Startups Stories
TechAccel, UC Davis lab developing wheat seed to combat climate change
A Kansas City-based tech and venture development firm hopes to engineer wheat seeds that produce higher yield by withstanding warmer temperatures. “We’re taking a concept that is pretty important for wheat worldwide,” said Brad Fabbri, Chief Science Officer of TechAccel. Increasing temperatures make growing wheat more difficult across the globe, studies show. Reports indicate climate…
OP-based motion capture startup DARI Motion sells to Omaha firm
DARI Motion, an Overland Park-based startup that created a motion capture platform that provides biomechanical analysis of athletes, patients and more, recently was acquired by a Nebraska firm. DARI, which stands for Dynamic Athletic Research Institute, was purchased for an undisclosed amount by Omaha-based Scientific Analytics Inc. With the acquisition, the firm aims to transform how…
Axing the status quo: Swell Spark builds experiences from West Bottoms HQ
Human interaction is about more than texting and social media posts, said Matt Baysinger, co-founder and CEO of Swell Spark. “One of the best things in life is sharing a meal together, but sharing a meal together is only as good as the conversation you get to have over that meal,” Baysinger said. “If you…
Metactive announces nearly $3M combined in funding round, government grant
Fairway-based Metactive has raised a $1.2 million round to accelerate the development of its products for the treatment of neurovascular, peripheral vascular and structural heart diseases. The round included Kansas City-based Mid-America Angels, as well as Serra Ventures. Founded by CEO Nick Franano, Metactive has raised more than $10 million to date. In addition to…
KC-based SouveNEAR vending machine startup prepping to scale up
SouveNEAR offers travelers a piece of KC — from KC, said co-founder Tiffany King. The Kansas City-based startup, which repurposes vending machines to sell locally made souvenirs, is in its fourth year of steady, organic growth, King said. As a member of ScaleUP! KC new class, SouveNEAR is preparing to grow the business and turn…
