Boston tech leaders stand up for net neutrality
In a Friday press conference with U.S. Senator Ed Markey, the CEOs of TripAdvisor, Carbonite, iRobot and Data Intensity warned Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pait that the FCC’s planned rollback of net neutrality rules would harm the American economy. As an example of how the move would harm innovation, Carbonite’s Mohamad Ali told Bostinno that it would be difficult for his cloud backup company to compete against a broadband provider’s in-house solutions, even with superior technology, if the provider were allowed to give its own service preferential treatment. [BostInno]
Better start saving up
Boston digital manufacturing startup Desktop Metal unveiled the pricing for its metal 3D printing systems this week, and you won’t be getting one for the holidays anytime soon. The Desktop Metal printer, which uses an additive technique to print metal objects, has a starting price of $49,000 and will ship this August. [Press release]
Three startups take home $75,000 from Harvard’s New Venture Competition
Veho, Flare and Apli each took home $75,000 in Harvard Business School’s New Venture Competition on Tuesday. Veho, a package delivery app, won in the “business track” category, while Flare, which makes a wearable device that alerts emergency contacts if the user is in danger, won the “social enterprise” category. Apli, which helps Latin American companies fill vacant roles through automated messaging, won the alumni competition. [Boston Globe]
Bedly raises $2.7M to help you find a place to rest your head
Bedly, an online platform for renting apartments by the month, announced on Thursday that it has raised a $2.7 million seed round. The funding will be used to expand the functionality of its platform and to boost its presence in Boston and New York City. [BostInno]
After selling off security division, iRobot sees stock prices surge
On Wednesday, iRobot’s stock price rose from just under $70 to $80 a share following the release of its first quarter earnings. The company, best known for making the Roomba autonomous home cleaning robot, attributed the rising stock price in part to the decision to sell off its military robotics division last year in order to double down on consumer products. [Boston Business Journal]
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