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Design, Bitches
Looking to Build a Granny Flat in Your Backyard? Meet the Firms and Designs Pre-Approved in LA
Sarah Favot
Favot is an award-winning journalist and adjunct instructor at USC's Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism. She previously was an investigative and data reporter at national education news site The 74 and local news site LA School Report. She's also worked at the Los Angeles Daily News. She was a Livingston Award finalist in 2011 and holds a Master's degree in journalism from Boston University and BA from the University of Windsor in Ontario, Canada.
Adding a backyard home in Los Angeles is now nearly as easy as buying a barbecue.
Homeowners who for years have wanted to build a granny flat in their backyard, but dreaded the red tape, can now choose from 20 pre-designed homes that the city has already approved for use.
The shift, made official last week, will speed up a weeks-long process and bring more badly needed units to an overpriced market. It also has the potential to elevate the 14 startups and firms building the next generation of homes.
The designs for the stand-alone residences range from a 200-square-foot studio to a 1,200-square foot, two-story, two-bedroom unit. And many of the homes are filled with design flourishes, reflecting the diverse architecture of the city, from a house in the silhouette of a flower to one with a spiral outdoor staircase leading to the roof.
It's no surprise. The program was spearheaded by Christopher Hawthorne, a former architecture critic at the Los Angeles Times and now the city's chief design officer.
The firms are primarily local and startup architecture and design firms, while others are well-known with a history of building granny flats, also know as accessory dwelling units, or ADUs.
The standard plans avoid the Los Angeles Department of Building and Safety's typical four-to six-week review process and can allow approvals to be completed in as quickly as one day.
Some aspects of the plans can be modified to fit a homeowner's preferences. Eight other designs are pending approval.
Mayor Eric Garcetti believes by adding more such units, the city can diversify its housing supply and tackle the housing crisis. Recent state legislation made it easier to build the small homes on the lot of single-family residences. Since then, ADUs have made up nearly a quarter of Los Angeles' newly permitted housing units.
Because construction costs are relatively low for the granny flats – the pre-approved homes start at $144,000 and can go beyond $300,000 – the housing is generally more affordable. The median home price in L.A. County in January was $690,000.
Here's a quick look at the designs approved so far:
Abodu
Abodu
Abodu, based in Redwood City in the Bay Area, exclusively designs backyard homes. In 2019, it worked with the city of San Jose on a program similar to the one Los Angeles is undertaking.
In October, it closed a seed funding round of $3.5 million led by Initialized Capital.
It has been approved for a one-story 340-square-foot studio, a one-story one-bedroom at 500 square feet, and a one-story, 610-square-foot two-bedroom.
The pricing for the studio is $189,900, while the one-bedroom costs $199,900 and the two-bedroom is $259,900.
Amunátegui Valdés Architects
Led by Cristobal Amunátegui and Alejandro Valdés, the firm was founded in 2011 and has offices in Los Angeles and Santiago, Chile. Amunátegui is an assistant professor at the Department of Architecture and Urban Design at UCLA.
The firm designs work in various scales and mediums, including buildings, furniture and exhibitions.
Its one-story, two-bedroom with a covered roof deck 934-square-foot unit is pending approval from the city.
Connect Homes
Connect Homes has a 100,000-square foot factory in San Bernardino and an architecture studio in Downtown L.A.
It specializes in glass and steel homes and has completed 80 homes in California. Its designs have an aesthetic of mid-century modern California residential architecture.
It has two one-bedroom models pre-approved by the city, one is 460 square feet, which costs $144,500 with a total average project cost of $205,000. The other is 640 square feet, which costs $195,200 with a total project cost of $280,000.
Design, Bitches
The Los Angeles-based architectural firm founded in 2010 describes itself as having a "bold and irreverent vision." Its projects include urban infill ground-up offices to single-family homes, adaptive re-use of derelict commercial buildings and renovations of historic landmarks.
Its pre-approved design, named "Midnight Room," is a guest house/ studio. Its bedroom can be left open for a loft feel or enclosed as a separate room. The design is a one-story, one-bedroom at 454 square feet.
Escher GuneWardena Architecture
Founded in Los Angeles in 1996, Escher GuneWardena Architecture has received international recognition and has collaborated with contemporary artists, worked on historical preservation projects and more.
The company has been approved for two different one-story, one- or two-bedroom units, one at 532 square feet with an estimated cost of $200,000 and another at 784 square feet with an estimated cost of $300,000. The firm noted the costs depend on site conditions and do not include soft costs. Those could add 10% to 12% to the total construction costs.
First Office
First Office is an architecture firm based in Downtown Los Angeles. Its approved ADUs will be built using prefabricated structural insulated panels, which allow for expedited construction schedules and high environmental ratings.
The interior finishes include concrete floors, stainless steel counters and an occasional element of conduit.
There are five options:
- A one-story studio, 309 to 589 square feet
- A one-story one-bedroom, 534 to 794 square feet
- And a one-story two-bedroom, 1,200 square feet
Fung + Blatt Architects
Fung + Blatt Architects is a Los Angeles-based firm founded in 1990.
The city has approved its 795-square-foot, one-story, one-bedroom unit with a roof deck. It estimates the construction cost to be $240,000 to $300,000, excluding landscape, site work and the solar array. Homeowners can also expect other additional costs.
Taalman Architecture/ IT House Inc.
The design team behind "IT House" is Los Angeles-based studio Taalman Architecture. Over the past 15 years, IT House has built more than 20 homes throughout California and the U.S.
The IT House ADU standard plans include the tower, bar, box, cube, pod and court.
The city has approved four options, including:
- A two-story including mechanical room, 660 square feet
- A two-story including mechanical room, 430 square feet
- A one-story studio, 200 square feet
- A one-story including mechanical room, 700 square feet
The firm also has another two projects pending approval: a 360-square-foot one-story studio and a one-story, three-bedroom at 1,149 square feet.
LA Más
LA Más is a nonprofit based in Northeast Los Angeles that designs and builds initiatives promoting neighborhood resilience and elevating the agency of working-class communities of color. Homeowners who are considering their design must commit to renting to Section 8 tenants.
The city has approved two of LA Más' designs: a one-story, one-bedroom, 528 square feet unit and a one-story, two-bedroom, 768 square feet unit. The firm has another design for a one-story studio pending approval. That design would be the first 3D-printed ADU design in the city's program.
Jennifer Bonner/MALL
Massachusetts-based Jennifer Bonner/MALL designed a "Lean-to ADU" project, reinterpreting the stucco box and exaggerated false front, both Los Angeles architectural mainstays.
The design has been approved for a 525-square-foot one-story, one-bedroom unit with a 125-square-foot roof deck.
sekou cooke STUDIO
New York-based sekou cooke STUDIO is the sole Black-owned architectural firm on the project.
"The twisted forms of this ADU recalls the spin and scratch of a DJ's records" from the early 90s, the firm said.
Its design, still pending approval, is for a 1,200-square-foot, two bedroom and two bathroom can be adapted to a smaller one-bedroom unit or to include an additional half bath.
SO-IL
New York-based SO-IL was founded in 2008. It has completed projects in Leon, Seoul, Lisbon and Brooklyn.
Its one-story, one-bedroom 693-square-foot unit is pending approval. It is estimated the construction cost will be between $200,000 and $250,000.
WELCOME PROJECTS
Los Angeles-based Welcome Projects has worked on projects ranging from buildings, houses and interiors to handbags, games and toys.
Its ADU is nicknamed The Breadbox "for its curved topped walls and slight resemblance to that vintage counter accessory."
It has been approved for a one-story, one-bedroom 560-square-foot unit.
wHY Architecture
Founded in 2004, wHY is based in Los Angeles and New York City. It has taken on a landmark affordable housing and historic renovation initiative in Watts.
Its one-story, one- or two-bedroom 480 to 800-square-foot unit is pending approval.
Firms that want to participate in the program can learn more here . Angelenos interested in building a standard ADU plan can learn more the approved projects here.
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Sarah Favot
Favot is an award-winning journalist and adjunct instructor at USC's Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism. She previously was an investigative and data reporter at national education news site The 74 and local news site LA School Report. She's also worked at the Los Angeles Daily News. She was a Livingston Award finalist in 2011 and holds a Master's degree in journalism from Boston University and BA from the University of Windsor in Ontario, Canada.
Are NFTs a Good Investment? Many Los Angeles VCs Aren’t Convinced
07:00 AM | January 14, 2022
Image from Shutterstock
Non-fungible tokens—better known as NFTs—have gone mainstream in the past year, with everyone from major art auction houses to Hollywood movie studios buying into the hype.
NFTs are unique pieces of data tracked and stored on blockchains like Ethereum. They’re usually associated with digital images, such as cartoon apes or the artist Beeple’s $69 million digital collage. NFTs offer a record of ownership that is verifiable through a digital ledger, opening up a whole range of possibilities for digital assets that people can buy, sell, and transact with.
Major venture capital firms like Andreessen Horowitz are among those to have entered the NFT fray, with the Silicon Valley giant targeting NFT startups through its new $2.2 billion crypto fund. As such, dot.LA decided to gauge how local VC investors—who are accustomed to navigating burgeoning tech bubbles—feel about this latest trend.
In a dot.LA poll of 32 leading Los Angeles-based venture capitalists, roughly 9% described NFTs as a "good” investment, while an equal percentage indicated the opposite, calling them a “bad” investment. A roughly 66% majority of respondents, meanwhile, said they were simply “not sure.” The remaining 16% selected “other”—listing a range of responses including “Not great for a venture fund, good for individuals,” “Fundamentally a good development, but currently overvalued,” and “Depends on the NFT!”
When dot.LA reached out for further comment, none of the NFT skeptics chose to share their take on the record.
Like the crypto space at large, NFTs have no shortage of doubters and proponents alike. Some prominent technologists—including Signal founder Moxie Marlinspike and Square CEO Jack Dorsey—have publicly questioned whether the scene is as decentralized as it seems. In the gaming industry, some developers are looking to build entire games around NFTs, while others are reportedly turning away NFTs as payment.
“2021 was a watershed year for NFTs focused on art, collectibles & gaming. People value scarcity, and NFTs fit the bill,” said M13 investor Mark Grace. “Add in their traits of transportability and programmability, and it's easy to see why people are so engaged,” he added, though noting that he’s cautious of “NFTs marketed as a cure-all.”
TenOneTen partner Minnie Ingersoll shared the enthusiasm.
“No one yet knows how things will shake out, but ownership, the metaverse, and digital identity are being rethought and that's exciting,” said Ingersoll. “Personally, I'm more bullish on tokens that have functionality or represent digital work (e.g., NFTs that unlock access or represent digital art) than I am on NFTs that try to bridge the physical world onto the blockchain. I think both will happen eventually but from a timing perspective the latter is not where I would focus on investing now.”
Both M13 and TenOneTen have investments in blockchain-related companies—respectively, crypto investing tool River and mobile banking app LVL.
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Harri Weber
Harri is dot.LA's senior finance reporter. She previously worked for Gizmodo, Fast Company, VentureBeat and Flipboard. Find her on Twitter and send tips on L.A. startups and venture capital to harrison@dot.la.
🛡️Meet the Defense Unicorn That Just Raised $250M to Stop Drone Swarms
11:19 AM | March 07, 2025
🔦 Spotlight
Hello, Happy Friday!
For this week's spotlight story, we're turning our attention to a monumental leap in defense technology achieved by Epirus, a dynamic startup based in Torrance that specializes in groundbreaking anti-drone systems. Recently, Epirus successfully secured a whopping $250 million in Series D funding, raising its total capital to over $550 million and solidifying its status as a unicorn in the defense tech sector.
Image Source: Epirus
At the heart of Epirus’s arsenal is Leonidas, a solid-state, directed energy system named after the fierce Spartan king. As formidable as its namesake suggests, Leonidas stands out by neutralizing unmanned systems and other electronic threats with unmatched precision—a vital capability in today’s digital battlefield where drones are increasingly common. Offering a high-tech shield against potential threats, Leonidas has established Epirus as a key player in modern warfare technology, underscored by significant contracts such as a notable $66 million deal with the U.S. Army in 2023.
Founded in 2018 by a visionary team including Joe Lonsdale, Bo Marr, Max Mednik, Nathan Mintz, Grant Verstandig, and John Tenet, Epirus combines expertise across technology, strategy, and security to push the boundaries of defense innovation. The collective experience and strategic foresight of its founders have propelled the company's rapid growth and technological advancements.
Looking to the future, Epirus plans to utilize this influx of capital to broaden its reach into international and commercial markets, enhance its team, fortify its supply chain, and establish a new training center in Oklahoma to further military preparedness.
This latest round of funding was led by 8VC and Washington Harbour Partners LP, accompanied by a diverse group of new and returning investors, including strategic defense partner General Dynamics Land Systems and seasoned investors like StepStone Group and T. Rowe Price Investment Management, Inc. New stakeholders such as Oppenheimer's Private Market Opportunities Vista VI Fund, NightDragon, Manhattan Venture Partners, Centaurus Capital LP, and Center15 Capital also joined, reflecting robust market confidence in Epirus’s innovative approach and future potential.
Keep an eye on Epirus as it navigates this exciting phase of growth and innovation. With its advanced technologies and strategic expansions, Epirus is not just responding to the challenges of today’s digital battlefield but is also setting the pace for tomorrow’s defense landscape.
🤝 Venture Deals
LA Companies
- Zeitview, a Los Angeles-based leader in AI-powered infrastructure inspections, has raised a $60M funding round led by Climate Investment, with participation from Upfront Ventures and others. The funds will be used to accelerate the development of its Visual AI technology and enhance its Insights software platform, supporting infrastructure sectors such as solar, wind, utilities, properties, and telecom throughout the asset lifecycle. - learn more
- Nervonik, a medical device company specializing in peripheral nerve stimulation for chronic pain relief, has raised a $13M Series A funding round led by U.S. Venture Partners (USVP). The funds will be used to advance the development of its next-generation nerve stimulation technology, aiming to provide effective, non-opioid pain management solutions. - learn more
- Mote, a company specializing in carbon-negative energy production, has secured $7M in the initial close of its Series A funding round. The investment was co-led by Nella Next and Preston-Werner Ventures. Mote converts agricultural and forestry waste into clean hydrogen through its Biomass Carbon Removal and Storage (BiCRS) technology, which also sequesters carbon dioxide. The funds will be used to advance its first commercial-scale facility, expand engineering capabilities, and accelerate strategic partnerships in the hydrogen and energy sectors. - learn more
- FastLane Labs, a developer of Maximal Extractable Value (MEV) infrastructure, has raised a $6M funding round led by Figment Capital and DBA. The funds will be used to develop a comprehensive liquid staking token on the Monad blockchain, aiming to build a sustainable MEV ecosystem that benefits users, decentralized applications (dApps), and stakers. - learn more
- Supergut, a company specializing in gut health products like powders, bars, and shakes containing resistant starches and prebiotic fibers, has secured a significant growth equity investment led by Full Frame Growth Partners, with participation from Alpha Edison, Rocana Venture Partners, Strand Equity Partners, and others. The funds will support new product innovation, retail expansion, and new hires. Additionally, Supergut has appointed Tracey Warner Halama, former CEO of Vital Proteins, as its new CEO to lead this next phase of growth. The company has experienced a 172% sales increase in 2024, driven by its 'GLP-1 booster' product. - learn more
- FairPlay, a Fairness-as-a-Service company, has raised a $10M funding round from Infinity Ventures, JPMorgan Chase, and Nyca Partners. FairPlay specializes in developing tools that help organizations identify and correct biases in their AI-driven decision-making processes, aiming to promote fairness and compliance in sectors like financial services and insurance. The company plans to use the funds to expand its operations and enhance its product offerings, furthering its mission to build fairness infrastructure for the internet and ensure safer AI adoption. - learn more
- ACID Labs, a leader in instant social gaming on messaging platforms, has raised $8M in funding led by a16z GAMES Speedrun and NFX, with participation from Fusion. The funds will be used to accelerate its mission of building viral instant games where people already connect, focusing on creating seamless, social-first gaming experiences. - learn more
- MelodAI, a company specializing in AI-generated content (AIGC) and multimodal AI agent services, has secured a new round of funding led by LF Labs. The funds will be used to advance product development and expand market presence in the Web3 and AI entertainment sectors, enhancing MelodAI's competitiveness in the global AIGC and AI agent service industries. - learn more
LA Venture Funds
- Fika Ventures led a $4.7M Seed funding round for Outmarket AI, a San Francisco-based intelligence platform designed to transform commercial insurance through AI-powered insights and automation. The funds will be used to accelerate platform innovation, expand the team, and establish strategic partnerships with leading brokers and carriers. - learn more
- FirstLook Partners participated in a $25M equity funding round for Flex, a Miami-based fintech company that provides an all-in-one finance platform for business owners. Flex offers services such as business banking, expense management, credit cards, and accounts payable automation. The company plans to use the funds to enhance its AI-driven accounts payable automation and expand its personal finance management services for business owners. - learn more
- B Capital led a $96M equity investment in Odeko, a New York-based all-in-one operations and technology partner for local coffee shops, cafes, and other food and beverage businesses. Including a $30M credit facility from Banc of California, the total funding amounts to $126M. Odeko plans to use the funds to fuel growth through new services and cost savings for customers, acquire businesses to extend its market reach and product offerings, and build out its leadership team. - learn more
- Presight Capital participated in a $2.2M Seed funding round for Needle, an AI-powered search and agent development platform based in San Francisco and Berlin. Needle enables organizations to access and manage data across various internal systems, integrating with tools like Confluence, Slack, Gmail, and Dropbox. The funds will be used to expand the engineering team, enhance core technology, and accelerate go-to-market initiatives. - learn more
- Village Global participated in a $2.8M Pre-seed funding round for Orpheus Ocean, a New Bedford, Massachusetts-based company specializing in deep-sea robotics. Orpheus Ocean develops autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) designed to enhance deep ocean and seafloor data collection. The funds will be used to conduct the first commercial demonstrations of their AUV technology, expand their technical team, and grow their fleet to support increased deployments in the coming year. - learn more
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