Never Lost Again chronicles the evolution of mapping technology — the “overnight success twenty years in the making.” Bill Kilday, the marketing director for Keyhole and Google Maps, was there from the earliest days, and offers a personal look behind the scenes at the tech and the minds developing it. But this book isn’t only a look back at the past; it is also a glimpse of … [More]
Making Wait Time Engagement Time
A mobile messaging and marketing automation technology that delivers dynamic mobile pages through text messaging, BrightGuest is a local startup founded by Ryan Quinn in August 2014. Quinn came up with the idea for BrightGuest some years ago waiting for dinner at a restaurant that had a long wait. The restaurant gave him a coaster pager that he stared at for far too long, … [More]
Champion for the State’s Tech & Innovation Community
The purpose of recently launched invisionAZ is to help the state’s technology and innovation community grow. Its three-part goal is to help early-stage and startup businesses gain access to capital; enhance the technology ecosystem with the right technical workforce through mentoring, accelerators and education; and to raise Arizona’s profile as a welcoming environment for … [More]
Broadband Carriers: Making Smart Connections?
Today’s consumer is increasingly connected. Credible analysts report that there are now an average of 10 connected devices per home — and there will be more than 50 by 2020. It’s not just smartphones that are connected: it’s tablets, TVs, smart locks, smart lights, Web cams, environment sensors, security systems, fitness bands, smart thermostats, robotic floor cleaners, video … [More]
3-D Home Tours by Phone
A free Zillow 3D Home app allows agents to use the camera on their iPhones to easily create a 3-D walk-through of a property listing. Consumers can then view a home’s layout as if they were physically there. After participating in the app’s closed beta test, HomeSmart is now extending the value of the cost- and time-saving tool for its agents in the Phoenix market who want … [More]
More to Act! With
The newest addition to the Act! CRM software portfolio from Scottsdale-based Swiftpage, is Act! Premium Plus, which will enable small and medium-sized business to further tailor their CRM to meet the unique needs of their business, market, and industry. This is achieved through the all-new Custom Tables Manager and Industry Templates features, which allow companies to bring … [More]
AZBlue on the Go
Blue Cross Blue Shield of Arizona members can take helpful plan information with them wherever they go with the AZBlue Mobile app, available for Apple devices and Android phones and tablets. The app allows users to send an instant message or call BCBSAZ at the touch of a button, and includes coverage summary of plan deductibles for the member and dependents as well as … [More]
Unblocking Blockchain
KryptoPal is a blockchain-based platform that can be integrated into various applications around the world to perform various cryptocurrency transactions. Headquartered in Phoenix, it was started by technologists who have been inside the world of blockchain (records linked and secured by cryptography) for years and are frustrated with the current barriers preventing widespread … [More]
Invigorating the Valley’s Tech Growth
One startup at a time, Chandler-based Kadima.Ventures is changing the way businesses are launching with its integrative, hands-on marketing solutions; tech applications; savvy business connections; and much more. Earlier this year, Kadima partnered with fellow East Valley startup BrightGuest, a business known for its mobile messaging and marketing automation capabilities, to … [More]
Startup Support
Last month’s ASU Innovation Open attracted support from the established business community for upcoming startups. The ASUio is the largest student venture competition in the southwestern United States. University students from across the nation and from all disciplines participate in a series of competitive rounds to showcase the power of entrepreneurship in tackling the … [More]
Handwriting Tech Poised for Exciting Year
Handwriting technology in 2017 burst out in a big way as major hardware vendors began bundling active pens with their tablets, laptops and smartphones. The Pixelbook was Google’s entry into this market. A Chromebook that comes with an advanced pen that virtually eliminates ink lag, the Pixelbook was built to take on Microsoft’s Surface Pro and Apple’s iPad Pro — the dominant … [More]
Gamification App as Management Tool
Phoenix-based Driggs Title Agency kicked off 2018 with the launch of its latest app, Kindness Kwest. The app utilizes gamification to build teamwork, enhance client relations and inspire employees to give back to the community. As they work through the levels and complete tasks, employees earn rewards; their efforts will generate donations in their name to charity. Adam … [More]
Digitization Coming to the Fore in Construction
Arcadis, a leading global design and consultancy firm for natural and built assets, recently added Justin Wright to its global IT leadership team to oversee regional IT operations while defining and implementing a progressive digital strategy for the firm and its clients. “Arcadis has prioritized technology investment as a key part of its ‘Creating a Sustainable Future’ … [More]
Tracking Privilege Access
PowerBroker for Networks is an agentless solution that controls what commands users can run, records sessions, alerts, and provides a complete audit trail of user activity on network devices via the command line. This is a first-of-its kind privilege management solution for network, IoT, ICS and SCADA devices from BeyondTrust, the leading cyber security company dedicated to … [More]
For Cyber Security and Compliance
The Secure Data Protection Platform (SDP2), engineered to solve key cyber security and compliance issues facing governments, was produced jointly by RackTop Systems, a leading provider of high-performance Software-Defined Storage embedded with advanced security, encryption and compliance, and Seagate Technology plc, a world leader in data storage solutions. The … [More]
Hardware-Independent Wi-Fi
Broadband providers can now deliver whole home Wi-Fi services without being locked to single vendor or proprietary hardware, with the new CHARIOT release v6.5 from Affinegy, a global provider of service enablement software and connected device management. With its patent-pending method of abstracting the proprietary features of Wi-Fi gateways and access points into easy user … [More]
Startups Are Thriving in Phoenix
If a startup is looking for a place to dig in its roots and flourish, that place is Greater Phoenix. There’s no other city in the nation full of more promise and potential of fostering a growing startup than the Valley of the Sun. And I saw it all begin in 2015 with the birth of what is now Techstars Startup Week PHX powered by Chase for Business. At the time I was local, … [More]
Multilingual Staffing Chatbot
RoboRecruiter’s bot Robo is newly multilingual — able to support five languages across all its products (Dutch, English, Estonian, French and German). As internationalization develops, the list will continue to grow. Creator of the successful digital platform Elance, Beerud Sheth brought to his new endeavor, RoboRecruiter, an extreme amount of experience in the staffing … [More]
