Today, Xiant.com was launched and introduced its first product to the world. Xiant.com was founded by Paul Allen. Yes, the same Paul Allen who co-founded Microsoft.

Xiant.com’s first product is called Xiant Filer. Available for free on a 60-day trial, Xiant Filer allows you to quickly and easily organize your email inboxes. Simply integrate it with your Microsoft Outlook and it begins doing its work immediately.

Allen, who left Microsoft more than 25 years ago, currently is the chairman of Vulcan Inc. — a project management and investment company.

Said Chris Purcell, the VP of Vulcan Inc.: “It’s a return of sorts to Paul’s roots. Xiant Filer started as a personal project to help Paul keep up with heavy e‐mail traffic. It worked so well we all started using it, which led us to take it to market.”

The Xiant Filer won’t be the only product released by Xiant.com. The company is said to be working on a number of tools that will help computer users become more organized, connected and ultimately more productive.

It’ll be extremely interesting to see how a startup led by billionaire Paul Allen will do in this current market.

Xiant Filer (Image: Xiant.com Screen Cap)

Cool Energy has been named the top clean tech startup during the 2009 Transatlantic Green Platform. The official award title the company won is “Most Promising Clean Tech Start-up – Young Green Tech”.

(Image: CoolEnergyInc.com)

The SolarFlow System is Cool Energy’s main product. Combining a electricity generating system and solar thermal heating, the SolarFlow System can provide buildings and homes a renewable source of electrical power, space heat and water.

Said Sam Weaver, President and CEO of Cool Energy: “It is a real honor to have won this year’s Most Promising Clean Tech Start-up award. Our business and technical team has done world-class work in getting us to this point. It helps confirm the Cool Energy value proposition of combined heat and electricity from solar power for European customers, as well as the North American market.”

The 2009 Transatlantic Green Platform took place in La Baule, France. The conference brought together investors, entrepreneurs and large companies in an attempt to promote and learn more about green technologies.

The first annual CleanPlay Conference will take place on June 25th at the Plug and Play Tech Center. Located in Sunnyvale, California, the Plug and Play Tech Center is a community of more than 200 Silicon Valley technology startups.

Approximately 30 clean-tech startups have been invited to present in front of green technology enthusiasts and top venture capitalists.

Said Saeed Amidi, the CEO of the Plug and Play Tech Center: “Despite trying economic times, we are seeing a consistent stream of attention and investment in the clean technology space. CleanPlay has an extensive line-up of smart new companies that are driving innovation in this area and we’re excited to have a hand in showcasing their growth and success.”

Go to the CleanPlay Conference website to learn more about this event. You can buy tickets to the event, see who is speaking and download a flyer. We’ll attempt to contact the Plug and Play Tech Center to learn more.

The MobileBeat Top Startup Competition is now accepting applications. The second annual event, which is being put on by VentureBeat, is for mobile startups and applications.

If you want to submit an application, you can do so online at the VentureBeat website. On July 2nd, 50 finalists will be announced. Then those 50 will be trimmed to 14, who will all get a chance to present in San Francisco on July 16th during MobileBeat 09.

To be eligible, your mobile startup needs to be younger than three years old. However, VentureBeat may make an exception in certain situations.

For those in the mobile startup industry, this is a very good opportunity to get your startup some publicity. We’ll have more information here on StartupSpark about this event so stay tuned.

MobileBeat 2009 (Image: VentureBeat.com Screen Cap)

Startup 2009 has announced their Top 10 startups. On June 3rd, these ten startups will compete to win a General Catalyst Partners investment of $25,00 and business services totaling $50,000.

If you are in the startup world, purchasing tickets to Startup 2009 is a wise idea. There will be a number of interesting speakers, panels and presentations.

Here are the websites that comprised the Startup 2009 Top 10:

Adzoomi.com

ArticleOnePartners.com

Beliefnetworks.net

Expensify.com

GlobeFunder.com

GoodHealthAdvertising.com

MicroNotes.com

Path101.com

PortfolioMonkey.com

TheAMMGroup.com

Congrats to the ten companies that were named to the top of the Startup 2009 class. Originally, there were 150 applicants. Now there are only ten. On June 3rd, the list will be cut to one. Buy tickets now and see the event live in New York!

Startup 2009 (Screen Shot)

LumaDerm, a startup that concentrates on innovations in early detection of cancer, cancer imaging and cancer treatment, has been named the winner of the Women 2.0 Pitch 2009 business competition. Not only did LumaDerm win the Grand Prize, the company won the People’s Choice Award and VentureBeat’s Best Media Story Award.

Women 2.0, which is headquartered in San Francisco, California, is an organization committed to raising the amount of women entrepreneurs creating high growth ventures by providing the network, the knowledge and the resources to help women entrepreneurs launch and grow their startups.

Said Anju Mathew, Director of Business Development and co-founder of LumaDerm: “Women 2.0 has given us a much needed boost in getting our business to where we need to be, not only through the prizes offered, but also the wonderful people we met at the event. The event was very well organized and we were honored to be chosen by the judges and audience from among such a great set of businesses and women leading them.”

Women 2.0 hopes to be a catalyst of change by helping out the world’s women entrepreneurs.

Said Shaherose Charania, Women 2.0’s co-founder: “With less than 5 percent female founders launching new tech startups, we look forward to following the growth of LumaDerm and the product’s ability to impact peoples’ lives. Pitch is the right platform for early stage ventures like LumaDerm to gain exposure to top investors and leaders of Silicon Valley, while gaining valuable feedback to accelerate the growth of their companies.”

By winning the Grand Prize, LumaDerm will receive business services valued at more than $10,000.

For more information on Women 2.0, you can visit their official website.

Husk Insulation, a startup company, has been named the winner of the MIT Clean Energy Prize. Along with the recognition is a check for $200,000. The MIT Clean Energy Prize is a national student competition that was founded by the United States Department of Energy, NSTAR and MIT to highlight clean energy startups.

The product produced by Husk Insulation is a patented type of insulation that is made from plant-based agricultural waste. The insulation is reportedly ten times more effective than conventional insulation. While this product could be used in many areas, the company will first target the refrigeration industry. According to their calculations, their Husk Insulation product should be able to improve efficiency by as much as 50%.

“Our mission is to increase energy efficiency through high-performance insulation, said Ian Dailey, Husk Insulation’s President. “Winning this substantial prize enables us to more effectively promote our product to manufacturers so they can design more efficient refrigerators, which can reduce our nation’s electricity use and carbon emissions.”

New Refrigerator Insulation is Heading Your Way (Image: Flickr)

While a press release is a simple concept, startup companies need to go the extra mile to be heard. A simple cookie cutter press release won’t get the job done for a startup. Here are five press release tips for startup companies:

1) Speak in plain language
You can definitely include technical aspects in your press release but there should be a section that speaks plainly so that anyone who wants to report the news can understand. A summary at the beginning or end of the press release is very helpful in allowing novices to understand.

2) Include a lot of quotes
When someone is writing a story using a press release, quotes are very useful. At least two or three paragraphs of quotes should be included in all startup company press releases.

3) Use pictures, slide shows, videos, etc.
The written word is no longer enough. Use advanced media such as pictures, slide shows, videos or anything else that helps get the point across and make a splash.

4) Include contact information
You’d be surprised how many press releases don’t have sufficient contact information. A phone number and email is almost always mandatory in a press release.

5) Hire a PR firm
If your budget allows, hire a PR firm to help you get the word out. PR firms are invaluable due to their connections and the speed at which they can send news around the internet world.

Will your press release make a splash? (Image: Flickr)

A podcast is a great way to connect with your customers and stay connected. Podcasts are especially useful for startups who are trying to gain the trust of new customers and want to better explain their business model without having to publish an online novel. Here are five tips creating a successful podcast for a startup:

5) Trust and Knowledge
When listening to a new podcast about a startup, a new customer will usually listen for two things: whether the startup sounds trustworthy and whether the startup sounds knowledgeable enough to succeed in the industry.

4) Explain Thoroughly
Don’t assume you are speaking to an industry expert. Your content should be thorough in nature but be sure to start out simple enough so that the average web surfer isn’t scared off.

3) Answer Frequently Asked Questions
If you answer frequently asked questions in your podcasts, that gives customers more of a reason to continue listening. They will know that you will hit on subjects that are noteworthy.

2) Keep the Podcast Focused
A lot of podcasts get too personal. If you are an established company or just an individual with a podcast, that is fine. However, if you are representing a company, we don’t really need to know what your cat ate for breakfast.

1) Produce New Podcasts Regularly
A new podcast every week or every month is a good idea for a startup. Set a schedule and stick to it.

A Podcast in Producting (Imgae: Flickr)

Bo Jackson knows a lot about business. He will now try his hand at banking. Jackson and his partners opened Burr Ridge Bank and Trust earlier in the week.

Burr Ridge Bank and Trust is located in Burr Ridge, Illinois, which is in suburban Chicago. Jackson pointed out a few advantages a new bank has when opening its doors in this rugged economic climate.

“We have no type of debt,” Jackson told WBBM, “like all the other banks. We’re a small community bank and one thing we all decided, is that if we are going to do a bank in our community, it needs to be owned by the people who live in the community.”

Since retiring from an athletic career that included stints in both the NFL and in the MLB, Jackson has had his hand in a number of startup businesses. He’s currently the co-owner of N’Genuity Enterprises and Bo Jackson Elite Sports.

We’ll see if Bo Knows Banking.

Here’s a video of Bo Jackson from his playing days: