When Gazella launched in 2016, the company wanted to change the way individuals interacted with public wifi. While that goal still holds true, 2017 was a year of change for the wifi marketing startup.
Founder and CEO Eric Burns said the company spent the last year growing, developing a new product and educating people on what exactly wifi marketing is. After important pivots and developments in the preceding months, Gazella is heading into 2018 with a clearer, all-encompassing vision.
Read more
––
Entrepreneurs and startup teams spend countless hours paying attention to things like validating business ideas, developing products and raising capital. Burning the candle at both ends sometimes means that health and nutrition take a back seat. Amber Pankonin is on a mission to help.
“Startups fail for a number of reasons, and burnout is one of them,” said Pankonin, a Registered Dietician. “We assume failures happen due to poor cash flow, a poor business model or competition. We rarely attribute failure to health or stress.”
Read more
––
I’m fortunate to belong to two super rad communities: the Subscription Box industry and the Midwest Startup community. One thing that I’ve learned from people far smarter and more successful than me is the importance of transparency and honesty in building a healthy, vibrant community.
When you’re in the trenches of starting, supporting or working at a startup, hearing that your neighbor is having the same experiences can be validating. Sharing a load lessens the weight. When two people share the same problem and empathize, they can work together to solve it. Or maybe they just need to vent. That’s okay too! Sometimes a drink and a whine session with a pal are worth more than an Excel formula.
Read more
––
This year, Omaha-based insurance app developer HATCX released their first app that aimed to make out-of-pocket costs easier to understand for consumers buying medical services. With a new year and new services just around the corner, the startup is challenging the entire insurance industry to become more transparent and customer friendly.
“Our mission is really to take what’s overly complicated about health insurance and healthcare and make it simple,” said partner Lisa Pabian. “We want to put all of those things that are hard to understand, such as EODs Explanation of Benefits and costs, and put them into simple terms and present them in a way that people will interact with them, which is mobile first.”
Read more
For the past two decades, AIM has awarded students, educators and business leaders for their outstanding achievements in growing the area’s tech ecosystem. Winners being awarded at this year’s Tech Celebration include:
The host for this year’s Tech Celebration is comedian and actor Andy Buckley. He is known for his role as David Wallace, CFO of the Dunder Mifflin Paper Company, playing opposite Steve Carrell on NBC’s hit comedy “The Office.”
AIM Institute Tech Celebration
Wednesday, Nov. 15, 2017
5:30 p.m. Media Interviews, Networking, Cocktails and Entertainment
6:30 p.m. Awards Show
7:30 p.m. Dessert Reception
Omaha Design Center
1502 Cuming Street, Omaha, NE 68102
This event is free and open to the public. Registration is required for all attendees.
Invest Nebraska is a public-private partnership with the Nebraska Department of Economic Development, and is a major player in the advancement of high-growth businesses across the state.
“We are extremely honored to be the first organization in Nebraska to receive an award under the EDA’s i6 Program,” said Dan Hoffman, CEO of Invest Nebraska.” “Nebraska ranks 4th in the nation for total agricultural cash receipts and ranked 3rd in the nation for growth in technology jobs in 2015. Integrating more technology into agriculture can lead to significant AgTech startups in the state.”
To read more about how the grant will improve Nebraska’s AgTech sector, visit investnebraska.com.
Catch up on regional tech news with these recent top stories from Silicon Prairie News:
Archrival moved into Lincoln’s Haymarket ten years ago and quickly established itself as the cool kid on the block––not surprising since the creative agency specializes in youth brands and culture.
As the firm’s client base grew all the way to the coasts, their headquarters grew too. Archrival co-founder and Managing Director Clint! Runge said they took over square footage in the building as it became vacant over the years and while their office got bigger, it fell behind in functionality and expression of who and what the company is all about.
_
As a designer with no formal business training, I could be the last person qualified to write about the world of venture capital. However, over the last several years of working with dozens of startups seeking seed funding and scale-ups pitching for Series A, I’ve taken it upon myself to learn the language. (along with help from sources like Neil Murray’s newsletter, Series F).
But for those startups trying to get a handle on macro-level trends in the world of VC, I am going to share how I see it from an outsider’s perspective.
–
Omaha-based Alpha BTC recently opened a second Bitcoin ATM at The Mill Coffee and Tea in Lincoln’s Haymarket. Their first machine is located in Omaha at Jones Bros Cupcakes in Aksarben Village.
“We’re currently at about $50,000 per month on the Omaha machine. We’re hoping to grow Lincoln to a comparable amount,” said Edward Weniger, co-founder of Alpha BTC.
–
A chance meeting with an events coordinator from Australia at South by Southwest is turning into a six-month adventure Down Under for Mark Zmarzly, Founder of Lincoln Fintech startup Hip Pocket.
“I searched all the attendees for Fintech and reached out via LinkedIn to about 30,” Zmarzly said. “I had only connected with one until I met her near the end, and she was just awesome.”
–
Omaha, the largest city in Nebraska, sits on the state’s eastern border. Head west on I-80 for 45 minutes and you’ll hit Lincoln, Nebraska’s second largest city. Both cities have burgeoning tech-startup scenes, are raising capital and funding, and are making impressive contributions to the Silicon Prairie as a whole.
But what the two cities haven’t figured out yet is how to work together to share these resources in a way that works to the advantage of their individual strengths, while also raising the profile of the entire state and region.
