UMKC Innovation Center

City of Entrepreneurs at Union Station during the World Cup? You know we had to check out the booths, ranging from Startland News to Someday Sunday to activities like Kasim Hardaway's art installation.

The crew from UMKC Innovation Center hopped on the KC Streetcar and popped in for conversations, connections and shopping. We walked away with coffee, candles, salsa, ice cream, tamales and, most of all, inspiration.

Goooal completed.

Applications are now open for the 2026 Startup World Cup Regional Tournament, the world’s top pitch competition, and an opportunity to compete for a $1 million investment prize. Applications open for tech-based or tech-enabled startups operating in Western Missouri or Eastern Kansas.

Kansas City will host the regional tournament on Sept. 22, 2026, at CPKC Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri, where ten finalists will pitch live before judges and an audience. The Kansas City winner will advance to the San Francisco Grand Finale.

Link in the comments for application details. Apply by August 6th. Let's go!

Speaking engagements are a powerful platform for your business and your brand as an entrepreneur and leader. Each year, Global Entrepreneurship Week – Kansas City is one of many high-profile opportunities to share your story and showcase what you have to offer peers, clients, and community. Here’s why you should apply to speak at GEWKC, Nov. 16–21, 2026.

You Know Best
As a speaker, panel moderator, business owner or subject matter expert, you can relay your experience and help attendees navigate the realities of building a business.

Show eager learners how you did it. Offer your expertise. Perhaps you provide professional services in access to capital, business law, intellectual property, tax accounting, social media or AI marketing. New business owners will want to learn from you.

Last year at GEWKC, Monique Shurray White led a session on “Power Pitches: How to Nail Your Next Media Pitch.” As an established entrepreneur and business leader, you can help others to avoid mistakes while growing a sustainable business. What you know can be the basis for a presentation on that topic, a panel discussion, or a hands-on workshop to guide others.

Connect With Your Community
Speaking is the new networking, a way to get in front of a lot of people at one time and share your expertise. Leading a session at GEWKC connects you with like-minded entrepreneurs, decision makers and service providers. You’re literally in the same room with people who have a natural interest in your topic.

Exchanging ideas and experiences with people in the room creates an opportunity to test out a pitch, refine ideas and get real-time feedback.

Know and grow, together. Frequently, session hosts also find inspiration and encouragement from others even as they share their expertise.

You’re creating an opportunity to bond with people who speak your language. These moments create genuine connection and mutual respect often centered around empathy and understanding.

Visibility Creates Opportunity
Leading a workshop or talk establishes your expertise, creates clout, strengthens credibility and reinforces your authority as a subject matter expert. GEWKC gathers a wide array of savvy thinkers and innovators who might be your next customer, partner or mentor. Creating visibility lets them know you exist, what you’re interested in and increases your appeal as a professional connection who knows what you’re talking about.

Ready is a State of Mind
Leading a talk or moderating a panel discussion may seem intimidating. Taking the first step to apply is usually the hardest step. Something to consider: every speaker has had their first time too.

Anyone can submit a session. Since its inception in 2008, GEWKC has featured countless business owners, leaders and experts who presented at the annual gathering for the first time. You can do it, too.

The link to apply as a GEWKC speaker is in the comments.

Startup World Cup opens bracket (and $1M prize) to KC startups; regional tournament this fall at CPKC Stadium Ten Kansas City finalists are expected to compete this September for a spot in the world’s largest startup conference and pitch competition — pitting Heartland innovation against founders from more than 100 regions around the globe.