# Codefi

> Codefi is a Cape Girardeau, Missouri organization that builds a rural tech economy from the inside out - training AI-ready workers, standing up startups through an in-house studio, and moving capital into a corner of the state most funds ignore. Founded in 2014 inside a downtown building the city was ready to bulldoze, it now pairs AI-native tooling with a decade of coaching to help founders, career-changers, and small-town businesses ship real software.

- **Founded:** 2014
- **Headquarters:** Cape Girardeau, Missouri, United States
- **Founders:** James Stapleton (Co-founder & CEO), Chris Carnell (Co-founder)
- **Team size:** ~43 employees
- **Products:** AI Skills / Prompt to Product, Startup Studio (Traction Studio AI), Dev Studio, Builders Lab / Vibeathon, Cape Hub
- **Notable:** Founded southeast Missouri's first technology and entrepreneurship incubator (2014)., Trained 1,000+ technology and AI learners., Built and supported 100+ startups.

## Products & services

- **AI Skills / Prompt to Product** — Hands-on AI training for small business owners, founders, and career changers, including a 10-week 'Prompt to Product' track that takes a person from idea to working application, plus registered AI apprenticeships requiring no technical background.
- **Startup Studio (Traction Studio AI)** — Two-stage (Build and Scale) venture-building program powered by the Traction Studio AI platform, guiding founders from idea validation to investor readiness with AI tools plus human mentorship.
- **Dev Studio** — Outsourced software development services - prototypes, MVPs, and custom AI tools for startups and organizations.
- **Builders Lab / Vibeathon** — An organizational transformation program built around collaborative 'vibeathon' build events using AI-assisted development tools.
- **Cape Hub** — Regional coworking space in downtown Cape Girardeau hosting AI Industry Nights, the Builders Lab, custom AI training, private offices, and an upcoming AI supercomputer.
- **1ST50K Startup Competition** — Annual competition awarding $50,000 in non-dilutive grants plus free office space, discounted technical services, and investor introductions to startups willing to locate in Cape Girardeau; has crossed $1M in total grants awarded.
- **Youth Coding League** — A program that introduces computer programming to K-12 students across the region, positioning coding alongside athletics in rural schools.
- **AgTech AI Startup Studio** — A studio that systematically builds agriculture-technology companies by pairing local farmers and ag domain experts with technical builders, with Codefi acting as co-founder.

## Achievements

- Founded southeast Missouri's first technology and entrepreneurship incubator (2014).
- Trained 1,000+ technology and AI learners.
- Built and supported 100+ startups.
- Helped portfolio companies raise $60M+ in follow-on capital.
- Generated $100M+ in estimated economic impact in southern Missouri.
- 1ST50K competition crossed $1M in non-dilutive grants awarded.
- Secured a $2M U.S. EDA grant to build the 47-county Innovate SOMO network (2022).

## Latest updates

- **2025-11** — Announced the AgTech AI Startup Studio and an AgTech Vibeathon for Cape Girardeau at the Southeast Missouri Economic Development Symposium.
- **2025-06** — Reported latest funding of $2.1M as part of ongoing grant support.
- **2025** — Announced an AI-driven statewide relaunch of five interconnected programs - AI Skills, Startup Studio, Dev Studio, Builders Lab, and Missouri Ecosystem - with limited national expansion.

## Links

- Website: https://codefiworks.com
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/codeficonnects
- Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/codefiworks
- Facebook: https://facebook.com/codefiworks

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/codefi
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-08-16