Startup Weekend Kansas City organizer Adam Coomes, left, sports a Startup Weekend track jacket as he leads the group through the opening pitches. Photo by Danny Schreiber.
More than 100 entrepreneurs, designers, developers, marketers and business people have gathered on the southern edge of Kansas City for the fourth Startup Weekend Kansas City. Taking place at the Cerner Innovations Campus, a health care information technology company, this Startup Weekend carries a bit more pressure as it helps kick off Global Entrepreneurship Week. In fact, it’s one of 19 Startup Weekends taking place this weekend worldwide.
Look to Silicon Prairie News for the next 54 hours – from idea pitches to final pitches – to stay up on Startup Weekend Kansas City or follow the hashtag on Twitter, #SWKC. I also have the pleasure of joining the panel of four judges to ultimately decide the winner, so I’ll have a unique perspective this weekend, which is the fourth Startup Weekend I attended.
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The pitches are happening now, so stay tuned for the a post with the ideas.
In the meantime, check out some of the scenes from the start (all photo taken by Danny Schreiber).
Follow Startup Weekend on Twitter, #SWKC
After taking a private road, Cerner security welcomed attendees into the Cerner Innovations Campus with a map to lead them to the event.
Just outside the venue
Startup Weekend Kansas City registration… Hey, that’s Analog the Prairie Dog!
Attendees grab a pizza and drinks before the event kicks off
Facilitator Coomes welcomes the more than 100 attendees
Coomes runs through house keeping items, sponsor thank yous and general Startup Weekend rules
Cameron Cushman of the Kauffman Foundation speaks about the potential of Google Fiber coming to Kansas City
A view from the back of the room as the night gets underway
Dan Liberman of Google speaks about the possibilities of Google Fiber and the upcoming Kansas City rollout
Like many Startup Weekend, the “pick two obscure words and make a company out of them” game was played
One of the attendee pitching during the two-word company game
Another one of the attendees pitching its teams idea for the two-word company game
Coomes lays down the opening night pitch rules – no one will get more than one-minute to pitch
Analog the Prairie Dog chilling in the back of the room