iPhone startup venture financing tops $100 million

Venture capitalists have invested more than $100 million [1]in iPhone-oriented startups in the two years since Apple released the first version of its now-iconic smartphone. According to startup and investor information resource ChubbyBrain, investors have spread $102.49 million among 17 iPhone application startups--Kleiner Perkins Caulfield & Byers' iFund leads the way with $50 million allocated to six startups (Booyah [2], Pelago, ngmoco [3], iControl and GOGII). Other firms earning investment include adWhirl, Aha Mobile, Ambient Industries, Carticipate, Double Encore, Fungo Media, Labotec, Pinger, Saltlick Labs, Siri, Smule and Tapulous. ChubbyBrain adds that the average level of iPhone startup funding tops $4.6 million, with the largest single investment (Kleiner's iControl funding) totaling $15.5 million.  

"Less than two years after the iPhone's launch, the number of applications on the Apple App Store is greater than 50,000 according to some estimates," ChubbyBrain notes. "Of these applications, it's evident that a significant portion of them reside in either of two extreme ends of the spectrum that are likely not relevant to the VC/angel investing community: 1) established companies seeking some sort of presence on the iPhone to increase their brand's awareness or product/service reach or 2) individual developers building cheap, viral applications who are enthusiasts/hobbyists or those hoping to catch lightning in a bottle."

For more on iPhone venture financing trends:
- read this ChubbyBrain blog entry [4]