Startups Stories

Another Uber fiasco? KCMO proposes $600 fee, regulations for Airbnb hosts

Recently proposed city regulations could throw Kansas City home-sharing in the doghouse. More than 100 area hosts and guests of services like Airbnb and VRBO fueled a discussion Monday on home-sharing regulations that the City of Kansas City, Mo., is proposing after  complaints of abuse. Led by assistant city manager Rick Usher, city officials met…

Kansas City is a top 10 locale for women-owned businesses

The Kansas City area is a top destination for women to own a business, according to a new report. A study released Monday by personal finance website WalletHub placed Kansas City in the top 10 U.S. cities for women-owned businesses. WalletHub ranked the 100 most-populated metropolitan areas, doling out points for new business friendliness, female…

Local, artificial intelligence firms enter the Sprint Accelerator

There’s a bit of local flavor in the latest class of startups to enter the Techstars-led Sprint Accelerator. Now hosting its third batch of startup companies, the accelerator welcomed ten new companies to its three-month program, including one from Kansas City and another from Lawrence. Super Dispatch, based in Kansas City, and Mycroft, based in…

Locally-made drone designed to save servicemen, civilians’ lives

An injured soldier is miles away from medical help, holed up in a countryside village. Reaching him by medevac helicopter isn’t an option and ground Humvee ambulance will take hours. The soldier doesn’t have hours. Usually, it’s a scenario that unfortunately results in death. But Pulse Aerospace, based in Lawrence, Kan., is working to change…

Regional Roundup

Fighting the Silicon Valley monster and why startups leave the Midwest

Here’s this week’s dish on the booming ed tech sector, how other communities can contend with Silicon Valley and the realities of startup relocation. Check out more in this series here. Biz News: How the rest of America can compete with Silicon Valley Silicon Valley is the “center of the new-business universe,” according to Dileep…