Meghan LeVota
Recent Articles by Meghan LeVota
Mycroft reveals newest open source AI product
Kansas City-based artificial intelligence startup Mycroft AI revealed Wednesday its newest product during Techcrunch Disrupt’s Product Showcase in San Francisco. The firm opened a Silicon Valley office in 2016, yet its headquarters remains in Kansas City. Mycroft is an open-source device, similar to Amazon Echo, using natural language processing technology to enable its everyday use in…
Pipeline alum set to ‘save the world’ through $1M US Army biotech contract
The U.S. Army recently awarded a Missouri biotech startup a $1 million contract for 24 months. Based in Drexel, Missouri, about an hour south of Kansas City, InnovaPrep was selected out of hundreds of proposals for the Department of Defense’s 2016 Rapid Innovation Fund. The contract is expected to advance development of the U.S. Army…
Tech startup wants to bring Sunshine, electricity to hurricane victims
17° 73° Innovation Co. founder Conner Hazelrigg launched a crowdfunding campaign Wednesday to provide disaster relief to Puerto Ricans affected by Hurricane Maria. In response to the island’s electricity shortage, the tech startup wants to deploy its Sunshine Box, a portable solar-charging station that can charge 10 devices at a time. The technology is designed…
Blooom reaches $1 billion in assets under management
Blooom announced Thursday that the Leawood-based financial tech firm has reached $1 billion in assets under management, becoming the fastest, independent robo advisor to pass that threshold. Although it’s not the first robo advisor to reach $1 billion, Blooom did so by stretching its dollar much farther than Silicon Valley fintech counterparts, said co-founder Chris Costello. “This…
KC smart city leader: Only one city ‘smart’ enough for Amazon HQ2
Kansas City’s smart city excellence stands out among a crowded field of major U.S. cities vying for Amazon’s second headquarters, Bob Bennett said. “San Diego has a crazy amount of smart street lights, but they aren’t connected to anything except themselves. New York City has a great Wi-Fi network,” said Bennett, chief innovation officer at…
Digital Sandbox adds two startups to Independence program
Digital Sandbox KC announced Tuesday that it selected Drones4Hire and Hidden Abilities for its Independence, Missouri program. In addition to up to $20,000 in project development funds via Digital Sandbox, the program gives the startups access to workspace at WerksLab and business support via the Ennovation Center, a business incubator located in Independence. Drones4Hire’s platform…
UMKC and Rockhurst HS team up to add entrepreneurial thinking to curriculum
Although education innovation continues to grow in Kansas City, there is a visible gap between the “school world” and the “real world,” said Greg Owsley. “The school world and real world shouldn’t be separate entities — they should be connected,” said Owsley, STEAM director at Rockhurst High School. “It’s a very exciting time to be…
RiskGenius CEO named Entrepreneur of the Year at insurance symposium
Innovation in the insurance industry is lagging behind other sectors, but it’s quickly catching up, Chris Cheatham said. “Billions of dollars are now being invested in insurtechs, or new insurance technology solutions,” said Cheatham, CEO and co-founder of RiskGenius. “I think will see a lot more machine learning used to plow through all of the…
KCSourceLink earns international economic development award
An area entrepreneur support organization was recognized on an international stage thanks to its research on the Kansas City metro. KCSourceLink’s annual We Create KC report won the Gold Excellence in Economic Development Award at the International Economic Development Council on Sept. 19. The report tracks metrics associated with the health of the Kansas City…
Events Preview: How to pitch to the Sandbox, KU Big Data workshop
There are a plethora of entrepreneurial events hosted in Kansas City on a weekly basis. Whether you’re an entrepreneur, investor, supporter, or curious community member — we recommend these upcoming events for you. Are you hosting a relevant community event? Add it to the KCSourceLink Calendar for increased exposure. Email info@kcsourcelink.com for assistance. Bloch Ideation…