Venture capital investment for the first quarter here looks pretty decent to some tech mavens, despite the fact that Illinois lags substantially behind other regions of country.
Illinois companies only attracted 3.2 percent of the total investment pie, according to Growthink Research, an investment research firm based in California.
The Bay Area snared a whopping 30 percent of venture capital, followed by Boston with 14 percent. The Chicago area ranks sixth in the top 10 metropolitan areas.
But the good news is that some promising local companies are getting funded.
“Although you have to be extremely selective, our view is that this is a great time to invest. We remain proactive in looking for [new investments],” said Bob Zieserl, managing partner of KB Partners, one of the most active investors on the local start-up scene.
In the first quarter, KB Partners invested in a $7.5 million round for Corona Optical Systems, and a $7.2 million round for NetRegulus, two local companies involved with optoelectronics and intelligence software respectively.
“And we just recently did follow-on rounds for Rubicon Technology and Sarvega,” said Zieserl, underscoring his commitment to the local high-tech community.
Upstart investments
Other upstarts that received funding in the first quarter include software and service companies CompassCare ($750,000), CrossMedia Services (undisclosed amount), Expand Beyond ($5 million) and Project Leadership Associates (undisclosed amount). Infoblox received an $8 million round to develop and market its task- specific server appliances. Organ Recovery Systems, which improves the suitability of organs for transplant, received $14 million, and Chromatin received nearly $1 million to accelerate its work of using engineered chromosomes to improve characteristics in plants.
In addition, the PWCMoneyTree survey reported that digital print tech company Centiv received $2.5 million, financial services company EnvestnetPMC received $7 million and nanotech company NanoInk received $6 million.
When coupled with a $75 million private equity investment in SSA Global Technologies, a private enterprise software company, more than $135 million flowed into local companies in the first quarter to be spent on product development, sales and marketing–the kinds of things that can help get this economy moving again.
Nano forum
If anyone had any doubts about the importance of nanotechnology to Illinois’ economy, those doubts probably will be dispelled Tuesday at the Comdex Innovation Forum.
More than 500 people have pre-registered for the free event to find out about the science, the opportunity and ethical considerations of the nanotech industry in Illinois.
“The fact that the Chicago area has responded so well to the upcoming forum on Nanotechnology speaks volumes about the promise of this emerging industry and the role Comdex will play in helping bring nanotechnology innovation into the commercial marketplace,” noted Comdex exec Mike Millikin.
Comdex, in partnership with the Chicago Microtechnology and Nanotechnology Community, i-Street and the SAS Institute, are sponsoring the event to help galvanize the local nanotech community.
“I am amazed by the great turnout, but not entirely surprised,” said Nik Rokop, president of the CMNC. “We are reaching critical mass.”
Clyde Kimball, 75, professor of physics at Northern Illinois University, will speak at the event and display the kind of enthusiasm shared with young graduate students working in nanotechnology at the school.
“The fascinating aspect of the current state to commercialize nanotechnology is that the step is so small,” Kimball said. “There are a large number of commercial applications that can be on the market within 3 to 5 years.”
Added Alyce Nogal Poziombka, a board member of Women in Technology International, “I think nanotech will be a big part of the future of Chicago’s economy, and we want to be a part of it.”
If you haven’t yet registered for Tuesday’s event and would like to attend, visit http://www.comdex.com/forums/index.php?s=chicago.
Darcy Evon is editor of i-Street magazine, a monthly publication for the technology industry, and the i-Street Reporter, a weekly online newsletter.
