Washington State Business

Using start-up funding from angel investors, Lightfleet Corp. has built a prototype of what it calls "all-to-all technology," a patented new way for computer chips to communicate quickly without the danger of overheating.

Two of the latest startups to benefit from that strategy are small Seattle companies in the online advertising space.

It makes software that – wait for it – manages corporate personal computer networks to lower energy usage.

Isilon Systems skyrocketed in its stock market debut Friday, with shares rising 77 percent in the best opening performance for a technology IPO in more than six years.

The top technology stories of the year from Seattle’s startup, venture capital and entrepreneurial communities.

Seattle isn’t a bioengineering capital like Boston but it has a good start, with NeuroBionics and Northstar Neuroscience making products for stroke and other brain-disorder victims.

Microsoft is increasing its focus on robotics and biomedical computing, and there’s Allen’s Institute for Brain Science research venture.

The city has an uncanny knack for inspiring local CEOs, business owners, organization leaders and even school administrators to collaborate on making shared civic visions actualities.

Freepulse, released last week, is a wraparound headset that weighs just a bit more than 2 ounces. With a 6-hour battery life and a 30-foot range, it cuts listeners loose from cumbersome cords. "It gives you complete freedom of movement," Nault said. "And the sound is as good as on a high-quality corded headset."

"Those young men down there just kind of had like a glaze over their eyes, it was such a shock to them,"

IBM said Tuesday it plans to acquire Bellevue-based Vallent, which makes software for telecommunications companies to monitor wireless networks.