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Higher Learning Technologies is putting textbooks into apps
Textbooks are big, expensive, and in some cases go out of date almost as fast as they’re published. The Coralville company Higher Learning Technologies is looking to make textbooks into more effective tools for education by converting them into mobile learning apps. How Higher Learning Technology works HLT’s Alec Whitters doesn’t seem like your typical…
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Our 10 favorite Iowa startup stories of 2016
Silicon Prairie News covers the tech startup scene across Nebraska, Iowa, Kansas and Missouri. Here are our most popular stories from Iowa this year: 1. Why Dwolla made its transactions free (and what happened next) (Des Moines) In June we sat down with Jordan Lampe, Director of Communications and Policy at Dwolla, to discuss the company’s move away from…
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New ag tech accelerator in Des Moines plays to Iowa’s strengths
Iowa’s economy has two great strengths: insurance and agriculture. In 2014 the Greater Des Moines Partnership, an economic and community development organization, announced the Global Insurance Accelerator, aimed at growing insurance-based tech startups. It only makes sense that the partnership would seek to do the same for agriculture, which it will do with a newly announced…
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Iowa’s 2016 Prometheus Award winners include FunnelWise, KinoSol
The Technology Association of Iowa (TAI) on Thursday celebrated the growth and achievement of 16 companies, communities, and organizations alongside dozens of individuals who were invited to take center stage during the 2016 Prometheus Awards. Nearly 1,000 people attended the 11th annual event, sponsored by LWBJ and focused on an “Our Future is Now” centered…
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Here’s the complete list of 2016 Prometheus Award finalists
The 11th Annual LWBJ Prometheus Awards will be on Thursday, April 14, 2016, in downtown Des Moines. This year includes two new award categories: Ag Technology Company of the Year and Technology Community of the Year. Pear Deck was named last year’s Outstanding Startup Company of the Year. The formal event is put on by the…
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Global Insurance Accelerator announces 2016 class
The Global Insurance Accelerator out of Des Moines has announced five teams for its second class, which include regional, national and international startups in the insurance industry. The teams include: Smart Drivinc (St. Louis, Missouri): Distracted driving and crash prevention app Fluttrbox (Montreal, Canada): Property assessments via aerial drone images WeSavvy (Dublin, Ireland): Health insurance app that pays…
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Iowa Startup Accelerator launches STEAM summer camp for kids
The Iowa Startup Accelerator, based out of Cedar Rapids, is launching a new summer camp program this year for kids. The program is an expansion of their Imagination Iowa initiative, which promotes coding, creativity and entrepreneurship in Iowa. “We’ve run CoderDojo, our coding camps for kids, every two weeks for the past two years,” David…
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Our 10 favorite Iowa startup stories of 2015
Silicon Prairie News covers the tech startup scene across Nebraska, Iowa, Kansas and Missouri. Here are some of our favorite Iowa stories from this year: 1. Pear Deck wins Rise of the Rest competition at SXSW [Video] (Iowa City) Last March education startup Pear Deck won a $150,000 investment from Steve Case after winning the Rise of…
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Year in review: Ben McDougal’s Iowa startup community highlights
2015 was so crazy that it’s hard to highlight the entire year in a single article, but why not, let’s try. Here’s a chronological reflection on a few things that really made 2015 special within Iowa’s entrepreneurial ecosystem: Global Insurance Accelerator As 2015 began, teams from around the world were building their disruptive ideas inside…
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![“Dear Cedar Rapids” expresses one man’s love for his city [Video]](https://siliconprairienews.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/cedar_rapids-e1451311631595.png)
“Dear Cedar Rapids” expresses one man’s love for his city [Video]
The idea for the video started when Cedar Rapids was scheduled to host the Iowa League of Cities event. They wanted something that expressed what made Cedar Rapids such a special place. “Andy [Stoll] gave me a call and said maybe I could capture the emotional view of Cedar Rapids,” said Courtney Ball, creator of…