Events Preview: Gigabit City Summit, Celebrate entrepreneurs

There are a plethora of entrepreneurial events hosted in Kansas City on a weekly basis. Whether you’re an entrepreneur, investor, supporter, or curious community member — we recommend these upcoming events for you.

Are you hosting a relevant community event? Feel free to add it to the FWD/KC calendar for increased exposure. Once your event is submitted, it will quickly get reviewed and then published to the calendar.

Gigabit City Summit
When: Aug. 1 – 3
Where: Plexpod Westport Commons
The population of colonial America at the time of the Revolutionary War was between 2 and 3 million people—roughly the size of metro Kansas City today. Outside of New York and Los Angeles, the rest of the top 100 US metro areas by population are in the range of a half million to less than 10 million people—six- and seven-figure populations. Those numbers are remarkably modest compared to the nine- and ten-figure populations that the world’s national governments are charged with managing and protecting.
It is hard to talk about the importance of cities these days without sounding trite or slipping into cliché. We’ve all heard that 70% of people will be living in cities by 2050, that cities draw the “creative class” and house “innovation hubs” that foster collision density and serendipitous connections. We lament the growing financial burden cities bear, while lauding local as the place where “things get done” and innovation is alive.
The dialogue around and exploration of these issues facing the city of today and the city of tomorrow is an important one. The invocation of the American revolution is not so much intended to recall conflict and tyranny, but the opportunity for fundamental definition of principles—of what a society believes, of what the people stand for, and of how they create the rules and institutions to realize a polis based on those beliefs.
Such is the opportunity for today’s cities, and it is called into stark relief by the digitization of infrastructure. Whether through fiber deployments to expand capacity for connectivity and data traffic or the application of sensors and real-time computing to the roads, buildings, pipes, and wires that enable modern life, cities (and the communities in between) are in the midst of a fundamental transformation. Unlike much of the consumer software revolution, these infrastructure projects deploy slowly and at great collective expense.  The magnitude of the investment and the long infrastructure life cycles create an opportunity and an imperative—the opportunity for fundamental redesign and improvement and the imperative that they be well-considered and executed.
Over the past several years, the conversation around smart cities has evolved to include and even prioritize the role of actual human beings in the smart city loop. To those new to that conversation or unfamiliar with the history of “smart cities,” it may come as a surprise that such an evolution was even necessary. The idea that technology projects need to focus on meeting the needs of actual people ought to be obvious of course, but the challenges in making that a reality are more complex than might be imagined at first blush. These are precisely the challenges that our first gigabit cities have found themselves faced with—not simply how we build new infrastructure and deploy new technology, but how do we build the systems to apply those assets in the right way.
While this is an issue of national import, it’s one that cities and communities, with population sizes that operate at a human scale, networking down to schools and neighborhoods and homes and individuals, are uniquely able to address. This is the challenge that the Gigabit City Summit is designed to help address.

First Wednesdays (Regnier Institute)
When: Aug. 2, 5:00 p.m. – 6:30  p.m.
Where: UMKC Bloch Executive Hall
On the first Wednesday of each month during the academic year, The Regnier Institute hosts special events designed to bring students and community members together and to inspire Bloch students to launch new ventures. These special events include inspirational stories from inductees of the Entrepreneur Hall of Fame and at the end of each semester culminate in a student venture feasibility plan and pitch competition. The evenings end in pizza and networking.

August TechTalk: KCDC Diversity Kickoff
When: Aug. 2, 6:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.
Where: TBD
For Networking, You’re not alone.There just aren’t enough women in technology, and being the only one can get lonely. Break out of your silo and meet women who do what you do. Share stories, exchange advice, talk tech, and be yourself. You can come to network, to cowork, or just to chat. For growth, Learn from the best. TechTalks were created to be not only a networking event, but an opportunity for continuous learning for skills that must constantly evolve to keep up with the market. These talks will cover a wide variety of topics including:

• How to be effective in different technology roles
• Value assessment and determining appropriate compensation
• APIs
• Resumes and Interviews
• Careers: How to Have It All
• Technical sessions for javascript, .NET, java, and more

SMCKC August Breakfast: How to Incorporate Social Media into Your Real-Life
When: Aug. 4, 7:30 a.m. – 9:00 a.m.
Where: Grand Street Cafe
Building an audience on your social channels isn’t the only goal you should have for your social media efforts. Learn how you can integrate your social media posts into your existing marketing campaigns so that you can provide better support your sales team and drive more inbound leads to your funnel. You’ll learn:

• How to use social ads to warm up the sales pipeline
• What kinds of content to create—and where to post it—to generate potential leads on social channels
• How to incorporate social posts into an integrated marketing campaign—what, who, where, and why.

$10 Admission/ $15 Admission+Breakfast
Refunds/Cancellations: We know that issues come up and sometimes you cannot attend our events after you have registered. Please let us know if you cannot attend immediately as we are financially responsible for accurate guest, food and drink counts. No refunds can be offered if you cancel less than five (5) days prior to an event. Thank you

Celebrate Entrepreneurs with Think Big at August First Friday
When: Aug. 4, 5:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m.
Where:  Think Big
Let’s celebrate entrepreneurship and innovation in KC! Start your August First Friday experience with Think Big and the industrious minds building KC’s entrepreneurship and innovation scene. Before heading off to explore First Friday, come raise a glass to the work and companies being created right here in Kansas City. And while we’re at it, let’s give back to the local community by supporting Project Homeless Connect KC, a startup event providing a way for homeless citizens to change their lives.

Your agenda:
5-7p: Celebrate Entrepreneurs with Think Big
7-night: Eat, walk the galleries, support artists, have fun at First Friday
Get your night started with:
? A special art exhibit exploring local homelessness in KC by Project Homeless Connect KC featuring photos by Colby Lynse
? Boulevard Beer
? DJ Longer Days
? A donation raffle for a new Garmin Vivofit Activity Tracker – Kansas City Chiefs Edition

A special thank you to Project Homeless Connect KC for your efforts in this event and for your dedication to helping Kansas City homeless move their lives forward.

Ongoing events

Don’t miss out on the events that happen every week at the same time, in the same place.

Code for KC Hack Night
Mondays from 6:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. at Sprint Accelerator

Hammerspace Open House
Thursdays from 6:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m. at Hammerspace

1 Million Cups
Wednesdays from 9:00 a.m. – 10:00 a.m. at Kauffman Foundation, Lawrence and KC Live Stream

Looking ahead

Conquer for Good Connect
When: Aug. 8, 5:30 p.m.
Where: Will & Grail
Fueled by the frustration of trying to find an easy way to use their talents as volunteers, Brent Lager and Brent Lobdell launched The Call KC to connect compassionate individuals and groups of volunteers with local organizations in need of their time and talents. Now in its fourth year, The Call KC has helped nearly 10,000 volunteers find meaningful opportunities to give back. Brent Lager will tell the story of the organization’s evolution and future plans for growth and expansion.
Come hear Brent’s story and stay for conversations and cocktails. Please register to reserve your spot. It’s free!

KC Coworking Day
When: Aug. 9, 9:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.
Where: Plexpod Westport Commons
Help us set the world record for the most number of people coworking in one place at one time. The Kansas City Coworking Alliance is sponsoring a day of Coworking, Connecting and Colliding to celebrate all that is great about Coworking in Kansas City.
We’ll start out supporting startups at 1 Million Cups then set the coworking global record. Food trucks, games, and music will help you connect and collide over lunch in the courtyard. Don’t miss out on being a part of this important day in KC. You just never know who you might meet.
9:00-10:00am – 1 Million Cups in the Medallion Theater
10:00-10:45am – Prep to set the world’s record, welcome & guidelines
10:45-11:15am – Set the coworking world’s record!
11:15am -1:00pm – Connecting & colliding over lunch/games/music/ice cream in the courtyard (or you can keep coworking in the breakout rooms or annex)
Note: you can arrive before or after 1 Million Cups. Check-in when you arrive with one of the KC Coworking Alliance team members. We will be wearing the red t-shirts.

#KCCoworkingDay | #Coworking | #KCCoworking

Second Fridays
When: Aug. 11,
Where: Village Square Coworking Studio
Come to Second Fridays at Village Square Coworking Studio!
Second Fridays is a casual, fun gathering for the startup community to connect on a monthly basis with no agenda except good times.
We’ll provide games & cards (bags if it’s nice). This event is BYOB with a twist – bring a 6-pack of your favorite beer to share and we’re going to have a “beer potluck” cooler. We’ll ice down everyone’s beer and have quite the selection to choose from!get to know someone over a brew!
We’d also encourage you to bring an instrument if you play. What better way to end your week than with a jam session?!
Feel free to stop by anytime after 4:30pm. We’ll hang out until everyone leaves (unless it gets ridiculous).
No RSVP necessary, just come on by!