Pipeline

Melissa Vincent, Pipeline

Pipeline names OKC startup veteran, podcast host as fellowship’s new executive director

A tech startup founder and community builder in the Oklahoma City innovation ecosystem will soon work to open the valve for greater entrepreneurship support in Kansas, Missouri, and Nebraska. The Pipeline entrepreneurs fellowship, a network of some of the Midwest’s most successful and high-performance startup leaders, announced Tuesday that Melissa Vincent would take over leadership…

Jeff Rohr and Rachel Smith, SquareOffs

Village veteran SquareOffs launches long-awaited social opinion site, tops $2M+ in funding

SquareOffs hopes its new consumer-facing destination website — showcasing interactive “microdebates” aggregated across a growing network of publishers and influencers — moves digital conversations back to civility. A fresh round of funding will help, said Jeff Rohr. “We are all tired of the toxicity that fills our social media feeds and dominates comments at the bottom…

Joni Cobb, Pipeline, photo by Lane Hickenbottom

Climbing mountains in the Midwest? Exiting Pipeline leader eyes next big challenge

A desire to move mountains is driving Joni Cobb to move on from Pipeline — her family of 13 years.  “I’ve been thinking about it for many years … not because I don’t love what I do. I love what I do [with Pipeline],” said Cobb, president and CEO of the Midwest-based accelerator and entrepreneur…

Jason Tatge, Farmobile

Farmobile’s Jason Tatge: Why venture capitalists can’t afford to fly over Midwest startups

Savvy investors are turning their attention to the Midwest. Leading VC firms and investors are fleeing from the high prices, the groupthink and the cutthroat competition of the coasts and turning to the heart of the United States for their next moonshots. And yet, the Midwest attracts just 7 percent of VC capital, a tiny…

Techweek 100 list

Techweek 100 list released: Dozens of KC’s top cultivators, ambassadors and innovators

Techweek Kansas City on Friday released its Techweek 100 list of the premier leaders pushing innovation in Kansas City. The collection of cultivators, ambassadors and innovators is a who’s who of familiar names across the startup, entrepreneurship and tech communities. Released in the runup to Techweek KC’s Oct. 8-12 festivities, the list isn’t a ranking,…