Bracket bash winner nets $50K in pitch doubleheader; three KC startups score spots among final four

Kansas came in clutch Tuesday — doubling the grand prize pool for this week’s Gamechangers and Champions pitch competition just before tipoff. Its jersey-clad winner scored $50,000 and a top seed among investors gathered for the state’s bracket bash for emerging entrepreneurs.

Tommy McAndrew, founder of Wichita-based SippTech, second from right, poses with Mary Beth Jarvis, NXTUS; Romaine Redman, Kansas Department of Commerce; Big Jay; and Adam Courtney, KU Innovation Park; photo by Nikki Overfelt Chifalu, Startland News

“When you’re in a startup business, money never hurts, non-dilutive money even more so,” said Tommy McAndrew, founder of SippTech, claiming victory at the University of Kansas Conference Center at David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium. “I think any entrepreneur could tell you how meaningful moments happen throughout the journey. And this is a small one that it would be hard for me to describe, but it’s significant. I’m thankful for it.”

The gametime decision to up the prize ante at the Gamechangers and Champions 2026 pitch competition came from Kansas Lt. Gov. David Toland. In addition to an extra $25,000 for the overall winner, he surprised attendees of Tuesday’s event by announcing that Kansas’ Office of Innovation would also commit another $25,000 to be distributed among the finalists.

“We are serious as a state about accelerating the growth of the types of companies and entrepreneurs who are here — making sure that we’re making the connections between the capital providers and these companies,” added Toland, who also serves as Secretary of Commerce for Kansas.

Kansas Lt. Gov. David Toland speaks during the Gamechangers and Champions 2026 pitch competition; photo by Nikki Overfelt Chifalu, Startland News

A base prize of $25,000 was sponsored by the University of Kansas School of Business during the bracket-style pitch competition — organized by NXTUS, the Kansas Department of Commerce, and the KU Innovation Park — that saw 75 applicants narrowed to 32 contenders, then down to 16; with only eight left to compete on event day.  

Winning innovation concept SippTech — a Wichita-based industrial tech startup already under contract for a critical project in Cleveland, Ohio — is redefining the future of trenchless infrastructure rehabilitation through innovation in materials, automation, and performance-driven design, McAndrew said.

Tommy McAndrew, founder of SippTech, answers questions from judges during the Gamechangers and Champions 2026 pitch competition; photo by Nikki Overfelt Chifalu, Startland News

“What do water pipes and startups have in common?” the founder asked Tuesday’s judges and a crowd of 280 investors, entrepreneurs, and business leaders during his pitch. “They all fail. Your task for today is to figure out how to select and support startup businesses. My job is the water pipes.”

“The EPA says $650 billion of investment is needed in order to renew our water infrastructure,” he continued. “SippTech uses robotics to 3D print a pipe inside of the existing pipe. Our differentiator is that we have an elastomeric foam layer that acts like padding in a helmet. And we’re from Wichita, where they build cylindrical pressure vessels using robotics and additive manufacturing and composites with the primary strength coming from carbon fiber. They call it a fuselage. We call it a pipe.”

On his drive from Wichita to Lawrence, McAndrew noted, he was thinking about what he would do with the prize money if he won. The first thing that came to mind was flights home for his team members who are spending a lot of time in Cleveland, so they can spend more time with their families.

“Everything we do is about serving our people,” he explained. “The only thing you achieve is through them. So it’ll go into serving our people.”

Ashley McClellan, founder of Prairie Village-based MedCurate, shares a laugh with judges during the Gamechangers and Champions 2026 pitch competition; photo by Nikki Overfelt Chifalu, Startland News

Runner-up Ashley McClellan — founder of Prairie Village-based MedCurate, which is working to cure the healthcare staffing crisis — walked away with $10,000 thanks to the state-boosted prize pool.

“It’s been a really tough competition,” she shared. “There were great ideas and entrepreneurs across our region that were a part of the competition. So I’m just really grateful that I got to participate and share our story and the work that we’re doing at MedCurate, while also receiving some recognition to keep the work going.”

McClellan felt encouraged after a day of networking with people who share the same vision and support entrepreneurs in the Midwest, she said.

“I mentioned it in my comments when I was presenting: they say Allen Fieldhouse brings the home court advantage (for the KU basketball team),” McClellan continued, “and I feel like this ecosystem here with NXTUS really creates that home field advantage, as well, for entrepreneurs.”

Fellow finalists Kalin Baca with Lawrence-based Icorium and Barry Nelson with Olathe-based VisiPay each received $3,500 for earning a spot in the final group of four competitors.

Earlier in the day at the Gamechangers and Champions competition — set amid the excitement of the Men’s Big 12 Basketball Tournament being hosted in Kansas City this week — the “Innovative Eight” were revealed with each presenting a one-minute elevator pitch (complete with a shot clock) to the crowd. 

Organizers, sponsors and startup contenders at the Gamechangers and Champions 2026 pitch competition; photo by Taylor Wilmore, Startland News

Throughout the day, those eight were evaluated by regional venture capital leaders, who selected the final four. The smaller group then delivered their full, five-minute pitches to a panel of judges.

The Innovative Eight included:

• Enrichly Fun (Romy Carlson), Overland Park
• Icorium (Kalin Baca), Lawrence
• MedCurate (Ashley McClellan), Prairie Village
• ​​Myndset (Craig Mason), Lawrence
• PLOT (Chris Callen), Wichita
• SippTech (Tommy McAndrew), Wichita
• VisiPay (Barry Nelson), Olathe
• WRAX (Frankie Elder-Reedy), Pleasanton

Conor Adler, program manager for NXTUS and syndicate manager for Accelerate Venture Partners, speaks during the Gamechangers and Champions 2026 pitch competition; photo by Nikki Overfelt Chifalu, Startland News

Over a three week period, Conor Adler — NXTUS program manager — noted, dozens of high-growth startups applied for the competition from 14 Kansas counties, representing nearly every corner of the state.

“We saw companies across software and AI, bioscience and healthcare, ag tech and advanced manufacturing, consumer products, energy and infrastructure,” he continued. “And what’s especially exciting is that the founders came from nine rural Kansas counties, alongside innovation hubs like Johnson, Sedgwick, and Douglas counties. That tells us something important. Innovation in Kansas isn’t isolated to a few cities. It’s happening across the entire state.”

Pleasanton-based Wrax — a sports bra company founded by Frankie Elder-Reedy to provide women the freedom to move their bodies with strength and confidence — was voted the fan favorite, winning the $5,000 prize ($2,500 sponsored by the Barton School of Business at Wichita State University).

“I was super surprised,” she shared. “The best part of it, to me, is always connecting with other founders and strengthening that network.”

Frankie Elder-Reedy, founder of Pleasanton-based Wrax, stands with Big Jay after winning the fan favorite award; photo by Nikki Overfelt Chifalu, Startland News

With demand exceeding output, Elder-Reedy said, the prize money will go straight to production.

 “It’s just going to pay for products and get products on bodies,” she added.

Tuesday’s business and innovation summit also featured networking opportunities, industry leader speakers, and educational sessions for founders and investors.

“We’re here to kick off a day dedicated to innovation, entrepreneurship, and investment across the state of Kansas,” noted Adam Courtney, CEO of KU Innovation Park. “Events like this bring together the people who move ideas forward — founders building new companies, investors supporting world visions, university partners advancing research and ecosystem — leaders working to strengthen opportunity across our region.”

Check out a photo gallery from the event below, then keep reading for remarks from the Gamechangers and Champions keynote speaker, Neal Sharma.

Neal Sharma — co-founder of now-exited DEG and vice president of the Kansas City FIFA World Cup 26 board of directors — gave a keynote address about the importance of cultivating a productive entrepreneurial headspace.

Neal Sharma, co-founder of now-exited DEG and vice president of the Kansas City FIFA World Cup 26 board of directors, delivers keynote remarks during the Gamechangers and Champions 2026 pitch competition; photo by Nikki Overfelt Chifalu, Startland News

“What I’m here to do is convince you that the actual notion of being an entrepreneur is more than just a career path,” he explained. “It’s more than just a job title or a vocation that you might have. It’s actually a mindset.”

Sharma also touched on how the World Cup — what he likes to call the largest event to be hosted by mankind in the history of mankind — relates to this way of thinking.

“The entrepreneurial mindset is to think about the opportunities that might present,” Sharma explained, “and entrepreneurs should see what that means, the opportunity — not just now — but into the future.”

“And not just now for the bars and restaurants and hotels,” he added, “but into the future for the opportunity for us to position the Kansas City region as a place where sport can become an export. Entrepreneurs see that the gravity of such an event — within the difference from the norm — gives you the opportunity to create something. Does it come with challenges? Absolutely, but no good opportunity doesn’t come with overcoming the challenges.”

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