The Iowa Rural Development Council, a public-private statewide nonprofit supporting small towns, has opened registration for the 2024 Iowa Rural Summit. The event is scheduled for April 11-12 at the Gateway Hotel & Conference Center in Ames. Rural communities are invited to bring three-person teams, which has helped generate momentum after previous events, according to a […]
The Iowa Economic Development Authority awards funding to startups in the form of low-interest loans through its Innovation Continuum, which includes five funds that are designed to offer companies non-dilutive funding at every stage of business growth. The funds are: Proof of Commercial Relevance (POCR), Demonstration Fund and the Innovation Acceleration Fund, which offers Launch, Propel and […]
The Technology Association of Iowa’s 2024 Iowa Technology Summit, scheduled for April 8-9 in Des Moines, is now open for registration. Two Iowa chief information officers — Kathy Kay of Principal Financial Group and Paul Hlivko of Wellmark Blue Cross Blue Shield — will give the keynote presentation on the widespread impact of artificial intelligence. Other […]
The U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Development agency is investing $1,213,603 in 13 grants and $43,957,700 in five loans to projects in Iowa that promote rural small businesses, provide technical assistance and support public works infrastructure. Greene County Development Corp. received a $95,703 Rural Business Development Grant to provide technical assistance to emerging businesses in Greene […]
Artificial intelligence is seen as a copilot and tool to help employees be more efficient, a panel of chief information officers said at the Technology Association of Iowa’s AI Public Policy Forum on Jan. 24. All three panelists — Kathy Kay of Principal Financial Group, Ryan Schaap of Wells Enterprise and Laura Smith of UnityPoint […]
The agenda for the 2024 Global Insurance Symposium, scheduled for April 16-17, is now available. The content will cover the different aspects of risk facing insurers and innovators. Sessions will feature discussions of risks from AI, climate change, litigation and fraud, as well as panels of insurance commissioners and chief risk officers. The full agenda […]
The Technology Association of Iowa has announced that Kathy Kay, executive vice president and chief information officer at Principal Financial Group, has been appointed as the 2024 board chair of the TAI board of directors. “Iowa is rapidly becoming a new hub for innovation and technology full of opportunities for growth, advocacy and connection,” Kay said […]
The Department of Management Division of Information Technology, formerly the Office of the Chief Information Officer, is requesting public comment on the state of Iowa Digital Equity Plan. The plan details Iowa’s proposed implementation of digital equity funding made possible through the Digital Equity Act of 2021, which is funded by the Infrastructure Investment and […]
The Business Record recently hosted its 2024 Legislative Forecast event where business leaders discussed their group’s priorities for the 2024 session, which began Jan. 8. Mollie Ross, Technology Association of Iowa’s vice president of operations, was among the panelists. Here is some of what she shared about how TAI will navigate conversations around cybersecurity and […]
Empower Rural Iowa, an initiative under the Iowa Economic Development Authority created to advance growth and investment in rural Iowa, has adopted a new strategic focus centered on finding innovative ideas with potential to scale statewide. A new executive order signed by Gov. Kim Reynolds in October updated Empower Rural Iowa’s mission to be a group that “functions […]