SANTA BARBARA, CA. – June 5, 2000 – Santa Barbara Technology Incubator (SBTi), a dynamic environment for nurturing and successfully propelling high-technology start-ups to tier-one venture financing, today announced that it has successfully completed its seed round of financing for $6 million. Believed to be the largest first round of capital investment received by any Santa Barbara-based company, the funds will be used to incubate early-stage high-technology businesses located in the central and Southern California areas. In addition, SBTi officially announced its founding management team of eight experienced professionals, under the leadership of local high-tech board member and entrepreneur Dennis J. Cagan.

“We are extremely pleased to have raised such a large amount in our initial seed funding stage, says Dennis Cagan, chairman and CEO of SBTi. “In addition to money, we have put together a dynamic A list of individuals for our founding team to help direct and mentor our incubated companies. We’re off to an exciting start.”

Santa Barbara Technology Incubator’s investors in this seed round of financing include Compaq, Silicon Valley Bank, Santa Barbara Bank and Trust (making this their first non-bank equity investment), Montecito Bank and Trust and 30 high-networth individual investors/angels.

"SBTi is not a venture fund, but rather a private company whose mission is to select and invest in early-stage high-tech start-ups. We provide the support services, seed venture capital financing and relationships to get them started as fast as possible," explains Cagan.

Giving Entrepreneurs an Important Boost
Santa Barbara Technology Incubator is geared toward the astute entrepreneur who demands value for equity. Start-ups who work with SBTi gain seed funding; a strong advisory network; active mentorship from successful, established entrepreneurs; operational and technological infrastructure, including office space; and the connections and know-how of SBTi’s management to build strong teams able to move quickly toward venture financing.

Incubation removes non-essential tasks from the plates of the entrepreneurs, prevents unnecessary (and often time-intensive) mistakes, and establishes the fastest, most strategic courses to entrepreneurial success. SBTi provides all services that new and growing businesses need so that entrepreneurs can focus on what is important.

Once funded, companies are expected to require incubation at SBTi from three to nine months. During that time, founders will be freed up to concentrate on developing their technology and their markets. SBTi will handle the rest: legal, space, recruitment and other necessary but less strategic issues that typically chew up thousands of hours of the founder's precious time.

Beyond all of this, entrepreneurs will also get day-to-day support from the specialists on the SBTi team. Then, at just the right time, they will gain access to the tier one venture capital connections necessary to get their first round of financing – well prepared and in half the time – which gives them a greatly improved chance of success with their new business venture.

SBTi Founding Team
Dennis Cagan, founder of Santa Barbara Technology Incubator, has put together a management team that looks like a who’s who list of entrepreneurial success. Cagan himself has served on the boards of more than 30 public and private companies, including four Santa Barbara companies that have either completed successful IPOs or raised significant private capital in private placements. These companies include Alias/Wavefront (Silicon Graphics subsidiary specializing in advanced computer graphics software); Software.com (Nasdaq SWCM: worldwide leader in carrier-scale Internet messaging products); CommissionJunction (application service provider of e-commerce network that matches for-sale products to related content providers – recently closed second round financing at $40 million); and SupplySolution, Inc. (application service provider for supply chain management in the automotive industry.) Cagan has also started more than 20 computer software, hardware, services and Internet companies.

In addition to Cagan, the SBTi founding team includes:

1. Jason Spievak, former VP Technology and Mergers & Acquisitions at Broadview Associates
2. Ron Macleod, former NASDAQ Managing Director
3. Barbara Whatley, former CFO of QAD and SupplySolution
4. Benn Schreiber, former PulsePoint VP of Engineering
5. Kevin Mills, former consultant, Deloitte and Touche
6. Christina Walman, former Director of Development, College of Engineering at UCSB and current Associate Director, Center for Entrepreneurship and Engineering Management at UCSB
7. Karen Nilsen, former Web Marketing Manager, MetaCreations
8. Maggie Lang, former Producer, VIVA Design

“With our seed funding and management team in place, SBTi is currently targeting, but not limited to, promising companies providing Internet services and software, computer software and devices, and communications software and devices,” says Cagan. "SBTi will invest only in areas where our management team has experience and support resources.

About SBTi: Santa Barbara Technology Incubator (www.sbtechnology.com) is a preeminent environment for financing, launching and successfully propelling high-technology start-ups to tier one venture financing, with strategic investors, quickly and for the highest valuations. SBTI constitutes one of the most complete and all-encompassing incubator models by offering funding, and physical and operational infrastructure, with qualified hands on guidance. Companies coming out of SBTi will enter the venture capital market with fiscal business discipline, qualified management teams and prudent, cutting edge business models. With a team of experienced professionals, SBTi provides web development services, investor relations, public relations and marketing, strategic planning, executive recruitment, state-of-the-art incubation facilities, and professional and technical services.

SBTi is located at 320 Nopal Street, Santa Barbara, California 93103. For further information or to submit a business plan, please e-mail an executive summary to info@sbtechnology.com or call Jason Spievak at 805-564-8005.