Astrophysicists launch ‘Google Docs’ for technical papers; PHHHOTO snaps up $200K [Startup Roundup]

Who’s getting money?

Williamsburg-based Authorea, a sort of Google Docs specifically designed for collaborating on technical papers, raised $610,000 on an offered $610,000 equity round, according to an SEC filing. The company was founded by Nathan Jenkins and Alberto Pepe, a Ph.D. in information science who did a postdoc in astrophysics at Harvard. Authorea’s advisors include a partner at ff Venture Capital, the chairman of the New York Angels and another astrophysicist.

Greenpoint based PHHHOTO raised $200,000 on an offered $500,000 debt round, according to an SEC filing. The company makes an app that makes instant motion images (so, we assume, automating GIFs). The app is available on the iOS app store, but the company also makes images at events with its photo booth, PHHHOTO pro. The company’s founder, Omar Elsayed, is also a founder at HyperHyper. We can’t really tell what HyperHyper is, but it’s older. It also seems to have built MaxHash, an app who’s website says, “Welcome to the end of the Internet.” So heads up on that.

BotFactory closed its successful Kickstarter campaign for Squink, just barely, but it got there. It raised $100,380 toward its goal of $100,000. We recently covered the additive manufacturing circuit board system.

 

Who’s making moves?

Etsy has released profiles of several of its Craft Entrepreneurship teachers around the country. The company launched Craft Entrepreneurship last year, a program to teach DIY manufacturing and business skills to low-income people, by working through community partners. The idea is that people can have more flexibility and options in their lives if at least some of their income is completely within their control. The profiles include Melissa, Brandi and Liz in NYC, as well as Becky in Newark, New Jersey, and Regina in Dallas. Each of the teachers has their own Etsy shop, links to which can be found at the top of each profile. The program is underway in seven American cities and also expanded to the U.K. this year.

MiNY Media Center announced the appointment of Gordon Ampel as Managing Director and the promotion of Sabrina Dridje, from its existing staff, to Director of Community Engagement, on the organization’s blog. The organization is about to turn one year old. We covered its first big mixer.