‘This is the dream’: Starty Party turns up the volume on Kansas City tech, collaboration (Photos)
November 13, 2025 | Tommy Felts
It isn’t a party without the people, said organizers of the Starty Party, gathering a crowd of startup veterans, early stage founders, investors and community leaders Wednesday for a one-night celebration of innovation — set against the backdrop of homegrown music and vibes.
Melissa Vincent, Pipeline Entrepreneurs, right, speaks on stage alongside Dan Kerry, Flyover Capital, during the Starty Party at Knuckleheads; photo by Taylor Wilmore, Startland News
“This is amazing,” said Melissa Vincent, CEO of Pipeline Entrepreneurs, from the Starty Party stage at Knuckleheads in Kansas City’s East Bottoms. “The thing I love about Kansas City is that we know how to collaborate. And because of our collaboration — instead of it being competition — we bring everybody in together.”
A crossover event, Starty Party notably combined the people power and resources of Pipeline (opening its latest module this week), the Flyover Capital-led MidxMidwest startup-investor summit (returning today in its fourth year), and law firm Polsinelli (a longtime supporter of the tech and innovation community).
Click here to learn more about the origins of the Starty Party, which was presented by GK2.
Wednesday’s packed outdoor concert — featuring The Greeting Committee, a nationally touring indie-pop band with roots in the Heartland — came together with the help of a wide-range of community partners, organizers said, crediting Keystone, NXTUS, UMKC, Digital Sandbox KC, LaunchKC, and Digital Health KC for their support.
“The common thread in this whole region: We all want entrepreneurship in this city to thrive,” said Flyover’s Dan Kerr, a core MidxMidwest organizer who dubbed the celebration with its Starty Party name. “And to see this many people out here, I think we can say that we’re thriving; we’re gonna rock it.”
Greg Koehler and Greg Kratofil, GK2, speak on stage at Starty Party at Knuckleheads; photo by Taylor Wilmore, Startland News
Looking across the crowd, gathered under the neon lights and heaters of the Knuckleheads venue, Kerr acknowledged support from Polsinelli’s Greg Kratofil had pushed MidxMidwest to new heights.
“Honestly, when we started MidxMidwest four years ago … the dream was to have entrepreneurs, investors, and awesome Kansas City talent come out and be part of the mix,” Kerr said. “We’ve always had live music, but Greg has taken it up 10 notches this year. This is the dream right here.”
Mayor Quinton Lucas speaks at Starty Party. “If you love Kansas City, if you love making money, if you love supporting entrepreneurs in business, you’re in the right place tonight. More than anything, make sure you get to know each other, get the chance to connect, and listen to some outstanding music,” Lucas said; photo by Taylor Wilmore, Startland News
Featured Business
2025 Startups to Watch
stats here
Related Posts on Startland News
Balancing disruption: Proposal might ban big parts of KC from short-term rentals
Feb. 22 update: After a robust, 40-minute conversation Thursday, the full Kansas City Council voted 7-4 to pass a proposed ordinance that would prohibit short-term rentals in residential neighborhoods zoned as R-7.5 and R-10. Voting yes: council members Scott Wagner, Heather Hall, Dan Fowler, Lee Barnes, Jr., Alissia Canady, Scott Taylor and Kevin McManus. Voting…
MADE’s Heartbreak Kids splits design silence on tension with Charlie Hustle
Streetwear is about making a statement, Vu Radley said, and the Heartbreak Kids collection says more than words alone could express. “It’s an attitude. Pushing out statements without censoring yourself,” said Radley, co-founder and creative director for MADE Urban Apparel. “We say it how it is in our designs.” For the Heartbreak Kids capsule, which…
Want a globally competitive KC? Look beyond smart city ‘bling,’ Digi.City founder says
The U.S. has a lot of catching up to do, said Chelsea Collier, founder of Digi.City. It’s not quite doomsday, but Collier wanted to express a sense of urgency, she said Friday during a Smart Metro Summit at Plexpod Westport Commons. Cities need to get smart — fast — or the United States will continue to…
Techstars’ Lesa Mitchell: Non-sexy sectors are ripe for disruption
Editor’s note: The opinions expressed in this commentary are the author’s alone. In the process of looking for a new crop of companies to invest in on behalf of Techstars Kansas City, I thought I should highlight the type of companies I think are undervalued and critical to our economy. In 2017 we invested in…