Startups

Ben Hammes, Social Afterlife

Lifting the burden: Social Afterlife oversees social media accounts of lost loved ones

By Tommy Felts / October 1, 2019

Receiving a birthday notification on a social media platform is a common source of angst for Ben Hammes’ customers, the founder of Social Afterlife said.   “We handle the memorialization or removal of social media for the deceased on behalf of the family,” Hammes said, explaining his startup. “This helps the family with dealing with the…

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Doug Tree, Staychill

Hilly KU campus inspires ‘back sweat’ innovation for Startup Weekend KC team

By Tommy Felts / October 1, 2019

If more entrepreneurs were willing to invest a little sweat alongside virtual strangers, they’d carry an even larger number of cutting-edge startups to success, Tyler Sherman said. “In two days, we have a product that I feel comfortable enough to say we’ll roll with,” Sherman, a participant in the recent Techstars Startup Weekend, said of…

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Kasim Hardaway; Photo courtesy of Nam Cu

Social Side Effect: Don’t call Kasim Hardaway an influencer (but do ask him about poké)

By Tommy Felts / September 28, 2019

Editor’s note: Social Side Effect is an ongoing profile series that identifies the intersection between social influencing and entrepreneurship   Instagram stories are more than temporary snapshots. They’re a growing vehicle for influencer marketing in Kansas City, Kasim Hardaway explained.  “It was never something I set out to do. It kind of just happened,” Hardaway, a…

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Aware Vehicles

Aware Vehicles accelerates pilot-free drone development thanks to IgniteX partnership with Black & Veatch

By Tommy Felts / September 28, 2019

Drones are one step closer to becoming completely automated with the help of Aware Vehicles, a finalist in the IgniteX Accelerator.  The Kansas City-based tech startup focuses on non-human interaction for the flight, charge and data collection of drones, emphasized PJ Piper, CEO of Aware Vehicles and founder of QM Power.  “You get the eye…

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Cyber Security Operation Center (CSOC)

Fishtech Group scales CYDERES, leaping into deep end of global cybersecurity market

By Tommy Felts / September 26, 2019

National accolades and an expansion into Northwest Arkansas are feeding the latest round of rapid scaling at the Gary Fish-led Fishtech Group.  “Hitting the MSSP list for the first time at No. 25 is a huge honor and an endorsement of CYDERES’ position in the managed service market,” Eric Foster, CYDERES Chief Operating Officer, said…

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