Startups

They didn’t want to go corporate; how AI gave brothers the tools to forge their own path, together

By Tommy Felts / July 23, 2025

Tyler and Garrett Amundsen are using AI to help insurance brokers spend more time on relationships and less time on data, the duo shared. Inspired by conversations around their family’s Kansas City dinner table, as well as the latest tech developments, the brothers launched LightDoc in early 2023 to automate and streamline repetitive tasks that…

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He retired after an exit; now this govtech veteran is back in a CFO role for KC-scaled PayIt

By Tommy Felts / July 23, 2025

As Kansas City-built PayIt scales across North America, a new financial leader is expected to help guide the company in its game-changing efforts to help government agencies modernize, serve their residents, and improve operating efficiency. Steve Kovzan, a nearly 30-year veteran of leadership across government technology and finance spaces, is now chief financial officer at…

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KC govtech startup: You shouldn’t have to know how local government works to get answers (or make impact)

By Tommy Felts / July 22, 2025

Even a ripple can make waves, said Mitch Mabrey, an exited cleantech founder whose new cause finds him on a mission to ensure that the voices of residents from all walks of life are more broadly heard — and answered — by their government officials. Resonus, his Kansas City-based political information platform is designed to…

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Indoor golf concept shoots past the rough with tech driver, hooking franchise success across US

By Tommy Felts / July 19, 2025

Lenexa-based indoor golf concept GolfTRK is teeing off into the world of franchising, said Matt Williams, scoring big wins from coast to coast as demand to expand access to “golf light” soars. The modern training and performance facility — a Trackman Preferred Franchise Partner with locations in Lenexa and Overland Park — now has 11…

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On the map and in the mirror: 1 Million Cups contrasts international eship visitors with KC startup scene

By Tommy Felts / July 16, 2025

The fail-fast mindset and high risk tolerance many American entrepreneurs employ in their quests to build unicorn startups are arguably foreign concepts to business builders on the other side of the globe, said Lucy-Llonna Larbi. Her experiences in Germany reflect a slower, security-first focus, she said, expressing admiration for the American approach. “We think that…

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