MSCW names keynote, Q&A w/ Jamie Nonni of Municipay, State of the Ecosystem, and more...

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March 10, 2017
By Whit Richardson (@whit_richardson)

Hello again, loyal readers. Some deadlines at my day job means I'm sending out the newsletter a day late. Here's what went on this week in Maine's startup community.
 

Maine Startup & Create Week's first keynote speaker

Planning is already underway for this summer's Maine Startup & Create Week. The volunteer-led team behind the conference this week revealed the first of four keynote speakers: Marvin Ammori (pictured), general counsel for Hyperloop One, a California-based startup attempting to commercialize the use of electromagnetic propulsion for moving passengers and cargo at airline speeds for a fraction of the cost.

Ammori is a lawyer steeped in Internet policy matters who has represented Google, Apple, Twitter, and eBay, among others. In 2015, because of his influence on the debate over net neutrality, Politico named him one of the 50 "doers, thinkers, and dreamers transforming American politics."

The MSCW team also announced the theme for this year's week-long celebration of entrepreneurship: Solve Better.
 

Founder Forum

Jamie Nonni of Municipay

Jamie Nonni’s entrepreneurial story is one of perseverance. He’s taken big risks that have paid off. But he’s also experienced failure, including a bankruptcy that forced him to rebuild his business. But the experience has paid off. Today, Nonni is CEO of not one, but two companies in Portland’s financial technology cluster.

In an interview with Maine Startups Insider, Nonni discusses his early entrepreneurial stumbles, the importance of surrounding yourself with the best people, and why every entrepreneur should be prepared to fail.

Read the Q&A with Jamie Nonni >>

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State of the Ecosystem

Maine Accelerates Growth held its first State of the Ecosystem event on March 8, coinciding with the release of a slim report on four metrics designed to gauge the health of a startup ecosystem: density, fluidity, connectivity, and density. The bottom line? "The activities and connections in our ecosystem demonstrate we are doing some of the right things, but we could do more and we could do them better." Here's the slideshow from the evening event, and here's the four-page report. 

 

Briefly mentioned...

+ "Why Portland, Maine, is the next tech hot spot." ICYMI, Nicola Morris, SVP of corporate development at WEX, penned this column for BostInno. "The local tech scene in this scenic region has grown substantially over the past few years," she writes. "Portland, Maine, now offers a powerful mix of companies specializing in software development, app development, health informatics, payment systems, clean technology and more. And the opportunities—and advantages—to entrepreneurs looking to launch the business of their dreams in the Portland area are only growing."

+ Venture Hall has joined 19 other accelerator and startup programs around the country in joining Union, a platform hosted by 1776 that "catalyzes innovation by connecting startup ecosystems together around the world." Here's the news release.

+ Also, don't forget: Venture Hall is currently accepting applications for its summer accelerator program for healthcare-related startups.  

+ The Innovate for Maine Fellows program is looking for Maine companies interested in accepting students. Deadline to apply is March 24. More details.
  

Calendar

Send me your event or calendar item for possible inclusion.

Thurs., March 16 — E2Tech hosts its Winter Networking Reception & Cleantech Open kick-off event. 5:30-7:30 p.m. at Cloudport CoWorking at 63 Federal St. in Portland. More details.

Fri., March 17 — Begin your day at the Social Media Breakfast, where the discussion will focus on mistakes companies are making on social media and how to optimize digital advertising campaigns to save money. 7:30-10 a.m. at Portland’s Masonic Temple, 415 Congress St. Ticket sales and more details.

Tues., March 21 — Applications close for Venture Hall's inaugural summer accelerator program focused on healthcare-focused startups. Here are the details.

Thurs., March 23 — Maine Startup & Create Week hosts it's now-annual event in Boston. 6-9 p.m. at Steelcase's showroom in Boston. Tell your Boston friends. For more details and to register.

Fri., March 24 — Deadline for companies to apply to participate in the Innovate for Maine Fellows program. More details.

April 1 — Early-bird deadline to apply for the Cleantech Open accelerator program and competition. More details.
   

Jobs

Seeking a full-stack engineer? A technical co-founder? A sales or biz dev superstar? Send me your job postings to make this a great resource!

+ CourseStorm in Orono is hiring a sales executive.

+ WEX is hiring a summer intern for its innovation and strategy team. More details.

+ MedRhythms is hiring a data engineer and music algorithm engineer in Portland. Both positions pay $50k-$80k and come with the potential for equity. More details on AngelList.

+ BlueTarp Financial in Portland is hiring a senior software engineer.

+ Wellomics, a science-based natural product developer operating out of the University of New England's School of Pharmacy, is seeking a CEO to help finish the launch of the company. The CEO will be responsible for the conceptualization, development and implementation of Wellomics’ corporate vision, programs, and services. Contact Suzanne@wellomics.com for more information.

+ Academic Merit, an educational software startup in Portland, is hiring a software engineer and a head of product design.

+ Coria, a Maine-based data science and marketing consulting firm, is currently seeking an experienced UX developer with Axure experience to join its team. To apply, or for more information, send CEO John Hobart an email at jhobart@coria.com.

+ Flyte New Media, a digital marketing agency in Portland, is hiring a WordPress developer.

+ Environetix Technology Corp., a wireless sensor manufacturer in Orono, is hiring a RF engineer/RF technician.

+ Dream Local Digital in Rockland is hiring for a host of positions.

+ Likeable Local is hiring a "customer success associate" in its Portland office.

+ Vets First Choice still has job listings for several positions at its Portland office, from a UX/UI design to a director of e-commerce.

+ CashStar is hiring a full-stack software engineer, among other positions.
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