Meet LaunchKC’s new social venture cohort: Bold builders going beyond buzzwords (and Kansas City)

A reputation of strength within Kansas City’s entrepreneurial ecosystem helped convince Darian Jones — a St. Louis native now based in Austin, Texas — to apply for LaunchKC’s fourth Social Venture Studio cohort, he shared Wednesday during a reveal event for the program.

Darian Jones, Tribal Tech Innovations, shares his startup pitch during the reveal event for the 2025 LaunchKC Social Venture Studio cohort; photo by Taylor Wilmore, Startland News

Tribal Tech Innovations was one of seven social ventures announced by LaunchKC — an initiative of the Economic Development Corporation of Kansas City, Missouri (EDCKC) and the Downtown Council (DTC) — this week at the Keystone CoLab space in the East Crossroads.

“I love the Midwest, first and foremost,” continued Jones, founder and CEO of Tribal Tech, which deploys affordable, energy-efficient atmospheric water systems to provide sustainable access to clean drinking water for underserved communities. “I’ve heard a lot of good things from people I know about KC, and about what you’re doing with that community aspect of innovation and entrepreneurship. I hate to use buzzwords, but that’s the real thing.”

“Everything I’ve built has been from being in the right community,” he added. “It’s a prime location to scale — although it’s still early — with all the logistics, it makes sense to me to be in the middle of the Midwest.”

Jones isn’t the only founder from outside the Kansas City area joining this year’s cohort. Shaniqua Jones-Williams — founder of St. Louis-based SendBack and a member of the 2024 Pipeline Pathfinder class — is also taking part, although she wasn’t able to attend Wednesday’s announcement.

LaunchKC’s Social Venture Studio connects business solutions rooted in solving social, environmental or racial issues, with the firepower necessary to thrive, according to the program.

Now in its fourth year, Social Venture Studio has graduated 21 companies from its previous three cohorts and received the IEDC Excellence in Economic Development Award for work in promoting economic equity and inclusion in 2022.

Steven Anthony, EDCKC, speaks during the reveal event for the 2025 LaunchKC Social Venture Studio cohort; photo by Taylor Wilmore, Startland News

“It’s incredible to see just the companies that have come out of this, the entrepreneurs, the folks that are actually leading this type of work,” said Steven Anthony, outgoing vice president of business development for EDCKC. “This is absolutely amazing. I was at IMC with (EDCKC leader Jim Erickson, who oversees LaunchKC) when we won the award, and everyone was saying, ‘Man, this is incredible what Kansas City is doing, that nobody else is doing here.’ To see where it’s at today has been absolutely amazing.”

[Editor’s note: EDCKC is a financial sponsor of Startland News.]

The seven selected companies will participate in a four-month program receiving professional support, a $20,000 grant award, temporary office space, mentoring and network connections to strengthen their social venture business concepts. A culmination event in the fall will be a chance for the companies to reveal their pitches to potential funders and supporters. 

“I want folks to understand — with the new cohort that’s coming, any entrepreneurs in the crowd, any of our past folks, whether it’s LaunchKC or Social Venture Studio, be bold,” Anthony added. “If I can leave folks with anything, continue to be bold and continue to lead with intention. That’s what our community continues to need.”

Cohort members include:

Matt Krentz and Andy Bond, BestyBnB; photo by Brian Escobar, EDCKC

BestyBNB, Andy Bond and Matt Krenz — The platform supports crisis-care and safety-net pet advocacy programs by connecting human social services, animal welfare, and disaster relief agencies to secure temporary, safe housing for pets during times of crisis.

Antoinette Redmond, Neuru; photo by Nikki Overfelt Chifalu, Startland News

Neuru, Antoinette Redmond — The digital platform centralizes therapeutic, medical, and educational records, while offering community connections and resources to help families navigate developmental delays and disabilities.

Dee Moore and Tony L. Temple II, Temple Made Fitness; photo by Taylor Wilmore, Startland News

Temple Made Fitness, Tony L. Temple II and Dee Moore — The organization combines literacy and wellness through fun, hands-on events and activities that build healthy habits and literacy skills in children and families.

Darian Jones, Tribal Tech Innovations; photo by Brian Escobar, EDCKC

Tribal Tech Innovations, Darian Jones — The company deploys affordable, energy-efficient atmospheric water systems to provide sustainable access to clean drinking water for underserved communities.

Mychal Shaw, Uwazi.AI; photo by Taylor Wilmore, Startland News

Uwazi.AI, Mychal Shaw — The AI-driven platform enhances civic engagement by simplifying ballot language, supporting informed voting, and providing tools for nonprofits and civic groups to manage events, engage volunteers, and track impact.

Salubata, Fela Akinse and Yewande Akinse — The company creates modular shoes from recycled plastic waste, using patented technology and sustainable design to significantly reduce the global carbon footprint.

SendBack, Shaniqua Jones-Williams — The company provides innovative reverse logistics solutions for retail returns through sustainable, convenient, and circular systems that reduce waste and promote community reuse and redistribution.

Members of the cohort and community members listen to startup pitches during the 2025 LaunchKC Social Venture Studio reveal event; photo by Brian Escobar, EDCKC

Many of the new cohort members said they are looking forward to the connectivity fueled by the program.

“We’ve been growing each year and expanding and transforming,” noted Moore of Temple Made  Fitness. “What I’m hoping to gain from this program is just a pause and feedback from peers, as well as evaluation to see which direction that we take going forward. So feedback and connection are the ultimate goals.”

“We consider ourselves problem solvers,” said Bond, co-founder of BestyBNB, “and the best way to be a good problem solver is to realize that you don’t have all the answers and surround yourself with smart, passionate people to help us navigate that scale.”

“I’m not a tech founder, nor do I have a tech background,” added Redmond, founder of Neuru, “but there’s a lot of tech people within our cohort, which I’m really excited to be able to connect with.”

Programming is led by the Keystone Innovation District, with consulting from Jacqueline Erickson Russell, founder and CEO of Social Impact Advising Group.