SxSW – Here comes LaunchKC!

LaunchKC and a coalition of leaders in the Kansas City tech space are in Austin, Texas this weekend for the annual South-by-Southwest Interactive – one of the nation’s largest gatherings of tech innovators – that runs through Tuesday.

LaunchKC leaders are at SxSW to learn, network and announce plans for its 2016 competition that will award 10 tech entrepreneurs with $500,000 in grants at the Techweek Kansas City conference in September  2016 at Union Station.

This marks LaunchKC’s second consecutive year for ‘launching’ its global search for grant applicants at SxSW.

LaunchKC will take the stage in Austin on Monday evening for its announcements at a special “launch” party, co-sponsored by the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation and Techweek.

“We’re back,” said Mike Hurd, marketing officer for LaunchKC, referring to the fact that LaunchKC used the SxSW stage a year ago to announce its first grant competition. “SxSW provided us with the ideal podium to inform the tech world about the emergence of a new source of funding for tech startups.”

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Joining the broader coalition of KC tech leaders in Austin this week is the staff of the Startland News. Editor Bobby Burch filed this story on his maiden voyage to SxSW this weekend:

“Load up the clown car — Startland is going down south.

“Kansas City’s source for entrepreneurial and tech news is venturing to arguably the nation’s top conference for innovative ideas: South-by-Southwest Interactive.

“The Startland team has a jam-packed schedule while at SXSW, mingling with techies, early-adopters and thousands of Austonians. Make sure you follow along on our social accounts — Twitter and Facebook — for all the updates.

“There’s a strong Kansas City contingent that will be traveling to Austin, including folks from LaunchKC, the Kansas City Chamber, KC Digital Drive, the Kauffman Foundation and more.

“We’ll cover their presence there, in addition to other events such as President Obama’s chat with The Texas Tribune’s Evan Smith.”

Click here to follow Startland’s coverage of SxSW.