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Venture School Program is now enrolling in Iowa
The University of Iowa Venture School is currently accepting applications from Iowa startups for their fall 2017 program. The statewide program for entrepreneurs was developed by the John Pappajohn Entrepreneurial Center (Iowa JPEC) and host locations in Des Moines, Cedar Falls, and Cedar Rapids. Venture School was built from a curriculum developed by the National…
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Inc. 5000 list: Fastest growing companies in the Silicon Prairie
Inc. recently released their annual Inc. 5000 list that ranks the fastest-growing private companies in America. The Midwest had an impressive showing with 12 of the 14 communities in our State of the Silicon Prairie Report represented on the list with a total of 165 companies. Inc. says their annual 5000 list is a ranking…
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Iowa grant program helps medTech industry retain talent in the state
Iowa City-based IDx knows the importance of keeping tech talent in Iowa. The medical device company is entering into clinical trials for their AI technology that automates the detection of diabetic retinopathy in diabetes patients. If the trial is a success and IDx becomes a leader in AI medTech, they’re going to have to scale…
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M25 releases Best of the Midwest: Startup Cities rankings
The Midwest is gaining increased attention as fertile ground for startups and entrepreneurs. Using publicly-available data on such things as number of startups, investor activity and cost of living, Chicago-based venture firm M25 Group has compiled a ranking of 54 cities in the region. “This has been a five-month process,” said Victor Gutwein, M25’s Managing…
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Art Hack Day Eclipse shines light on the pairing of art and tech
International art and tech event series, Art Hack Day, is coming to St. Louis, August 17-19. The 48-hour marathon hackathon and exhibition will engage 40 artists in a special Eclipse themed edition hosted in the @4240 Building in the Cortex District, St. Louis’ technology startup epicenter. Art Hack Day is an internet-based nonprofit dedicated to…
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5 companies debuted products and customers at NMotion Demo Day 2017
Last week’s 5th annual NMotion Demo Day at the Rococo Theater in Lincoln was a thrilling introduction to the 5 startups that just completed the 100 day accelerator program. The evening began with an intro from NMotion Managing Director Beth McKeon and a thanks to representatives from startup heavy-hitters Hudl, Zillow, Nelnet, Opendorse and Bulu…
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St. Louis-based startup Hoperator makes public debut with live chat hospitality services
St. Louis-based Hoperator, a live chat and social messaging platform which increases lead conversions and guest loyalty for independently owned travel and hospitality businesses, made its public launch last month. Co-founder Michael Foltz previously lived in Krakow, Poland where he owned and managed hostels including Stranger Hostel, a Lonely Planet Blue List Recipient as one…
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Memosnag moves from the valley to the prairie, works to make customers’ lives easier
On Christmas Eve of 2015, Kim Perkins was helping to unpack a moving truck that had just brought her family from California to Omaha. Perkins and her husband, Lorenzo Staunovo Polacco, moved to the Midwest in the heart of winter to pursue their tech careers in the Silicon Prairie. “We decided to move to Omaha…
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PowerPost expands outside of St. Louis with Chicago acquisition
PowerPost, an automated marketing software company headquartered out of St. Louis, announced last week that it had acquired Social Media Beast, one of Chicago, Illinois’ premier content marketing agencies. The acquisition is the third large transaction for PowerPost within the last 18 months and will add nearly 100 new clients to PowerPost, in addition to…
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Des Moines’ Global Insurance Accelerator named finalist in international competition
Des Moines, Iowa’s Global Insurance Accelerator (GIA) was recently announced as a finalist in the ICC World Chambers Federation’s World Chambers Competition in the category of “Best Unconventional Project.” “The Global Insurance Accelerator has leveraged strong leadership and collaboration to drive innovation in a key industry,” said Jay Byers, CEO of The Greater Des Moines…