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.
Austin Barnes, Startland News, Innovation Exchange
“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
Dual attractions at vineyard disc golf course bring hole-in-one for this Kansas entrepreneur trio
Startland News’ Startup Road Trip series explores innovative and uncommon ideas finding success in rural America and Midwestern startup hubs outside the Kansas City metro. EDGERTON, Kansas — A rural Douglas County family is pairing its award-winning Kansas table wine with 18 holes of disc golf and earning national recognition in the process, Christy Fuller-Flyntz shared.…
Peek inside: Engenious Design expands its hands-on R&D collaboration space in Prairie Village
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. “Our work of designing, prototyping and testing is hands-on with specialized tools and equipment. That means our team works together, in person,” said Justice, co-founder, principal and CEO of Engenious…
How a Missouri native’s high-tech, faith-based bracelet company found inner peace in California
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…
Mayo Clinic research: Missouri startup’s VR tech can help calm patients’ pre-surgery jitters
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. “While much of the research to date using VR involved younger patient…