Tinder founder boards advisory team as StoryUP closes oversubscribed $1M+ round
Building a global company requires boots on the ground, Sarah Hill said as she waited to board a flight to Kansas City, hours after the close of her startup’s first million-dollar funding round. “Once the Kansas City investors hopped in, that’s when it came to be oversubscribed — we were just delighted,” said Hill, founder…
Read MoreWomen-led Kansas City companies fuel Launch Health accelerator’s first cohort
Healthcare needs an overhaul and four Kansas City-area companies are among those poised to disrupt the industry as part of the first Launch Health Accelerator cohort, explained Jeremy Tasset. “Through the health accelerator, we were seeking companies with fresh ideas that give rise to improving care and lowering costs that can be readily integrated into…
Read MorePayIt’s iKan app named a finalist in Fast Company 2019 Innovation by Design honors
Kansas City’s PayIt isn’t just worthy of investment — its foundational technology continues to win awards alongside the likes of Nike, Microsoft and Mastercard, said John Thomson. Fast Company honored iKan — a PayIt-powered app that allows Kansas residents to pay vehicle registration renewals, renew their driver’s license (the country’s first-ever mobile driver’s license renewal service),…
Read MoreCustom retro arcade gaming consoles take Hammerspace workshop down memory lane
When Hammerspace Community Workshop moved into its space off Emanuel Cleaver Boulevard in 2017, a small gaming console served as a showpiece for a room designed for creative and crafty children. Mimicking the look of a classic Nintendo GameBoy-turned-arcade game, the apparatus allowed kids — and adults alike — to play retro titles in an environment…
Read MoreKC Fed: We can fix the digital divide (and solutions come without a high cost)
Editor’s note: The opinions expressed in this commentary are the author’s alone. Jeremy Hegle is senior community development advisor at Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City. Some issues affecting the digital divide are complex — expanding availability of affordable broadband, for example, requires government policy, technology, and lots of money. It can seem daunting and…
Read More