KCRise fund lands $10M to kickoff startup investing

By Tommy Felts | September 22, 2016

Kansas City-area startups have a new, local fund to boost their investment rounds. The KCRise fund announced Thursday the closing of $10 million that will co-invest with institutional venture capital groups in early-stage companies based in the Kansas City area. Launched in February in conjunction with the KC Rising economic initiative, the fund was created…

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Document: FarmLink raises additional $24.6M for ag tech

By Tommy Felts | January 19, 2016

Ag tech startups in Kansas City are plowing a promising 2016. Kansas City-based FarmLink recently secured nearly $24.6 million in investment capital for its farming technology, according to a Securities and Exchange Commission filing. The company offers a suite of tech services for farmers, including analytics platform TrueHarvest and machinery sharing platform MachineryLink Sharing. TrueHarvest…

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Top 10 Kansas City startups to watch in 2016

By Tommy Felts | January 6, 2016

Kansas City is home to countless startups. But what early-stage ventures are the most promising and worth a closer look? As we entered 2016, Startland News evaluated the area’s top startups based on the strength of their team, current traction, disruptiveness and job growth potential. Below is a list of the top 10 area enterprises we’ve…

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Claure, Bloch, Helzberg to discuss the entrepreneurial ‘grind’

By Tommy Felts | August 24, 2015

About 90 percent of startups fail. And those that don’t must toil to walk the path of success. That grind to prosperity will be the subject of discussion during a speaking series that will feature titans of Kansas City entrepreneurship. Kansas City’s Startup Grind — a program funded by Google for Entrepreneurs — aims to…

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Sharing economy hits agriculture with FarmLink service

By Tommy Felts | July 23, 2015

A new-age economic model is entering the world’s oldest industry. Kansas City-based FarmLink introduced this week its Web-based farm equipment sharing community MachineryLink Sharing, which the company says will enable farmers to save money and generate revenue. “Agriculture is in the midst of its next big transformation, where new thinking and business models that have revolutionized…

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