Iowa Tech Podcast
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Insurance in an Era of Possibilities: Julie Pearce on the Global Insurance Symposium
In this episode of the Iowa Tech Podcast, host Kaylee welcomes Julie Pearce, co-chair of the 12th Global Insurance Symposium, to preview this year’s event happening April 14–15 at the Iowa Events Center in Des Moines. The program is designed by industry executives for industry professionals. Making the theme “Insurance in an Era of Possibilities,”…
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Inhalable, Room-Temp, Needle-Free: Immuno‑Nanomed’s Vaccine Moonshot
On this episode of the Iowa Tech Podcast, host Kaylee sits down with Dr. Balaji Narasimhan, CEO and founder of ImmunoNanoMed, to explore a moonshot innovation: a dry-powder, needle-free vaccine platform called “powder wax” that’s inhaled through the nose. Balaji explains how their particle-based technology could deliver stronger, faster mucosal immunity right where respiratory pathogens…
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Uniting Iowa’s Private Colleges on Entrepreneurship, Innovation, and AI in Northwest Iowa
On this episode of the Iowa Tech Podcast, host Kaylee sits down with Dr. Paula Kueter, professor at Morningside University and director of the Joan and Larry Arnold Entrepreneurship Center. Paula shares her journey across Iowa’s private colleges and her mission to elevate entrepreneurship beyond the state’s flagship institutions, spotlighting smart, creative students who often…
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A healthcare-focused venture studio based in Iowa
Host Kaylee welcomes Krista Martin, Partner at Novy (Novy Ventures), a healthcare-focused venture studio based in Iowa. Krista shares her path from product management and growth leadership in Iowa and Indianapolis to hands-on company building at a studio—crediting exposure to High Alpha’s model for inspiring Novy’s approach and community mindset. Inside Novy’s model Company’s First…
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Pivoting in Biotech with Dr. Tony Vanden Bush of Syntherna
On this episode of the Iowa Tech Podcast, host Kaylee Williams welcomes back Dr. Tony Vanden Bush, CEO of Syntherna, for a candid look at how the biotech startup has navigated a shifting market. Since their last chat in August 2024, attitudes toward RNA vaccines have cooled and animal-health regulatory timelines have lengthened – two…
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Welcoming the 12th GIA Cohort with Dan Israel
Host Kaylee kicks off the New Year on the Iowa Tech Podcast from Jethro’s Barbecue Studio with guest Dan Israel, Managing Director of the Global Insurance Accelerator (GIA). The GIA has just begun its 100-day program for its most international cohort yet: six startups representing founders from Sweden, the UK, Germany, Wales, Canada, and the…
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Poking Holes in Tradition: ReEnvision Ag’s Seed Spike and the Future of Precision Planting
Jayson Ryner, founder and CEO of ReEnvision Ag and entrepreneurship professor at NIACC, explains the Seed Spike planter—the first ultra–low soil disturbance planter built for the soil-health era. How Seed Spike Works Ryner explains how the simple “poke-and-place” mechanism lets farmers plant earlier with less power, improves emergence and spacing, and thrives in no-till and…
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Building an Entrepreneurial Culture at Drake University with Chase Spencer
Audio version: Host Kaylee welcomes Drake University’s Chase Spencer to the Iowa Tech Podcast from the Jethro’s Barbecue Studio. Chase, a Drake alum and newly appointed program manager for entrepreneurship, shares his journey from aspiring Disney Imagineer to political science student to founder and now ecosystem builder. Chase recounts graduating high school in 2020, pivoting…
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Mental Health, AI and Turning Tragedy into Purpose with Jeff Johnston of Brightn
Host Kaylee welcomes back Jeff Johnston, founder and CEO of Brightn, for a candid, inspiring conversation about purpose, product, and the realities of founder mental health. Jeff shares the deeply personal origin story behind Brightn. After losing his son Seth to fentanyl in 2016 and his wife five years later, he left a successful 32-year…
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Angels in the Krause (House) with Diana Wright
Host Kaylee welcomes back Diana Wright, Startup Community Builder at the Greater Des Moines Partnership, for a fast-paced debrief on this year’s Iowa Angel Investor Summit. Now in its fourth consecutive year (fifth overall), the Summit expanded to a two-part experience: a Fundamentals of Angel Investing workshop the night before and a full-day summit featuring…