Startups

Trially secures $4.7M seed round, launches ‘Margo’ AI solution to clear patient bottleneck

By Tommy Felts / September 16, 2025

A Kansas City startup’s AI-first platform is expected to save time — and patient lives — thanks to a successful seed round for its clinical trial recruitment tech, explained Kyle McAllister, noting his startup’s solution could help speed up access to treatment by years. Trially, one of Startland News’ 10 Kansas City Startups to Watch in…

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LISTEN: Fermenting a clean future through products from meat alternatives to skin creams and baby formula

By Tommy Felts / September 13, 2025

On this episode of Startland News’ Plug and Play Topeka founder podcast series, we chat with Francesca Gallucci of Natáur, a Baltimore-based biotech company that’s reimagining how essential nutrients are made. Combining synthetic biology, metabolic engineering, and eco-friendly fermentation, they’re producing bio-based taurine (and other naturally occurring sulfur compounds) without relying on petroleum. Gallucci takes…

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Gatekeepers hate to see them coming: Why Back2KC leaders think these outsiders could be the next best Kansas Citians

By Tommy Felts / September 11, 2025

A Kansas City homecoming movement with a track record of sparking real relocations and startup investment is gearing up for its annual gathering — welcoming expatriates and newcomers alike as it seeks to deepen ties between the city and its far-flung alumni. But the program’s high-octane leader insists the work of Back2KC isn’t just about…

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KC-built AI command center helps businesses gain superpowers without losing their tech stack

By Tommy Felts / September 9, 2025

First envisioned as an AI-powered agent built to streamline operations at Kansas City-based Plexpod’s coworking spaces, Intuidy has evolved into its own operating system; one that is transforming the way companies operate, co-founder Grayson Smith said. Vantage — Intuidy’s flagship platform launched in early 2024 with the help of Smith’s brother, Gentry — is a…

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LPOXY initiates $28M Series A financing with 5 Horizons Ventures to fund pivotal trial 

By Tommy Felts / September 4, 2025

PLATTE CITY, Mo. — Funding to secure the upcoming trial of a Missouri biopharmaceutical company’s solution for preventing a deadly gut infection could prove critical in the fight against a condition that claims 80 U.S. lives daily, said Dr. Larry Sutton. LPOXY Therapeutics, which is developing a novel non-antibiotic therapy to prevent Clostridioides difficile infections…

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