Which is more scarce in the Kansas City startup community?

Talent follows capital as others have said and we have tremendous pools of talent locked into our corporate players. A lot of that talent would be unleashed if some of the startups could afford it.

Having capital directly solves the talent problem because in worst case scenario you have the money to hire from elsewhere. Best case scenario you have the money to keep already existing talent from having to move elsewhere for employment. In general KC investors tend to favor mature sectors over growth sectors, traction over innovation, and defensibility over disruption potential. Worse, much of they city's investable wealth is tied up in destructive activities like payday lending. Even the groups who should be the most risk oblivious - foundations and state mandated investment vehicles - tend to find ways to seek comfortable places to park money over early stage ideas with enormous potential.