Startups Stories
Kansas City business owner wins Verizon’s live pitch competition timed to World Cup
Liz Benditt scored the final goal Friday, securing victory in a national pitch competition that began with more than 500 contenders before narrowing to a live, Shark Tank-style round at New York New Jersey Stadium ahead of the FIFA World Cup final.
Love Lifesciences testing its robotic fill system with KC pharma company to boost UNIPEN access
Collaboration not only fuels innovative ideas, said Bradley Hopper, it can help validate and advance Kansas City-built tech — a critical need for Love Lifesciences as new products push closer to market.
Her startup needed a user test lab: Access to KC’s World Cup marketplace opened door to rapid, live iteration
CodeAlgo Academy left Union Station with more than just new customers. The edtech startup wrapped its FIFA World Cup-timed residency with a new product roadmap shaped by thousands of conversations throughout the five-week City of Entrepreneurs marketplace.
Benditt Like Balm Box: World Cup isn’t over for this KC entrepreneur; she’s competing for $20K
Liz Benditt hasn’t earned a trophy for surviving cancer six times, but her rebound did inspire the Kansas City area mom to launch Balm Box — thoughtful support boxes for cancer recovery. Now Benditt’s nearly 20-year entrepreneur journey is taking her to Sunday’s FIFA World Cup final. But first, she must take the pitch Friday.
KC startups among business builders tapped for cohort connecting Midwest founders to enterprise leaders
More than 80 companies from across the region vying to earn a slot in the latest NXTSTAGE Enterprise Engagement Series, said Amber Dunn, with three Kansas City startups among the 16 successfully completing the competitive process.