M25’s Managing Partner, Victor Gutwein, recaps his 2023 visit to the Pittburgh tech ecosystem. I love visiting Pittsburgh and it had been too long. I was primarily in town to visit the RustBuilt Investor Day during XchangeInnovation Week at the AlphaLab space in East Liberty. It was a really helpful…

A top-3 shakeup, a growing unicorn herd and more capital than ever before — The annual Midwest Cities Rankings are our yearly deep dive into understanding how micro-environments in the Midwest are performing relative to one another in terms of startup activity, access to resources, and business climate. To view the full rankings, visit the city rankings page on Midwest Startups. The story this year is not a simple story to tell. Coming off a blistering 2020–21 year, that momentum continued through the second half of 2021 — and then seemed to abruptly stop. From the public markets on down to growth stage to Series A and even seed, activity has…

The Midwest is perfectly positioned to survive a venture capital market ‘reset’ — Long overlooked and under-hyped, the powerhouse Midwest¹ economy has seen a renaissance the past few years. From the regional hub and megatropolis Chicago (12+ new unicorns minted in 2021 — check out feature stories here and here and here) to state tech beacons Columbus, Pittsburgh and Kansas City to collegetowns…

The Competition Heats Up 🔥🔥🔥 — The annual Midwest Cities Rankings are our yearly deep dive into understanding how micro-environments in the Midwest are performing relative to one another in terms of startup activity, access to resources, and business climate. To view the full rankings, visit the city rankings page on Midwest Startups.

For the 4th Annual ranking of 50+ Midwest tech ecosystems, a LOT has changed. — The annual Midwest Cities Rankings are our yearly deep dive into understanding how micro-environments in the Midwest are performing relative to one another in terms of startup activity, access to resources, and business climate. To view the full rankings, visit the city rankings page on Midwest Startups. National skepticism and…

Episode 4 Why You Should Build and Invest in Startups Here The Midwest¹ is a large, diverse, populous region with a vibrant, rapidly-growing tech economy. While it hosts roughly 10% of all US-based VC-backed startups, it consistently receives less than 5% of all VC funding (3 states — New York…

Episode 3 — Why You Should Build and Invest in Startups Here The Midwest ¹ is a large, diverse, populous region with a vibrant, rapidly-growing tech economy. While it hosts roughly 10% of all US-based VC-backed startups, it consistently receives less than 5% of all VC funding (3 states — New York, California and Massachusetts — received 78% of all VC $…

Episode 2 — Why You Should Build and Invest in Startups Here The Midwest ¹ is a large, diverse, populous region with a vibrant, rapidly-growing tech economy. While it hosts roughly 10% of all US-based VC-backed startups, it consistently receives less than 5% of all VC funding (3 states — New York, California and Massachusetts — received 78% of all VC $…

Episode 1 — Why You Should Build and Invest in Startups Here The Midwest ¹ is a large, diverse, populous region with a vibrant, rapidly-growing tech economy. While it hosts roughly 10% of all US-based VC-backed startups, it consistently receives less than 5% of all VC funding (3 states — New York, California and Massachusetts — received 78% of all VC $…