Photos: ARtechBBQ party gets the beer cheese flowing with a salted pretzel tech twist
November 4, 2024 | Nikki Overfelt Chifalu
Sweater weather returned Friday night alongside Kansas City’s premiere after-hours celebration of tech, and ARtechBBQ organizer Greg Kratofil couldn’t have been happier, he said.
Greg Kratofil, Polsinelli, and Michael Graber, RSM, speak from the stage during the ARtechBBQ; photo by Nikki Overfelt Chifalu, Startland News
“How about this being back in the fall?” Kratofil asked a crowd of well-fed revelers at the party within the party on the grounds of the Kansas Speedway. ARtechBBQ — now in its 13th year — coincides with the annual American Royal World Series of Barbecue.
“I’ve got hot chocolate right now,” added the Polsinelli shareholder, chair of the technology transactions and data privacy practice, and co-office managing partner for the law firm’s Kansas City office. “Beats the hell out of 95 degrees.”
The ARtechBBQ — presented by Polsinelli, RSM, SecurIT360, NextEra Energy Resources, Sailes, Rack Coach, and the KC Tech Council — brought together hundreds from the tech community at what Kratofil calls the closest thing that Kansas City has to Mardi Gras.
Click here to read more about the history of the ARtechBBQ.
Check out a brief event photo gallery below, then keep reading.
Members of the party band Lost Wax perform during the 2024 ARtechBBQ; photo by Nikki Overfelt Chifalu, Startland News
“There’s a lot of exciting things going on in Kansas City right now, especially around our tech community,” Kratofil said.
“We’ve been a sponsor and have been investing in the tech community for a long time,” added Michael Graber, RSM partner and blockchain lead, joining Kratofil in front of the ARtechBBQ crowd. “We just love being out here and being part of this.”
With this year’s event moving deeper into the fall schedule, it featured an Oktoberfest theme, complete with bratwurst, a biergarten, pretzel bites with beer cheese, and string lights. Of course, no ARtechBBQ would be complete with smoked meats, so brisket and pulled pork was also on the menu.
Attendees also enjoyed live music from local party band Lost Wax.
Startland News served as the event’s media sponsor.
Check out a photo gallery below by Startland News reporters Taylor Wilmore and Nikki Overfelt Chifalu from the ARtechBBQ below.
2024 Startups to Watch
stats here
Related Posts on Startland News
PropTechHD looks beyond the façade of drone use to see sky-high potential for capturing high-quality data
A lot can go wrong when flying a drone around a high-rise building, acknowledged Andrew Patch. Think restricted airspace, pigeons, hawks, turbulence, swirling winds, pressure changes, trees, powerlines, and other unexpected obstacles. But behind the sticks of a controller, Patch steers into the challenge. In February 2017, he founded Heartland Drone Company, an Federal Aviation…
Hack Midwest is back with $20K in prizes, space for tech talent to flex app-building muscles
More than prize money is on the line when Hack Midwest returns this weekend to Kansas City, Michael Gelphman said, detailing how the contest could ignite progress in the local tech ecosystem. “We can get people to think entrepreneurially and create new ideas,” said Gelphman, the competition’s founder, noting the power and potential of the…
GiftAMeal posts food selfie milestone: 1 million meals donated through Missouri-made app
Foodie photos shared to social media through a Missouri tech startup’s app have provided more than 1 million meals — representing more than 1.2 million pounds of healthy groceries for families in need — thanks to GiftAMeal’s network of restaurant and food bank partnerships, the company said. St. Louis-based GiftAMeal this week announced the milestone donation…
Survival gets the wheels turning: Why this founder sold his home and belongings for a new pro journey
An entrepreneur who’s gained a following with his homegrown wrestling company and deeply personal cancer survival story is hitting the road — hoping to change perspectives about the disease by engaging and uplifting others who are fighting or affected by the disease. “It’s so easy to ignore something like brain cancer when it is seen…