Tag: tech

Ideem locks in $2.4M seed round for trust tech spinout driven by Toby Rush, startup veterans

admin — Tue, 15 Apr 2025 14:00:15 +0000

The Ideem team has a clear vision for how to make two-factor authentication easy and invisible for users, serial tech entrepreneur Toby Rush said, noting an early investment round will help the rapidly emerging startup double-down.

Inside grantmaker’s ‘major shift’: Here’s how dreaming big could help rural communities thrive

admin — Thu, 10 Apr 2025 12:41:50 +0000

The Patterson Family Foundation is committed to helping rural communities in Kansas and western Missouri thrive, said Chris Harris, noting the foundation’s new grantmaking strategy expands that access more broadly across its priority region.

Just funded: Meet the newest Digital Sandbox KC startups to earn project innovation resources

admin — Wed, 09 Apr 2025 14:18:54 +0000

The latest round of Digital Sandbox KC funding reflects the region’s commitment to emerging digital health companies — as well as industry-agnostic ventures with big, bold ideas, said Jill Meyer.

“These seven startups have shown they have what it takes to be pioneers in their industries, and we’re honored to be able to propel them forward,” said Meyer, senior director of Technology Venture Studio, which houses Digital Sandbox KC. Digital Sandbox KC is again fueling early innovations so they can be tomorrow’s solutions to our most pressing problems.”

Peek inside: Engenious Design expands its hands-on R&D collaboration space in Prairie Village

admin — Tue, 08 Apr 2025 12:00:23 +0000

A 56,000-square-foot design center for his business is about more than just space, said Chris Justice; it’s what’s inside the high-tech facility by design: people.

How a Missouri native’s high-tech, faith-based bracelet company found inner peace in California

admin — Tue, 08 Apr 2025 11:45:31 +0000

The emotional rollercoaster of social media can take a toll on mental health, said Gary Rakes, a Raymore, Missouri, native who saw an opportunity to create a digital safe space — one that lives on a user’s wrist.

His business, Free Luma, offers a line of RFID-enabled bracelets designed to connect others through positivity and faith-based encouragement beyond traditional social platforms.

Mayo Clinic research: Missouri startup’s VR tech can help calm patients’ pre-surgery jitters

admin — Tue, 08 Apr 2025 11:30:51 +0000

A recent study from the renowned researchers at the Mayo Clinic suggests a dose of virtual reality can help reduce pre-op anxiety in older patients undergoing their first open-heart surgery — and their findings come after testing with technology from Columbia, Missouri-based Healium.

Getting Kansas City to the last mile of tech workforce development requires a bridge (and together we’re building it)

admin — Mon, 07 Apr 2025 15:00:06 +0000

Editor’s note: The perspectives expressed in this commentary are the author’s alone. Kara Lowe is president and CEO of KC Tech Council.

Novel Capital teams with Crux KC to offer growth-focused marketing to early-stage tech companies

admin — Mon, 31 Mar 2025 19:54:06 +0000

An exclusive partnership between two Kansas City-based innovators is expected to help remove a traditional financial hurdle to business growth, said Ethan Whitehill, president and chief strategy officer for the KC Chamber-lauded marketing firm Crux KC.

The collaboration between Crux and Overland Park-headquartered capital provider Novel Capital is expected to offer B2B SaaS and tech companies a path to non-dilutive flexible financing for essential marketing services.

Musk Hands Out $1 Million Checks In Green Bay Before ‘Big Deal’ WI Election

admin — Mon, 31 Mar 2025 11:20:39 +0000

The billionaire tech titan said Tuesday's Wisconsin Supreme Court election 'might decide the future of America and Western Civilization.'

Neighborhood smart cans help Kansas Citians save the planet from their kitchens

admin — Fri, 28 Mar 2025 20:19:20 +0000

Newly introduced composting technology is already turning new ground in Kansas City, Kristan Chamberlain said, with more solar-powered compost cans arriving later this spring across the metro’s urban landscape.

KC celebs, sports icons and tech stars stick around; a hall of famer’s interviews reveal why

admin — Tue, 25 Mar 2025 17:34:28 +0000

Sportscaster Frank Boal could’ve just retired; his wife (and Kansas City’s pull) made other plans

Former sports broadcaster and Pittsburgh native Frank Boal knows a thing or two about the pull of Kansas City, he shared. The longtime media personality moved here in 1981 for work and never left.

Now, Boal and his wife, Sarah McEnerney-Boal, lead a podcast that explores exactly why influential and inspiring individuals choose to call the City of Fountains home.

StartupNWA opens access to Northwest Arkansas ‘VC Immersions’ for Kansas City founders

admin — Tue, 25 Mar 2025 16:30:43 +0000

SPRINGDALE, Arkansas — A program designed to connect entrepreneurs with top-tier venture capitalists — offering access to critical funding, mentorship and the essential relationships needed to secure investor support — is now accepting Kansas City applicants.

Six months after acquiring KC startup, BarGlance expands its AI-powered nightlife app across US

admin — Fri, 21 Mar 2025 19:35:03 +0000

Launching its latest innovation — BarGlance AI — in nightlife hotspots like Dallas, Las Vegas, Miami, and Kansas City is only part of the story for a South Carolina-based company that recently augmented its tech by integrating features from a Kansas City startup it acquired.

‘It’s time to be brave’: This entrepreneur has a plan if she’s deported (and a spiritual mission if she stays)

admin — Fri, 21 Mar 2025 14:49:33 +0000

She’s a mother, an entrepreneur and a healer — but for some, Alex Villalobos-McAnderson is just what’s on paper, the Kansas business owner said

Alex Villalobos-McAnderson — like many immigrants within the borders of the United States — is living life in limbo, she shared.

Pitch locally or look to outsiders? How founder bias toward funding at all costs could leave your distracted startup without a why

admin — Wed, 19 Mar 2025 19:25:07 +0000

Kansas City’s funding gaps often feel deeper for women entrepreneurs, two top founders said Tuesday, describing a startup ecosystem that pits emerging entrepreneurs against each other — but perhaps more critically, against time — in a highly competitive fight for a limited amount of local capital.