Iowa founders should ‘dream bigger’ Kaylee Williams, investment director at InnoVenture Iowa, Iowa’s first publicly backed venture capital fund, recently shared this advice for startup founders: “I would just say, dream bigger,” said Williams during a panel event at Maple Studios on April 2. “Seriously, my biggest critique of Iowa founders is we don’t dream […]
Keehner promoted to principal, will manage new fund Next Level Ventures (NLV) is raising capital for a new fund that will be dedicated to investing in Iowa startups, the Des Moines-based venture capital firm told the Business Record. Next Level Ventures Fund 3 will be NLV’s fifth venture fund and its third focused on Iowa […]
The Greater Des Moines Partnership will hold a one-day Raising Capital for Startups seminar on Dec. 3 in Des Moines. Among the topics covered will be the process of raising capital, the financial model and capitalization tables. “When it comes to securing funds, there’s no one-size-fits-all solution — it’s a process with multiple pathways,” Diana […]
Investor interest in the startup’s recent growth spurred its third funding round, says co-founder Charise Flynn Des Moines-based startup Hummingbirds announced Wednesday it has raised $5.4 million in new venture capital funding for a total of $10 million raised since its first fundraising round last year. Hummingbirds’ platform aims to create authentic word-of-mouth marketing for […]
Editor’s note: IdRamp is the first Iowa company to receive investment from Idea Fund of La Crosse, a Wisconsin-based venture capital firm. The firm announced a new fund this spring that would expand its geography to Iowa. Read more about the new fund and Idea Fund in this story. While Mike Vesey built his other companies over […]
Plus, meet the fund’s first Iowa portfolio company Wisconsin-based venture capital firm Idea Fund of La Crosse recently made its first investment in an Iowa startup since announcing a new fund in May that would reach more Midwest states. The $31.5 million fund is targeting startups in Iowa, Minnesota and Wisconsin that are pre-revenue or very early-stage […]
Fund will support software startups in Iowa, Wisconsin, Minnesota The Idea Fund of La Crosse, a venture capital firm based in La Crosse, Wis., has raised $31.5 million for a second venture capital fund targeting pre- and early-stage revenue startups in the three-state region of Wisconsin, Iowa and Minnesota. According to Pitchbook, a resource for data, […]
Des Moines-based venture capital firm Next Level Ventures (NLV) has announced the promotions of Liz Keehner and Wyatt Powers. Keehner has been promoted to vice president from senior associate. She joined NLV in 2021 and has led investments in several companies, including Tractor Zoom, hummingbirds and iotaMotion. Powers has been promoted to associate from senior […]
InnoVenture Iowa, the first public venture capital fund in Iowa, has added three new companies to its investment portfolio since the second quarter, it has announced. The fund began co-investing in early-stage, Iowa-based startups in bioscience, advanced manufacturing and information technology in 2023. A list of all of InnoVenture Iowa’s investments to date is available here. The […]
InnoVenture Iowa’s second-quarter update included the announcement of four new portfolio companies. The $30 million fund now has 12 portfolio companies. The four new companies are: The update also shared that applications for the second annual InnoVenture Challenge, a $100,000 pitch competition, will open Friday. Investment Director Kaylee Williams said in the update that InnoVenture Iowa will be […]