Digital Sandbox KC

Riddhiman Das, TripleBlind

TripleBlind earns strategic investment from Accenture to jump into $500B market faster

A newly announced strategic investment is expected to boost a high-profile, pre-seed Kansas City startup’s bid to help enterprises harness the potential of sensitive data. Terms of the deal between Dublin-based Accenture and TripleBlind were not disclosed Wednesday, but the investment by the global professional services firm marks a significant step forward for TripleBlind as…

Shelley Cooper, co-founder of SureShow; Jannae Gammage, CEO of The Market Base; Tammy Buckner, founder of Techquity Digital; and Carlanda McKinney, founder of Bodify

GEWKC conversation: Black women are building tech — but are we building them?

A coalition of organizations working to connect early-stage founders to critical resources — with an emphasis on equitable access — is shining the spotlight on Black women in tech during this week’s premier entrepreneurship event series, Global Entrepreneurship Week Kansas City. “Black women are launching businesses at the fastest clip of any racial group. Despite…

Rising startup stars among latest wave of Digital Sandbox’s critical COVID-era capital

Four new Digital Sandbox KC companies reflect a wide breadth of technology, diversity and ingenuity that’s not only typical of the proof-of-concept program, but needed as the startup community attempts a rebound amid the ongoing pandemic, said Jill Meyer. “Our current environment has been a challenging one to navigate for many of our entrepreneurs,” said…

Karen Hughey and Rob Hughey, Team Cura

Rewriting the playbook: Team Cura positions Gen-Z student-athletes for ‘college of their dreams’

For student-athletes playing the long game with their academic and athletic careers, Team Cura enhances scholarship odds and increases college readiness, said Rob Hughey, detailing an online training program that exercises professionalism like a muscle.  “We want to make the process really streamlined,” said Hughey, who co-founded the Kansas City-based startup alongside his mother, Karen…

Mike Parson, Missouri governor; Discovery Design Truck & Manufacturing, St. Peters; Photo courtesy of the Missouri Governor's Office

Missouri startup support funding gutted amid COVID; Advocates hope reversing course could fuel recovery

It’s official: the 2021 budget for a popular public-private partnership that once infused millions into the Missouri tech and startup communities has been wholly defunded by the state as Gov. Mike Parson grapples with COVID-19’s continued economic fallout. But supporters of the Missouri Technology Corporation (MTC) hope Parson’s move — withholding all of the program’s…