Latest Stories
What the world champion Royals can teach us about investing
“The future ain’t what it used to be” – Yogi Berra, New York Yankee legend Like many kids, I learned from an early age that a game can teach us more about life than most realize. Baseball is adversity. Baseball is success by way of failure. Baseball is discipline and perseverance. Sounds a lot like…
7 endearing facts about the founder of H&R Block
Update: Henry Bloch passed away April 23, 2019. Click here to read business leaders’ salutes to the Kansas City icon. Henry Bloch, the co-founder and former CEO of tax prep giant H&R Block, recently spoke with a small group of Kansas City entrepreneurs during Startup Grind. The 93-year-old Kansas City legend shared an array of…
Events Preview: SEMPO Cities, IoT Launch
There are a boatload of entrepreneurial events hosted in Kansas City on a weekly basis. Whether you’re an entrepreneur, investor, supporter or curious Kansas Citian, we’d recommend these upcoming events for you. WEEKLY EVENT PREVIEW SEMPO Cities Kansas City When: October 29 @ 12:00 pm – 7:00 pm Where: Sprint Accelerator We’re excited to announce that…
High-profile judges for Kauffman contest includes Marcelo Claure, VCs
A star-studded lineup of businesspeople from around the nation will be judging 15 startups in the Kauffman Foundation’s One in a Million pitch contest. The competition, which will take place on Nov. 17 and 18 during Global Entrepreneurship Week, will award $10,000 to one startup that previously participated in the foundation’s 1 Million Cups program. Those evaluating…
5 takeaways from Midwest tech investment report
Lead Bank and investment research firm CB Insights recently analyzed the Midwest tech investing scene and distilled their findings into a report. The nearly 40-page report looks at investment trends, performance, major players and more. Here are five takeaways from the report. 1) The Midwest accounted for a small piece of the national tech investment…
As the Royals roll, this KC tech startup wants to develop its future pitchers
A local startup hopes to cultivate the next Wade Davis or Yordano Ventura with the help of its pitching technology. In early 2015, Kansas City-based Precise Play launched its digital pitch analyzer, which the company is selling to baseball academies, schools and private leagues. Precise Play founder Victor Villarreal said that his machine has been…
The WTF Series: Artificial Intelligence
On a daily basis, Ben Kittrell translates the jargon-filled world of technology for clients of his tech consultancy. The Words that Frustrate (WTF) series aims to offer readers some clarity in an industry dominated by techies’ confusing argot. Last week I went to my favorite event of the year, Compute Midwest. The last four years…
Sizzling startup Video Fizz to represent KC in national Techweek competition
After a sizzling summer, Video Fizz is continuing its hot streak with a growing investment round and a chance to win more funding at a national pitch contest. Founded by Laura Steward, Video Fizz in September won a $50,000 grant as part of the LaunchKC pitch competition. Video Fizz, an app that enables collaboration to…
Listen: How does Kansas City regard failure?
In the entrepreneurial world, the word “failure” takes many definitions. For some entrepreneurs, failure is a badge of honor, while for others it’s taboo. Regardless, failure is a part of reality amongst startups and it’s a topic that’s been examined at length in Kansas City’s entrepreneurial community. KCUR’s Up To Date recently hosted Startland editor-in-chief Bobby Burch, Pipeline Inc….
Events Preview: Compute Midwest, Shark Tank
There are a boatload of entrepreneurial events hosted in Kansas City on a weekly basis. Whether you’re an entrepreneur, investor, supporter or curious Kansas Citian, we’d recommend these upcoming events for you. WEEKLY EVENT PREVIEW Compute Midwest When: October 22 – 23 Where: Municipal Arena Over a thousand remarkable people from around the globe will converge in…
