Applications are now open to Iowa State University students or recent graduates for CYstarters, a 10-week summer accelerator assisting participants with their startup or business idea. Selected students will receive $6,500 for an individual or up to $13,000 per student team to spend the 2019 summer pursuing their business model from May 20 to Aug. […]
Craig Ibsen, managing principal at Next Level Ventures, and Stephanie Atkin, vice president of marketing at Dwolla, at Thursday’s Power Breakfast: Innovation Acceleration. Des Moines talks a big game about Iowa being an innovation state, but at Thursday morning’s Business Record Power Breakfast, one audience member wondered: is this true in rural communities? Fair question, […]
Office Depot is counting on formerly empty storefronts to make a big impact on its new business model: the company’s new Workonomy Hubs offer coworking desks and private offices are part of a catchall location of business services, reports Fast Company. Nationally, Office Depot has closed around 300 locations in two years, so if successful, the […]
Dwolla, a Des Moines-based digital payment platform, is expanding its second Monetery summit to two days this May, the company announced on Wednesday. The 2019 summit will be held May 21-22 at the Temple for Performing Arts. Last year’s event was limited to 200 attendees, and this year’s will be similarly exclusive, said Steph Atkin, […]
If the Kauffman Foundation’s 1 Million Cups initiative is “church for entrepreneurs,” Des Moines entrepreneur Ben McDougal is preaching the gospel – and his congregation is getting bigger. After leading the Des Moines chapter for five years – the second 1MC chapter in the country after Kansas City – McDougal is stepping back locally in […]
Smart Ag founder/CEO Colin Hurd joined this year’s Forbes 30 Under 30 entrepreneurs in manufacturing and industry across the U.S. and Canada. Hurd, who is 28, graduated from Iowa State University with a degree in Agriculture and Business in 2013 and went on to develop AutoCart, an automated grain cart system that allows farmers to […]
High-growth companies that missed the Nov. 2 deadline can still apply to present at the 2019 InvestMidwest Venture Capital Forum in Kansas City. Midwestern companies interested in pitching to investors at the forum, held March 19-20 at the Westin Kansas City at Crown Center, can submit applications until Jan. 4, 2019. InvestMidwest annually attracts around […]
Midwest startup accelerator gener8tor announced a new partnership with Allianz Life Ventures and Securian Financial to establish the OnRamp Insurance Accelerator in the Twin Cities, reports AmericanInno. Five startups will be welcomed into the three-month program each year, with a cash investment of $100,000. The program builds off the existing OnRamp Insurance Conference, which has […]
The Ag Startup Engine’s seven initial agricultural startup companies have collectively raised more than $10 million in follow-on investments, the organization announced today. The seven portfolio companies within ASE at Iowa State University Research Park have also created more than 40 jobs since the initiative’s launch. Established in late 2016, the ASE began by looking […]
After two years of piloting in Iowa, FarmlandFinder will debut in 12 more Midwestern states this winter. “We’ve been starting to branch out and build relationships with those people, and showing them early access. We’ve got people that are testing that software right now,” Founder and CEO Steven Brockshus said. “The whole premise of FarmlandFinder […]