Latest Stories
Dying schools taught Katie Boody how to build
Editor’s note: Katie Boody is a co-founder of The Lean Lab, a Kansas City-based education incubator that helps educators create and implement innovative ideas in schools to help students. The Lean Lab co-founder Carrie Markel contributed to this piece. Opinions expressed in this commentary are the author’s alone. Both the schools I taught at are…
The Lean Lab will award $100K to education entrepreneurs
Local efforts to inject innovation into education received a boost Friday as The Lean Lab announced fellows in its incubator program will earn seed capital for their projects aimed at disrupting traditional learning. Founded in 2013, The Lean Lab welcomed five new teams of fellows from around the nation for its incubator, which develops…
‘Kansas City Startup House’ aims to be smart home incubator
A local tech founder is transforming his Kansas City, Kan., home to eventually become the area’s next incubator program. Sports Photos founder Brandon Schatz recently launched the “Kansas City Startup Home” to host entrepreneurs and innovators from around the world. While it’s now serving as an Airbnb destination for techies, Schatz said in the next…
Kauffman Foundation analyzes Kansas City’s startup growth
What does startup community success look like? Often one hears buzzwords like “vibrant,” “supportive” and “close-knit” — standards by which nearly any community can label itself successful. But since it’s nearly impossible to objectively measure those terms, a startup community’s success is instead frequently evaluated through funding and exits. That ignores the fact that most…
Events Preview: Second Fridays, WordCamp KC
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 Second Fridays When: June 10 @ 4:30 pm – 7:00 pm Where: Village Square Coworking Studio We’ll provide games & cards….
New KC streetcar app connects riders to entertainment, nightlife
A local coding school on Thursday released a new mobile application to enable ridership on Kansas City’s popular new streetcar line. The Disruption Institute developed the “StreetcarKC” app, which helps passengers find stops along the 2.2-mile streetcar line, discover locales along the route and access schedule information. Now available only on iOS devices, the app…
Laura Gilchrist: What KC can learn from Silicon Valley education
Editor’s note: The opinions expressed in this commentary are the author’s alone. A few weeks ago, several of my fellow educators and I toured five innovative Bay Area schools. Being in the heart of Silicon Valley, it’s no surprise that educators there understand the importance of finding new ways to engage and educate kids in…
Coty Beasley consoles dystopic critics of artificial intelligence
Editor’s note: The opinions expressed in this commentary are the author’s alone. Artificial intelligence has a lot of misconceptions. The first images that come to mind are the dystopian classics: Hal locking Dave out of the airlock, terminators shooting machine guns into a crowd, or (one of my favorites) V’ger taking pot-shots at the Federation….
New Kansas City emojis feature landmarks, BBQ, Royals
Whether observing a colorful sunset or a sea of humanity in downtown, has Kansas City ever left you speechless? Well — in those trying times of need — one Kansas City firm is helping residents express themselves when words simply will not suffice. Kansas City-based ad agency Single Wing Creative recently released “Emoji My City,” a…
Black & Veatch constructs ideation platform with new accelerator
A new program at area construction giant Black & Veatch hopes to hatch and accelerate innovative ideas by adopting a concept common among startups. The Overland Park-based corporation recently created the B&V Growth Accelerator, which hopes to challenge the global firm’s traditional methods of generating and launching ideas. The internal program is led by nine…
