Startups to Watch, Innovation Exchange returning; Startland News announces 2020 events calendar
December 17, 2019 | Startland News Staff
Startland News’ most popular annual and monthly events are set to return in 2020, Austin Barnes said Tuesday, releasing a full calendar of events for the new year.
“In the last six months of 2019, Innovation Exchange drew its biggest crowds since its return from hiatus in March 2018,” said Barnes, programming director for Startland News. “We’ve really found our footing and it’s fun to see these events evolve from a casual happy hour to a learning experience where guests are coming armed with questions and eagerly taking notes.”
Event-goers can expect the monthly series to showcase startup leaders and specific ecosystem topics on the third Thursday of each month, beginning in February.
But first: the hotly-anticipated celebration of companies on Startland News’ list of Kansas City Startups to Watch in 2020.
The list itself is expected to be announced in mid January. Click here to check out the list of Startups to Watch in 2019.
“The Startland News team is excited to build on this momentum and continue finding new and engaging ways to shed light on topics that matter to founders, ecosystem builders and startup champions alike,” Barnes said.
Key dates
- Jan. 30 — Kansas City Startups to Watch in 2020 Celebration
- Feb. 20— Innovation Exchange
- March 19 — Innovation Exchange
- April 16 — Innovation Exchange
- May 21 — Innovation Exchange
- June 18 — Innovation Exchange
- July 16 — Innovation Exchange
- Aug. 20 — Innovation Exchange
- Aug. 27 — Kansas City’s Top VC-Backed Companies Celebration
- Sept. 27 — Innovation Exchange
- Oct. 15 — Innovation Exchange
- Nov. 19 — Innovation Exchange
- Dec. 17 — Innovation Exchange
Also on the calendar: Startland News’ parent organization, STARTLAND, plans to bring back experiences like Startup Crawl KC on June 5 and its Back2KC talent recruitment program Oct. 1-2.
Check out photos below from Startland News’ most recent Innovation Exchange — “KC Mythbusters: Figuring Out Fintech” at event partner C2FO’s Leawood offices. The Mythbusters panel — moderated by Eric Jorgenson, director of Growth at Zaarly — featured Chris Atkins, vice president of capital finance, C2FO; Maranda Manning, investor, Firebrand Ventures; Megan Darnell, program manager, Fountain City Fintech; and Zach Anderson Pettet, managing director, Fountain City Fintech.
Featured Business

2019 Startups to Watch
stats here
Related Posts on Startland News
Come on (down) Now! AltCap Your Biz awards $37K in prizes with a familiar face earning biggest win of the night
The founder’s story can be the most important part of a startup’s pitch, Dr. Shelley Cooper shared after clinching the $25,000 grand prize at Thursday’s AltCap Your Biz: Pitch Competition. “Everybody else had a lot more financials in their pitch, and I took all that stuff out. I focused on telling my story the way…
Panel: Teachers can’t just ‘fail fast’ with students, but plugging entrepreneurship into classrooms builds agility in both
As someone with a hand in both education and entrepreneurship, Tiffany Dixon recognizes that a gap between the two is limiting potential in Kansas City schools. “There is an ecosystem that teachers don’t realize exists around their classroom,” she explained during a “Youth: Our Future Entrepreneurs” panel discussion for Global Entrepreneurship Week – Kansas City.…
VIDEO: How KC-built Engenious Design is scaling with stealth to atmospheric heights
Editor’s note: Engenious Design is a financial supporter of Startland News. This video feature was produced through a paid partnership. From life-saving medical devices to unexpected innovations taking orbit, Engenious Design — a white label manufacturing and design firm headquartered in Prairie Village — might be Kansas City’s best-kept success story, teased Chris Justice, principal…
City zoning change melts barriers for artisanal makers building businesses in KCMO
Editor’s note: KC BizCare is a financial supporter of Startland News. This story was produced through a paid partnership. Birdie Hansen started making candles as a hobby during the pandemic, and the business quickly grew to a level beyond what she and her husband David’s home in Midtown could accommodate. Scaling operations for Effing Candle…


































