Funding Stories

KU spinout earns $180K+ in prizes at business plan competition; students going full-time with startup

LAWRENCE, Kansas — A sustainable engineering startup that emerged from the University of Kansas took fifth place in a recent business competition at Rice University in Houston, earning more than $180,000 in prizes and an opportunity to make history for the founders’ alma mater. Icorium Engineering, the first-ever team from Kansas to compete in the…

KCRise Fund-backed startup secures $20M Series C, fueling its commitment to KC

A Texas-based caregiver support platform’s latest funding round is expected accelerate the company’s growth and expand its support solutions, said CEO Michael Walsh, noting the startup continues to deepen ties to Kansas City. Cariloop today announced the close of its Series C funding round, raising $20 million. The investment was led by ABS Capital with…

Dude Perfect flips from YouTube to IRL with $100M investment from Kansas firm

WICHITA, Kansas — With more than 16 billion views on their YouTube channel, 60 million subscribers, and major brand deals already established, the team behind the family-friendly sports and entertainment group Dude Perfect is poised for even greater impact with fans, said Jason Illian. Highmount Capital today announced a strategic partnership with Dude Perfect —…

These founders just earned Digital Sandbox KC funds; next comes proving their concepts

A trio of newly funded Digital Sandbox KC companies includes a closely-guarded startup launched by an exited Pipeline founder who also helped bring headline-grabbing sports tech to the forefront of the Kansas City innovation scene. Mission Hills, Kansas-based Chemniscient (pronounced kemʹniSH(Ə)nt) is currently operating confidentially and is not disclosing any product information to the public…

Google’s billion-dollar announcement comes with $100K for NKC schools; Here’s how they’ll use it

A $1 billion Google data center will begin impacting Kansas City before the tech giant officially opens its new facility in 2025, company and local officials said Wednesday, announcing a $100,000 investment to support North Kansas City schools. “This partnership is more than just about technology, It’s about empowerment,” said Dr. Rochel Daniels, school district…