Mountain View, Calif. - Sonal Shah, who works on global development for Google's philanthropy division, Google.org, has been named to the transition team of President-elect Barack Obama, according to CNET News.com. Shah previously served as a vice president at Goldman Sachs. The Obama team also has recruited Julius Genachowski, one of the three co-founders of DC-based early stage investment firm LaunchBox Digital. According to The Washington Post, Genachowski attended law school with Obama, and helped stress the importance of high-tech issues during the campaign.

Reston, Va. - Mpowerplayer, a developer of software that allows content providers to offer online demos of mobile games, said on Wednesday that it has secured $2.5 million in its first round of funding.

Washington - LaunchBox Digital, a new early-stage investment firm founded by Julius Genachowski, Sean Greene and John McKinley, on Wednesday announced the first nine companies to complete its incubator program.