February 1, 2012

  • Startup Fair draws 100 exhibitors, more than 400 visitors across Iowa

    Given the record temperatures on the last day of January, Tuesday evening’s Iowa Startup Fair could probably have been held outdoors at the state fairgrounds. But since meteorologists’ predictive powers are still far short of Nostradamus, the crowd at StartupCity Des Moines, Amici and other area locations would have to just crack some windows to…

  • PrairieCast Video: Pipeline Innovator of the Year, the Gigabit Challenge

    This week on PrairieCast, we’re joined by Marco Santana, The Des Moines Register’s new technology and startup reporter, as well as our own Michael Stacy. We talked through all the news and notes from Pipeline’s Innovator of the Year festivities and looked back on the Gigabit Challenge to discuss what it means to the region.…

  • Join us for the SPN Meetup with Hatchlings on Thursday

    With a projected high of 54 degrees in Des Moines today, it’s hard to think tomorrow marks Groundhog Day, a day where many hope and pray the furry guy doesn’t see a wintry shadow. Tomorrow night, Feb. 2 from 5-7 p.m. at Raccoon River, the spokesrodent from a related genus, Analog the Prairie Dog will…

  • Prairie Portrait: Erica Cohen of OneLouder

    Bio: Kansas City native, KU Jayhawks fan, wife of a golf fanatic, soon-to-be mother. World traveler, dog lover (Boxers especially!) and foodie at heart. Sarcastic humor and ice cream make me smile. Passionate employee of Handmark/OneLouder since 2006. | Title: Communications manager for OneLouder Apps | Age: 29 | Residence: Overland Park, Kan. | Website:…

  • Dwolla Instant goes live on mobile. Milne gives demo (Video)

    Dwolla, the online cash transfer startup based in Des Moines, rolled out mobile access today to Instant, its most popular feature release yet, on its iOS (left) and Android apps. Announced in December and made available to a limited amount of users through its website, Instant takes the wait time out of adding cash to…

  • SmartyPig unveils GoalSaver, a social savings platform for banks

    SmartyPig, an online social savings platform, today announced a pair of big changes. The Des Moines-based company will go by a new name, Social Money Systems. It also will offer a new product, GoalSaver, which is a customizable, social savings, transaction-focused platform for banks that utilizes a bank’s brand and regulatory and compliance systems to…

  • Cross-country ‘book tour’ on bike teaches couple value of ‘diving in’

    Lincoln couple Khara and Emir Plicanic’s cross-country bicycle trip started very low-tech, in a way, with four books. The first three were all books Khara read (and Emir read “by proxy” based on their discussions): “My Life on the Run” by Bart Yasso, “A Million Miles and a Thousand Years” by Donald Miller and “The…