Calendar update: Startup Weekend KC event postponed until fall, organizer says

Entrepreneurs hungering for intensive, organic product development will have to wait a few more months for their fix.

Rebecca Dove, Pennez, ProjectUK

Techstars Startup Weekend KC — originally slated for April 26-28 at the SafetyCulture North American Headquarters in the Crossroads — has been postponed until September, event organizer Rebecca Dove said.

The annual “three-day long sprint to launch new products and services that solve real-world problems” was expected to focus on hardware products this year.

The Startup Weekend KC date is set for Sept. 20-22, according to Techstars. A reason for the delay was not given.

Click here for more on the planned event.

“We were all excited to focus on hardware and product design as a general theme, mostly because of interest from engineering and product and design firms,” Dove said. “We are wanting to bring on newer ideas to appeal more broadly to the community.”

Throughout the event, attendees pitch and vote on startup ideas, form teams and end by presenting a minimum viable product.

“The great thing is, we welcome individuals with business experience, graphic design experience, user engineering experience, software engineer experience, and more,” Dove said. “We are hoping to have them along with hardware and product designers [in the fall]. Startup Weekend is about building a team, building a business, and acquiring a new skill to potentially become an entrepreneur.”

In addition to the event’s networking and education potential, Startup Weekend also grants attendees access to professionals in relevant startup fields and organizations. This year’s list of sponsors was to include Safetyculture, JE Dunn, and Black and Veatch, as well as makerspaces in the city.