Silicon Prairie News

Des Moines As you may be aware, the anticipated and recently rumored Series B funding news broke this week for the good folks at Dwolla in Des Moines. This round totalled $5 million and was not only raised out-of-Iowa but out-of-Silicon Prairie, with money coming in from both coasts. As rumored, the round was led by New York-based Union Square Ventures. Union Square, and its principal Fred Wilson (left) … read more

It had me thinking that though we're not all looking towards $5 billion IPOs for our startups, we may have something in common with the soon-to-be-über-rich Californian: the need to keep from being distracted. The startup community in the Silicon Prairie is growing. It's starting to mature but it's still early – one founder referred to it as "puberty" – and our current stage is one where more and more events are being planned and executed. It's a really exciting time and on some days you can schmooze, network … read more

2011 was an amazing year for us at Silicon Prairie News. With the addition of four new full-time team members, more than 1,000 blog posts and a healthy number of meetups, parties and other events, it's safe to say it was a year of tremendous growth and positive change for our company and the greater Silicon Prairie community. It's exciting to take a glimpse of some of the highlights from 2011 and … read more

You, the Silicon Prairie News community, know the stories behind Dwolla, Hudl and Zave Networks, which I shared in the Part 1 of this post. You also know that Scott Harrison of New York-based charity: water gave one of the most memorable presentations to the world in Omaha and that Ben Silbermann of Palo Alto's Pinterest, who’s leading what some are calling Silicon Valley’s hottest startup … read more

In an article featured on Forbes.com on Monday, Anneke Jong of The Daily Muse spotlights seven regions around the country that are burgeoning hubs for startup activity, including our very own Silicon Prairie. Each region has a name that plays off of the "Silicon" in Silicon Valley, which Jong describes as "a metonym for the entrepreneurial spirit that's fueled … read more

Omaha On Thursday, our story on Dwolla's new feature, "Instant," yielded our highest traffic day ever, an important accomplishment to cap off a major year of growth for Silicon Prairie News. By itself, the traffic was cause for celebration, but more important to our team was how the traffic came about. It was the result … read more

Des Moines Over the past week or two I've asked several folks in Des Moines the same question, "Who is the No. 1 startup in Des Moines?" The answer, almost always, is Dwolla. Some say it quickly while others try to determine a measurement criteria before answering, but either way Dwolla is where they end up. The question of "No. 1" might as well be rhetorical since what I really want everyone's thoughts … read more

Omaha If I remember correctly, I was in my middle school keyboard class when I first took notice of a series of black and white images that encouraged me to "Think different." As we tested for our highest WPM (words per minute), it was hard not to take a break, stare up at the series of at least a dozen posters and just daydream. There was Albert Einstein, Muhammad Ali, Amelia Earhart, Jane Goodall and, my favorite, Jim Henson and Kermit the Frog. Individuals whose very existence inspires the imagination. Yesterday, we lost one of those individuals. Not one featured in that campaign, but the one at the center of the company behind it and the person … read more