News

First look: Creative Studios concept expands Made in KC’s view of brands as partners

By Tommy Felts / May 11, 2018

Warm sunlight bathes a future ceramics shop. A vintage Thomas Cusack Co. mural advertisement peeks from behind the plaster wall of an in-the-works photography space. Views from the second and third floors reveal a city skyline in creative transition. Amid the freshly hung drywall and still-curing, stained hardwood staircases, Tyler Enders steps quickly between rooms…

Teenage inventor creates retro game console that fits in your palm

By Tommy Felts / May 11, 2018

For teenage entrepreneur Ernest Pereira, gaming is going small. The 18-year-old innovator is releasing a limited run of his retro game console, the Duinodrive, before shipping off to the Naval Academy in the summer. The Duinodrive — which can fit in the palm of your hand — comes in a kit that users assemble themselves…

Popular TEDxKC won’t return in 2018; organizers to focus on women, youth events

By Tommy Felts / May 10, 2018

TEDxKC — one of the largest and most-popular independently-organized TEDx events in the world — won’t be back for 2018. While TEDxYouth@KC and TEDxKCWomen are expected to return in 2018, hitting pause on TEDxKC’s “general ideas” event will allow organizers to reflect on accomplishments, missteps and milestones, said Mike Lundgren, co-founder of TEDxKC. “We asked two…

Fitbit integrating Sickweather illness forecasting into new wearables

By Tommy Felts / May 10, 2018

Sickweather is stepping into the wearables market. A new partnership with industry leader Fitbit is expected to see the Kansas City-based startup’s illness forecasting technology integrated into Fitbit’s new products. “Smartwatches provide a powerful platform to deliver important health tools that help our users manage conditions more conveniently than ever before,” said James Park, co-founder…

Surveys, rewards dying: Tapyness scores customer feedback with one-tap, 3-second experience

By Tommy Felts / May 9, 2018

No one takes 15-minute surveys anymore, said Matthew Korte, co-founder of Tapyness, a Lawrence-based customer experience platform that provides real-time feedback via kiosks in client businesses. A typical Tapyness interaction takes three seconds, he said. “We’re down to the millisecond, and we’re aggregating hundreds of tablets simultaneously within one brand to go: ‘Here’s the health…