At the start of 2020, Roboflow co-founders Brad Dwyer and Joseph Nelson were not used to working in the same city. Funny enough for this startup, the COVID-19 pandemic brought them under one roof. After launching in August 2019, the pair had set into a rhythm of remote work: Nelson took turns alternately visiting Des […]
A $40 million Series B round will help Johnston-based Growers Edge Financial expand its data analytics team and develop new warranties as an incentive to farmers adopting new practices, products and technology. Founded in 2017, Growers Edge Financial recently closed the Series B round of financing, led by Seed 2 Growth Ventures, Cox Enterprises and […]
BrokerTech Ventures announced four new regional and national insurance firms as partners to support the broker-focused platform and accelerator program, and a new sponsored partnership with Leader’s Edge Magazine this week. The Cincinnati Insurance Cos., RT Specialty, Amerisure Mutual Insurance Co. and AmWINS Group Inc. will be featured during the InsureTech Connect, Agency Connect: Virtual […]
Veterans and their spouses launching a business in Central Iowa have a new resource dedicated to their needs. A Des Moines chapter of Bunker Labs launched virtually on Tuesday with volunteer city leaders Adam Hass and Bernie Stone. The event will be the national organization’s first virtual launch party since Bunker Labs was founded in 2014, and […]
Gravitate Coworking is moving its Valley Junction location to Windsor Heights. Now renamed Gravitate Midtown, the coworking space will open on Sept. 1 at 6500 University Avenue, the company announced in a blog post. The move comes after West Des Moines City Council voted to end a building lease agreement with the West Des Moines […]
The Iowa State University Startup Factory announced its ninth cohort of entrepreneurs this week, following a virtual kickoff reception held June 25. Ten teams joined the program, with one honorary member selected to participate. The startups are: Cyber Manufacturing and Metrology Solution, i01, Novus Technologies, Peach Pay, Salen 247, seedBiome, SoilSerdem, Sushi3D, VisiHut, and Transport […]
Adel-based Kuder Inc. has received the Career Readiness Solution of the Year award from the 2020 EdTech Breakthrough Awards program for the Kuder Navigator, an online career planning system for grades 6-12, Kuder announced this week. Navigator is designed as a career planning system to help secondary students visualize and strategize their futures, with research-based […]
At the morning keynote on June 4, NewBoCo Executive Director Eric Engelmann sat down at his computer with a plastic toy hand-clapper and gave it a good shake. The session’s “pre-standing ovation,” an EntreFEST tradition, would go on as planned — even over Zoom, with a sea of audience microphones muted. Keeping conference attendees engaged […]
FarmHand App, a member of cohort eight from the Iowa State University Startup Factory, has been awarded a $25,000 Proof of Commercial Relevance loan from the Iowa Economic Development Authority board for product refinement, market planning and entry activities and other expenses, Startup Factory announced. FarmHand App, launched in 2019, is a De Witt-based startup […]
West Des Moines insurtech startup Benekiva will join Insurtech Hartford’s Innovation Challenge contest on June 18. The challenge hosts more than 20 representatives from across 10 insurance companies, judging the finalists and providing feedback to all of them. Benekiva, which streamlines the claims process for insurers, is a finalist in the Best Emerging category.