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Foreign-born entrepreneurs are critical to the advancement of the U.S. emerging technology industry.  There are a number of visa options, both immigrant and non-immigrant visas, available to entrepreneurs and investors in the emerging tech space (see my previous blog post “Visa Options for Immigrants in the Emerging Tech Space” outlining these).  This post will offer an overview of the O-1 visa, a non-immigrant visa.

There are two types of O-1 visas with the O-1A visa being reserved for those who can demonstrate extraordinary ability in the sciences, education, business, or athletics (the O-1B visa is reserved for individuals with extraordinary ability in the arts or extraordinary achievement in film or television).  Some of the most significant tech innovation is attributed to foreign nationals in the United States.  A foreign national who develops or invents new technology may be eligible for the O-1 visa based on their extraordinary abilities in science or business.Continue Reading Focus on the O-1 Visa for Immigrants in the Emerging Tech Space

It’s not where the Sox play ball.  It’s home to the world’s largest accelerator, MassChallenge, where 128 start-up businesses from around the world are polishing their plans and getting mentored in hopes of winning money or landing that critical investor audience.

I just finished leading my third program on how to pitch.  The finalists are far enough along that they no longer get allowances for unknowns and the chance to engage a listener with information they only hope to hone.  They’ve done enough homework to know their team needs, round out their data, show they’ve tapped the right market, trot out validating customers, or boast a board of advisers.  Yet even the most brilliant entrepreneur can get caught in the headlights.

Here are the six tips that the companies I’m coaching will hear from me in the coming weeks:
Continue Reading Pitch Season in South Boston

A solar water heater on every Israeli rooftop

Israel is a garden of inventiveness and Israelis have a strong tradition of contributing to technology and life sciences. Breathing the innovation when I lived there, I was privileged to test PrimeSense’s 3D camera, help bring Notal Vision’s tool to gauge macular degeneration to the United States, deliver a turn-key VoIP network in Nigeria and Zambia on behalf of VocalTec, license ecommerce and security software to dozens of Fortune 100 companies, watch knee surgery with miraculous tissue-repairing Regentis hydrogel, play with a gear box created from an Objet (now Stratasys) 3D printer, and negotiate sponsored research, patent licenses and clinical trials on behalf of emerging pharmaceutical companies.

Figuring out what gives rise to the “start-up nation” character, with wildly disproportionate foreign direct investment and numbers of translated books, cited academics, filed patents, Nasdaq companies, successful exits, and tuneful children’s songs, is a pervasive new-age question. Many answers have been floated, including its world-class research institutions, the very first technology transfer offices for commercialization of academic R&D, raw skills honed in one of the best-trained and most-sophisticated militaries, a culture of questioning, and a flood of ex-Soviet engineering talent over three decades. Naturally one can’t discount that there are real issues to be addressed too. Israelis have done it — from discerning security risks through synthesis of big data to making the desert bloom with fruit, vegetables, fish, and minerals.
Continue Reading Ingenuity in Israel’s Water

shutterstock_206705884The Boston Museum of Science is a pretty amazing institution. As a member of the museum’s Board of Overseers and a longtime supporter, I can attest to the high quality and diversity of the museum’s exhibits and programs, as well as its mission in playing a leading role in transforming the nation’s relationship with science and technology.

A shining example of this is the museum’s NanoDays 2015, which was held this past April.  NanoDays is a nationwide celebration of nanoscale science where attendees can enjoy nano-related activities throughout the museum. Visitors of all ages have the opportunity to imagine, discover, and explore a world that’s too small to see.  During the most recent event, a short film was debuted, “From Lab To Fab: Pioneers in Nanomanufacturing” which follows the story of two nanotech entrepreneurs navigating the rocky road from discovery to commercialization, with products ranging from tiny implantable body sensors to bullet-proof vests and aircraft flooring.
Continue Reading From Lab to Fab: Pioneers in Nanomanufacturing

shutterstock_70138570A few decades ago, we knew of only a few forms of carbon: diamond, graphite, and amorphous carbon. Today, thanks to rapid scientific advancements in the world of nanotechnology, we have discovered many other forms of carbon.

One of the most important developments is the carbon nanotube (CNT), which is related to graphite. The molecular structure of graphite resembles stacked, one-atom-thick sheets of chicken wire. In conventional graphite, the sheets of carbon are stacked on top of one another, allowing them to easily slide over each other. When these sheets are rolled into a cylinder and their edges joined, they form CNTs, which offer extraordinary mechanical, electrical, thermal, optical, and chemical properties.
Continue Reading Carbon Nanotubes Offer Big Technological Advantages

The Angel Capital Association (ACA) is the largest angel professional development organization in the world with over 12,000 members, 220 angel groups, and 10,000 early-stage companies in its members’ investment portfolios. Angel investing approximately equals that of venture capital investing, and has an enormous impact on the entrepreneurial eco-system in the United States and beyond.

For the second year, Greenberg Traurig has been a major sponsor of the ACA Summit, attended this year by over 600 angel investors from around the world who are leaders of their angel groups and represent thousands of investors. The firm sponsored the Innovation Showcase, which featured 28 innovative companies chosen by the NIH, NSF, and others.  Greenberg Traurig’s team of David Gitlin, Craig Lilly, Jeff Joyner and Beth Cohen presented a workshop for the companies focused on the capital raising process, including valuation and term sheet issues, intellectual property protection, and alternative financing.  The firm also hosted “office hours” with the companies, which enabled them to meet with the Greenberg Traurig team one on one to get legal input.
Continue Reading Greenberg Traurig Sponsors Angel Capital Association Summit

1.      Begin with a Compelling Introduction

  • Get investors excited
  • Include your strongest points to demonstrate credibility
  • Make sure they understand what you do

2.      Address Key Issues in a Clear and Convincing Way

  • The BIG problem your product will solve
  • What is unique about your product or service
  • Why your team is the most qualified to do this
  • How you will sell (or get to market)
  • Why you are better than the competition
  • How you will make the investors a bunch of money

Continue Reading A Brief Guide to Investor Presentations

Greenberg Traurig’sshutterstock_104201342 Boston office will be hosting a breakfast presentation entitled “Trends in the Israeli Life Sciences Arena” featuring guest speaker Elka Nir from Israel.  The event is scheduled for 8-9:45 a.m. on Friday, April 24, 2015, with welcome remarks at 8:30 a.m. by David Dykeman, co-chair of Greenberg Traurig’s Life Sciences & Medical…

Greenberg Traurig16731905477_47a7273653_o was a leading sponsor and participant in the exciting Israel Dealmakers Conference in NYC. About 1250 participants from around the world came to meet with Israeli companies and explore business opportunities. Attendees included senior executives of large corporations, leading investors, innovators and thought leaders. Some of Israel’s most exciting companies attended, in industries…

shutterstock_74614888Immigrant entrepreneurs and investors have always been at the core of the American economy.  Immigrant-founded companies have generated billions of dollars in revenues and contributed intellectual property leading to significant socio-economic advancements within the United States.  Foreign-born entrepreneurs are a critical component to the advancement of the U.S. emerging technology space and it is important to note the variety of visa options available.  This initial post will provide an overview of the nonimmigrant and immigrant visa options available to entrepreneurs and investors in the emerging tech space with future posts focusing on the visa specifics.
Continue Reading Visa Options for Immigrants in the Emerging Tech Space