008 Think Big Radio: Blake Miller's StartupBus Experience

Blake Miller, partner and web developer at Think Big Partners, had the opportunity to travel from Las Vegas to Austin, Texas on StartupBus—a 72 hour roadtrip-meets-hackathon.  Along the way, Blake collaborated with other “buspreneurs” to build and launch a website while heading down to South by Southwest in Austin. Blake sat down and told Think Big Radio all about his StartupBus experience...

008 Think Big Radio: Blake Miller's Startup Bus Experience
REVIEW US!  We want to hear what you think of Think Big Radio.  Give us a review on iTunes.  

Follow Blake! @BlakeMiller32

AgLocal: Bringing Power to the Meat Lover and Innovation to the Midwest

Take a drive through the Midwest and you'll see a lot of a little.  You'll see cornfields.  You'll see flat farmland.  And you will certainly see grazing cows.  And although many people joke about the snoozefest that is endured while driving through the Midwest, it's that uneventful, flat farmland that has helped to jumpstart one of the coolest startups at SXSW.

Don't believe me?  Take a look at AgLocal, a startup based out of Overland Park, Kansas, picked to pitch at this year's SXSW Accelerator.

Co-founded by Naithan Jones and Jacob McDaniel, AgLocal is a marketplace that connects independent farmers and producers with the demand of local businesses and consumers.  AgLocal is made up of a mobile app as well as a website that aim to provide producers with better local options for cheaper, higher-quality meat.  In other words, AgLocal brings "power to the meat lover."

"I am really looking forward to the energy, the creativity and the people at South by Southwest," said Naithan Jones of his anticipated venture.  "South by Southwest is a hub of ideas.  I cannot wait to spread the word about AgLocal there."  

AgLocal is one of 48 contestants (chosen from a pool of 670!) to participate in SXSW's Accelerator on March 12-13 in Austin, Texas.  The Kansas-based startup will compete in the Innovative Web Technologies portion of the Accelerator against Trapit, OneID, Scrible, Prism Skylabs, Viztu Technologies, BrandYourself.com and ZeroDesktop (a majority of which reign from California).

According to Jones, AgLocal is extremely unique to the other competitors in the Innovative Web Technologies category.

"We are not a tech company, we are a people company that uses technology," he explains. "We stand out and have the ability to be very unique because we have much more to educate people on.  We are also one of the only companies in the Midwest featured at SXSW.  This is a great opportunity to talk about innovation coming out of the Midwest. None of this would have been possible without the support we've gotten from Kansas City."

In addition to being honored as a contestant in the Accelerator at SXSW, AgLocal is also a featured startup for the Startup America portion of SXSW, which is to take place on March 12th in Startup Village.

But what's next for AgLocal after SXSW?  Because the Midwest startup will be experiencing so much exposure down in Austin, the startup is preparing for big things during the remainder of 2012.  According to Jones, AgLocal will continue to build by running hackathons, hiring new interns, collaborating with developers in San Francisco, finalizing products and closing major deals.

Best of luck to Naithan Jones and then entire AgLocal team during SXSW!  We will be rooting for you from Kansas City!

How does Naithan Jones Think Big?

"I always ask myself what I can do that's bigger than myself.  I want to work with people who understand a problem and have a desperate need to help solve it.  That's my take on startups in general.  I also believe it's important to take life seriously, but not yourself seriously."

-- Naithan Jones, AgLocal

Follow AgLocal! @AgLocal

Follow me! @AllisonThinkBig

Kansas City Startups Make Appearances at 2012 SXSW: LiveOn, AgLocal and Think Big Partners

There's no doubt about it: Kansas City is on the startup map.  From the Kauffman Foundation to Google Fiber, from Think Big Partners to KCSourceLink, Kansas City entrepreneurship is beginning to make make a name for itself.

And now, Kansas City entrepreneurship is on its way to Austin, Texas for South by Southwest (SXSW) from March 9th-13th.

LiveOn: Finalist for Technical Achievement Award
South by Southwest chose LiveOn among four other Finalists to compete for the Technical Achievement Award, which recognizes projects that are "re-inventing and re-defining the technical parameters of our online experience". This recognition has arrived three months after LiveOn launched its public beta site and four months after LiveOn was named a Global Entrepreneurship Week 50 company of 2011.  The awards event will take place on March 13, 2012 in Austin, Texas and will coincide with the annual South by Southwest Interactive festival.


AgLocal: Competitor in Innovative Web Technologies

AgLocal, an Overland Park startup, was chosen from more than 670 companies as one of the 48 that will participate in the SXSW Accelerator program.  The startup will compete in the Interactive Web Technologies portion of the Accelerator on March 12th-13th in Austin.  AgLocal is a marketplace that connects independent farmers and producers with the demand of local businesses and consumers.  

Think Big Partners: StartupBus Participant

Yesterday, one of Think Big's partners, Blake Miller, was chosen to participate on StartupBus, where he will join a number of other entrepreneurial strangers to launch a startup in 72 hours all in the confinement of a bus traveling at 60 miles per hour.  Blake will join StartupBus conductor Jeff "SKI" Kinsey and other entrepreneurs in Las Vegas and will roadtrip to Austin for SXSW. Along the way, Miller will help the team launch a startup and will have the opportunity to visit Rackspace in San Antonio.  (Stay tuned!  Blake will be live blogging from the StartupBus about his experience!)

Best of luck to those participating in SXSW and for those headed down to the event.  Have fun, get inspired and don't forget to Think Big along the way.

LiveOn Joins Eye-Fi, IBM, Google & Tourism New Zealand in Competition for SXSW Technical Achievement Award

WRITTEN BY ALLISON WAY, SENIOR COPYWRITER & CHIEF EDITOR
LiveOn, a site that enables users to capture memories and share with future generations, has joined Eye-Fi, IBM, Google and Tourism New Zealand as a finalist for technical achievement at the South by Southwest Interactive Awards on March 13, 2012, in Austin, Texas.

South by Southwest (also coined as SXSW) Interactive is an event that features five days of presentations from entrepreneurs in emerging technology and spotlights the best new websites, video games and startup ideas. South by Southwest chose LiveOn among four other Finalists to win the Technical Achievement Award, which recognizes projects that are "re-inventing and re-defining the technical parameters of our online experience". This recognition has arrived three months after LiveOn launched its public beta site and four months after LiveOn was named a Global Entrepreneurship Week 50 company of 2011.

"We are honored to be recognized with these other cool technologies," said Ben Kittrell, LiveOn's Director of Development. "But we are the only ones that really change the way people use the Internet and perceive the Internet as a tool. We are trying to personalize the Internet."

LiveOn launched out of Kansas City, Missouri with the help of KC-based startup accelerator and mentorship-based collaborative workspace, Think Big Partners. According to LiveOn staff, the startup had an advantage going into the running for the South by Southwest awards because it has launched and grown out of Kansas City. Kansas City has become a breeding ground for entrepreneurs, startups and investors due to recent announcements such as Google Fiber, Think Big Partners' Gigabit Challenge, and new developments from The Kauffman Foundation. All initiatives are helping to launch and grow startups like LiveOn in and around Silicon Prairie. LiveOn believes that SXSW wanted more Kansas City-based startups in attendance due to the city's growing impact on the entrepreneurial community.

"We are looking forward to exploring more investment opportunities at South by Southwest," said Kittrell. "We want to get the site out there and make meaningful connections."

Linsey Grams, LiveOn's Director of Media and Communications, added, "It will be a good chance to see first-hand where the competition is heading. Staying abreast is half the battle."

The awards event will take place on March 13, 2012 in Austin, Texas and will coincide with the annual South by Southwest Interactive festival. For more information on South by Southwest, visit http://sxsw.com/.

Follow LiveOn! @LiveOnNow & @LiveOnRewind

Follow me! @AllisonThinkBig