ENTREPRENEURSHIP

RESOURCES •  

HISTORY •  
 

Entrepreneurial Ecosystem

Rooted in history, our region is continuing to break barriers. KC has a legacy of entrepreneurial innovation spanning more than 125 years. It is a mashup of new ideas and American creativity—an intersection of culture, innovation and imagination.

With a vibrant entrepreneurial ecosystem, KC is first in the nation for startup growth rate and second best for startup density. KC has plenty of access to meaningful collaboration and substantial capital. There are 2,000+ events hosted each year to help educate, inspire and connect entrepreneurs along with 246 business-building resources in the KC region.

By The Numbers

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#1
city for startup growth
Inc., 2019


1st
gigabit region in the nation


246
KC business-building resources
KCSourceLink, 2019


$1.6 Billion
KC startup funding: 2016 - 2018
KCSourceLink, 2019


$7 Billion
total exports from the KC region
International Trade Administration, 2018

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There are many success stories in KC, but becoming the first gigabit region in the U.S. in 2011 spurred a lot of entrepreneurial growth. KC has since continued to prioritize entrepreneurship and support it's transformative potential. Amazon Web Services is leveraging KC's innovative and connected environment to build out its first AWS Smart Region with Sprint’s wi-fi in partnership with Xaqt, one of the startups that began its story in the KC Entrepreneurial Ecosystem.

The KC region has an ecosystem that includes multiple cities that partner with and support tech startups through grants, pitch competitions, and partnerships with large firms in ongoing work. Other large firms like Cisco, Black and Veatch and H&R Block have acquired startups from this community to increase the pace of innovation in their firms. It's easy to tap into this network of innovation and grow.

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