Shopping, sword-fighting and silliness: Meet the first-ever WIN Reactor graduates

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From a retro-futuristic driving game to a healthy shopping and eating app, more than six months of stealth startup work going on at the Washington Interactive Network (WIN) accelerator was shown off at a demo day on Thursday afternoon. It’s been nearly two years since WIN was awarded a $1.2 million grant for what’s now called the WIN Reactor, also known… Read More…

How this startup went from Microsoft’s Kinect Accelerator to creating a kickass iOS app

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If you haven’t heard of Freak’n Genius, well, the past week at the company will tell you everything you need to know. The Seattle-based startup just debuted a extremely funny mobile app called YAKiT, which lets you manipulate the mouths of your family, friends, cats, dogs, celebrities and really, just about anything. To help promote and market… Read More…

Hilarious Freak’n Genius app YAKiT lets you move mouths to make photos funny

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The folks over at Seattle-based Freak’n Genius certainly know how to make us laugh, and their newest app is no exception. The latest LOL-inducing program is called YAKiT, a mobile app that lets you manipulate the mouths of your family, friends, cats, dogs and really, just about anything. It’s essentially just like JibJab, but with added messaging and social… Read More…

GeekWire Awards: Vote for Young Entrepreneur of the Year

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We’ve collected hundreds of nominations and listened to the feedback of dozens of expert judges. Now, it’s your time to vote for the best and brightest in the Pacific Northwest technology community. We’re kicking off public voting today for the GeekWire Awards. Over the next two weeks, you’ll get the chance to vote in 14… Read More…

Startup junkie Kyle Kesterson on how he mashes creative design with technology

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Freak’n Genius co-founder Kyle Kesterson is a creative guy. After quitting his job as a professional toy designer, he got a call from a friend inviting him to Startup Weekend. Though he initially dismissed it as too “geeky,” his friend wouldn’t let it go. The next morning, Kyle found himself surrounded by entrepreneurs, bitten by… Read More…

Four minutes on the train with … Kyle Kesterson of Freak’n Genius

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Editor’s note: Team GeekWire participated in the Geeks on a Train voyage between Portland, Seattle and Vancouver, B.C. Tuesday night as part of the GROW conference, taking place this week in Vancouver. We chatted with folks along the way for short four minute interviews, talking about a variety of tech topics. In this installment, we… Read More…

Freak’n Genius: Animation startup uses Microsoft Kinect to tap your inner goofball

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Kyle Kesterson may be known around Seattle as a talented designer, artist and active participant in the Startup Weekend hackathons. But did you know that the entrepreneur also was the Geico Gecko? During University of Washington basketball games back in 2009, Kesterson donned the mascot costume of the insurance giant, entertaining fans with his outrageous… Read More…

Kyle Kesterson enters Startup Battle with tapeworm game, and help from Sir Mix-A-Lot

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At Startup Weekend in Seattle earlier this month, Seattle artist and designer Kyle Kesterson and crew wowed the crowd with their new game for Kinect, Android and iOS called In Digestion in which players assume the character of a giant tapeworm by the name of Marvin. Now, Kesterson is hoping that the tapeworm will get… Read More…

Kyle Kesterson’s wacky tapeworm game wins top honors at Startup Weekend

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Kyle Kesterson made a name for himself as the creative force behind Giant Thinkwell, the Seattle celebrity gaming startup whose mascot is a lovable squid. But Kesterson, who left Giant Thinkwell last month, now appears to have tapeworms on the brain (or the intestine for that matter). The artist and designer emerged tonight as the… Read More…

Done eating squid for now, Kyle Kesterson charts new course after Giant Thinkwell

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Kyle Kesterson, the co-founder and creative force behind Seattle startup Giant Thinkwell, is leaving the company in order to pursue new opportunities. What those are, Kesterson isn’t quite sure yet. “I have a vision and a passion for what I want to collaborate on and where I want to leave my mark and it is… Read More…