers” post and Stefan Smalla’s “Good leader, bad leader” masterpiece I’ve tried to put together my thoughts on what I think makes a great venture capital investor. Thanks go to my colleagues at Point Nine Capital for their invaluable feedback, in particular Michael, Mathias and Rodrigo, who reviewed an early draft of this post and provided lots of great comments.

We all have that one person who we'd love to meet—the best business contact or our biggest creative inspiration.

When Brad Lawrence and Michael Zach started the art apparel and body paint company BLVisuals in 2010, they dreamed of getting their goods in front of music star Macklemore.

Image: Free Digital Photos

The need for transformation has never before been more keenly felt in the corporate world.  Digital-first companies, such as Amazon, Facebook, Google, and Twitter, are amassing market share and capitalization, but only a few brick-and-mortar corporations (think Apple, Nissan, and HCL Technologies) have been able to change fast enough to catch up with their rivals.  Why do companies that lose their relevance find it so tough to recover?

The 2014 midterm elections turned out to be bad news for President Obama as the GOP nearly ran the table in key Senate races, giving Republicans control of both houses of Congress. For the tech industry, the news is more mixed — here are five reasons the arrival of the Republicans will have an impact:

Image: Free Digital Photos

Unfortunately, many entrepreneurs seem to prefer to fail their way to the top, rather than do some research and learn from the successes and mistakes of others. It seems to be part of the “fail fast, fail often” mantra often heard in Silicon Valley. As an advisor to many startups, I’m convinced it’s an expensive and painful approach, but I do see it used all too often.

Applying for a professional acceleration program is an important step for any company in its early years. It is the first time you get in touch with the startup ecosystem, the advisors and network of investors they represent. Startup acceleration programs are feedback-oriented investment programs that help young companies reach overall growth in a very short period of time. They give startups an amount of funding and help them in attracting other investors. They usually provide you with great mentoring and support, as our program does.

Image: http://www.luissenlabs.com 

Nesta, a UK-based innovation charity, recently looked at jobs and automation, in the article, Creativity versus Robots. I have summarized some of their findings, and added my own perspective, with an image showing how standardized work is decreasing while creative work is increasing in the job market. Overall, we are seeing an increasing percentage of creative jobs in the workforce. But this is not a zero-sum game, as many jobs are getting automated and disappearing. If nothing is done, there will be severe societal repercussions.

Image: http://jarche.com 

HUNTINGTON BEACH, Calif. — You might not think investors with huge piles of money would have much to worry about, but that’s increasingly the case in the competitive world of tech venture capital.

There is so much money chasing so few good deals that VCs need to work hard to get the choicest opportunities.

Image: Mix Master Mike works the turntables at Intel Capital's Global Summit, November 4, 2014 in Huntington Beach, California. Image Credit: Dylan Tweney/VentureBeat 

Saira Blair knocked off a Republican incumbent when she was just 17

An 18-year-old West Virginia University freshman was elected to the state’s House of Delegates on Tuesday, and is poised to be the youngest active lawmaker in the U.S. when she’s sworn in.

Image: West Virginia Republican State Delegate candidate Saira Blair campaigns at the Eastern Panhandle Business Association luncheon at The Purple Iris Restaurant in Martinsburg, Va., on Sept. 12, 2014.  - http://time.com

In the digitally enabled economy of today, connected and intelligent individuals face a world rife with competition when it comes to career advancement or even business survival. To stand out above the clutter as an individual, you need a newer, far reaching approach to building your personal influence and equity. According to the 2014 Edelman Trust Barometer, only 17.5% of people around the globe said they trust their business and government leaders to solve social issues, correct issues within industries that are experiencing problems, make ethical and moral decisions, and tell the truth regardless of complexity or unpopularity.

Image: http://memeburn.com 

Just as few would consider a marriage based on convenience, it should not be the driving factor behind building a founding team. But the rules of dating do apply when finding your business partners.

In much the same way men and women dream of the perfect partner with whom they can share everything: the joy of creation, the ups and downs, the hard work and the rewards, entrepreneurs also seek co-founders with whom they can connect and bond with on many levels. Skills are important, but so is chemistry. 

image: http://www.freedigitalphotos.net 

Social networks are like any other social environment: No two have exactly the same standards of acceptable behaviour. For good reasons, most of us would think twice before granting a Facebook friend request from a stranger. And since the workplace tends to have more rigid social standards than other areas of life, people commonly assume that their cache of connections on LinkedIn – the leading internet venue for professional networking – should be similarly exclusive, if not more so.

As a techie, when I need something — anything — I turn to the Web. I do a quick search to find a service provider, or before engaging with one, to check out their services online. Often, I do a quick check on a company website to find out where it is located, or what its operating hours are. I also check a website to get an idea of stock or service availability, or simply just to get a telephone number or directions.

There will never be enough capital to satisfy all the world’s entrepreneurial hopes. Therefore financiers ration money. Lenders reject weak deals and offer loans for startups mainly when they are well collateralized or the loans are guaranteed by strong parties, such as the federal government. And early-stage VCs, who ration money for high-growth ventures, fail in 80% of their investments.

Four easy tips to protect your digital accounts from the next breach.