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New Work by Jordan Weber opens Friday at Moberg Gallery
It almost came as no surprise that while I sat in the stairwell of Des Moines' artist and activist Jordan Weber’s studio waiting for him to arrive, sweat beads were forming on my forehead. Five minutes of waiting in his second floor inferno felt appropriate — offering up a level of anticipation and discomfort similar…
Q&A: Meet Joey Aguirre, Managing Editor at Clay & Milk.
It was announced yesterday that Joey Aguirre will step into the role of Managing Editor at Clay & Milk. It seemed fitting that my last Q&A as the interim editor be with the new individual taking over this position as his full-time career. I sat down across from Joey at the high top tables in Gravitate and we…
The Middle Bit: Week of May 14
Each week, Clay & Milk will curate a rundown of startup, tech and innovation news from “the middle.” Check back every Friday for that week’s Middle Bit. Illinois Cloud-based fraud prevention startup Precognitive raises $1.25M. ChicagoInno Chicago-based Uptake ranked No. 5 on CNBC's list of Most Disruptive Companies. ChicagoInno Chicago HS student using machine learning to fight cancer featured at Google…
Don’t quit.
We had a handful of community members, business owners and startup supporters weigh in what it means to #AccelerateDSM. …
How do you #AccelerateDSM
In conjunction with AccelerateDSM, Clay & Milk will be highlighting quotes by community members that answer one of the following questions: In what ways do you or your business/organization work to accelerate the city of Des Moines? What do you need to help you accelerate your business in Des Moines? How can you help others living, or…
The Middle Bit: Week of May 7
Each week, Clay & Milk will curate a rundown of startup, tech and innovation news from “the middle.” Check back every Friday for that week’s Middle Bit. Illinois Illinois Senate passes legislation to slash start-up costs. Illinois Policy Furniture startup Interior Define raises $8M. Built In Chicago Listen Ventures wants to find the next B2C startup success in Chicago. ChicagoInno…
The Middle Bit: Week of April 30
Each week, Clay & Milk will curate a rundown of startup, tech and innovation news from “the middle.” Check back every Friday for that week’s Middle Bit. Indiana TechPoint Mira Awards Honor ‘The Best of Tech in Indiana'. TechPoint New York-based IAC, the parent of HomeAdvisor, has announced plans to acquire Indianapolis-based Angie's List Inc. Inside Indiana Business Indiana Farm Bureau…
The Middle Bit: Week of April 23
Each week, Clay & Milk will curate a rundown of startup, tech and innovation news from “the middle.” Check back every Friday for that week’s Middle Bit. Colorado Oracle launches "startups inside Oracle" centers to create new-age tech for its customers, with locations in Virginia and Colorado. Business Insider Arvada-based construction tech company Prescient announced the close of a…
The Middle Bit: Week of April 16
Each week, Clay & Milk will curate a rundown of startup, tech and innovation news from “the middle.” Check back every Friday for that week’s Middle Bit. Illinois Ex-Walgreens CEO launches joint venture to commercialize new technologies. ChicagoInno Groupon founders' auto startup Drivin sold for $43M. ChicagoInno Iowa Survey: Midwest farmers have mixed feelings about investing in Agtech products. AgFunder News…
Drawn to startups: the work of Nathan T. Wright
Inspired by storytelling through imagery, we asked Nathan T. Wright to tackle our Q&A with illustration. We're hopeful to see more of his work regularly at Clay & Milk in the weeks to come. Until then, his answers to our questions, below. And his bio beyond that. C&M: For those who don't know you, please draw…
What will save rural America?
This question is much larger than the niche of our readership and perhaps the scope of our disciplines, but it’s always being asked nonetheless. And it matters — we've got a lot of rural. How do we reframe this type of question to better provide an answer we can solve? Will tech save rural America? Startups?…
Jami Milne, Author at Clay & Milk
A central Iowa ag-tech accelerator has secured more backers and finally has a name. The Greater Des Moines Partnership first announced the accelerator last year, naming four initial investors. On Monday, the Partnership said the program will be called the "Iowa AgriTech Accelerator" and named three new investors. The new investors include Grinnell Mutual, Kent Corp. and Sukup Manufacturing, all Iowa companies. They join investors Deere & Co., Peoples Co., Farmers Mutual Hail Insurance Co. and DuPont Pioneer. Each investor has agreed to put up $100,000 for the first year of the accelerator. Startups entering the program will receive $40,000 in seed funding in exchange for 6 percent equity. Tej Dhawan, an angel investor and local startup mentor, is serving as interim director until the AgriTech Accelerator names a permanent leader. Dhawan held a similar role with the GIA before Brian Hemesath was named as managing director. As interim director, Dhawan said his main job includes hiring the accelerator's executive director, establishing a business structure and initial recruiting for the first cohort. The accelerator will place few filters, such as location and product, on the applicant pool, Dhawan said. "When you’re seeking innovation, innovation can come from every corner of the world so why restrict ourselves," he said. One area the the AgriTech Accelerator won't recruit from is biotech. For its first cohort, the AgriTech Accelerator will work out of the GIA's space in Des Moines' East Village, Dhawan said. A future, permanent home is still to be decided. The accelerator's program will host startups from mid-July through mid-October, ending with an event connected to the annual World Food Prize. The GIA, which the AgriTech Accelerator is based on, also ends with presentations at an industry event. The accelerator has also started lining up a mentor pool. The Iowa Corn Growers Association, Iowa Soybean Association and the Iowa Pork Producers Association have agreed to provide mentors, as has Iowa State University. While the AgriTech Accelerator is loosely based off of the GIA, it will differ in its business structure, Dhawan said. The GIA runs through a for-profit model for both operations and its investment fund. The AgriTech Accelerator will have a nonprofit model for its operations and a for-profit setup for its fund. Dhawan said the nonprofit model is being used so the accelerator can better work with other nonprofit partners, such as trade associations. "These are all organizations that are nonprofits and can be amazing stakeholders without ever having to be investors in the accelerator," he said. "It becomes easier to work with trade associations in their nonprofit role when we are also a nonprofit." When it's up and running, the AgriTech Accelerator would be one of a handful of ag-focused startup development programs in Iowa. Others include the Ag Startup Engine out of Iowa State University and the Rural Ventures Alliance from Iowa MicroLoan. Matthew Patane is the managing editor and co-founder of Clay & Milk. Send him an email at mpatane@clayandmilk.com.
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