There’s a bit of a backlash against “big data.” The tech buzzword has to do with making sense of increasing amounts of information on things like consumer behavior and Web trends. But noted venture capitalist Brad Feld cautions that it’s just a label, and you have to go beyond the marketing hype. The key is what kinds of new database systems and analytics software can really add value. Perhaps David Friend, the CEO of Boston online backup firm Carbonite, put it best when he said, “Big data is no substitute for judgment.”
In other innovation news…
Radius Health aims to become the fourth Boston-area biotech to go public this year. The Cambridge company, which is working on an osteoporosis drug, is looking to raise about $60 million on the Nasdaq.
The MassChallenge accelerator has finished up its third year in Boston, awarding $100,000 each to the startups GRIT, LiquiGlide, RallyPoint and Strong Arm Technologies.
And finally, layoffs are in the air this week. Zynga, the maker of FarmVille and other online games, has closed its Boston office as part of a consolidation. And iRobot, the maker of Roombas and PackBots, is laying off 80 employees , or 13 percent of its workforce, amid a slowdown in its defense business. Fortunately there’s no shortage of other companies eager to snap up the available talent.
