Michael Clark is a native Iowan and a dedicated freelance software developer who loves the freedom and creativity it offers him. At the same time, he’s a naturally social animal, and, after moving back to Des Moines from a stint in Wisconsin in early 2016, Michael realized that he missed the routine, structure and camaraderie that a traditional setting sometimes offers. So, he signed up at Gravitate.

Matt Patane, technology and innovation reporter for the Des Moines Register and Geoff Wood, community builder at Gravitate, sit down for an in-depth discussion of the companies, events and ideas making news in the Iowa innovation community.

Topics discussed on this episode: Governor's STEM Council, Young African Leaders Initiative, Paul Singh's Iowa Tech Tour, NewBoCo & EntreFEST, Ag Startup Engine & Iowa State entrepreneurial programs, MERGE coworking space and prototype lab in Iowa City

Feedback, thoughts or suggestions? Hit us up on Twitter or email the show at mvp@gravitatedsm.com

Things have been coming together extremely fast in the last week for Paul Singh's Iowa Tech Tour (remember to click the Count Me In! button to get direct updates).

First of all, tremendous thanks to the folks who reached out to me after last week's announcement to help cover the final costs of bring Paul to Iowa for the week: Twilio and Square One DSM. With the support of these two organizations and the aforementioned Next Level Ventures, Iowa Venture Capital Association, Davis Brown Law Firm, NewBoCo and BrownWinick—Attorneys at Law we're in great shape for this series of events.

The online schedule will start to update very soon but for now I can let you in a few of the events that we have confirmed (events are in Des Moines unless otherwise noted).

Power Rankings Month #3! This month the rankings are more of "startup community" rankings as two support organizations that do a lot for entrepreneurs in Iowa make the list for the first time and in the top two positions. They're followed on the list by three startups, two of which return to the rankings for their second straight month.

If you’re in downtown’s Western Gateway and aren’t a habitual Starbucks sipper, Ritual Cafe is a wonderful, local alternative. Located just east of the Pappajohn Sculpture Park, the cozy coffee shop focuses on all things vegan, vegetarian, and organic in a bright, inviting atmosphere. 

Big news, friends! We're bringing Paul Singh's Results Junkies Tech Tour to Iowa the week of July 17. Paul (formerly of 500startups, DisruptionCorp and more) is a serial entrepreneur, investor and startup ecosystem expert that has been criss-crossing the country in an Airstream camper for most of this year. Each week he drives to a different community and packs his schedule full of meetups, keynotes, round tables, office hours, etc. to get to know local founders, investors and policy makers