So, Do You Feel Lucky?

Or Are You Too Tired to Tell?

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 ~ We entrepreneurs are a notoriously optimistic (if paranoid) bunch.

Ask most why they are optimistic and you'll usually hear about the unique and compelling virtues of their latest startup, the enormous market opportunity, the great team, the many sustainable competitive advantages, how much traction it already has, etc. Heck, I've said these things myself. Recently.

There's another oft-stated reason: hard work. As Thomas Edison memorably observed, many miss opportunity because it comes dressed in overalls and looks like work. Not entrepreneurs. We expect to work hard. We may even be proud of it.

Some count on hard work so much they come to believe that they succeed (and others don't) solely because of hard work.

It's not true.

Faster Than Rabbits

Propagating Rootstocks

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 ~ Here at Phytelligence, we're busy growing for our customers.

See these pieces of budwood?

In the next few months we're going to turn them into more than 10,000 trees.

Need trees? Contact us, or come to our open house on June 11 and find out how we do it.

Startup Thrift

Just Like Old Times

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 ~ Back in my Microsoft days (1982-1993) I would sometimes sleep under my desk. With intense deadline pressures, it just took too long to go home and come back,so many of us just crashed at the office. We did it to save time.

Now I do it to save money. At Phytelligence, my current startup, I've stopped springing for a hotel room every time I drive out from Bellevue to Pullman. The Pullman Aquatic Center provides a workout room and hot showers for $5 a day—deal!

However, age has imparted a few grains of wisdom, and, as you can see in the picture, I have improved the level of comfort over the carpeted floor.

Growing Success

From Idea to Revenue

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 ~ We're making steady (and growing!) progress at Phytelligence, the WSU spin-out providing better fruit, trees, and services to commercial growers and nurseries. We closed our initial funding round with more than 70% of the funding coming from our customers and partners. We've added a top industry leader to our Board of Directors. And this week we received our first revenue.

I'm Back

More Surprises

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 ~ That was a long hiatus.

Since I last posted we've entered the Year of the Snake. Some years are named after animals whose qualities are easier to admire, like the Dog, the Dragon, the Horse, and so on. It's more of a challenge for others, like the Rat and the Snake. I suppose I should give the Snake his due, but it's harder when his year starts with the most disreputable and snaky behavior on the part of our landlady. (The term landlady is far too respectable, so hereafter I will use a more suitable term.)

Here's the whole story:

Tracking Consequences

Let's Get Empirical

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 ~ The inaptly named fiscal cliff has been (temporarily) averted in a deal that, in part, raises taxes on the so-called job creators.

We've been hearing for years—decades even—that higher taxes on the rich would cause them to stop hiring and investment.

Now that their taxes have gone up, let's all pay attention to see whether they actually throw that petulant fit they've been threatening for so long. I'm guessing not.

Phytelligence at the Hort Show

Success!

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 ~ I've missed blogging the past several days, because I was way too busy to spend any time on social media things. Instead, I've been getting ready and doing the Washington State Horticultural Association's big annual show.

We had a great time and it was a great success for us. Will post more on the Phytelligence blog soon.

Phytelligence Lab Space

Lease Signed Today

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~ Phytelligence and the Washington State University Research Foundation (WSURF) today executed a lease for office and laboratory space in the Research Park operated by WSURF.

The space and the location are very well-suited to the company's needs, and move-in is expected to be substantially complete in less than 3 weeks.

Want an invite to our "office-warming" party? Just contact me at the company and I'll get you on the list!

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Disclosure: I am a founder and the CEO of Phytelligence. A similar post was cross-posted to the Phytelligence blog.

World Food Day

The Challenge of Feeding the World

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 ~ October 16 is World Food Day, established to raise global awareness of wide-spread hunger all over the world. Many organizations are today calling attention to this most basic human right—to have enough to eat.

The Institute of Food Technologists, for example, is highlighting the importance of industrial innovation in providing solutions to global hunger:

Just as society has evolved over time, our food system has also evolved over centuries into a global system of immense size and complexity. The commitment of food science and technology professionals to advancing the science of food, ensuring a safe and abundant food supply, and contributing to healthier people everywhere is integral to that evolution. Food scientists and technologists are versatile, interdisciplinary, and collaborative practitioners in a profession at the crossroads of scientific and technological developments.

The innovative scientists and researchers at Phytelligence are part of that global solution that will provide more food, of better quality, faster, to more people.

Phytelligence Commercialization

From Lab to Field

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 ~ Back in September WSU Professor Amit Dhingra, also CTO and Co-founder of Phytelligence, addressed a gathering of some of the state's larger growers and nursery owners. While the talk was primarily about some of the research in his lab, he also spoke about its commercialization for the benefit of our state's agricultural industry.

Here is a video of his 20-minute address:



The technology from the Dhingra Lab has been licensed to Phytelligence, and progress continues apace to make it available to our commercial partners. Genetic analysis services are available now, and the first tissue cultured fruit trees will be available in limited quantities in time for the 2013 planting season.

Fostering Entrepreneurship

Diversifying Into More Sectors

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 ~ What needs to be done to grow the entrepreneurial ecosystem in the Pacific Northwest?

This question was one of the four primary themes of the recent Pacific Northwest Innovation Summit, and the focus of the day's third panel. Everyone is in favor of more innovation leading to more entrepreneurial activity, but the specifics are elusive.

Moderator Luke Timmerman, Seattle editor for Xconomy, asked about barriers to local entrepreneurship. There are several (a few to be subjects of later posts) but one is how concentrated we are in software and life sciences. The Seattle region is an undisputed national, even global leader in those, but we need to expand beyond just two to truly build a stronger innovation-fueled economic engine.

"So, What Are You Doing?"

"(These Days?)"

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~ I get asked this a lot. So, just as I did a year ago on my last lap around the sun, I'll write a quick update.

I'm still doing consulting and contract work, as well as working on some startups (of my own as well as others.) The best description that more or less braids all the strands? Entrepreneur-at-large, pitching in wherever there is opportunity to create or grow an interesting business from idea to revenue.

Some of my current projects are the same as a year ago. A couple didn't work out and had to be put down. There's also a few new ones:

Sweet Cherries

Smarter Cherries

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~ Many know that Washington State University (WSU) is a national leader in agricultural research. Not so many know that WSU researchers are working to solve immediate, practical problems for growers, for example, in sweet cherry propagation:

Imagine ordering a piece of cherry pie at a restaurant, and being told that your pie would be delivered in two or three years. On your way out the door, you’d probably tell the waiter, “That’s no way to do business!” Orchard managers, however, have to place their orders for sweet cherry trees two to three years in advance of receiving and planting them.

Phytelligence Web Site

Alive and Growing!

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Phytelligence plantlets growing
in optimized environment

 ~ Phytelligence is a startup that comes out of innovative hothouse Washington State University (WSU). We've been presenting the company to various groups and receiving a lot of interest.

It uses tissue culture techniques to make plantlets (small plants that orchard owners and vineyards plant). These plantlets can shorten by years the time until a grower has fruit to sell, and can at last start to recover the investment of buying and growing fruit trees. They're also vigorous, high quality, and genetically uniform, and we guarantee good results.

Phytelligence has also developed the know-how to propagate highly desirable and difficult materials such as the highly disease and virus-resistant G41 and G935 apple rootstocks.

Industry-leading genetic analysis services and contract growing and genetic work is also available.

Know anyone who needs help with their growing success? Contact us.

Gasoline Pricing Factors

Their Number's Up

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 ~ What you pay at the pump for gasoline is the product of six main factors, especially well-known ones like the cost of crude oil, refining, taxes, and what Big Oil spends purchasing Congressional outcomes.

Today I learned of another, much less well-known factor: shortages of numbers.

Yes, numbers. The ones that gas stations post on their marquees that tell passing drivers the price of each octane blend.

Washington Horticulture Association

A Fruitful Annual Conference

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 ~ I'm off early to Wenatchee tomorrow for the annual meeting of the Washington Horticulture Association. I'm looking forward to lots of sessions on best practices for growing fruit, latest technologies, and a long stroll through the exhibit hall. Hoping to make some further contacts and drum up additional interest in Phytelligence.

If you're there and want to meet up, call/text/email.

Phytelligence at NWEN

Pitch Video

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 ~ Here is the 5-minute presentation of WSU spin-out company Phytelligence I did at the NWEN First Look Forum back on October 18:



Web site coming soon.

Feeding the World

It's Getting Harder To Do

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 ~ World population continues to grow exponentially, but, as Malthus observed, our food production is not keeping pace. Worse, feeding those alive today is getting harder:

• Some food crops (e.g. corn) are diverted for making fuels
• Fresh water supplies are dwindling or under threat
• Modern agriculture is heavily dependent on fossil fuel inputs for transportation and fertilizer
• Arable land is vanishing to development and to erosion

To produce enough food for everyone there will need to be many coordinated solutions. One partial solution would be to grow more plants in less space with fewer energy inputs. A new startup company spun out of WSU has technology that does exactly that.

Phytelligence makes smarter plants, or rather, has a smarter process for propagating them and boosting them through their earliest (plantlet) growth stage. It's not genetic engineering, or GMO, but rather the smart application of proprietary technology to grow vigorous and healthy plantlets in less time, at less cost, and with less water and energy.

The Company has already successfully propagated 4 of the top 5 fruits in the US as measured by crop value and by acres planted. There is enormous opportunity in other fruits, tree nuts, and other kinds of crops generally. The nursery business has seen little change in generations; Phytelligence is aiming to bring to the industry 21st Century technology, sustainability practices and logistics.

Come learn more about Phytelligence at the NWEN First Look Forum, this Tuesday, 3:00-5:00 at the Arctic Hotel in Seattle. Reception to follow.

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Update: Phytelligence finished in the top 5. Thanks to NWEN for a great event!

"So, What are You Doing?"

"(These Days?)"

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~ I've been asked this, or questions like it, quite a bit lately. Perhaps, thanks to this lovely turnover economy, it's because many of us are changing positions, jobs or careers at a frenetic pace. Perhaps, unfortunately, it's because my LinkedIn page doesn't provide the simplest summary. Or perhaps it's because today's my birthday, and birthdays are a great time to ping friends and colleagues with such whazzup questions.

It's hard even for my close friends to figure it out; the line-up changes all the time. And indeed, I need several prosthetic memory devices (laptop, Droid, calendar, and many, many lists) to stay on top of it myself.

While I do consulting and contract work, what I really do is serve as a kind of entrepreneur-at-large, pursuing several opportunities where I can help turn the chaos of a general idea into a growing, successful business.

The current line-up? My favorites (that I can talk about):

Phytelligence to Present at NWEN FLF

First Look Forum of 12 Startups

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~ Phytelligence, a new biotech spin-out from WSU has been selected as one of 12 companies to present at the upcoming NWEN First Look Forum on October 18. between 150 and 200 people, primarily investors, are expected to attend.

Phytelligence is built on innovative intellectual property developed by WSU Professor Amit Dhingra and a sterling team of researchers to produce better micro-propagated fruit plantlets using tissue culture techniques. The team has successfully and repeatedly propagated many apple, pear, cherry, grape and strawberry cultivars using techniques that can be extended to other plants. Attributes of plantlets using Phytelligence technology that are valuable to growers include greater plant vigor and genetic uniformity. Plantlets also attain maturity more quickly, use less energy to produce, and cost less. Phytelligence is being built on sustainability principles, and has several innovative aspects to its business model.

More details to be announced in October.