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That initial obsession brought Pettis and his team to build 20 MakerBots for their initial launch. They thought it would take two months to sell them; they all sold out instantly. His obsession has also driven him to not only turn $75,000 of initial funding into $8 million in revenue, but also to extend the function of MakerBot beyond simple creation. It has become a platform where people are exercising creativity, building prosthetic limbs, and bettering the world in any way they can....

One obvious solution for this is to get a personal assistant, that could track all those informations and keep you posted on it, telling you what there is to know about the people you are meeting next. But what if there was an even easier solution, much cheaper and much more portable? Would it be interesting? Then meet Charlie, the app that does exactly that. Nominated as one of the best new startups in Chicago, Charlie is an app that, thanks to its integration with several calendar tools, sends users a detailed one-sheet with information on the people they are meeting next....

1871 was recently ranked first in the UBI Global list of top university-affiliated businesses .Over the past few years, Chicago has been building up a robust tech startup ecosystem of its very own. Organizations such as Built In Chicago, the Illinois Technology Association, and the Chicagoland Entrepreneurial Center has helped make networking in the digital tech world more accessible, and more scalable in terms of growth. According to Built In Chicago, between 2004 and 2008, there was an average launch rate of 25 startups per year....

The initial launch of this startup and app brought with it numerous downloads. However, after a month, Parashar realized that there were no payments moving through the system. His idea was diminishing before his eyes. An investigation yielded paradoxical data; merchants who adopted the platform never saw customers using it, and customers who adopted the platform never crossed paths with merchants using it. There was a golden lesson lurking just beneath the surface of this experience, one that Parashar would not soon forget....

iPhone won’t connect to Wi-Fi Many users complained their iOS device cannot connect to Wi-Fi. This is a common problem among iPhone users, but it’s a minor issue that requires simple solutions. The first step to resolve this is to turn off your Wi-Fi and then turn it back on. There is an option that allow you to click on the Wi-Fi icon and disabled it. Then you can click on it to turn it on....

Computer viruses are now so common that even IT experts have a hard time identifying and monitoring these pesky cyber contaminants. When the Internet first appeared, viruses were not a problem. Internet users had the luxury of sharing and downloading photos, files, and folders as they pleased. However, with the advancement of Internet technology, viruses began to emerge. At best, these viruses are a nuisance and may limit the functionality of a computer for a day or two....

It’s an ambitious goal, but that’s what Cubic Transportation Systems lives for. In a similar vein, they were recently recognized for innovation for their contactless bankcard payment system, bringing home the Gamechanger category at the Contactless and Mobile Awards in London. The award is presented to the company with the most convincing business idea that uses Near Field Communications (NFC), contactless, or other mobile technologies. Cubic’s contactless bankcard system has, according to the team, changed the way that thousands of people travel in London....

Get personal, but make sure it’s the right kind of personal Customers love to see behind the scenes of a business, or hear authentic stories about how the CEO uses the company’s products. While the occasional story about the COO’s dogs or the CFO’s kids can be interesting if it’s relevant, too much of it will leave customers shrugging, in the end. When you’re crafting your company’s online story, make sure that you’re paying attention to the difference between your personal social media presence, and the social media presence of your position within the company....

The technology isn’t what you might call new. Smell-o-vision, a technique of releasing scents during movies, was developed in the 1950s, but much like virtual reality, never really made it into the mainstream. With something as complex as smell, getting it right can be hard and often distracting. But with an immersive experience like virtual reality, which is significantly improved with the addition of sound, smell seems like the perfect next step....

The company claims to have stopped numerous attempts to subvert the voting process already, and has identified three countries — Russia, China and Iran — as the main originators of these attacks. The attacks have been directed at staff on both the Trump and Biden campaigns. Who is Orchestrating the Attacks? According to the report from Microsoft, the attacks have mainly come from three well-known hacking organizations, based in Russia, China and Iran: Strontium – This Russian-based group has been active for some time, and was identified in the Mueller report as being responsible for the attacks on the Democratic campaign in 2016....

Brian Gruber, owner and founder, created Lucky Orange to fill the void of understanding how people are actually interacting with a website and to shut that nagging voice up once and for all. Designed as a usage and customer feedback tool for website owners, Lucky Orange provides succinct data to increase the return on investment for website-based businesses and services by identifying key areas in customer abandonment. Lucky Orange works behind the scenes and offers website owners a multitude of features to monitor their user base....

Last year, I started a digital marketing company. What a first year it was – named to the “Top 50 Startups to Watch in Colorado”; named as one of the six most charitable companies in Colorado; and the winner of multiple awards for our work. However, I just didn’t love what we were doing at the company. Before even starting the company, I set a list of guidelines for the type of culture I wanted to be cemented into the fabric of the business....

You’re looking to break into the entrepreneurship scene in a new city. You want to be in with the “cool kids,” running startups, throwing parties, and getting acquainted with the people who are making moves. How do you get started? We’re Not in Kansas Anymore First things first: Why are you trying to break into this city in the first place? Start by asking yourself the following questions: Is this where your market lives?...

The names and titles on display: Neil Hiltz, Global Head of Financial Services Strategy for Facebook; Mickey Mantas, Global Agency and Partner Education Lead at LinkedIn in Chicago; Christian Eberhardt, who leads Twitter’s Direct Sales team; and Cara Lageson, marketing and community director for Yelp Seattle. Here’s a list of takeaways that we learned at the panel. Start With the Audience All the panelists agreed: Your digital media journey starts with locking down your audience....

The decision is in response to proposed legislation from Australia’s government that would force Facebook to pay publishers for news links that people shared on the social platform. Facebook is making a big move, likely in hopes of stopping other countries from passing similar regulations. How the ban works Facebook is banning all users and outlets located in Australia from sharing news links. It is also banning international users from both viewing and sharing Australian news content on the platform....

Download the Sponduu iPhone app – With Sponduu, you simply post what you are looking to do on the bulletin board in your area. You can also share that with Facebook or Twitter. Then wait for others to join you. I am not sure what Sponduu is doing to help ensure you find someone else, which is where the value in posting something on Sponduu lies. Location based push-notifications or emails when new items get posted might be the best way to get someone else’s attention....

There are plenty of people who have extraordinary talent, passion and skills but aren’t succeeding in business or winning the game of life. Do you know a gifted web designer or coach who’s barely making ends meet? Maybe you’re friends with an incredibly smart and driven entrepreneur who can’t pay the rent. Or maybe you think that talented yet not so successful person is you. You could be thinking, “I know I have the skills to succeed, but I have no idea how I’m going to pay the bills this month....

A favorite reprieve from the stresses of the day is when I’m preparing a meal. For that time alone in the kitchen I’m only thinking about what I’m about to cook, the vegetables that need to be cut, pre-heating the oven, watching my water rise to a boil, or the sounds of my blender in the background. But this isn’t stressful at all. In fact, the scents and sounds that surround me ease me into a zen-like state....

This week at Innovate! And Celebrate we heard from Melody McCloskey, CEO and Cofounder of StyleSeat, on how their team scaled, raised funds, and has made a huge impact on two particular industries. StyleSeat is an online platform that connects beauty and wellness professionals with clients. To date, they’ve raised $39.9 million across four rounds and made their first acquisition earlier this year. Over the years, StyleSeat found much of its success primarily through organic growth, but that is much easier said than done....

The move, which comes soon after a similar position from Apple, should make user data more secure, and improve customer confidence that their privacy isn’t for sale at every turn. In the absence of third party cookies, Google is testing new ways to allow advertizers to smartly identify potential consumers. Removing third party cookies, which are used to trace user activity, frequently for advertizing purposes, is desirable from a privacy perspective....