Latest Stories
It’s back: TEDxKC returns to ‘question everything’
Ticket sales for the popular lecture series “TEDxKC” kick off next Tuesday. With a theme to “question everything,” the eighth-annual TEDxKC will welcome innovators, artists, activists and researchers from around the world to share their big ideas. TEDxKC is a wildly popular event in Kansas City, garnering sellout crowds not only at its host location,…
Trio of tech startups hop in the Digital Sandbox
A trio of tech startups have entered the Kansas City-based incubator Digital Sandbox KC. Led by entrepreneur Jeff Shackelford, the incubator welcomed Flokk, Routine Success and Tapyness into its program. Digital Sandbox invests up to $25,000 in area businesses for specific projects that help the firms secure additional funding. The organization has now supported 73…
BetaBlox expands to Tulsa, shares 4-year plan
Thanks to a recent fundraise, Kansas City-style innovation is heading south to the Sooner State. After scoring new investment capital, Kansas City-based BetaBlox is expanding its incubator program to Tulsa this summer, bringing with it four years of experience in honing startups. BetaBlox founder Weston Bergmann said his for-equity incubator has partnered with the non-profit…
Weston Bergmann explains BetaBlox and its successful 2016 class
Since launching it in 2012, BetaBlox founder Weston Bergmann has always been impressed by the caliber of firms entering his incubator. But this year, Bergmann said he was blown away by the firms presenting at BetaBlox Demo Day celebration Monday. “It’s kind of cliche to say this class is better than the last, but it’s true,”…
Meet the BetaBlox startups ahead of Demo Day
Kansas City-based accelerator BetaBlox is gearing up for its annual culminating event to highlight startups in its current class. Set for Monday, BetaBlox’s Demo Day offers a stage for its 10 startup firms to pitch their businesses to investors, area residents and fellow entrepreneurs. While also a showcase of its startups, BetaBlox hopes the Demo Day will engage…
Regional Roundup: Chicago aims to be space travel hub
In this week’s roundup of watercooler talk from the region’s startup hubs, we have the dish on one Chicagoan’s plan to make the city a hub for space travel, St. Louis’ booming innovation district and the update on Uber and Lyft’s Texas battle. Check out more in this series here. ChicagoInno: Chicago … a hub…
Events Preview: BetaBlox Demo Day
There are a boatload of entrepreneurial events hosted in Kansas City on a weekly basis. Whether you’re an entrepreneur, investor, supporter or curious Kansas Citian, we’d recommend these upcoming events for you. WEEKLY EVENT PREVIEW KCedu and Lean Lab Meetup When: June 16 @ 5:30 pm – 7:00 pm Where: EduHub Join us as KCedu and…
Startup life and marriage: A spouse’s perspective
Editor’s Note: Dan and Gina Schmidt agreed to share their experience of how startup life has changed their relationship and family. This is Gina’s perspective; see Dan’s here. Opinions expressed this commentary are the author’s alone. A little over six years ago, my husband, Dan, approached me with a business idea. “Emerging Business CFO. That’s…
New batch of techies, educators to revamp learning with Lean Lab
After recently announcing it would award $100,000 for education startups, the Lean Lab on Thursday unveiled the five entrepreneur teams that represent its third cohort. The non-profit for the first time opened its fellowship program to accept international teams, reaping it more than 50 applications — some from as far as Iran and Bulgaria, said…
The Nerdery launches hiring spree at KC office
Nerds abound in Kansas City. Or at least the Nerdery’s local expansion seems to indicate as much. The software design and development firm has added 14 staffers in the last 18 months and is now launching another hiring spree. The Minneapolis-based firm — which opened a Kansas City office in late 2014 — plans to…
