The ISU Startup Factory has announced the members of it’s 19th cohort. The startup factory is an 18-week incubator for innovators residing in Iowa. The program focuses on helping founders build business acumen, improve communication skills, and leave with a commercialization plan in place. Teams include several ISU faculty and…
The University of Iowa Venture School is expanding its footprint with a new location in Ottumwa and is now accepting applications for its spring 2026 cohort. The application deadline is Feb. 27, with sessions beginning the week of March 2. Venture School is an eight-week, hands-on entrepreneurship program designed to…
The Iowa Department of Education and the Iowa Governor’s STEM Advisory Council have announced six teachers as the 2026 Iowa STEM Teacher Award recipients. Now in its 12th year, the annual Iowa STEM Teacher Award recognizes one full-time, licensed PK-12 teacher from each of the state’s six STEM regions for…
In as early as the 1960s, top thinkers were predicting machines would take over a person’s work. That’s according to the Science Center of Iowa’s newest traveling exhibit, “Artificial Intelligence: Your Mind & The Machine.” The interactive exhibit will be on display through April 26. “Machines will be capable, within…
NewBoCo will lead the ecosystem building components for the Iowa Aviation Technology Center, a regional effort to strengthen Iowa’s economy by expanding aerospace and aviation workforce capacity, innovation and entrepreneurship. The nonprofit received philanthropic support from JPMorganChase for the initiative. NewBoCo’s goal is to help position Iowa as a global…
The Iowa Primary Care Association was recently awarded a National Institutes of Health grant to help fund an effort to develop, train and pilot a “fairness-aware” artificial intelligence/machine learning model with the goal of improved health outcomes for patients served by Iowa’s community health centers. The $523,750 NIH AIM-AHEAD grant…
Technology leaders encouraged Iowa’s business and tech community to talk with lawmakers about artificial intelligence policy at the Technology Association of Iowa’s AI Public Policy Forum and legislative reception held Feb. 4 in Des Moines. “Your constitutional right is to talk to your legislators, voice your opinion,” said Jennifer G….
The 10th annual Iowa Rural Summit, scheduled for April 9-10 in Dubuque, is now open for registration. The Rural Summit celebrates rural innovation, best practices and case studies. Keynote speakers will include Dr. Jeffrey Stamp, inventor of Baked Lays. He is a professor of entrepreneurship at the University of Minnesota…
The West Des Moines Chamber of Commerce is now accepting nominations for the 2026 Mel Essex Entrepreneur of the Year Award. Nominations must be submitted by March 2 at 5 p.m. Presented annually at the Athene Beyond Boundaries Business Summit, the Mel Essex Entrepreneur of the Year Award honors the…
By Hailey Evans The Des Moines Home + Garden Show is coming to the Iowa Events Center Feb. 12-15. Visitors can tour pop-up gardens created by local landscapers, meet project experts, shop the annual plant sale, enjoy educational sessions and peruse the Made in Iowa Market for home goods and…
As part of a refresh of the Business Record’s Innovation Iowa brand, we have created a new landing page on the Business Record website to house all Innovation Iowa coverage and more stories from the Business Record covering innovation and technology.
Visit www.businessrecord.com/innovation-iowa to view all Innovation Iowa stories, including the 2026 Innovation Iowa Magazine, out now.
-Sarah Diehn, Business Record Editor