Startups

Document: Techstars raising a $400M startup fund

By Tommy Felts / November 28, 2017

Accelerator and investment firm Techstars is working to raise a massive new fund to boost portfolio startups around the world. Techstars — which operates an accelerator program in Kansas City — is now raising a $400 million fund, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund more than doubles Techstars Ventures’…

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Andy Stoll: Entrepreneurial ecosystem answers aren’t inside the Kauffman Foundation

By Tommy Felts / November 28, 2017

Editor’s note: This content was sponsored by the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation but independently produced by Startland News.  Acting in a Bollywood film. Pie making on Armenian television. Cooking on a dude ranch in Australia. Sewing in a dress factory in Bangkok. Farming maize in Zambia. Each revealed a lesson and mission for Andy Stoll.…

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Rx Savings secures $18.4M funding round, nears 2 million members

By Tommy Felts / November 28, 2017

An $18.4 million funding round is the prescription Rx Savings Solutions needs to expand its fight against a crippling, yet common ailment, said Michael Rea. “Everyone in the nation has the same problem — high drug costs — and most people don’t know there are options to save money,” said Rea, founder and chief executive…

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Ajit Pai Net Neutrality

FCC head: Repealing net neutrality will boost innovation, investment; startups disagree

By Tommy Felts / November 21, 2017

The Federal Communications Commission is preparing to eliminate regulatory rules that prohibit internet service providers from interfering with consumers’ access to web content. FCC chairman Ajit Pai announced in a Wall Street Journal op-ed that the regulatory body will vote Dec. 14 to repeal 2015 Obama-era regulations. That regulatory model, referred to as Title II,…

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Roy Scott, Healthy Hip Hop, H3

Bitten by Disney sharks, Roy Scott beats the odds with Healthy Hip Hop

By Tommy Felts / November 21, 2017

When a potentially life-altering business deal suddenly vanished, Roy Scott didn’t get mad — he got funded. “Disney thought they were going to snuff us out, but all they did was put gasoline on this fire,” said Scott, founder of Kansas City-based H3 Enterprises (Healthy Hip Hop). Rewind. Starting his company with a live performance-based…

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